How to save money on back-to-school shopping?
As the numbers of COVID-19 cases decreasing day by day, schools are colleges are returning to classroom learning. It’s good news, but it also means that you have to prepare a back-to-school shopping list. The real fact is that now your back-to-school shopping supplies might more expensive as compared to pre-COVID years.
Because of the pandemic, everything was closed, so families will need to spend more money this year on the school shopping list. According to a Deloitte survey, Parents expected to spend more dollars this year to buy school supplies like notebooks and stationary.
COVID-19 time showing us how important is digital and technology for us. During a pandemic, electronics sales touch the highest growth, and approx. 35% related to digital learning, whether from home or in classrooms. Internet, digital cameras, and laptops are common things that were high in demand by people.
As per the CNBC report, College students expect to spend an average of $1,200.32 — up about 13% from a year ago, according to the National Retail Federation. Back-to-college shopping is a big opportunity for the retailers as many families will need to buy laptops, headphones, bags, and much more.
But no matter what you need for your school or college, our back-to-school financial tips can suggest you plenty of ways to save hundreds of dollars. Just follow our below steps and fulfill all your school or college supplies without breaking your bank savings.
Start with school shopping list and budget
The best way to save money is by preparing a shopping list. You can make a school shopping list to avoid overspending and save money. Financial experts suggest creating a plan and making a list of the most important things to purchase, and then create a budget. In this way, you can pre-calculate how much funds you will spend on every item.
Start a discussion with your kids and find out what they want for back-to-school, and then assigned a fixed amount for each item. It helps you when you go out shopping, you just need to follow your shopping list and stick to your budget accordingly.
Leverage back-to-school sales
Many storefronts offer back-to-school sales before school and colleges start. This sale time is like a golden opportunity to stock up on school or college supplies and save hundreds of dollars. Alternatively, you can use product comparison websites and apps to compare the prices between different stores and crack the best deal.
Search for student discounts
If you are going to buy an electronic item such as tablets, laptops, printers, etc. for your school or college purpose, then try to grab student discounts. Companies and retailers provide separate discount offers for students to boost their sales. Many brands and retailers can give you even 15% or more discounts.
Compare prices on online stores
Before you shop around off-line stores, it is good to compare the prices of the products on an e-commerce website. Most of the shoppers look to top e-commerce websites like Amazon and BestBuy to take advantage of offers and deals. Amazon usually runs many discounts offers on festival seasons and on school college supplies where people save more dollars. You can also take the advantage of a price comparison website like PriceGrabber.ca and ensure to get the best price.
Buy used textbooks and refurbished electronics
You can save hundreds and thousands of dollars by purchasing pre-owned textbooks and refurbished electronics. Used textbooks and refurbished electronics are much cheaper than brand new items. If you get refurbished items in great condition, you may not even tell the difference between used and same new item.
Try to find and compare textbooks on Bookfinder.com to grab the best deal. For refurbished items, you can visit your local pawn shops or check the Facebook Marketplace to buy used electronics and back-to-school supplies.
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Expend your shopping search
It is very important to spread your shopping search and not limit it to only e-commerce discounts. There are many other wholesale storefronts in Canada where you get good quality school and college supplies at low prices. Please note that it is not worth paying a membership fee for back-to-school shopping savings.
Buy used school essentials
Buying new clothing can be a costly deal every year, especially shopping for kids. But smart people save hundreds of dollars by shopping at thrift shops and online stores such as Poshmark. Visit there and you can find out that most of the clothing is in good condition as new, and even you find branded items at low prices. You can shop for other school items also such as lunch boxes, backpacks, and much more. Use this hack and Save the money to put into your savings account for future usage.
Use cash-back apps and offers
You can increase your money-saving on back-to-school shopping by using apps that offer cash-back. Just sign-up for these apps and they will give you cash-back for shopping. Rakuten is favorite apps that give cash back for shopping even for school and college supplies through major retailers. Amazon also offers cash-back when you shop, you can use this cash-back for future purchases.
Get government financial assistance
Each country offers financial assistance programs for children’s education upliftment. Same as Canadian government offer Student aid and education planning for students with trouble-free education expenses. Some provinces in Canada offer Canadian child tax benefits to eligible families for the children’s growth and covering the education cost. Enroll yourself in such programs to get financial assistance for school activities.
Takeaway- Be money saver!
By doing back-to-school shopping on budget by using sales and discount offers you can save hundreds of dollars. Being a money saver, you can save yourself from overspending and exceeding your budget. You can use this saved money on other things or put it on your saving account for future requirements. Your kids will learn these financial habits from you and set their successful financial goals in the future.
Know that no one is secure financially even if you follow according to back-to-school saving plan, there are still some unexpected expenses that might arise. In this scenario, you can turn to Paydaymart.ca to get financial help at any time to cover your unexpected expenses. Apply for guaranteed payday loans and get up to C$5,000 instant cash help at low-interest rates to down the weight of the expenses from your shoulders.
