Student discounts are a blessing for anyone who's studying, especially given the rise cost of living in many countries. Students already often struggled to cover all of the tools they need for their education and almost inevitably incur significant debts, so any saving on tech or software essential for study is very welcome
And you might be surprised to learn that quite a number of big tech companies do actually offer sizable student discount deals; they just don't tend to make much noise about it, and sometimes make the discounts rather hard to find. They also tend to change the terms fairly regularly, which makes it hard to keep up with just what savings are on offer.
To save you from having to hunt out all of the biggest student discounts yourself, we've done the job for you, rounding up the best student discounts available today. Whether you're on a creative course and need Adobe software or the latest laptop from Apple, or you simply want cheaper sportswear, fast delivery of course books and access to media for entertainment, read on for the best student discounts available.
For more, see our dedicated guide to how to get an Apple student discount. We've also got round-ups of the best back to school and Apple Back to School deals happening right now, and we've made a selection of the best laptops for teachers.
The best student discounts
The best student discounts in the US
01. Adobe Creative Cloud
If you're studying to become a professional in any area of the creative sector, you'll probably want Adobe Creative Cloud. This suite of creative software includes more than 50 industry-standard apps including Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Premiere Pro, Adobe After Effects and Adobe Lightroom. You also get 100GB of cloud storage and Adobe Portfolio, a special app that makes it easy to create your own portfolio website.
02. Apple
Wouldn't it be wonderful if Apple offered a single, universal student discount across its entire product range? Sadly, it doesn't, but it is offering specific discounts on selected Macs and iPads for qualifying higher education students, plus (up to) a $150 gift card and a 20 per cent discount on Apple Care. To find the discounts, you just need to visit the Apple Education Store.
03. Amazon Prime
Amazon Prime is super-handy for students, both for when you need that textbook delivered asap, and when you need to take a study break and binge-watch some great TV. And if you're in higher education and not already a Prime subscriber, you can sign up for a six-month free trial to Amazon Prime Student, which offers pretty much everything a normal Amazon Prime account does. After six months, you can get 50 per cent off Amazon Prime Student membership, paying just $6.49 per month, rather than the normal $12.99 per month.
04. Apple Music
There are times when it's difficult to focus, and you need a kickass soundtrack to get your brain in gear and motivate you through some serious study. Happily, students enrolled in degree-granting universities and colleges can join the Apple Music streaming service at half price for up to 48 months. If you're new to Apple Music you can take out a free trial first; if you're not, you can swap over your existing subscription to a cheaper student one. Either way, you'll pay just $4.99 per month rather than the usual $9.99 per month for access to 60 million songs.
05. Spotify and Hulu
Want to stream thousands of great shows such as High Fidelity, The Bear, What We Do in the Shadows, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, and Bob’s Burgers? Hulu doesn't actually offer a student discount, but you can get free access to Hulu and SHOWTIME via Spotify's student discount program. This gives you a Spotify Premium account, access to the ad-supported version of Hulu, and access to Showtime, all for less than the regular price of a Hulu subscription.
Costing just $4.99 a month – half the price you'd pay normally for a Spotify Premium account alone – this student discount is available to anyone over 18 who's currently enrolled at a US Title IV accredited college or university, and who hasn't previously had a premium Spotify account.
06. Microsoft Office for free!
If you’re a student or teacher, you're eligible to get Office 365 Education, an online version of Microsoft Office, for free. This includes Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft PowerPoint, Microsoft OneNote, and Microsoft Teams, plus additional classroom tools. Perhaps most significantly, it also includes 1TB of online storage, which is massively more than the 15GB you get free with Google Drive.
07. Nike
Whether you're a college sports star, or just want some nice sneakers, Nike has students covered. It has long offered a 10 per cent student discount to eligible high school, college, and university students in the USA. To get the discount, you’ll need to complete a verification form. You'll then be sent a single-use promo code for 10% off most items on Nike.com, which you use during checkout. Note that shipping charges are calculated after discount and that you can only apply for a new discount code every 30 days.
The best student discounts in the UK
01. Adobe Creative Cloud
Adobe's Creative Cloud is a must-have for anyone studying a creative or marketing discipline. It contains more than 50 apps that are industry-standard for everything from graphic design, photography and publishing to film making, animation and illustration. You also get 100GB of cloud storage and Adobe Portfolio for building a portfolio website.
02. Apple
Apple doesn't have a discount you can apply to all of its products, but it is offering discounts for post-secondary education students on specific Mac computers (news iMacs, MacBook Air and MacBook Pro) and iPads. You can also claim (up to) a £120 gift card to use towards future purchases.
You'll need to visit the Apple Education Store. You then have three ways of accessing Apple's educational discounts. One is by signing up to student discount website UNiDAYS. The alternative is to verify you're a student through Apple by calling the phone number or by chatting with a representative online.
03. Amazon Prime
Need school supplies or an important reference book, and need it tomorrow? Then you need Amazon Prime, which will also let you binge-watch some great TV and movies when you're on a study break. As long as if you're in higher education and not already a Prime subscriber, you can get a six-month free trial to Amazon Prime Student, which is very similar to a normal Amazon Prime account. Then after six months, you can get 50 per cent off: just £3.99 per month compared with the normal £7.99 per month.
04. Apple Music
When you want to get your head down and do some serious study, you need some top tunes to stick in your headphones and drown out the world. Higher education students can take advantage of an Apple Music student discount, which gives you 50 per cent off for up to 48 months. If you're new to Apple Music you can take out a free trial first; if you're not, you can swap over your existing subscription. Either way, you get access to over 60 million songs, for just £4.99 per month instead of the usual £9.99 per month.
05. Microsoft Office for free!
While there are numerous alternatives, Microsoft Office remains the standard office package for writing, editing and more. And if you’re a student or teacher, you are eligible to get Office 365 Education, an online version, at no charge. You'll get Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft PowerPoint, Microsoft OneNote, and Microsoft Teams as part of the package, along with additional classroom tools. And best of all, you'll get 1TB of online storage – a lot more than the 15GB you get for free with Google Drive.
06. Nike
Whether you're a serious athlete or just want some nice trainers, Nike offers a 10% student discount (before delivery charges) for most products sold at Nike.com. It's available for college, sixth form and university students. To get the discount, you’ll need to register with UNiDAYS to verify your student status and retrieve your discount code. Note, though, that this cannot be applied to gift cards, Apple products or NikeLab products.
Read more:
- The best student laptop
- How to download Photoshop for free or with Creative Cloud
- The best digital art software
