How To Save Money On Back To School Shopping
It’s hard to believe that a new school year is right around the corner, but it will be here before you know it. A new school year means new expenses and if your budget is already squeezed to the max, this can be a difficult time of year financially, for both, parents and children. Now, more than ever, is the time to figure out how to save money on back to school shopping.
There are, however, some things parents can do to lessen the strain on the family finances. With some deliberate planning, you can keep these expenses in check without totally busting your budget and keep the kids happy, too!
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How To Save Money On Back To School Shopping
1. Shop Your House, First!
When my children were school age, this was a must! I was amazed at how much they brought home at the end of the school year that was either gently used or not used at all. They had rulers, pencils, colored pencils, markers, pens, highlighters, half bottles of glue, pencil boxes and half used composition notebooks. I would sharpen the pencils and combine the glue to make at least one full bottle. There’s no sense in buying all new if there’s still plenty of use out of these items.
2. Make Your List AND Your Budget
The easiest way to do this is to go to your school districts page OR google “your school district” school supply list. Most districts should already have these lists available online. I did this for my district and sure enough, it’s a PDF that you can download and it’s broken down, grade by grade. Print it off and begin checking off what you already have. This will help you have a clear plan of what is needed (instead of guessing and/or forgetting things).
Next, and most important, set your budget. Having the list and a budget will help you spend your money wisely and keep you from getting distracted and spending money on unnecessary, unplanned purchases. A sinking fund would work great for school expenses. If you’d like to know more about how sinking funds work, check out my post, Sinking Funds: Every Budget Needs Them.
3. Take Inventory Of Clothes
Summertime is the perfect time of year to go through closets and drawers and cull out what no longer fits. Once you’ve done this, it’s easy to see what your child has and what they need. Just because they’re starting a new school year does not mean that you have to invest in an entire wardrobe.
When buying children’s clothes, stick to a few classic pieces that they can mix and match. This will give them more outfits with few pieces of clothing.
When buying shoes, stick to one or two pair that can go with everything. A nice pair of sneakers come to mind for younger children.
4. Shop At Dollar Tree!
Dollar Tree (and dollar stores in general) are a fantastic place to stock up on school supplies. In most cases (but not always), Dollar Tree beats Walmart, hands down. Composition notebooks, pens/pencils, markers, crayons, scissors, glue/glue sticks, pencil boxes, calendars, planners, dry erase boards, tissues, hand sanitizers and so much more! Walmart may have a few things, slightly cheaper, but in general, Dollar Tree is the bomb!
It’s best to do a little homework, though, and know your prices. Sometimes, Walmart will have things like notebook paper, composition books, glue, etc., for .25 to .50 cents. It’s worth the time, effort and savings to investigate both stores if you’re on a super tight budget.
5. Shop Thrift/Consignment Stores
When your children are growing, it seems like such a waste of money to spend a fortune on clothes that they may only get a season out of. This has been my go to for years when I needed to save money on school shopping. Shopping thrift and consignment stores can save you 50 – 75% off of retail. Yes, you need to go, prepared to roll your sleeves up and willing to look, but it’s so worth it. My favorite thrift store, here in the town where I live, runs daily specials. Depending on the color of tag, sometimes it’s 20%, 40%, 60% or even 80% off certain items. You can also get name brands, if you or your child happens to be brand conscious.
The key here is to start shopping early in the summer season. Hit the stores up once a week or at least once every other week. I would even suggest taking your list of what’s needed…and that also includes school supplies. I’ve seen nice, name brand, gently used backpacks for a fraction of what you’d pay for new! You never know what you may find.
6. Have A Clothing Swap!
This is an awesome way to save TONS of money! If you have friends or family that have children close in age to your children, there’s no better way to save money on clothes than to recycle them. You can even make a party out of it! Bring all unwanted, outgrown clothes with you to a designated persons house, bring a snack and swap away! Your kids will love it, because even though the clothes may not be brand new, they’ll be new to them. And the best part is it didn’t cost you a dime!
7. Shop Office Supply Stores.
People usually don’t think of office supply stores when they think of back to school. It’s a best kept secret. However, you can score some fantastic back to school deals at a huge discounts. Plus, stores like Staples and Office Max will offer discount coupons available in your local paper. And what’s even better?…You can even use their sale prices to price match at stores that will do price matching, like Walmart and Target.
8. Price Match.
Speaking of price matching, check out stores that will allow you to price match, such as Target and Walmart. This will save you time, gas and money when you can get everything in one place. Be sure to scour the sales ads in your Sunday paper and plan accordingly.
10. Wait Until After School Starts.
Your children may not be for this, but if you have the bare essentials to get them started, you can save a bundle by just waiting a few weeks. Once school is in full swing, stores will begin lowering prices on everything from clothes to school supplies, in order to make room for Fall merchandise. You will also have a better idea of what will be truly needed, in terms of school supplies. This tactic, alone, can save you a bundle!
11. Shop Tax Free Weekends.
Many states have started implementing Tax Free Weekends, leading up to school starting. If you live in one of those states, it may be worth it to plan your school purchases then. Personally, I never did this because the crowds, traffic and parking lots were more than I wanted to deal with. But, then again, that’s just me. Should you opt to wait for this weekend, here is a comprehensive list, When Is Your State’s Tax Free Weekend from RetailMeNot, that lets you know if your state is participating, what’s included, spending limits and what weekend it will be. We all need help when we’re trying to save money on back to school shopping and when you’re on a tight budget, every little bit helps.
12. Buy What Will Last.
I know…I know…This post is about saving money and being frugal when buying school supplies, but sometimes, paying less isn’t better. Backpacks and lunch boxes come to mind here. It’s the cold, hard truth sometimes, when you hear the old saying, “You get what you pay for”. Say, for instance, If you pay $9.99 for a backpack and within 2-3 months, the zipper breaks or it begins to rip at the seems, what did you really save? When you have to go and buy another one, so quickly, it actually ended up costing you more. Both of these backpacks, below, from JanSport and FLYME received really good reviews and are still very affordable, through Amazon.
My Amazon picks:
On items that receive a lot of wear and tear, it may be better to spend a little more in the beginning, which will ultimately be a savings later on.
13. Leave The Kiddos At Home.
I know you want the kids to be excited about school starting…and this may be one way to do that, but it can also be extremely expensive. How many times have you gone school shopping with your kids and you fully intend on sticking to the budget. Then your little prince or princess sees an outfit, clearly out of your price range, but that doesn’t matter. She wants it. As much as your gut is telling you to stand your ground and say NO…you give in at a weak moment. Whether it’s because you don’t want to cause a scene or you just hate telling those sweet faces NO, you give in. Then, you’re beating yourself up all the way home. Sound familiar?? Yep! I’m guilty, too!
Soooo…when possible, go without them. Always save your receipts for easy returns in case it doesn’t fit or they just absolutely hate it.
14. Ask The Teacher For A Basic Supply List.
If you just can’t squeeze enough money out of your budget for the entire school supply list, don’t be ashamed or afraid to ask your child’s teacher for a basic, bare-bones list to just get started. Explain your situation to the teacher and let her know that you will be sending the rest of the supplies, but that it may have to be a little later than the first day of school. This will give you more time and an opportunity to get the supplies cheaper and spread it into a couple more paydays. When your honest and upfront, they will usually be understanding and happy to work with you and your child.
Do you have any tips on how to save money on back to school shopping? Leave me a comment below. I’d love to hear from you!
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If you want to learn more about budgeting, getting out out of debt & saving money, be sure to check out:
How To Stop Living Paycheck To Paycheck
20 Telltale Signs You’re Overspending
