How Much Do You Spend on Back to School? Share & Enter to Win a $50 Target Gift Card!
Enter our Hip2Save’s Engaged Reader Monthly Giveaway and share how much you typically spend on back-to-school shopping.
Hey, Hip community! 👋🏻
In case you missed it, we recently started a new monthly reader giveaway where we celebrate & reward our most engaged readers! Every month, an unannounced surprise blog post will go live to spark some discussion in the comments.
July is nearly over, and with back to school on the horizon, we’re thrilled to announce our next Engaged Reader Monthly Giveaway below as we talk all things back to school spending! 🍎
We want to hear from you!
🚨 Engaged Reader Monthly Giveaway Question:
How much do you typically spend on back-to-school shopping [per child] — think supplies, clothes, & other school necessities. Has it changed over the years?
Share by putting your comment below about how you spend on back-to-school shopping for our Hip community to read.
By leaving a comment about your school supply budget, you’re entering to win a $50 Target Gift Card!
We know back-to-school shopping can put a serious dent in your wallet, especially these days with prices climbing on just about everything.
That’s why we’re so excited to pick TWO lucky winners a chance to win a Target gift card! 🎯 Just be sure to leave a comment below, and you’ll be entered to win a $50 Target gift card!
Whether it helps cover the cost of school supplies, lunchbox snacks, or a fresh first-day outfit, we hope this little extra cash brings some relief during one of the busiest (and most expensive) times of the year. 💸✏️👟
How to Enter:
- Comment below: Share how much you typically spend on back-to-school shopping [per child]. And has it changed over the years?
- Duration: The commenting entry period starts on Wednesday, 7/23/25 at 7 AM MT and ends on Friday, 7/25/25 at 6:59 AM MT.
- Eligibility: All approved comments within the entry period are eligible.
Winner Notifications:
Winners will be contacted via email at the email address associated with their Hip2Save account or the email used when leaving their comments. You do not need to include your email address within your comment. All giveaway correspondence will come from our giveaway team at giveaways@hip2save.com.
Here’s what our Hip team shared about how much they spend on back-to-school shopping & how it’s changed over the years:
“I don’t usually go into back-to-school shopping with a set budget since each of my kids has different needs at their different ages – this year I’ll have one in high school, one in middle school, and one in elementary school, so they’re always drastically different. I do make sure to shop at bigger box stores for affordable essentials, and thankfully, their North Face backpacks have held up so great over the years, I haven’t had to replace them yet!
For clothes, I mostly buy secondhand throughout the year, but I started a tradition 5 years ago where I take each of them to pick out one brand-new outfit before the first day, and they get to pick the store. I try to limit it to $100 per kiddo since name-brand pieces can add up quickly when you’re looking for a head-to-toe outfit. They all love it so much, and it makes their first day feel extra special, so it’s worth the one-time splurge to me.” – Sara
“I don’t set a budget, but I always shop sales and focus on essentials. As my kids got older, I spent less on supplies and more on clothes, aside from a good calculator. A quality backpack like Jansport lasts for years.
Early in the school year, I stick to basics: a few new tees, sweatshirts, and shoes since they can layer into fall. I shop outlets, TJMaxx, and discount stores for the best deals. For middle and high school, I wait to buy most supplies until classes start, since many use Chromebooks. When they were younger, I’d start earlier and shop Walmart and Dollar Tree to keep costs low.” – Amber
“I never kept track, but one thing I did to save money was to buy a lot when the school supplies started to hit the clearance section (especially Target). I would buy a ton to donate to the school and keep in a box for us to pull from throughout the school year.” – Angela
“I’m right there with Angela! I don’t necessarily have a set amount, I just make sure to shop around and throughout the year, if I see great deals, I buy them and store them to have in excess. I always price compare, sometimes I build the exact same cart at multiple retailers to find the best price points based on what Ava needs that year.
For things like clothing or shoes, I tend to only buy replacements or things she needs more of, new sizes, etc., and now I buy most of her shoes from Walmart lol. They are so cute and you can’t beat the prices! (especially when she hits a growth spurt every couple of months)” – Monica
“Back-to-school spending has definitely gotten more expensive for me over the years. When they were little, I could just buy everything for them, but now they each have their own style and, of course, are into name brands. I feel like we spend about double what we used to spend when the boys were in elementary school.
We actually went back to school shopping last weekend with all our boys (we’ve got three boys in high school now heading into 9th, 10th, & 12th grade). We still have a few things to pick up, but after we get those items, we will have spent about $350-400 per kid.
A breakdown of where that money went per kid:
- Shoes ($75-$100)
- Backpack & School supplies ($50-$75ish)
- New socks, underwear, and belt ($50-$75ish)
- Clothes (3-4 pairs of jeans, 3-4 pairs of athletic shorts, 5 new tees, & hoodie) $200ish
We spent a lot this year, but this is usually our big clothes shopping trip of the year for the boys. The rest of the year, we just get things randomly when we find them on sale/thrifting. I do feel like we got some really great deals (most items at 50% off or more). We shopped at discount stores like TJ Maxx & Marshalls first, then hit up a local Outlet Mall where we ended up getting a majority of things that way they could still shop their name brands they love, but we could save.” – Liz
“I no longer have kids in school (first year for that), but I will say I never really kept track or set a budget either. Mostly because when my daughter attended in-person learning, she went to a Catholic school and they required a specific uniform that could only be purchased through a company the school approved.
One way we saved money on uniforms was that our school runs a resale shop, and parents would donate uniforms that their kids had outgrown, and they sold them super cheaply. I saved money by purchasing 90% of my daughter’s clothes there and would then donate the uniforms she outgrew from the previous year. She always gets to pick out new shoes and a backpack, and I didn’t set a limit since those were the only things she could “wear” that expressed her own style.
