As a student, you may quickly find that your coins can be spread rather thin. This is especially true if you’re living away from home and managing rent, bills and other daily costs. Not to mention how getting to and from your school or campus, whether you’re living at home or not, can increase your spending even further.
Whatever your expenses, finding ways to save is always a nice bonus. One of the best perks of being a student is the discounts you can get from being one.
In this article, we will explore the types of discount cards available, eligibility requirements and tips on how to make the best use of them.
Table of Contents
What are student discount cards?
First things first, let’s get into what student discount cards actually are.
A student discount card is very simply a card or service that gives students access to certain offers. The deals available may vary on the card or service that you’re using, but often includes discounts on clothes, food, subscriptions to apps or even special memberships.
For more on student discount cards, you can have a look at this page from Somerset Council.
What are the main student discount cards?
Now that we’ve established what they are in general, we can now zero in on which student discount cards are out there.
There are 3 main student discount cards:
- TOTUM (NUS) – Both a physical, and digital, discount card.
- UNiDAYS – Completely digital.
- Student Beans – Also completely digital.
If you’re a student, like me, you’ve probably at least heard of these apps in passing. If you haven’t don’t worry – we’ll explain what each student discount card is and how you can use them in the following sections.
Before we delve into this, here’s a quick comparison table of the key features of TOTUM (NUS), UNiDAYS, and Student Beans:
| Student Discount Card | Cost | Access Method | Key Benefits |
| TOTUM | Free (basic) / £14.99 (TOTUM+). | App-based or physical card | Wide range of discounts; TOTUM+ includes ISIC card, cashback, and age verification. |
| UNiDAYS | Free | App and website | Digital-only; discounts on fashion, food and tech; supports apprenticeships. |
| Student Beans | Free | App and website | Similar to UNiDAYS; more of a focus on fashion and fitness deals. |
What is TOTUM?
TOTUM is a membership card for students that offers a wide range of discounts, deals and offers across various sectors, including fashion, food, travel and more.
The TOTUM card comes in 2 forms: the regular TOTUM, and the TOTUM+ membership.
- Regular TOTUM membership – Free of charge and digital only. This means that you will need to download the TOTUM app and then you’ll be able to start using it.
To learn more about the free TOTUM membership, visit this page on the TOTUM website.
- TOTUM+ membership – Offers additional benefits, including cashback, a free Tastecard and ISIC card (for international discounts), and a physical TOTUM ID card for age verification. As of November 2024, costs £14.99 per year.
You can learn more about the TOTUM+ membership on this page of the TOTUM website.
Who is eligible for a TOTUM membership?
As we’ve already established, TOTUM is a student discount card. However, this doesn’t mean that it applies to all student or that it can only be used by students. In this section, we’ll look at exactly who is eligible for a TOTUM membership.
To use TOTUM or TOTUM+, you will need to be over the age of 16. If you are a full-time student, you will need to be on a further or higher education course, meaning that you will need to have finished secondary school. This course will need to be done at either a sixth form, a college or a university.
You will also be eligible for a TOTUM membership if you are completing an apprenticeship, or if you are a professional that meets certain criteria.
As an apprentice, you will need to be on an approved apprenticeship, such as the following:
- Intermediate Apprenticeship
- Advanced Apprenticeship
- Higher Apprenticeship
- Degree Apprenticeship
If you would like to learn more about what these types of apprenticeship are, have a look at this Think Student article.
As a professional, you will be able to use TOTUM if you are:
- A part-time student
- A member of a chartered institute, professional body, trade union or similar organisation
- A recent graduate from a sixth form, college or university
- A government-run public sector employee
- Working at a training provider or professional institute
You can learn more about the eligibility of getting a TOTUM membership by looking at this page of the TOTUM website.
What is UNiDAYS?
UNiDAYS is a student discount service that gives students access to a wide range of deals, discounts and offers. UNiDAYS operates solely online through its mobile app and website.
As UNiDAYS is a completely digital platform, all you will need to do is sign up and download the app to be able to use it. It is also completely free, so you won’t need to pay to use this service.
You can learn more about UNiDAYS by checking out this page on the UNiDAYS website.
Who is eligible to use UNiDAYS?
To use UNiDAYS, students must:
- Be over the age of 16
- Attend college, university or an equivalent institution
- Provide a valid student ID card or student email address
This is so that UNiDAYS will be able to verify your identity as a student. You can learn more about this by checking out this page on the UNiDAYS website.
UNiDAYS also supports students on apprenticeships, traineeships and professional placements. Therefore, if you don’t have the necessary student identification you can contact UNiDAYS to find out what to do.
You can learn more about this by checking out this page of the UNiDAYS website.
What is Student Beans?
