1. Sign up for Amazon Prime Student to get 6 months of Prime for free and lots of other perks.
Amazon Prime offers free two-day shipping, a massive video library, and LOADS more. Instead of paying $139 for a year, Amazon Prime Student membership offers the first six months free, and then a student rate of $69 per year or $7.49 per month. The membership gets you:
- Free one-day delivery
- Prime Video
- Early access to deals
- Amazon music subscription
- Amazon photo storage
- Prime exclusive deals
You need to be enrolled at an eligible college or university to take advantage of the perks.
NOTE: After six months, you’ll automatically be upgraded to Amazon Prime Student at 50% off ($7.49 per month or $69 per year), but you can cancel at any time.
2. Use your Amazon Student discount to save on entertainment, food, and more.
Amazon also offers Amazon Music Unlimited and SHOWTIME for just $0.99 a month (each) as a student exclusive from time to time, as well as discounts on textbook and e-textbook rentals, so jump on the student freebies while you can!
Here are a few more things you can get with an Amazon student discount:
- Grubhub+ Student: Unlimited free delivery on all meals (for deliveries over $12)
- Calm: Three-month free subscription. Afterward, you’ll only have to pay $8.99 for a year subscription (normally a $69.99 value)
- StudentUniverse: Up to 10% off flights and hotels
- CourseHero: One month free and 24/7 homework help. Then it’ll be $9.95 per month (normally $39.95 per month)
Check out all the Amazon Prime member benefits that await you.
Discounts on Subscriptions for College Students
3. Enjoy newspaper subscriptions for as low as $1 per month.
I love the feel of a real newspaper in my hands. But college kids hardly have time for that! Luckily, there are college student discounts for digital newspaper subscriptions like these:
- The New York Times: $1 per week when you take advantage of the student discount (that’s $4 per month for unlimited access to online articles through NY Times)
- The Wall Street Journal: $4 per month for all articles and podcasts produced by WSJ
- Washington Post: $4 per month when you verify your student status; includes all-access digital content
- Los Angeles Times: $1 for 6 months for unlimited digital access (save 99%)
4. Manage your budget for free with You Need a Budget.
When money’s tight, a service like You Need a Budget (YNAB) can be super helpful. YNAB is a personal finance service that syncs with your bank account and helps you with spending habits, saving, and more.
It normally costs $14.99 per month, but You Need a Budget offers its software to students for free for a year.
Email support@youneedabudget.com, send them proof of your registration, and they’ll send you a license key good until the end of the school year.
5. Get a student discount on the Headspace app.
Headspace is a great app you can download on your phone that offers many meditation programs that’ll help you relax after class. You can also use it before any big tests or presentations.
To qualify for the student discount, you have to be enrolled in a U.S. Title IV degree-granting institution. Once you submit your information, it’s processed through their third-party verification system.
The Headspace student discount will cost you $9.99 per year as opposed to the $69.99 per year you’d spend if you weren’t a student.
6. Peloton offers student discounts on their exercise programs.
Discounts for college students that make it so you don’t have to step foot in a gym? Gimme.
Peloton is a great alternative to the gym and it only costs students $6.99 per month ($12.99 per month + tax for everyone else).
This deal is only good for one user, so no sharing with your roommates. The app has thousands of live and recorded workouts including yoga, Pilates, and strength training.
You can also track the calories you burn if that’s your thing. What’s great about the app is you don’t need one of their expensive bikes or treadmills to use it!
Discounts on Technology for College Students
7. Students get an Apple gift card with a Mac or iPad purchase from Apple.
Before every new school year, expect to see special Apple college student discounts.
In 2022, Apple’s Higher Education Back-to-School offer is either a $100 Apple gift card or a $150 Apple gift card with the purchase of an eligible Apple product such as an iPad, iMac, or MacBook Air.
You typically have to make the purchase in a certain promotional period and at a qualifying Apple location. Look out for the annual promo event to happen in June for U.S. students.
8. Get Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, and Excel for free from Microsoft.
Free stuff for college students should definitely include software programs. What student doesn’t need Microsoft Office 365? Microsoft offers this suite of programs — which includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and more — for free to college students.
All you need is a valid school email address. As long as you’re a qualified student, your plan won’t expire, but your eligibility can be checked at any time, so heads up about that.
In this freebie plan, you’ll also receive 1 TB of free OneDrive online storage. Plus, if you’re new to the Microsoft Suite, they offer training tutorials to get you started.
9. Pay only $19.99 a month for Adobe Creative Cloud with your college student discount.
Students can get a subscription to Adobe Creative Cloud for only $19.99 per month. If you know anything about Adobe products, this is a total steal! Students just need to be at least 13 years old to get this offer, but after one year, the cost goes up to $29.99 per month.