She had a backpack from Vera Bradley that I bought on their discount site for years, and it held up so nicely that it still looks brand new, and she often uses it for vacations. The school also provided each student with a MacBook, so other than a notebook and pens/pencils, we really didn’t need any other supplies. I will say that her last year of high school was the best because she did online learning and didn’t need any supplies other than her laptop!” – Trish
We can’t wait to hear all about your back-to-school spending habits and kick off the start of another great school year with our amazing community!
Happy back-to-school from all of us at Hip2Save! ☀️ We love and appreciate you all. 💕
Spending hasn’t changed much since last year, @200.00 per child, 3 kids.
Our Son has Autism & is Homeschooled but I do buy many learning tools, sensory tools, art supplies, flash cards, & etc as they are on sale for to last throughout the year. I also try to hit up the places that give free school supplies to welcome the new school year. Like my Apartment Complex.
We are at zero now unless we find deals that are too good to pass up for donating.
Depends on the year. We homeschool do it really depends on the materials we use. My kids are needing more advanced math so those tend to be more expensive.
I’m honestly not sure how much we’ve spent this year for back to school.. We have 3 kids and only 1 in school currently.. Her needs have increased as she’s gotten older! We still don’t go crazy.. I typically snag deals through the summer to help lighten the load..
I jusg have one left in school, but she’s 17 so this is probably the most we’ve ever spent on BTS shopping. 🤪
Supplies are actually pretty low, because high schoolers jusg don’t need much plus she just re-uses most things. Maybe some pencil lead or ink fills for her Frixion pens. We often buy notebooks/spirals on clearance and just keep stocked up.
Clothes are where most $$$ goes. She’s not one to need all fancy name brands, but even jusf a few pairs of jeans, shoes and handful of shirts is a couple hundred. Add in a backpack and concert clothes (for band) and we’re probably around $300.
I try to keep the spending at $200 max per kid, but it’s getting more difficult to fit everything they need into that budget! They each get a new pair of shoes, one outfit for the first day of school, and supplies from the lists the school provides. Everything else we reuse or purchase at mom to mom sales and thrift stores. The costs really add up!
Because we homeschool we’re able to reuse many of our materials from year to year, so we probably only spend about $20 per child.
I dont have a specific budget but try to spend as little as possible. I stock up when there are good sales and tend to have a decent stockpile to pull from for the basics. We dont usually buy a lot of new clothes to start out the school year but rather just a new outfit or two.
Throughout the year, probably about $300.
It changes between the younger and older kids. I’d say probably $50 for the younger and $60-70 for the older. On just supplies. They have uniforms for school so that’s a whole ‘nother higher expense.
Back-to-school season always hits hard financially and emotionally. We spend about $750 per child, covering school fees, books, one good pair of shoes, uniforms, and lunch/snack prep to start the year strong 🍎✏️ We do our best to stretch every dollar by reusing backpacks, water bottles, and any supplies or uniforms that still fit. It’s a lot, but it’s worth it to give our kids what they need to feel confident walking into a new year. 💛
I usually spend about $300. We thrift used pants/shorts through the year, so that helps. We do uniforms, so we buy the shirts from the school. We choose shoes that are not as expensive but still get something they like, which is still kind of expensive. School supplies still comes up to about $100, including a backpack and water bottle. So, in total, probably $300. I buy most over the summer as we go. Thanks for the opportunity!
As a grandmother of twin grandsons, I try to help with whatever is needed. I allot one thousand towards clothes, supplies, extracurricular activity, ie school events, sports, etc. Although kids tastes vary, it is fortunate one boy is bigger than the other so the smaller boy gets handed down anything outgrown by the bigger boy. We know the preteens can bring growth spurts seemingly overnight so most clothes barely see much use before they are outgrown! Thrift stores are a great place to forage for deals as well as neighbor, friends and family hand downs. Some communities might even have clothing swaps allowing “trades “ for outgrown items, earning credit towards new secondhand items.
Probably about $150 for 2 kids. I try to shop the sales
I first go through all the stuff the kids brought home from last year and collect all of the salvageable binders/folders/pencils etc. Then go through the list & add items to my Walmart cart. The past couple years have been easier since I order items for Walmart Pickup. No crowds, less stress. Too expensive though! 4 kids about $75 each
Hip2Save helps me find great deals on school supplies and shoes, it’s all the other items that add up. I typically spend $400-500 per child
Happy to hear we’ve helped you snag some back-to-school savings, Krystin! Thanks a bunch for taking the time to share! 🥰
Around $300 for each of my kids, if not a little more. Our school supply lists tend to be pretty long in our county, not counting class school fees. Also, when teachers prefer you to be brand specific, I try to do that, but those specific things add up even with a sale. Thank you for the chance!
Only 1 child of 3 still in school, between approximately $300 this year.
I usually spend about $600 or more. I always try to keep the cost down but the older they get….!!!!
Probably about $200 per child. Now the second baby going to college, so it will be a bit more since we’ll need to but a lap top.
We try to find deals on all supplies, shoes and clothes. We generally do not get a whole new wardrobe at the start of school…just a few fun additions. I would guess we still spend at least $200 per kid.
Try to keep to $150.00 to include an outfit each, fill school supply list and buy shoes. I use sales, thrift stores, hand-me-downs too.
300$
Well, this year my son is going to college- AND its out of state- 9 hoursaway! Needless to say the budget is busted this year!!!!
I honestly don’t know. I have 3 kids in school. My mom is a former school teacher, so she usually helps out because she can’t resist buying school supplies!
I bet it’s close to $750. I have four kids that are school age. They will all need some new clothes and probably shoes, a few will need back packs. Then the dreaded school supply list. 😉
We try to stay close to $500 a piece for clothes and school supplies for each of our two children.