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Saving Money!

Studying overseas can be quite expensive. Although Australia is not the most expensive city in the world, there can be a lot of costs associated with life as an overseas students. However, you can save some money with a little thought. Here are some hot tips!

Accommodation

  • rent a unit as it is usually cheaper than a house
  • share accommodation with your friends, as this can save you half the cost and you can take care of one another
  • rent in suburbs is cheaper than in cities and around universities - however, you have to take into account the travelling time and cost

Food

  • cooking by yourself is much cheaper than eating outside - learn some basic cooking skills from home before coming to Australia
  • bring a bottle of water with you all the time - the summer is hot and dry here this can save you lots of money on buying drinks
  • meals in the city is cheaper than in suburbs - probably because of greater competition

Transportation

  • The more you travel with an Opal card the more you can benefit. For example, if you've reached your Weekly Travel Cap, your fares for the rest of the week are half-price.
  • save 30% on train fares for journeys on weekends, public holidays and before or after the peak hours (7am-9am and 4pm-6:30pm)

Travel

You may want to explore different cities and sceneries in Australia. To save some of your travel cost, you can:

  • buy the domestic air ticket when it is on sale (e.g., Virgin Australia and Jetstar) - the price may be as low as $29 per air ticket but you have to be quick
  • travel with a rail pass which is specifically designed for international visitors - a single trip to Melbourne will cost about $120. However, a 14 day rail pass to travel between Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane will cost only $232

Daily Expenses

  • check out the weekly sales catalogues from supermarkets - sometimes you can save up to 50% from the original price
  • watch out for the post Christmas sales - things can be 50% cheaper especially in department stores and variety shops
  • check the back of the supermarket or variety shops dockets - they will have some discounts offered by nearby shops such as for photo developing, restaurants etc.
  • try to purchase over $30 each time in designated supermarkets so that you can save some money for your petrol
  • try to buy in bulk quantity as it will be cheaper - but you may need someone to share