In the United States, college students typically spend between $2,000 and $3,000 per year on food. This is a reasonable estimate for most full-time students who live in dorms and eat at their school’s dining halls.

On average, the cost of campus dining hall meals is about $7 per meal at private schools and $5 at public schools. So if a student has two meals per day at her campus cafeteria over the course of a week (Monday through Friday), she might spend between $35 and $50 each week on food alone. If she goes to school for three or four years, that adds up to hundreds of dollars in your pocket!

Of course, there are other ways to save money on campus food besides eating off-campus every day or cutting back on calories.

Last modified: August 3, 2022