This subscription normally costs $54.99 per month, so that’ll save you about $400 a year! The subscription comes with Photoshop, Lightroom, Illustrator, Acrobat Pro, and Premiere Pro.
10. Beef up your slide presentations with Prezi for free.
When it comes to free stuff for college students, every deal helps. Prezi is a virtual presentation tool company that makes products for video conferencing platforms like Zoom, Slack, and Google Meet.
They normally charge users $7 per month to access their interactive presentation software, but students who can verify their enrollment status get a Prezi basic student plan for free, or a premium plan for just $3 a month. The basic plan lets you create up to five visual projects.
11. Gain access to free 3D design software with Autodesk.
If you’re a college student studying engineering, architecture, or simply want to get into 3D design, you can get over 50 different types of software downloads for free through Autodesk for a year.
These programs would normally cost you thousands of dollars per year, but you can get these programs for free. Autodesk works for Mac, Google Cloud, Linux, and Windows platforms.
You’ll need to be a student or educator in order to register, and Autodesk will verify your student status when you make an account by asking you several questions. You can renew as long as you stay eligible.
Discounts on Shopping for College Students
12. Save 20% at Bed Bath & Beyond from July – September with their College Pass.
Bed Bath & Beyond offers 20% discounts for college students when they sign up for a “College Pass” through their website.
You just need to upload a school-issued document (acceptance letter, school ID, class schedule, tuition receipt) to be eligible for 20% off every purchase through Sept. 30. You will also receive free shipping when you spend over $39, or you can request pickup at any Bed Bath & Beyond location.
Redeem this coupon in store by downloading the app (iOS / Android) or printing the coupon. You can also get it at BedBathandBeyond.com when you check out.
13. Sign up for UNiDAYS for the best college student discounts at retailers.
UNiDAYS is a website dedicated to giving you the best college student discounts. All you need to do is upload proof of your admission to the site and you can get discounts on dozens of stores. Here are some of their best offers:
- Adidas: 30% off all online orders
- Microsoft: 10% off laptops, tablets, and accessories
- H&M: 15% off all online orders
- Hello Fresh: 15% off all online orders
14. Save on electronics with “College Student Deals” at Best Buy.
Best Buy offers “Student Deals” where college students get unique coupon codes delivered straight to their inbox. By bookmarking the page, you’ll see all of the featured tech promotions at a discount.
All you have to do is sign up for a My Best Buy account and enter your student information. The exclusive student deals are great, but beware that you can’t combine it with the Best Buy price match guarantee.
Discounts on Entertainment for College Students
15. Use the Spotify student discount to get Spotify, Hulu, and Showtime for $5 per month total.
The Spotify student discount isn’t just about discounting Spotify Premium, which is regularly $9.99 per month. For just $4.99 per month, it also throws in Hulu (reg. $6.99 per month) and SHOWTIME (reg. $10.99 per month).
If you already have a Hulu account, you’ll need to deactivate your account and reactivate it through the Spotify Account Overview page. And you can only take advantage of this discount if you’re a student at a U.S.-based Title IV accredited institution.
16. Use your student ID to get discounts on streaming services.
Your college ID will help you get discounts on your favorite streaming services.
- Paramount+ is normally $9.99 per month, but students get a 25% discount on a standard subscription (with commercials). That’s $2.50 less per month.
- Discovery+ offers students $2 off, making the service $3 per month.
- Apple TV is bundled with an Apple Music subscription for students. This makes both services $5 per month total.
- YouTube Premium offers students a $5 discount which makes the service $7 per month for ad-free YouTube and unlimited access to YouTube music.
- MLB.tv is giving students free access to watch baseball games when they sign up with ID.me.
17. Get discounts when you watch movies in theaters.
Several movie theaters offer different student discounts when you show your student ID. Here are a few deals that I found (and used), but be sure to call ahead to see if the deal is applicable to your theater, as prices may differ from location to location.
- AMC: $1 off regular prices on Thursdays (8% savings)
- Cinemark: Discounted tickets at select theaters. Discounts differ from location to location, but they will typically be $1 off regular prices (7% savings)
- Regal: Discounted tickets at select theaters. Discounts differ from location to location, but they will typically be $1.95 off regular prices (15% savings)
Discounts on Career Development Services for College Students
18. Find jobs and internships relevant to your major with Handshake.
Check out Handshake if you’re looking for internships or positions in your field of study. Handshake is a free site just for college students to help you land that first internship.
To sign up, just fill out a profile with your school-provided email. Then you can find internships either by browsing job boards or by getting in touch with a recruiter.
The company also provides interview tips, resume and cover letter help, job role explanations, and career paths to explore. You can also browse student success stories.
