Pupils will soon be returning to schools and colleges after the summer break. But with inflation and the cost of living at record highs, many parents are feeling the pinch. The good news is, we’ve put together a list of back-to-school shopping apps to help you save.
Whether you want to stock up on packed-lunch goodies, or kit the kids out with new uniforms, stationary or more, these school shopping apps will help you get everything on your list.
Back-to-school shopping apps – what are they?
Back-to-school shopping apps are handy smartphone apps that help you save on your school-related shopping. Free to use and easy to download, they can help you save on everything, from food and recipe ingredients to textbooks, uniforms, school supplies and much more.
Some apps will help you save on brand new items, while others will help you find the best deals on used and second-hand products. We’ve also included a few back-to-school apps to inspire you to make your own school supplies.
How do back to school shopping apps work?
You can use back-to-school shopping apps to research the prices of competing products and services. Or to find the best deals in your local area. They might let you store a shopping list or send you notifications about local sales, coupons, discounts and special promotions.
When you download a back-to-school shopping app for the first time, you might be asked to link your payment card to get card-linked offers automatically when you’re at the checkout. Or the app might ask you for permission to access your phone’s location so that it can send you the most relevant local deals based on your local area.
Many apps these days incorporate location-based technology such as geofencing software and Bluetooth beacons. Don’t worry if it sounds complicated! All it means is that you can rest assured your apps have exactly what they need to serve you with the most relevant, personalized deals tailored just for you!
Back-to-school shopping trends 2022
In their 2022 back-to-school survey, Deloitte Insights reported some interesting findings.
According to the report, inflation has driven back-to-school spending up 8% with more than half of parents planning to spend $661 this season, up 8% YoY , to stock up on school apparel and supplies. What’s more, the back-to-school market size will reach $34.4B this year, up 24% since 2019.
Digital shopping is still popular, but in-store shopping will get a big boost, representing 49% of the back-to-school budget.
So what are you waiting for? Check out our rundown of the best back-to-school shopping apps. Many of these apps will help you find the best local deals in your area, so make sure you share your location with the app. Simply download the app, opt-in to give it location permissions, then receive personalised notifications about local in-store deals tailored to your needs.
8 apps to save on your back-to-school shopping
1. Staples
The Staples app offers some great prices on school essentials. Check out the app’s ‘Less List for School’ which features fantastic deals on school staples like notebooks, binders, pens, pencils, calculators and more. Get instant access to deals straight from the home screen, then buy what you need through the app and pick it up in store within two hours.
2. Vouchercloud & School Stickers
Vouchercoud is your go-to back to school shopping app. It offers thousands of coupons and voucher codes from major retailers like Boohoo, Burton, Footasylum, Staples and many more. It also helps you save money when you use the School Stickers website and app.
Simply find your School Stickers offers on the Vouchercloud website, click through to School Stickers, do your shopping and enter your voucher code at the checkout. When you create an account with School Stickers, you’ll get a loyalty discount of 10% off every subsequent order.
3. School Supply List
This handy back-to-school app lets you make a list of everything your child needs from more than 150 items, plus you can add your own. Used by students and teachers alike, you can easily edit your lists and make notes about what retailer is offering the items at the best price. Create dozens of individual lists for students, combine lists for easier shopping, track quantities needed and use the app during the school year to replenish items when needed. Get it here.
4. Reebee
If you’re based in Canada, the Reebee app could become your favorite shopping companion. You can browse flyers and find all kinds of deals and offers from an array of big brands like Walmart, Giant Tiger and more. The app also lets you create shopping lists, price match products and find local deals using its clever geofencing feature.
Save big with Reebee’s current back-to-school deals which include discounts on laptops, stationary, headphones, backpacks and much more. Check out Reebee’s school deals.
5. Walmart Savings Catcher
If you’re shopping at US-based supermarket Walmart, don’t buy anything without its Savings Catcher. You can search for dozens of cut-price deals, and make a back-to-school wish list in case a friend or family member wants to contribute. You can even set it to access your location so you’ll be the first to know about local deals in your area. What’s more, if Walmart finds a lower price on something you recently purchased, you’ll get the difference refunded on an eGift card.
6. Fat brain
Sell your old textbooks or get great deals on second-hand books with the Fatbrain app. The super-handy app lets you scan the book you want to buy or sell, so you don’t have to manually enter ISBN codes or barcodes. Before you know it, you’ll have some extra pocket money or you’ll receive that school text book you really needed, just in time for the start of term! Fatbrain offers free postage so you’ll save on that, too.
7. Ibotta
Earn cash back and ace your back-to-school shopping with the Ibotta app. You can get cash back every time you shop – that’s good news for anyone doing a last-minute school shopping dash. Ibotta works with leading brands and retailers including all your back-to-school shopping online and in-store.
Simply sign up to get up to 30% cash back at thousands of top retailers including Home Depot, Walmart, Groupon and QVC to name just a few. Ibotta users can stay on top of inflation by saving more than 1.6x over the rate of inflation on their groceries so far in 2022. So what are you waiting for? You might not have much time between trips for new uniforms, checking off your supplies list and making sure your little ones are all set for school.
8. How to Make School Supplies
Available on Android, How to Make School Supplies helps you make colorful and fun school supplies. Make organizers, pencil cases, cards, phone holders and much more with this creative crafts app. It features a great collection of step-by-step tutorials with high quality photographs. Each simple idea can be made out of improvised materials such as paper, cardboard, felt tip pens and glue. You’ll find everything, from simple and easy ideas to more fancy, complex ones.
Are you a business with an app?
PlotProjects helps businesses around the world build accurate and efficient location functionalities into their mobile apps. Our extensive geofencing SDK is quick to set up and easy to use, offering all the tools you need to offer your users location-based messages and experiences at exactly the right moment.
and with our PlotRewards API you can build local deals and card-linked offers programs into your apps and websites within minutes Not only is it fast and seamless but it’s also cost effective. Our solution will give you highly accurate insights into your customer’s real-time activity and behaviour, making it easy for you to push the right offers, at the right time and place.
To talk to us about how our technology can benefit your app, get in touch today. Our team is on-hand to offer all the help and advice you need. Want to get started? Sign up for our free trial today. You can find out more about PlotRewards by contacting the PlotProjects team today.