If you hadn't noticed, life is expensive these days. Now imagine trying to get by as a college student. Between the cost of food and room and board, it's hard to imagine being able to splurge on extracurriculars and fun. A CNET survey found that 78% of US shoppers are worried about being able to afford back-to-school tech purchases. Luckily, there are plenty of student discounts out there to help lighten the financial burden of going to a college or university.
If they're willing to do a little work to verify on the front end, students can actually save quite a bit on plenty of everyday items and services. Streaming platforms like Spotify, Hulu and YouTube Premium offer discounts to students with a valid .edu school email or proof of enrollment (usually through a service like SheerID or UNiDAYS). There are also deals out there on services like Babbel, Headspace and Amazon Prime. We've rounded up some great discounts for students, but also be sure to check for more perks offered through individual campuses.
Student discounts on food, fitness, travel and entertainment
Every once in a while it's nice to treat yourself to takeout, especially if you're in the dorms or living off Top Ramen. With DashPass for Students, college students can skip the delivery fee on restaurant orders (on purchases over $12) or grocery orders (on purchases over $25) and will have lower service fees in general. After verifying their student status, college students can enjoy DashPass at 50% off, which is $4.99 a month or $48 annually instead of the normal $9.99 a month or $96 a year. Depending on your order frequency, the delivery savings can really add up.
Amtrak can be a great way to travel, and it's even better when it's at a discount. Students between the ages of 17 and 24 with a valid student ID can save 15% on regular-priced fares when booking travel at least one day in advance. Get a head start planning that cross-country spring break train trip with friends. Or why not finally book a weekend trip to a neighboring town you want to explore?
If you're living off campus and have access to a kitchen, Blue Apron can be a great way to make fast, healthy meals each week. Students who verify through ID.me can save 25% on the first order of a new subscription, as well as get free shipping the first week. One of the great things about Blue Apron is that you can choose meals that are deemed "fast & easy," which are perfect for students and involve low prep and quick cook times. Your friends will be so impressed!
If you're traveling for fun or even back home for school breaks, you can take advantage of United's young adult discount of 5% on United Economy and Basic Economy seats if you're a MileagePlus member. The only stipulation is that you must be between 18 and 23 at the time of booking -- you don't actually have to be a verified student for this discount. Note that this discount is valid on flights within the U.S., select international flights departing the U.S. and some partner airline flights (booked as "UA" flights).
Love kombucha but not the price tag? Fear not: Students can use their UNiDAYS account to receive 25% off orders of Health-Ade Kombucha, Health-Ade Glow Up Kombucha or the brand's SunSip prebiotic soda. Improving gut health may not be at the forefront of your college pursuits, but when it tastes this good, it doesn't feel like work. And with a great discount, it's an even sweeter deal.
Dying to watch the Frasier reboot but can't afford Paramount Plus? College students no longer need to worry about that. Paramount Plus offers all college students 50% off any Paramount Plus subscription. All you have to do is verify your student status before signing up for a subscription.
You don't need a Peloton bike in order to take Peloton classes, which include not only cycling, but also HIIT, running, strength training, yoga and more. The Peloton app offers all that via phone, tablet and most streaming devices.
The regular subscription price is $13 a month and verified students with a valid college ID can get it for $6.99 per month. If you're going for the full app experience, App+ (with access to bike, treadmill and rower workouts) is $12.99/month or $75/year with the student discount. Additionally, you get the first month free if you've never tried Peloton before.
Need a pair of shoes or some athleticwear for the new school year? How about a bag or backpack? Nike's offerings span far and wide. Students over 16 (who've verified through SheerID) can get a discount code for 10% off most items on Nike.com or through the Nike app. The code is for one-time use, but you can get a new discount code every seven days if you want to make another purchase.
In addition to hardware discounts (see below), Apple offers its Music subscription service for students for up to 48 months. That subscription nets you access to some 50 million songs, and it's accessible on all your Apple devices. You also get Apple TV Plus at no extra cost.
Normally $13.99 a month, YouTube Premium is a two-fer: You get ad-free YouTube videos (including the option to download them for offline viewing) and unlimited access to YouTube Music for just $8 a month.
Just want YouTube Music? That service is $5.49 a month for students (regularly $10.99). Both options allow for a free one-month trial if you want to test the waters first.
Not to be confused with the Prime Music benefit, which is included with an Amazon Prime subscription, or Prime Student, which you can read about below. Music Unlimited is Amazon's full-on, massive-library music service, which rivals the likes of Apple Music and Spotify. Anyone who has a student subscription can get Music Unlimited for just $6 a month after a free 30-day trial -- by far the cheapest music-streaming option anywhere.
Arguably the best student deal in the history of student deals, Spotify Premium offers a $6 ad-free plan that includes Hulu (ad-supported). Nonstudents pay a minimum of $10 and $8 a month, for a grand total of $18. That's an awful lot of entertainment for $6.
