Being a college student is expensive. Between textbooks, tuition, and overall cost of living, this phase of life requires you to tighten your belt and live the life of a “starving student.”
Fortunately, many companies are aware of this struggle and want to make their products and services affordable for people enrolled in school. College and university students get a lot of freebies and exclusive discounts; you just need to know where to look.
Here is a list of student discounts you probably didn’t know about. At least being a student has its perks.
Amazon Prime
Amazon offers amazing discounts to students. These include deals on Amazon Prime membership that provide the first six months for free. After that, students pay just $6.50 a month (or $59 a year), which is far cheaper than the standard rate $12.99 a month or $119 a year. Membership includes free two-day shipping, a video-streaming service, and more.
Shopping and Clothing
Being a student doesn’t mean you can’t look your best. Take advantage of student discounts to get new outfits. Many clothing stores offer sweet deals for students, including BooHoo (30% off), Express (15% off), ASOS (5% cashback), Dockers (20% off), Lonely Planet (20% off), and Nike (10% off).
Apple
Apple has special offers for students every new school year. In 2021, they gave students free Airpods with the purchase of an Apple product such as an iPad or MacBook. They also offer 20% off Applecare.
Microsoft
What student doesn’t need Microsoft Office? Thankfully, due to licensing agreements between schools and Microsoft, many students can get the latest versions of Office, Windows, and more for absolutely free. Microsoft also provides students with 1 TB of free OneDrive online storage space.
Autodesk
If you’re an architecture or engineering student, or if a project you’re working on requires any kind of 3D design, you can get up to 50 useful apps for free with Autodesk. The included software usually go for over $59k per annum, but students can get a year’s subscription absolutely free. You just need to be a student or educator to register; Autodesk will verify your student status before allowing you to make the free downloads.
Entertainment
It’s nice to have some time to yourself after classes to relax and let go of stress. Some movie theatres offer discounts, such as AMC ($1-$2 discount on Thursdays) and Cinemark (discount varies by location). Movie and music streaming services also offer student discounts. Apple music offers 50% off a subscription, and Amazon Music Unlimited offers subscriptions for just $4.99 per month (or $6 for six months) for Prime Students.
Transportation and Travel
Whether you’re visiting your family or heading out of town for spring break, there are many transportation discounts to help you travel without breaking the bank. Greyhound offers 10% off. Students save 20% on all train trips to Europe via Eurail. Many car-rental services also offer student discounts, such as Avis (25% off), Hertz (15-20% off), Zipcar (cars can be found on campus), and Budget (20% off)
If you’re a college or university student, you can qualify for all these deals and more. Be sure to take advantage while you can – as soon as you graduate, everything’s back to full price.