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Living in London

This may have been asked before but its a struggle to find. SO i will be moving to London for Uni in September and i am terrified about cost of living. Do any of you who live/have lived in London have any tips or life saving secrets for financially surviving Uni in London? or links to other forums that have helped you. With things like travel/food/fun/anything is welcome. I have lived alone before and i manage money well but London is a whole new ball game .. i want to prepare myself as best as possible
Thank you all in advance

Reply 1

cheesecakelove

Original post by 3mptyhead

I don't live in London but have family and friends who do. Travel will be the main cost but you can look into getting a student railcard (I think it also gives you discount on tube fares?). In terms of food, eating out in London is expensive but some outlets will have student discount or offers available which you can use. You can also try to restrict the amount of items you eat out and cook from scratch (a general uni saving money tip). You can find plenty of recipe ideas online or use Youtube video tutorials. This will leave you extra money in your budget. It is also worth searching the internet for events that are happening. There are some free events or events held at a small cost, depending on your interests (you might find this useful: https://www.timeout.com/london/things-to-do/free-london)

(edited 3 years ago)

Reply 2

UniofGreenwich

Hi @3mptyhead,

I have now been living in London for 3 years and I remember when I first moved here, being scared like you are. I would say that groceries are a similar price although, it is worth shopping around in different places. Although I do mostly cook at home (which really saves money), I do/did eat out semi-regularly using something like Tastecard. This meant I was getting 2for1 etc in a lot of restaurants. I also use the app 2good2go, which is where you can buy the food that would have gone to waste. I found that there are a lot of places to choose from in London and that makes it a bit of an adventure and it is so cheap.

When I really had no money, I made sure to allow for enough time to get the bus everywhere I could as it is the cheapest way of travelling. If I had to use the train, I tried to keep it outside of peak times as fares increase.

In terms of fun, there are a lot of student deals. In my area, there is a night at a comedy place that has students in for free. Students don't have the same schedules as the rest of the city meaning that the cheapest nights to go out are during the week. I use the app 'Dusk' that gives information about drink deals/ free drinks (usually in central).

Hope this is helpful!
Duncan :smile: