New to PG study at AUT? Welcome! Returning from the summer break? Glad to have you back!
Wherever you are in your PG studies, you’ll have a little plastic oblong in your wallet with a somehow-always-unflattering photo that verifies that you are a student. And that little card is your gateway to some serious savings.
Student discounts can be an absolute lifesaver when you’re trying to stretch a scholarship and/or live on a part-time income. You can save on the essentials (internet, banking, phone, transport) and even pick up a few deals on life’s little luxuries. So browse our round-up of the best 2025 student discounts below, and maximise the perks of that little plastic card. You’ll find deals for:
- Student discount memberships
- Food & drink
- Health & wellness
- Banking
- Transport
- Entertainment
- Staying connected
- Devices & software
Many of these deals apply to all NZ students – but because this is an AUT blog, we’ve included lots of the cheap deals and perks unique to AUT students too.
Student discount memberships
Want to access LOTS of deals at once? By far the most powerful student discount scheme in Aotearoa is StudentCard. But there are other options too!
StudentCard
StudentCard is a local student discount network that has been delivering the deals to NZ students for over 20 years. They have negotiated discounts with dozens of NZ’s big-name retailers as well as smaller local businesses. A card costs $20, but then you can get discounts on a huge range of items from burgers to barbers to broadband. Check out the full range of discounts – including some at AUT! The selection is enormous (some of our favourite random inclusions are axe throwing and flotation tanks), so this membership is great for those who want an all-purpose discount option.
Other student discount memberships
Although StudentCard is by far the market leader in Aotearoa, there are a few other international schemes open to NZ members. UNiDAYS is a fashion & beauty-focused network with heaps of deals available for online shopping, including local retailers. StudentBeans is another online shopping scheme from England with NZ sign-ups available – check out their trending discounts (though note, not all are available in NZ). Big bonus: both are free to join!
There’s also the ISIC (International Student Identity Card), which in addition to verifying your student status around the world, can also unlock discounts. Many of the deals relate to flights, hotels, and tourism adventures internationally; though there’s a handy country filter to find the deals that apply in NZ.
Food & drink
AUT’s cafes and eateries offer lots of special deals for affordable food & drinks. Refuel (on the city campus) and KaiFe (on the south campus) offer super-cheap $8.50 hot meals. You can also bring the cost down even lower with a pre-paid meal plan at just $8/meal. Visit the AUT Shop website (or in person in WH building) to pay for your desired number of meals, and the credit will be added to your student ID card. The website sells weekly packages, or you can enquire to find out about a 10-meal pass. The Refuel and KaiFe opening hours and buffet times vary, so check online in advance.
You can also access dozens of dining deals with the StudentCard. It unlocks discounts at Taco Bell, Carl’s Jr, Murder Burger, Taste of Tandoor, and many more. It’ll also get you $4.50 medium hot drinks at AUT’s own #newsfeed, KaiFe, and Refuel cafes. Cheap coffee FTW!
Plus for those many moments when only fries will power you through a late-night study session, Burger Fuel has a ‘Spuds for Students’ deal that gets you free fries with any large burger.
Health & Wellness
AUT students can access free or low-cost healthcare through the AUT Student Medical Centres, and free mental health support through the Counselling & Mental Health team (details here). There is also a great range of wellness support through Bright Side, including free personal health coaching.
For more specialised health services, try AUT Integrated Health clinics at North and South campuses. They have very reasonable rates for podiatry, physiotherapy, and psychotherapy. There’s also AUT’s Niho Ora ki Manukau (Oral Health Manukau) clinic, offering affordable dentistry (with 20% off for AUT students).
Looking to keep fit? You can access low-cost gym memberships (from $12.99/week) through the AUT Gyms. If it’s not convenient for you to work out on campus, many other gyms also offer student discounts. These include Jetts (10% off 12 months), Les Mills (from $28.50/week), and the YMCA city gym (from $17/week).
If your income while studying is under certain thresholds, you may also qualify for a Community Services Card – which can significantly reduce your healthcare costs.
Banking
Several major banks offer some kind of student account package, including:
The odd ones out are ASB, which doesn’t have a specific tertiary package (though their ‘Streamline‘ account functions similarly); TSB, which has recently disestablished their student package; and Kiwibank, which doesn’t do student packages at all.
The specifics and eligibility critieria vary between banks, so do check the fine print. But in general, tertiary accounts often include no (or low) fees, discounted loan rates, occasional freebies, and (sometimes) interest-free overdrafts. MoneyHub publishes a handy analysis of all the different student account perks and features to help you compare. In many cases, tertiary accounts can be transitioned to graduate accounts (with moderate discounts) when you complete your studies.
For international students, Westpac offers a student account package that can include a New Zealand account in your home currency.
Transport
Public transport can be much cheaper with an AT HOP tertiary concession. The process of registering your concession onto your HOP card involves a few steps and an application form, but the concession lasts up to 3 years (as long as you remain eligible). It gives you at least 20% off most bus, train, and ferry travel around Auckland – if you use public transport daily, that can add up to major savings. Plus if you have a Community Services card, you’ll be eligible for Community Connect concessions which bump up the discount to a massive 50%!
