Having a tight budget is a hard part of being a student. There is so much to see and do that you want to make sure you can fit in before you have to go back to your home country. The problem is it seems everything costs money; but, if you keep an eye on your budget chances are you can make it all happen.
Being on a tight budget is part of being a student. Photo By: Sippeangelo (CC BY-SA 2.0)
One of the most frequent questions I get is, how much money do you need in a month to survive in Sweden? First of all, the answer differs for every person. It can depend on if you cook, if you go out frequently, if you buy your lunch, if you buy all of your textbooks new etc…. Secondly, there is a big difference in the cost to survive in Sweden and the cost to live comfortably.
To give people a better idea of how much a student spends on a monthly basis, I thought I would offer myself as an example. This is in no way what every student would spend in Sweden, but simply one example to offer an idea of common costs.
Monthly Costs (All in SEK)
• Rent & Internet: 2 700
• Utilities: 150 (Electricity)
• Bus Card: 350 (with student card)
• Groceries: 2 000- 2 500
• Cell Phone: 175
Yearly Costs
• Student Union/Nation Fee: 295
• Gym Membership: 2 300 (with student card)
These are the basic costs that I pay every month/year to have a place to stay, get around town, as well as, eat and exercise. I also enjoy going out once in a while for drinks, fikas and even dinners, so this can cost me anywhere from SEK 500-1000 per month. I also spend around SEK 200-500 on replacing clothes that have worn down. It is important to know that these costs can vary greatly depending on where you are living; the cost of housing can vary greatly between different cities.
Here are some tips I have learned to keep costs down, while still enjoying being a student:
- Fikas can be very expensive and even equal the cost of going out for lunch. To bring the cost down invite friends over and tell everyone to bring something.
- Use your student card at every opportunity. It is a great way to save money on everything from transportation to eating out
- If you want to go out for a drink head to a nation instead of a pub in the city centre. An average beer can cost anywhere from SEK 50-100 in a pub, whereas, a beer in a nation is around SEK 25-30.
- Going to the cinema can be very expensive! There is usually one or two nights a week they offer student prices for selected movies, which end up being half the cost of the original ticket price.
- Borrowing all of your textbooks from the library or reading them online, if available, is a great way to save money on buying new books.
Going out for fika can cost as much as lunch! Photo By: Vilseskogen (CC BY-NC 2.0)