Student Beans is very similar to both the regular TOTUM membership, and the UNiDAYS app. Student Beans offers exclusive deals and discounts in collaboration a wide range of brands across different sectors, such as:
- Fashion – Nike, ASOS, Boohoo, PrettyLittleThing
- Technology – Apple, Lenovo, HP
- Food and Drink – Domino’s, McDonald’s, HelloFresh
- Fitness – Gymshark, JD Sports, MyProtein
Just like UNiDAYS, Student Beans is completely free and operates via its app and its website. To access these discounts and offers, you will simply need to make an account and verify your student identity.
You can learn more about Student Beans by checking out this page on the Student Beans website.
Who is eligible to use Student Beans?
As with TOTUM and UNiDAYS, to use Student Beans, students must:
- Be over the age of 16
- Attend secondary school, sixth form, college or university
- Be in full-time education
If you are doing an apprenticeship, you will also be eligible to use Student Beans. You can learn more about this by having a look at this page on the Student Beans website.
Do you get student discount for travel?
One of the biggest costs for students, especially if you commute daily or attend a university far from home, is travel and transport. So, you might be wondering if you can get discounts or offers to save on these major costs, as a student.
There are a range of different travel discounts available to students. These may include discounts on trains, buses, trams, coaches and even domestic flights.
These discounts can come in the form of travel cards, specific student prices or promotional codes.
In general, one of the main ways to access student discounts on travel services is to look at what is offered on your student discount card. These will often partner with brands such as:
- National Express
- Flix Bus
- Trainline
- Ryanair
These partnerships can provide discount codes for: coaches, trains, flights and even taxis.
Other than this, student discounts for travel are primarily focused on trains and buses, as well as the additional discounts offered to students in London. We’ll look in more detail at what student discounts are on offer when using these in the following sections.
You can also learn more about student discounts for travel in general by looking at this page from UK CISA.
Can you get student discount on trains?
Yes, students can get discounted train fares, mainly through railcards and regional travel offers. However, these discounts are often based more on age rather than student status.
The 16-25 railcard, with “16-25” referring to the ages of people who can use it, being a popular example. While it’s primarily age-based rather than strictly for students, mature students over 25 may also qualify if they meet specific eligibility criteria.
This railcard allows you to save 1/3 on your rail fare. This can turn into major savings especially if you have high train fares, your university is quite far from home, or you commute by train.
As of the 2024/25 academic year, the 16-25 railcard costs:
- £30 for 1 year
- £70 for 3 years
To learn more about the 16-25 railcard, check out this article by Railcard.co.uk.
Another form of student discount is the Unizone season ticket that gives you unlimited travel at a discounted price. However, as it is offered by Southern Railway, it only applies for students at universities in or around Brighton or Worthing.
You will need to either have a: 16-17 Saver railcard, or a 16-25 railcard to be eligible for the season ticket and can either get a weekly, monthly or quarterly ticket for the Brighton or Worthing Unizone.
Prices differ between these two zones, but as of March 2024:
- Brighton quarterly season ticket – £239.60
- Worthing quarterly season ticket – £271.90
To learn more about the Unizone season ticket, check out this guide by Southern Railway.
Other regions may also offer student discounts on train or metro services, so be sure to check your local train service’s website.
Can you get student discount on buses?
Unlike trains, bus discounts for students vary widely on the local bus service provider. However, many services do offer discounts to students, making commuting more affordable.
For example, First Bus in Bristol, Bath and western England offers students a 10% discount on their bus fares. To access this discount, students will need to present a valid photo student ID, such as a university card or even a physical TOTUM card.
To learn more about this, check out this page by First Bus.
If you’re in London, you can apply for the 18+ Student Oyster photocard. This offers London-based students travel cards at a discounted price, as well as cheaper season tickets for buses and trams.
To be eligible for this discount card, you will need to:
- Live in London during term time
- Attend a registered school, college or university or be on a mandatory work placement
- Pay a £20 admin fee
The card will then expire when your course ends.
To learn more about the travel discounts for London students, check out this guide by Transport for London.
If you use the bus frequently, a student bus pass might be worth the investment. Although these can be more expensive upfront, it covers your bus fare for the rest of the year, which ends up being much cheaper and more convenient.
To learn more about student bus passes, check out this article by Save The Student.
How do you use a student discount card?
Now that we’ve looked in detail at the main student discount cards in the UK, let’s look at, arguably the most important part, how you get these discounts.
With all 3 of the student discount cards that we’ve looked at, you can simply download the app or get onto the website and register. For the free versions, having used these apps myself, I’d say that this process is very simple. You will only need to provide basic details and some form of student identification to verify you.
For the TOTUM+ membership, you will also need your passport or driving licence to verify you for your physical ID. You can learn more about this by checking out this page on the TOTUM website.
After you’ve registered and been verified, the app/ website will show you lots of different offers and discounts to use. These could be for either online or in-store use.