These are the best student discounts and freebies available in 2023

It's Back to Class Month here at T3 and this week will be heavily focused on homeware and style essentials you should be taking with you. It will also be a week of how to save money as a student and any tips and tricks that will help you find your feet, especially if you're off to university for the first time or heading to a new school. 

If you're a student already, you will probably be aware of how expensive it can be preparing for a new academic year. Aspects such as purchasing new books or renewing memberships can be a pricey task, and it can also be difficult knowing where to start. We've already looked at money-saving student hacks and how to save money on back to school costs, but now we're back with the best student deals and discounts of 2023. Whether you're after a new pair of headphones, office chair  or bedding, keep reading to find out how you can get the best deal. 

Best student discounts: 2023 

£10 off at IKEA

If you're a student aged 18 or over, you can now get a code for £10 off a £75 spend when you shop online or in-store at Ikea until Sunday 1st October. 

To redeem it, you just need to be an Ikea Family member. You can sign up for free here and you don't even need to use your student email address when registering! You will then need to verify your student status via the Ikea website by providing your place of study, date of birth and student email address. Your discount code will then be send to your email and you can use it immediately! 

The offer is available at all Ikea's UK stores and can only be redeemed once. 

30% off gym memberships at PureGym

Students can get up to 30% off 6, 9 or 12 month memberships at PureGym! You can access this by registering and verifying your student status with UNiDAYS - it's as easy as that!

The deal covers free multi-gym access outside of term time and unlimited classes, with there being over 340 gyms nationwide!

Check out the terms and conditions here.

25% off Oxford University Press

You can get 25% off 1000s of university textbooks at Oxford University Press when you enter the code WEBXSTU92 at the checkout. Delivery should take 3-5 working days and costs £4.95, or it's free if you're spending over £20. You can also use the code as many times as you'd like!

The code will only work on physical university textbooks and can be claimed on their website. 

20% off JBL

You can pretty much get 20% off all JBL products across their website- perfect if you're after a new pair of headphones or a speaker! You can claim the offer by grabbing the discount code from UNiDAYS or Student Beans and using it online. There's also free shipping available, but we're not sure how long this offer will last!

10% off Chilly's

Grab 10% off Chilly's with UNiDAYS or Student Beans. They cover an amazing range of reusable bottles, cups and food containers - perfect for staying hydrated during lectures or taking a coffee to a late-night library session. 

You just grab the code from UNiDAYS or Student Beans and get shopping! 

Best student freebies: 2023

Free Microsoft Office for students and teachers

If you're a student or working in education and have an academic email address, you can download the entire Office software suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote, Publisher and Access) for free on up to five PCs or Macs! 

All you have to do is enter your academic email address on the Office website. You'll then be asked to log in through your institution's online portal and if you're eligible, you'll be redirected to a page where you can download the software.

You can also claim 1 Terabyte (TB) free online storage! Microsoft for the win!

Free 6 months of Amazon Prime

Students can get 6 months of free Amazon Prime when signing up to Amazon Student. Alongside Amazon's Prime music and video, you can also get free one-day deliveries as well as photo storage. 

After the Amazon Student trial ends, you can still get 50% off full Prime membership if you'd like to continue using it, so it'll cost £4.49 a month (£47.49 for a year) instead of £8.99 a month (or £95 for a year).

You must be a UK student aged 18 or over and you can't have been an Amazon Prime member within the last 12 months. 

Free £130 Apple gift card when buying a discounted Mac or iPad

Purchasing anything from Apple can be expensive, but they've now launched some great ways to save money as a student. Students can get 10% off the normal price via the Apple and Education website or at an Apple Store. However, Apple are now offering a gift card of up to £130 until Monday 23 October when you buy a discounted Mac or iPad. 

All you have to do is go to the Apple and Education website where you’ll be asked to sign into UNiDAYS. The education discounts will then be automatically applied.

If you’re unable to sign up to UNiDAYS or you don’t want to give it your data, you can call Apple on 0800 048 0408 and it’ll verify you with your ID or acceptance letter. You can then continue your purchase over the phone or take the verification documents to an Apple Store. 

You can also claim this offer if you work in education. You'll just need to show proof of where you work such as a payslip or call 0800 048 0408 to enter the verification process. 

Free Audible trial

Whilst Audible offers a 30-day free trial for anyone who would like to try the service out, it's a really great option for students as it can help massively with your work load. If you have a long reading list for university, popping on audiobook is great for saving time, especially if you're on a long drive.

It's very easy to sign up and you can do so here - however, remember to cancel after the 30 days if you don't want to continue as they will take payment automatically!

Free eye test at Boots

Be fully prepared for a new academic year and get a free eye test in Boots. You can claim one if you're aged under 16, or aged 16, 17, or 18 and are in full-time education. That means if you're heading to university in a month or so and haven't turned 19 yet, now is the perfect time to get one!

When you come to your appointment, a staff member will go through the relevant NHS forms with you and fill them in, so you can get your free eye test. However, make sure to bring with you official documentation certifying your proof of entitlement. 

Best student discount apps: 2023

Whilst you're able to claim some student discounts just by registering with the retailer, most student discounts are available through apps. These apps just have to verify your status as a student once, meaning you're then free to use the discounts without registering each time. You do have to re-verify about once a year, but it's not difficult at all!

Here are some of the best student discount apps about there: 

UNiDAYS – A free app that's updated with thousands of student offers on a daily basis. UNiDAYS probably works with more shops than any of the other apps, so it's a good one to get. 

Student Beans – This is another popular one, with over 10,000 discounts, deals and competitions for students.

Save The Student – Discounts are split into categories to help you easily find what you’re looking for.

Totum: TOTUM is the rebrand of the NUS extra card and offers more than 600 UK discounts across 400 different brands. You can access student discounts for free via TOTUM Student, but there is also a paid option (TOTUM Student+) which costs £14.99 for 1 year or £24.99 for a 3 year card. With the paid option, you can get a free membership to tastecard & Coffee Club with deals such as 2-for-1 meals, 25% off your bill, 25% off barista made drinks and great cinema discounts included. TOTUM also comes with a free 1-year International Student Identity Card (ISIC) which is handy for grabbing discounts as a student around the world and an optional free PASS ID card which is legally approved identification. 

How to get a student discount on travel

Travel companies and websites often have deals for students, especially as they do so much for it! Here are a few we've found:

16-25 railcard: Get a 1/3 off train travel. Whilst it costs £30 for 1 year, you can be sure to make that back within a few trips. If you open a 1|2|3 Student Current Account with Santander, you can a 4-year 16-25 railcard for free!

National Express: Get 15% off with Student Beans, Totum and UNiDAYS

18+ Student Oyster Photocard: If you're 18 or over, a student and living in a London borough, you can get discounted travel with an Oyster Photocard.

LNER: 40% off train tickets with UNiDAYS 

Interested in more? Read these general money-saving tips to find out further information.