Saying that “being alive is expensive” might win me Understatement of the Year award, but that doesn’t make it less true. It’s especially so in Bloomington, which Rentcafe reports (based on September 2025 data) is the most expensive Indiana city, with an average cost of living 9% higher than the state average. Other sources list places like Zionsville as the most expensive, but that doesn’t change the fact that living in Bloomington is pricey.
Below, I’ve compiled three tips to hopefully reduce your cost of living in Bloomington.
Clip those coupons
If you haven’t already, get a Kroger loyalty card and sign up for the weekly ad newsletter. As I write this, you can save $1.50 if you buy three-quarters of a pound of Kroger-brand meat or cheese from the deli counter, and another $1.50 when buying two units of multi-pack Yoplait yogurt. Saving three dollars doesn’t seem like much, but the gains accrue over time.
Aldi is another great place to save on food costs. I recently bought apples, strawberries, ground turkey, two dips, tortilla chips, canned green beans, a paper bag and a half gallon of milk for $21.47, and I’m quite pleased. The most expensive item on that list was the $4.69 ground turkey.
Do be careful not to go to the grocery store hungry, though. I’ve made that mistake more than a time or two.
Figure out your tastes and pack your lunch
Continuing the food theme, discovering what meals you can make at home (that you actually like) can save you part of the cost of eating out. I’m not telling you to never eat at a restaurant — Mother Bear’s Pizza is too delicious for me to say that honestly — but it can be more fun than you think to cook for yourself.
For example, one pound of brown rice is $0.99 at Kroger. Add a $1 can of black beans, some shredded cheese from a $2.49 bag of Mexican cheese, a splash of $1.89 red enchilada sauce and maybe some slices of a $1 avocado, and you’ve just meal-prepped a nutritious lunch for the next few days, all for $7.37.
Or, you could just bring a can of SpaghettiOs ($1.39 per can, which for me is a full meal) to campus and heat it up in a microwave. (Don’t heat it up while it’s in the metal can, though!)
Shop secondhand
Clothing and furniture costs can quickly add up, and the savings available on these items is one reason I love Goodwill. My beautiful wooden kitchen table cost about $30, but it probably would have gone for $200 new. Cruising through Goodwill (or the Habitat for Humanity ReStore or browsing IU Classifieds) when you’re looking for furniture can pay off big time, especially around the end of the semester when students are moving out and getting rid of furniture.
Places like Goodwill or My Sister’s Closet are fantastic options for buying clothes. They have large enough selections that you’re likely to find something in your size, at much lower prices than buying new.
The dress I wore to my friend’s wedding in June was a Goodwill find that cost less than $10. Same for the dress I wore to my cousin’s wedding in January. This goes to show it’s not just jeans and T-shirts that you can find while shopping secondhand. Blazers and slacks might both be on the racks, or IU merch that would otherwise cost $80.
Another option for professional wear that won’t break the bank is IU’s Crimson Closet. You can borrow business casual and professional clothing for free on the second floor of Ernie Pyle Hall.
Hopefully these tips can help you save some money here in Bloomington, which is a lovely but very expensive place to live.
This story was originally published in the Indiana Daily Student’s spring 2026 Housing and Living Guide.
