This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at WPUNJ chapter.

As a college student, I try to save every penny I can. Why? Let’s be real… Paying full price?

No time to waste money, at least.

That’s why I am a very big fan of finding things that I can either get for free or a lot cheaper when I shop! If you want to know my secrets, just read on!

LET’S TALK FREE!

Getting stuff for free (or for so cheap that it’s basically free) is like seeing Oprah… kind of.

BRANDY’S 7 TIPS TO GETTING FREE STUFF

1. SAMPLES

Now, this is the easiest way to get things free. You can pretty much try any product (within reason, of course) through a company’s website. And the whole process is incredibly simple. First, search online for free samples. Next, just sign yourself up. If you want to avoid the flood of emails, make sure to opt out of the email list.

Now I have one sample for you to try for yourself! It’s nice to have a free little surprise three weeks later… especially because you forget you even ordered it.

TRY THIS: http://www.pgeveryday.com/tag/product-samples-offers

Also, for daily freebies check out this website:

TRY THIS DAILY: http://www.allyou.com/coupons-deals/daily-free-samples

2. BIRTHDAY FREEBIES

There are a ton of stores that will send you emails to get free items in store for your birthday! Of course, it’s usually a small treat, but it’s really nice once you rack them up from a few stores. All you have to do is sign up to become a member online (make sure to do this at least a few days before your birthday). Below are my favorite three places for birthday treats.

TRY THESE:

https://www.sephora.com/

http://www.coldstonecreamery.com/mycsc/

https://www.bareescentuals.com/

And as a bonus try this site!

http://www.birthdayfreebies.com/

3. RESTAURANT RECIPTS

Attention, collegiettes! Keep your receipts… or at least read the bottom, top, or back for free or discounted offers before tossing them. Most fast food and dine-in restaurants will offer free food for doing a survey with them. In the end, you both win. They get information, and you get free food!

4. DRUGSTORES

Many drugstores are now giving customers incentives to come to their store by items scott-free.

Like offering a free music video shoot?

Umm, no…if only they did that.

Once again, you do need to be a member to get these deals. My favorite is CVS, so I will use them as an example.

Once you have a member’s card, you will be able to print out coupons in the store at a machine. Oftentimes, there will be a coupon for a product. The price of the product will sometimes cost the same amount that the coupon offers to take off, which means that it will be FREE! (It might even let you skip the math and plainly list it as free.) Otherwise you can use other coupons to get money off a certain item, as usual.

On top of that, they offer store money back to you once you purchase certain items. It’s kind of like a rebate except the refunded money prints with your receipt. Pretty neat, right?

Check out this website for more insight to learning the art of working the system at drugstores. You will love yourself for it!

TRY IT: http://thekrazycouponlady.com/coupons-for/cvs/

5. COUPONS

We have all seen that popular show about couponing right? Well it’s real, and you can do it too!

You may even become quite the…

Well… maybe.

This one is a bit complex. In simple terms, you can use websites to collect printable coupons, like:

http://www.coupons.com/

http://www.redplum.com/

You can also collect coupons out of the Sunday newspaper. Keeping them until they expire is a good idea too! Each grocery store/drugstore accepts coupons differently.To get items for free, look out for coupons that give you amounts off that exceed the actual price of the product. (Of course, it’ll always be off of cheap items, but at least it’s something!) I always check websites that have calculated what gets you things for free or a lot cheaper. Here is a website that can teach you any and everything you need to know about couponing!

TRY THIS: http://www.livingrichwithcoupons.com/beginners/extreme-couponing-101

6. BECOME A MEMBER

This one is very simple. If you go and sign up as a member for some websites or in-store, you will get a membership card. Stores usually send you offers for free items (samples) and/or exclusive member-only coupons. Remember these memberships are free; you do not need to pay for them. (If you do, you’re probably signing up for a credit card — be aware.)

A yummy example is Starbucks. Sign up as a member, and you get a free first drink, birthday drink, and a free drink when you get to certain levels. They also have a pretty awesome app, which is really convient when purchasing drinks.

TRY IT: http://www.starbucks.com/card/rewards

There are also special websites that let you sample free full-sized items so you can give them feedback. A really great one is bzzagent. I have gotten everything from free shoe insoles from Doctor Scholls to free Maybelline mascara for myself and to give out to friends. It benefits you and the company. The packages tend to come with really good coupons as well. This one is worth a try!

TRY IT: https://www.bzzagent.com/

7. CONTEST

Now of course we know this is the easy one! Just sign up and you win!

…. Of course I wish that’s how things went.

But this form of getting free stuff isn’t to be ignored: I’ve won plenty of things. The biggest is a trip to the Big Apple for Teen Vogue Fashion University event! So keep the faith, guys!Here are a few sweepstakes/contests to get to you started!

TRY IT: http://www.elle.com/Sweepstakes/

EVEN BETTER: http://www.hercampus.com/giveaways

Well guys, that seems to be it for my piece of FREE advice for now.

Now it’s no need for that! If you have ANY questions, comment below for help. Now, get out there venture out on the recommended sites and get some free stuff!

I believe in you!

HCXO!

Sources:

http://giphy.com/gifs/no-sweet-brown-time-FOHj4MpT2PLm8

http://www.nsmbl.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/34t1z75.gif

http://giphy.com/gifs/birthday-flowers-happy-gw3JY2uqiaXKaQXS

http://www.reddit.com/r/BigBrother/comments/2eunfj/spoilers_team_america…

http://yourfree99.wordpress.com/2011/05/09/pay-attention/

http://giphy.com/gifs/drake-drizzy-started-from-the-bottom-vl4wUqFVmLIOI

http://www.cleverlysimple.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/CVS-Coupon.jpg

http://thriftymommaramblings.com/2013/03/hot-free-clear-scalp-shampoo-3-…

http://giphy.com/gifs/realitytvgifs-television-tlc-ponvUa3urCwJq