19. Submit your resume to The Ladders and get a free analysis from career experts.
The Ladders resume review service is free and offers pointers so you can improve your resume and increase your chances of landing a job. A lot of services charge for a resume review, so this college freebie is a steal.
If you want to get more out of your Ladders account, you can spend $33 per month for their premium service which allows you to auto-apply to jobs from your account. There’s even a career advice section to help you navigate the interviewing and salary process.
20. You can earn certificates and learn skills with your student discount.
Many websites exist to help you continue your education and develop your professional skills — and these offer student discounts:
- Coursera: Students can get one certification course free. If you want unlimited access to the site, it’ll cost you $399 per year.
- Skillshare: With 50% off a premium membership, students will pay $7.50 per month instead of $15. You’ll also get a seven-day free trial, so there is no downside to signing up.
- LinkedIn Learning: Students get a free month-long trial, and afterward, it costs $40 per month. Just use your school email when you sign up.
21. See if you qualify for free tuition reimbursement through your employer.
Did you know that some employers will reimburse some college tuition costs? Starbucks will even pay for all of it! Now, that’s free stuff for college students to the tenth power.
Here are a few of the best places that will pay for your college:
- Walmart covers 100% of tuition with their Live Better U program.
- Amazon‘s Career Choice program covers 100% of college tuition for high-demand degrees for employees in the U.S. (95% outside of the country). Employees must be employed for 90 days.
- Starbucks pays 100% tuition and fees for eligible employees to earn a bachelor’s degree through Arizona State University’s online program (via the Starbucks College Achievement Plan).
- Chick-fil-A covers up to $25,000 when you win their Chick-fil-A Remarkable Futures scholarship.
- Papa John’s offers 100% tuition coverage at Purdue University to corporate employees after working at least 90 days and 20+ hours a week through the Dough for Degrees program.
- Chili’s has a free, online education program for employees who want to get a GED, certificate, associate’s degree, citizenship preparation, or tutoring. Part-time and full-time team members employed for at least six months are eligible.
22. Join professional networking societies for free.
Joining a professional society offers great networking opportunities and access to mentors in your field of study. Here are some that college students can join for free:
- National Society of Professional Engineers
- American Planning Association
- Society of Petroleum Engineers
- American Institute of Physics
Discounts for Students for Financial Needs
23. As a student, you can get a free checking account.
There’s absolutely no need to pay a monthly fee for a checking account if you’re a student. Check out these offers:
- LendingClub Rewards Checking: Save up to 1% on everyday purchases with 0.15% APR for free.
- Chase College Checking Account: It’s free for students ages 17 – 24, comes with no service fees for up to five years, plus students unlock $100 for opening an account.
- US Bank: Students get a U.S. Bank Visa® debit card and no ATM transaction fees at U.S. Bank ATMs and no monthly maintenance fees.
- Bank of America: Students 25 and under get a free checking account with waived monthly maintenance fees.
Discounts on Dining for College Students
24. Show your student ID to get discounts at restaurants.
Here are some of the best places to get free stuff for college students at restaurants using your student ID. Be aware that only participating restaurants will hook you up, and most of them will ask you to show your student ID.
- Burger King gives you 10% off your order.
- Chick-fil-A and Chipotle will give you a free drink with your order.
- Dunkin’ Donuts will give you 10% off at participating locations.
- McDonald’s gives you 10% off your order.
- Taco Bell offers a 10% discount at participating locations.
25. Earn points toward free food with Pocket Points.
via The Shorthorn
Pocket Points is an app that rewards you with coupons and free stuff for college students when you stay OFF your phone while driving and during class. What a genius concept!
Sign up for Pocket Points and download the app to start earning credits like a free Chick-fil-A sandwich or 25% off Papa John’s Pizza.
If you get your teacher to register, they can create rewards for their students. For example, if you stay off your phone for 10 hours of class, they could give you 10 bonus points or drop your lowest assignment grade.
Discounts on Travel for College Students
26. Use your student ID to get discounts on travel.
Here are some of the best deals for traveling while getting your degree:
- Amtrak gives a 15% discount to students on all tickets.
- Greyhound offers a 10% discount on all student tickets.
- Zipcar gives discounts based on which university you attend.
- Check your local Metro station to see if there are any discounts. For example, the DC Metro gives free passes to students, and New York gives three free rides a day for students.
27. Ride public transit for free in select cities.
Check your university for public transportation student discounts, or see what discounts you can get through the transit agency.
For example, in California, Amtrak offers student discounts on monthly passes, but Metrolink’s monthly student pass is cheaper and you can also use it on Amtrak trains.
Most California universities offer a credit toward a monthly student pass, like Chapman University, which gives students $100 a month toward transportation costs, bringing a pass to under $100 per month.
Plenty of colleges also offer some kind of free shuttle service for students from campus to residential areas.
Two Cutepeas in a Pod 