Food is one of the biggest day-to-day expenses for students, and it’s often where money disappears without you realising. Buying lunch every day, relying on takeaways, or shopping without a plan can quickly push spending higher than expected.
The good news is that saving money on food doesn’t mean eating badly or spending hours cooking. With a few practical changes, students can cut costs while still eating well and keeping things convenient.
Use YouTube to Learn Simple, Affordable Meals
You don’t need to be a confident cook to make affordable meals. YouTube is packed with quick, beginner-friendly videos that show how to prepare simple dishes using low-cost ingredients.
Many student-focused creators share recipes that require minimal equipment, limited ingredients, and little time. Learning just a handful of go-to meals can make a big difference to your weekly food budget and reduce reliance on takeaways.
Shop Smarter with Aldi, Lidl and Own-Brand Products
Supermarkets like Aldi and Lidl are popular with students for a reason. Their own-brand products are often significantly cheaper than branded alternatives, while still offering good quality.
Choosing own-brand staples such as pasta, rice, sauces, frozen vegetables, and snacks can reduce your food shop without changing what you eat. Over a month, these small savings add up more than most students expect.
If you’re still getting familiar with the area, knowing where students typically shop and what’s nearby can also help you stick to a budget.
Why Choose Student Housing in Selly Oak
Make the Most of Loyalty and Discount Cards
Loyalty schemes like Tesco Clubcard, Nectar, and supermarket apps are easy to overlook, but they can offer real savings if used consistently.
Many discounts apply automatically at checkout, meaning you don’t have to change your habits to benefit. Keeping one main supermarket card and checking weekly offers can help stretch your food budget further without extra effort.
Cook Once, Eat More Than Once
Cooking every day isn’t realistic for most students. A more sustainable approach is cooking in batches and storing meals for later.
Preparing meals in advance reduces the temptation to buy food when you’re tired or busy. It also saves time during the week and helps you stay in control of your spending. Even cooking just two or three meals ahead can significantly reduce daily food costs.
Plan Before You Shop
Shopping without a plan is one of the easiest ways to overspend. A quick plan keeps you focused, helps you avoid impulse buys, and makes sure your food actually lasts through the week.
Here’s a simple student-friendly approach:
- Pick 2–3 meals you can rotate (e.g., pasta, stir-fry, wraps)
- Write a short list of ingredients you’ll reuse across meals (rice, onions, frozen veg, sauces)
- Check what you already have so you don’t rebuy duplicates
- Avoid shopping hungry (it always increases impulse spending)
- Buy “stretch items” that work across multiple meals (eggs, potatoes, oats, tins)
Reduce Daily Spending Without Feeling Restricted
Saving money on food isn’t about cutting out everything you enjoy. It’s about reducing frequent, unplanned spending that adds up over time.
Buying coffee or lunch occasionally is fine, but doing it every day quickly becomes expensive. By preparing most meals at home and treating takeaways as an occasional choice, students can balance enjoyment and budgeting more easily.
Food is often one of the easiest areas to overspend without realising, which is why building better habits around everyday spending can make a big difference over time.
Smart Student Money Management Tips
Making Food Budgeting Work for Student Life
Food budgeting is one of the most practical skills students can build. Small changes like shopping smarter, cooking in batches, and using discounts can reduce spending without affecting quality of life.
Over time, these habits also make daily routines easier to manage. Spending less on food means less stress around money, fewer last-minute purchases, and more control over how you plan your week. By finding a system that works for you, food budgeting becomes less about restriction and more about making student life simpler and more sustainable.
Looking for Student Accommodation? Unihousing Can Help!
Unihousing is a trusted provider of student accommodation in Selly Oak, serving University of Birmingham students since 1984. All of our properties are owned by us, which means we can respond quickly to any maintenance requests using our qualified team of tradesmen. Our property office is located on Bristol Road, just a short walk from all of our accommodations. This allows us to deal directly with tenants and offer fast, friendly, and reliable support.
Unihousing was selected as the Number 1 Student Letting Agent in Birmingham by the UK’s largest fresher community, Unifresher.
Find out more about our UoB accommodations and secure your ideal student home. Contact Unihousing Today
