Getting kids ready to go back to school can be both stressful and expensive for parents. But there are ways to cut the costs.
Preparing for the return to school is always a challenging time financially for parents.
Thankfully, over the past few years, new Government initiatives such as the School Meals Scheme and the Free Schoolbooks Scheme have helped ease the burden.
But there are still other costs such as uniforms, stationery and extra curricular activities that parents have to fork out for.
If you’re worried about the cost of sending your children back to school, we’ve compiled our top tips for saving money during the back-to-school season which will help you avoid spending more than you have to!
1. The Back-to-School Clothing and Footwear Allowance
The Back-to-School Clothing and Footwear Allowance is a means-tested, one-off payment that helps families cover the extra costs of school clothing and footwear each autumn.
To qualify, you must be receiving a qualifying social welfare payment or participating in an approved employment, education, or training support scheme. Your household income must fall within certain limits, and the child you’re claiming for must live in Ireland and be aged between 4 and 17, or aged 18 to 22 and returning to second-level education this autumn.
In 2025, the payment is €160 for children aged 4 to 11, and €285 for those aged 12 to 22. Applications can be submitted online using a MyGovID account, and the deadline to apply is 30th September 2025.
You can check full eligibility criteria and apply by visiting the Back-to-School Clothing and Footwear Allowance page on the MyWelfare website.
2. Uniforms
Uniforms can have a significant impact on your pocket. However, there are some ways to save money:
- You should be able to buy the school crest separately and sew or iron it onto generic clothing that matches the school’s uniform. Check with the school first to see if this is an option. If you're not great with a needle and thread, your local dry cleaner or dressmaker should be able to do it for a very reasonable fee.
- Ask around and see if there are any second-hand uniforms available. Your school may have a good idea of who might be selling a second-hand uniform, or even ask other parents.
- Buy items that don’t require the school logo elsewhere. Oftentimes clothing such as polo shirts, socks, shirts/blouses, skirts or trousers don't require the school’s crest. Buying these at larger retail stores or in places like Tesco can help save you money.
- When it comes to buying a school bag, it’s best to purchase a good quality one that will last a few years, as this can save you money over time. As the saying goes, buy cheap, buy twice!
Don’t forget to label everything clearly as well to avoid any uniform and book mix-ups with your children’s classmates.
3. Transport
Don’t underestimate the impact the cost of fuel can have. Even if your children’s school is close by, if you drive them to and from school daily, the cost of fuel can really add up.
Under the Safe Routes to School programme, the Government has invested money to create safer walking and cycling routes within communities.
So if you live nearby your child's school, consider walking, cycling or scooting. Not only will your children get exercise, but travelling this way will also reduce your carbon footprint and avoid traffic congestion near the school. It’s a win-win!
If the school is too far, it may be worthwhile trying to set up a carpooling group with other parents in the area.
Many schools offer a bus service, which can be a cheap and convenient option. If your children’s school doesn’t offer this, check and see how close the local buses go to the school.
4. After-school activities
After-school activities and hobbies can undeniably be expensive, particularly if you have multiple children.
Often children change their minds or lose interest in a hobby or sport very quickly. So it’s best to avoid buying expensive equipment or gear until you know whether or not they’re going to stick with the activity long-term.
If you’re unsure if your child will enjoy the activity, ask whoever is running it if they can try out one class/session for free so that you don’t end up wasting money.
If you can’t afford to pay the fees for the full year upfront, check and see if you can spread the cost over a few months.
Depending on the activity, try to buy used equipment, or ask friends and family if they have any of the supplies you might need. Sites like Adverts, DoneDeal, eBay and Facebook Marketplace are your friend here.
If your child is into sport, Decathlon is great for good quality sports equipment at a fair price — especially for less common activities like horse riding, fencing, badminton, sailing, and archery.
5. Lunches
For those with kids in secondary school, lunches will remain a big cost.
While it may require slightly more effort and time, homemade lunches are both more nutritious and cheaper than shop-bought lunches or processed foods.
When it comes to preparing homemade lunches, the key is to plan ahead. Making a list of everything you need before grocery shopping will ensure you’re equipped for the week and will avoid food wastage and unnecessary stress.
When food shopping, keep an eye out for any deals or special offers. If you can afford to, try to bulk buy as this can save money. However, be careful to check the best before dates!
It’s also a good idea to buy reusable lunch bags/boxes and water bottles, as this will save money over time and is more environmentally friendly.
And try get acquainted with your local butcher and greengrocer. While supermarkets are great for convenience — they're not always the cheapest. Quite often it's cheaper to get your meat and vegetables in the local butcher or greengrocer. And the quality will often be better too.
