How much allowance per day should a college student have?
Hello! I am a prospect international transfer student and now sorting my college plans and finances.
I eat three meals a day. I grab at least one Starbucks drink (venti size) a day. I plan to live on campus or near campus so I will just walk.
Is $15 a day enough?
What’s the cost of at least one Starbucks venti per day?
Are you going to have a meal plan? A venti Starbucks drink costs about $5.00 where I live. Other than that, what would you want to buy with the $15?
Well in the university I am going… I mostly eat oatmeal or cereals for breakfast so I might buy that beforehand. I am thinking of a salad or Subway sandwich for Lunch maybe? Or a meal in McDonalds? For dinner, I seldomly eat outside. I prefer cereals for dinner. 
That said, most of the $15 goes for lunch and coffee/snacks … Would that be enough?
This is a tough question without more details. Meal plan, cooking your own food, or buying food pre-made? How much do you eat? Location matters a lot in the United States, as do different stores.
This site might help - you can choose a city in the US to get a better idea of what groceries cost.
http://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/country_result.jsp?country=United+States
If you were to compare, for example, Boston, MA with Richmond, VA, you would see the following:
http://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/compare_cities.jsp?country1=United+States&country2=United+States&city1=Richmond%2C+VA&city2=Boston%2C+MA
It really depends on what area you are talking about.
The more expensive end of the ranges tends to be organic/less processed/better for you foods.
Public transportation in different cities costs very different amounts. You need to research that individually by city.
Some universities have arrangements that allow students to use the city’s public transportation for free, so you should look into that if it’s relevant.
Your other thread says you’re torn between SIU-Carbondale and ISU. Have you looked up their dining plan requirements? Are you planning on living on campus?
For SIU, if so, the Saluki Anytime Plan is included in your housing contract. And, if you go to SIU and choose to live in traditional residence halls, you are required to have a meal plan.
For ISU, it is the same thing - if you live on campus, you are required to have a meal plan. You can find more information about that in the links below.
$15 dollars a day is probably not going to be enough… and if money is a concern, and it seems like it might be, you could start by cutting that five-dollar or more Venti Starbucks drink. I can’t imagine eating oatmeal/cereal for two meals, and McDonald’s or Subway for the third is at all good for you.
Links:
http://www.housing.siu.edu/resources/faqs/dining
http://www.housing.siu.edu/dining/dining-plans
http://dining.illinoisstate.edu/documents/2014-2015-CDS-Meal-Plan-Terms-And-Conditions-Final.pdf
http://dining.illinoisstate.edu/meal_plan/meal_plan_2015/documents/MealPlanOverviewResHall15-16.pdf
I probably spend around $650 a month on food alone. This only accounts for lunch/dinner, occasional breakfast/snacks, and eating out at more expensive restaurants. I don’t eat at red lobster every night, but I’m not scraping by on ramen either.
Totaled with my expenses on leisure activities, alcohol, gas, and miscellaneous purchases, my allowance would probably be around $35 a day.
For another perspective, I spend $80 a week on food with a 10 meal per week plan eating two meals a week with frequent snacks. About the same middle as @OhSorryYo
$15 a day should be decent, but what you have as a meal plan is important as others have said.
@irlandaise @OhSorryYo @PengsPhils
Hi! Thanks for the reply. I really eat only oatmeal/cereal for breakfast and dinner. Sometimes I skip breakfast. This is because I was really overweight for last 16 years of my life (264 lbs) but I went on a diet and became very active – now, I am currently 145-147 lbs. Since my weightloss, I got used on eating little during breakfast and dinner, but oftentimes I eat extravagantly during lunch. I sometimes eat instant ramen for dinner I cannot take away Starbucks as I am a coffee addict :)) I can skip breakfast and dinner but not the Starbucks haha!
A student spends $5.00 a day for Starbucks? !!
If you need the kick, wouldn’t $0.50 for drip do the job?
If you live on campus you may be required to have a meal plan. My son’s campus requires one for freshmen. You can choose the least amount of meals in the plan to get by.
A venti Frappuccino costs $5.00. Black coffee is available everywhere and I don’t understand why anyone would go to Starbucks just for that, but I guess people do.