Budgeting 101 for travel & study abroad

While we are all for sticking to spending plans, living abroad is a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Spending may be higher than usual, but it’s worth it for the experiences and #nofilter IG game. Here’s the International Management 101 of your USD - budgeting and using the 💵 💴 💶 💷.

Q: What do I need to know about exchange rates?

Refresher: Exchange rates are how much your USD is worth in another country’s currency. A strong rate means your money buys more stuff.

Not in your control: Not negotiable but smart to know the rates offered by different places that let you exchange.

Worst place to exchange money: Airports, random huts in a toursity square. They catch you in a bind and offer the worst rates.

Best place to exchange money: Banks. Home bank before you leave or even local foreign bank. The fairest.

Exchange rates with plastic: We dive into the important things to know next week!

Q: How do I create a budget for living abroad? How much should I save?

STEP 1: Get the lay of the land

A quick Google sheds light on how expensive (or not) the place you are living abroad will be.

Making it real — The average living cost for a student in Austria is ~950 euros/month while closer to $4K/month in Hong Kong. Big difference.

STEP 2: Map out all of the NEED expenses you KNOW for sure

Things will always come up (impromptu trips, concerts, etc). Having the baseline covered helps you determine the extra dough at your disposal.

Examples of things to plan for:

Housing - student housing is lower than renting an apt

Phone - are you using your US phone and paying extra for coverage abroad or is getting a local SIM card better

Commuting - how much will you spend on traveling to and from classes

School expenses - that are additional to your college tuition

Food - Google is your best friend on the meal cost ranges in most cities

None of the above will be an exact – estimates are sufficient to have you be in control.

STEP 3: Set the parameters for WANTS aka “Fun Fund”

The fun part. What do you want to spend your money on? Are you the type to check out as many surrounding countries as possible? Will you research restaurants weeks before? Or are local boutiques not-even-ready for you? All three? We’re multifaceted too.

It may be easiest to consider your Fun Fund in how much you have per week vs per day. Having a number in your head aligned to the way you actually plan your life makes you (1) stick to the spending plan and (2) spend money guilt free! Especially when you have to make tradeoffs because that $300 can’t get you to the Amalfi coast and the Michelin restaurant.

Kudos for knowing that a break from America isn’t a break from reality! Since living & studying abroad is one of your favorite topics lately, we hit up cash vs. credit during your travels next week so you can eat, pray and shop smart.