6. Stationery
Whilst it’s unlikely to be your biggest back-to-school expense, the cost of all those calculators, pens, notebooks and erasures can still add up.
Consider buying in bulk to save money and check out what’s on sale in the "Euro stores" or "Pound stores". They often have great deals on stationery come August and September.
Also, check if there’s a specific list of stationery that’s recommended — depending on the subjects your child is studying, things like scientific calculators, geometry sets, and art supplies may not be needed or may be provided by the school. And depending on how digitally savvy your child’s school is, they may not even need many pens and paper.
And as always, don’t be afraid to use old supplies. Does your child really need a brand new calculator? Can some of last year’s pens do?
7. Gadgets
Tablets
Although the free books programme has pretty much eliminated the cost of buying books for parents, many schools have turned to e-books meaning parents are still forced to fork out money for a tablet for their kids.
If e-books are a thing in your child’s school, then consider a refurbished iPad.
Apple sells these itself on its website with savings of €400 or more compared to a brand new device available on some models. According to Apple, all refurbished iPad models come with a new battery, and new outer shell, are backed by a one-year warranty, have free delivery and returns, and are repackaged in a brand-new box with all accessories and cables.
Refurbed.ie is also great for second-hand electronics with all products coming with a 12-month warranty.
You can also check out sites like DoneDeal but there'll be more risk with the quality of the item you're getting.
Mobile phones
Depending on your child’s age, they may also be pining for their first phone. If so, check out SIM-only plans. They provide exceptionally good value with some deals starting from as little as €12.99 per month for unlimited calls, texts and data (within fair usage limits of course).
However, these plans are still billpay at the end of the day, so it’s still possible for your kid to rack up big charges, inadvertently or on purpose, if they’re not careful! For example they could call premium rate or international numbers or go over the data limit and start getting charged.
For this reason, a pay-as-you-go plan for children up to 15 or so might be better. Emergency numbers are still free, calls are free to receive if you want to check in, and you have the comfort of knowing your child can’t spend more than their monthly top-up limit.
When looking at phones, Doro is a cheap option that’s been marketed at mainly older customers but is often used as an entry-level phone for kids. It sells very basic phones though and some (perhaps more spoilt kids!) might look at you in disgust if you offered it to them.
A better option might be something like the Samsung Galaxy A15 5G. While its performance pales in comparison to top-of-the-range models from Samsung and Apple it should more than satisfy most younger kids who are getting a phone for the first time.
Again, don't forget to check out sites like Refurbed.ie or DoneDeal for cheaper phones.
8. Voluntary contribution
The vast majority of schools ask for a voluntary contribution, which many families feel obligated to pay.
But outside of a request for payment for insurance or towards the cost of materials not covered under the free books scheme, the charge — as the name suggests — is voluntary.
If you're genuinely struggling, ask if you can pay in instalments or discuss the matter with the school principal or the Board of Management. They should be sympathetic towards anyone who is genuinely struggling.
9. Budgeting
Budgeting ahead of time is vital to ensure that you don’t overspend and only stick to buying what’s needed.
Make a list
Even before starting your back-to-school shopping, it’s important to figure out how much you’ll need to spend, so make a list of everything you need to buy in advance.
Having a list also makes it less likely to impulse buy and helps you stick to your budget. Try to make note of what you spend this year so that you can plan ahead for next year.
If you can, try to save a small amount of money regularly. Setting aside even €20-30 a month over the course of a year can make a huge difference when it comes to buying school supplies.
It’s easy to set up a savings account that you can deposit money into for future school expenses. You can compare different account features and interest rates to find the best return for your savings using our savings account comparison tool.
Save on your household bills
There are steps you can take that will reduce your household bills, meaning you could put this money towards next year’s back-to-school costs.
One of the easiest ways to save money is by switching energy suppliers. Energy prices remain high, so if your gas or electricity contract is up, switching is definitely worthwhile!
With our easy-to-use energy comparison service, you can compare energy deals and switch to a cheaper supplier in minutes.
Don't forget to try out our other comparison tools for broadband, insurance, and banking products to uncover what other savings you could make.
Other ways to save
By simply adjusting your habits around the home, you could use less electricity and save money. From using LED light bulbs to reducing how much you use the tumble dryer, here’s a list of 16 ways to reduce your electricity consumption.
Did you also know that you can reduce your home insurance costs without reducing your level of cover? It’s surprisingly easy. Check out our guide to learn more about reducing your home insurance costs.
For a full list of saving tips, check out the bonkers.ie essential savings guide for Irish households.
Take out a personal loan
While it may be a last resort, you can always borrow money to help cover school expenses.
Our personal loan comparison service makes it easy to compare interest rates and loan features from Ireland’s main lenders and will show you what your monthly repayments would be.
