Tips & Apps For Saving While Studying Abroad

Make sure that you know the exchange rates wherever you are traveling. Every time you buy something, you should be able to to convert the price back into a currency that you know well. This is the best way know exactly how much you are spending. A great app that I have been using for these conversions is Currency. It has a nice, clean interface and has supported the currency everywhere I have traveled.

When getting cash, try to not rely on the currency exchange booths. Especially in touristy areas, these booths take a much higher fee than an ATM. Use an ATM and take out large amounts of cash at a time to minimize the amount of fees you are paying.

2. Food

Whenever possible, try to cook or make food for yourself. It is by far the cheapest option. My friends and I try to cook for every dinner during the week, which allows us to go to a couple good dinners every weekend. Epicurious is a great app that has so many cheap and easy recipes submitted by its users. It has helped us make some delicious meals.

When choosing your restaurants, do a little research to find a great economic option. Some of the best restaurants are often a little off the beaten path and very affordable. Tripadvisor has been our go-to app for finding some of the best food we’ve eaten in places that we wouldn’t normally go.

Another expense that can take up a lot of your budget is coffee. If you are abroad for a longer period of time, invest in a coffee maker. It will definitely pay for itself and cut coffee out of your daily purchases.

3. Travel

Traveling away from the city in which you are working or studying during the weekends is a great way to make the most out of your internship experience. However, this can be very pricey if you are not smart about your traveling.

The best way to save travelling is to stay away from major tourist attractions like Paris or Venice, especially if you are abroad over the summer. Try to find cool places close by so that you can take a bus or train and save a ton on transportation.

Discount airline or bus companies can also be a huge help in finding cheap transportation. Our favorite to use is RegioJet. Their buses offer free wifi and free movies on the seat in front of you. There are also many opportunities to find a place to stay for cheap. Hostels and Airbnb’s are both great options and available anywhere you may travel.

4. Phones

If you’re going to use data on your phone often, the best option is to buy a new sim card once you arrive abroad. It is like paying for a regular cell phone plan in the US, but you have a number from wherever you are living. If you are like me and rarely need to use data, you can set up a daily plan and only pay for days in which you use data.

Also, talking on the phone internationally can be expensive, but WhatsApp has been a lifesaver. It is great for making calls and messaging back home completely for free.

5. Other Small Tips

Make sure to have a student ID with you to take advantage of student discounts wherever you are. Even if the discounts are not posted, there is no harm in asking if they are available.

Public Transportation is a great way to get around anywhere you are travelling. It is always cheap and, most of the time, easy to understand. Citymapper has supported most of the cities that we have visited and is a great way to help you get from point A to point B. Using public transportation is a great way to save money everyday instead of taxis or Ubers.

Plan your weekend trips far in advance. This allows you to look at many options to find the most practical transportation and most cost-effective place to stay.

The most important lesson that I have learned in living abroad is how important it is to budget. Without setting budgets for different categories of your trip, it is impossible to truly know exactly how much you can spend in a given situation. I have been so happy with using the Spendee app and the way it has helped me with my budgeting. It has so many awesome features like allowing me to switch between currencies and connecting to my bank account to automatically sync the purchases I make on my card. I could not have had nearly the same success saving money without discovering this app.

With all of this talk of saving, it is also important to not go too crazy with trying to have the cheapest experience possible. Make sure to get as much out of your experience as you can. Having fun, exploring new places, trying new things and being immersed into a new culture all require some spending. Use these tips to help stick to your budget, but make sure to set a budget allows you to have an incredible time abroad.