Easy Ways To Save On Back To School Shopping

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. We may earn money or products from other companies mentioned in this post at no cost to you!

Hard to believe that August is already upon us! In just a few short weeks (if they haven’t already), kids will be going back to school in some form.

No matter what school looks like this year, this is usually the time of year when parents start thinking about back to school shopping. So let’s talk about this from a financial angle, since this is a finance site. 😉

It Costs How Much?!

So would everyone agree the most expensive part of back-to-school is actually not related to learning? Yep, it’s the clothes!

According to the National Retail Federation, households will spend an average of $849 this year on back to school shopping. Only $139 of that was for regular school supplies, and the cost for electronic items has skyrocketed in the last two years, averaging $296. That means almost half of the $849 is going to be spent on shoes and clothes!

There’s research out there suggesting that kids are spending a lot of time on social media and brands are finding them there, so the advertising is driving up the clothing spend, as well.

Since the cost is creeping up- especially since we’re experiencing inflation on all types of items- try your best to be prepared financially, just like you would for Christmas. You don’t want to treat it like an emergency and go “Oh no, school is starting next week! We need to go buy a lot of clothes!” and then pull out the credit card to pay off later.

Here are some tips so you don’t feel extra financial stress because of it.

Back To School Supplies

I’ll start with the easy stuff first: supplies. These aren’t going to be the most expensive items on your list, but it doesn’t hurt to save whenever and wherever your can. For supplies, start at the Dollar Store! I’ve heard some mock doing this, and I really can’t figure out why.

The Dollar Store has binders, note pads, pencils, and other supplies. As long as it meets the requirements for the school, there’s no reason you can’t buy them there.

Look for containers that can be used for packing lunches. Look for water bottles. You can even pick up snack items. You can also find clothing related items here. Don’t forget things like hair accessories if you have girls in sports. They have rubber bands and the sporty headbands. And look for socks, they have lots of socks!

It’s always good to have some idea what the same or similar items cost at other stores because sometimes because the Dollar Store is occasionally not the cheapest in comparison. After you’ve found what you need there, it’s not going to be a budget buster to fill in your other supply needs by going to a chain store. Many have back to school sales, and it seems they’re starting earlier and earlier in the summer.

Back To School Clothing

I think the biggest way to save here is to start at a thrift store. You get more for your money when you shop this way, it’s so much cheaper than a mall. My family always enjoyed it because it was like a treasure hunt- you never knew what you were going to find!

I got a bomber leather jacket from a Goodwill for $15 twenty years ago, which I still wear and always get compliments on it. I got a North Face down vest fifteen years ago that has traveled all over the world with me that I bought from Buffalo Exchange, another local thrift store. All my designer jeans came from a thrift store. There are deals to be found!

These are also great places to find backpacks, gym bags, and other accessories.

Bonus: sometimes you can trade in your old clothing for store credit! Clean out your closet and turn it into funds for new clothes! Win, win!

There’s always Ross and TJ Maxx that offer new clothing at reasonable prices. In rural areas, you might be a little more limited because they don’t usually have these stores. My family would make a day out of it and drive the 1 1/2 hours to the large city where we could go to those stores. We didn’t have them in our little town so getting to do this was a treat for us!

Of course, it’s okay to invest in some “good” clothes, too. Maybe this is name brand shoes or sweatshirt. If you budget for it, there’s no reason your kid couldn’t pick out what high-priced or brand new item he would like to have. I’ve done this with kids. Walk into a store and say you have $50 to spend. You can set up guidelines like you need to find x pants and x shirts but the rest is up to them. Then you’re teaching your kids early how to budget, and then they’ll be practicing math as they shop and adding up the items they’re selecting.

Online Back To School Shopping

Have you ever thrift shopped online? Try out OfferUp! It’s like an online yard sale, like Craigslist, but with more security and has pictures. You can find new or like new items on OfferUp. You know there are kids out there that get clothes and then never wear them. I see ads like this all the time. This is a good way to find pieces that would be bigger ticket items, like name brand sweatshirts or even shoes. It’s probably easiest to search by age or size of your child and see what comes up.

I look for sellers that have TruYou designation (meaning they’ve been verified as a legitimate person by OfferUp) or someone who has multiple sales and positive ratings. Then you’ll know it’s not some weirdo or spammer. There’s even shipping options so you can cast your net wider, but I haven’t personally used that feature yet.

Of course, there’s other online sites for kids clothing, like Zulily, than can be a cost effective way to get kids clothes.

As a reminder, if you do shop online, don’t forget to use Rakuten (formerly Ebates) in case you get even more of a discount! If you haven’t signed up for Rakuten yet, please use my code (here) at no cost to you to get started! They even give you a sign up bonus when you use Rakuten for the first time, so that can help pay for some of your back to school shopping!

Electronics

Lastly, one area in which parents are expected to spend more on this year than in previous years is electronics, likely due to the burden of distance learning.

I’m sure the big box stores will be offering back-to-school discounts or sales, so definitely look for those.

You can also try to find sites that sell refurbished electronics at a steep discount. I’ve personally owned more than one iPhone that was refurbished, ranging in price from $0.99 to $99, and they lasted me three or more years.

I’ve also purchased refurbished laptops that have lasted me as long as new ones. Technology changes so fast that if I get a couple years use out of a laptop or smartphone at such a steep discount, I know that I’ve come out farther ahead than if I bought it new.

If you go directly to computer sites (think Dell or HP or Apple), they’ll typically have these refurbished items in a sale or clearance section, you just have to look for it. It looks as if they have small discounts for all these brands on items that are a previous year’s model, too.

If you’re shopping for these online, you can still use Rakuten for small cash back on these items.

Budget, Budget, Budget

Just because the “average” projected spending is $849, you don’t have to actually spend that much yourself. Do what’s right for you and your family.

No matter what, do what you can to decide and stick to a budget for your back to school expenses! When you’re finding good deals, it’s easy to get carried away so be sure to stick to a budget if you do go.

Closing Thoughts

I’m sure some of these are pretty common but I hope I provided other ways to help you save some money on your back to school shopping this year, regardless of what back to school may look like for you!

Leave a comment with other ways you save on back-to-school shopping!

RELATED

If you have a college-bound kid, see how you can pay for college without student loans.

See tips on how to stick to a budget easily.

IF YOU WANT TO SEE MORE…

Consider subscribing to my e-mail list. You can always unsubscribe, I won’t spam you!

Follow me on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.

Save this post on Pinterest by using the share buttons, and follow me, too!

If you want to start a blogging business, check out this FREE course!

If you want to make money from a blog, check out this program that got me started making my own money blogging!