If you already have a premium account, it's easy enough to convert to the student version. If you're part of a family plan, however, check into whether it would be cheaper for the family to keep you on the $16 plan.
Just want Hulu? Keep reading.
If you don't need or want Spotify or Showtime, Hulu proper now offers a dirt-cheap deal for students: Just $2 monthly for the standard plan (meaning with commercials), $6 off the regular price.
As with most any discounted membership, you just need to prove your eligibility with a valid student ID. Thankfully, this offer is good even if you're already a Hulu subscriber. It's not just for newcomers.
Keeping up with the news as a college student can be particularly challenging as online newspapers begin to up their subscription prices and print newspapers go out of business. If you want to stay in touch with what's happening in the world but don't want to pay outrageous subscription prices, The Wall Street Journal has the package for you.
For $4 a month full-time students can gain unlimited access to all articles and podcasts on The Wall Street Journal website. Prefer to read a physical newspaper? The WSJ also offers a Student Digital and Print Pack for $10 a month.
Learn about the world and the forces that shape it with a subscription to UK-based news magazine The Economist. Sign up now to get 75% off annual and monthly subscriptions ($62.25/year with the discount). Looking for something totally free? Students over 16 can get the Espresso app free of charge (normally $89/year), which includes four full-length articles each week, plus daily and weekly newsletters, weekly quizzes and more.
At-home workouts are hard, but Alo Moves helps to make them easy. Alo Moves offers guided classes in everything from pilates to yoga to dance cardio and even just announced their new running series, "Ready, Set, Run." After a month-long free trial, the subscription costs $5 per month or you can do the annual subscription for $49 per year. With this subscription, you'll also get 20% off your next in-app Alo Yoga purchase.
Student discounts on money management
For students going the credit card route, Capital One has two options: Savor Rewards and Quicksilver Rewards. Both cards have a $0 annual fee, a one-time cash-back bonus (once you spend $300 on purchases within three months of opening the account) and cash-back percentages on various goods and services. While you may have reservations about handing over a credit card to a college kid, it's a good way to build credit, instill fiscal responsibility and give you peace of mind that they'll be able to use it in case of emergency.
You Need a Budget offers a wealth of tools and classes to that end. It normally costs $99 a year or $15 per month, but as a student you can get the first year absolutely free. But be warned, unlike a lot of other digital services, the only way you get this discount is by submitting physical proof of enrollment to the company.
Financial institutions may offer student deals as well. Bank of America, for example, will waive monthly maintenance fees and overdraft fees if you're under 25 and you do all your banking through its banking app and ATMs.
Wells Fargo offers a similar deal to Bank of America's and will waive monthly service fees and overdraft fees for students 13 to 24 years old (teens 13 - 16 need an adult co-owner).
Student discounts on apps and software
Taking care of students' mental health is important too. Headspace offers an 85% discount on college student subscriptions (verified through SheerID), making an annual plan $9.99 -- which is 83 cents per month! With the subscription, they'll have access to more than 1,000 meditations and mindfulness resources that can help lighten the load that comes with stressful classes, exams, relationships and more.
If the college student in your life needs a little help in French class or wants to learn a new language for fun, they can take advantage of Babbel's student offer (verified through ID.me) and get three months of lessons for $15.99. Lessons are available in 13 languages and they go beyond the basics too -- courses are available in specific themes like travel, family, work and cuisine. Whether a student is looking to become proficient or just dabble in a new language, they can't go wrong at just over $5 a month.
Evernote gives students 40% off the professional version for a year. That works out to $6 a month for industrial-strength note-taking. After that first year, however, the price goes back to the regular $11 monthly.
A resume is one of the most important aspects of an initial job or internship application so make sure you have it done right with Resoume, the AI resume writer. It's simple all you have to do is import your information from LinkedIn, choose the resume theme and let Resoume do the rest. You can get this helpful tool for 77% off, taking the initial price tag of $180 all the way down to $40.
Student discounts on shopping and tech
With an Amazon Prime for Young Adults (18 - 24) membership, you can all get the benefits of a Prime subscription for half the price of the regular service. The program includes free one- and two-day shipping, video streaming via Prime Video, Prime Reading, Prime Music, discounts at Whole Foods, and unlimited online photo storage through Prime Photos.
Amazon Prime for Young Adults starts with a free six-month trial and then goes for $69 a year (half the cost of a regular Prime subscription). You can participate for four years. Plus, if you rent or buy or sell textbooks through the Amazon textbook store, you can get free two-day shipping. Another perk? 5% cash back on beauty, apparel, electronics and more.
Students, teachers and administrators can all score an extra 5% off Lenovo's laptops and that's on top of any existing sales or bundles (with a few exclusions, of course). You'll have to provide verification at checkout.
Apple offers modest discounts on Macs, iPads and more through its Education Store. The discounts are for current and incoming college students and their parents, as well as educators. Discounts typically are around 10% off the retail price. Students who purchase a Mac or iPad, can also receive AirPods or an eligible accessory (like a Magic Mouse) free.