If you’re driving, you will need to face the challenge of parking on- or near-campus. In Auckland that’s never cheap, but there are ways to make it cheaper than it otherwise would be. City campus: Wilson Parking offers discounted monthly prices for students at many of their city centre carparks. (Unfortunately, the one closest to AUT at 47 Symonds St is among the most expensive at $249/month; but if you don’t mind a little walk, the one at Glenside / 150 Symonds St is only $129/month.) For casual parking, Auckland Transport’s Civic Carpark is often cheaper at $5/hr in peak times; and down to $2/hr (or $12 max) on weekends. North and South campuses: the usual M-F rates of $2/hr drop down slightly if you pay via the UbiPark app. Discounted rates are $1.75 for one hour; or $7 for a day (plus fees). Weekends are free!
Biking to the city campus? Secure (and in some places, charge) your bike or e-bike for free at one of the Locky Dock parks or bike racks dotted around campus.
Entertainment
Movies
Unfortunately the major cinema chain in Auckland, Event Cinemas, is a bit rubbish on student discounts. A student ticket to a bog-standard screening at the Queen St location is a whopping $24.50, which is just $2 less than the standard price. With a Cinebuzz card that comes down to $23.50, which still punches a hole in the old pocket. The only remotely affordable way to see a movie at Event is to take your Cinebuzz card on Tuesdays, which can bring it down to $13.25.
However, your best bet for cheap movies as a student is to hit up the specialist and indie cinemas. At Rialto Newmarket a student ticket is $18 (again, a little cheaper with a Cinebuzz card on Tuesdays). But the absolute gold standard for cheap movie tickets is Academy Cinemas (next to the Auckland City Library). Their standard student tickets are $14, which is already the best value in town… but it gets even better with their incredible $5 ticket deal on Wednesdays! This isn’t even a student deal, so you can bring anyone to enjoy the discount.
Streaming
Spotify offers a roughly half-price student rate of $8.99/mo for Spotify Premium, with a free month thrown in as well. This only applies with a student ID and if you’re new to Premium.
Plus there are a few other streaming services included in international student discount membership schemes (e.g. Disney+ via UNiDAYS, YouTube Premium via ISIC); though we weren’t able to verify that these are actually accessible in Aotearoa, so your mileage may vary.
IRL adventures
Students can have a cheap day of fun at Western Springs. MOTAT (the Museum of Transport and Technology) and the Auckland Zoo are right next to each other, and both offer student discounts. Get $10 MOTAT tickets (usually $19), and passes to the Auckland Zoo from $16.50 (off-peak) for a big day out under $30 total. Bonus: your MOTAT ticket includes a tram ride between the venues.
Closer to the city campus, you can wander for free through most of the Auckland Art Gallery, and students typically get a few dollars off tickets to paid exhibitions. If you’re up for a laugh, try The Classic comedy club which often has 2-for-1 student tickets (but not always, and only on door sales).
There are also heaps of action & adventure deals with local tourism providers through StudentCard. Highlights include discounted escape rooms, sky diving, bowling, mini golf, and lots more.
Staying connected
Phone & internet
Some telcos offer bonus deals with a student ID. At 2degrees, students can get 1GB extra data per weekend on eligible mobile plans. At Spark, it’s a year of 1.5GB monthly bonus data and free calls to Spark mobiles and landlines. Make sure you enquire with them and check whether your plan is eligible to access these deals.
Need a home fibre / broadband plan? if you go via StudentCard, you can get $15 per month off your broadband with Slingshot. Speaking of internet: as a student around town, you will need plenty of free wifi! You can find connections on campus, at all Auckland Libraries, many parts of the Auckland CBD, some other council-run venues such as public transport terminals and art galleries, and some cafes.
News
Here’s a new one for 2025: AUT students can get free access to paid news services via our institutional licences. This covers you for the NZ Herald Premium online content (details here) and Business Desk (details here).
Devices & software
Apple and Microsoft both offer their education pricing to tertiary students, so you can save a chunk of change on that new laptop or tablet. Lenovo and Samsung also have student discount schemes. PB Tech has been known to offer student discounts at times – it’s intermittent, but the savings can be good. And for repairs, your StudentCard can score you 15% off at Advanced Computers.
Need software? Check before you buy! AUT students get Microsoft Office 365 ProPlus for free. That means you don’t need to pay for Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams, OneNote or OneDrive for Business. You can also get other software relevant to your study (e.g. EndNote) – log in here to check what is available to you. As an AUT student you can also use Studiosity for feedback on your writing, and LinkedIn Learning for free online professional development (login with your AUT credentials).
If you need to access software from home that you use on AUT computers, check the instructions to access AUT computers remotely. The process takes a little time, but could help avoid an unnecessary software purchase!
Do you know of more student deals not listed here? Add them in the comments!
