Between the late nights in the library and early mornings in class, having a travel mug that will keep your coffee hot for hours is ESSENTIAL
I had a few travel mugs of my own when I was a college student, and while I loved them, they can be very expensive. Especially if you want one of the nicer mugs like one of the Yeti or Stanley tumblers.
The issue is, no student wants to willingly spend that kind of money on something that ends up being total crap and never gets used!
Surprisingly, not as many travel mug companies supply student discounts. Actually, only very few offer one, I found TWO during my research, how disappointing!
SO, we are going to try and find the beautiful loopholes that exist to buy the same quality mugs but in a retail store at does have a student discount.
Extra Notes: If you’re a die-hard Amazon user, there will be additional links to all travel mugs talked about at the end of each section! Also, many of these stores offer discounts or other promo codes for all the first responders out there so take a peek even if you’re not a student!
Here are 6 Stores that YOU can use your student discount at to snatch up some of the best travel mugs but at a cheaper price
#1: L.L. Bean: Sells Yeti: 10% off purchase, free shipping on $75+
One of the more well known stores out there, L.L. Bean stays fully stocked with any camping, fishing, or home decoration items you may need. They carry a variety of camping or travel mugs, especially one of my favorite brands, Yeti.
I personally have had a yeti and I’ve absolutely loved it as I would have hot coffee for almost too long, about 4-6 hours.
L.L. Bean has a variety of travel tumblers, bottles, and more in all kinds of different colors ranging from $30 for an 18oz rambler to $55 for a 46oz giant.
My only hang up with some yeti tumblers is many come with their leak proof lid, that has a silicon suctioning rubber bit (sorry that’s the only way I could think to describe it) that can be VERY difficult to get off.
Get this 20 oz Yeti tumbler for $38 here!
So, I would recommend going slowly when taking off the lid, as I have spilled my drink on a number of occasions when trying to take it off too quickly.
But beyond that, yeti is an absolutely fantastic choice for a reusable coffee mug. They are easy to clean and last forever, but if your’s doesn’t, they have a 3–5-year warranty so you’re covered anyways!
#2: Target: Multiple Brands @ 20% off one purchase, free shipping on $35+
Okay first off, WHO KNEW.
I would have never thought that target would have a student discount program purely because of the amount of people that flock to the store every school year.
But yes, the holy grail of stores has a 20% student discount waiting for you for one purchase of your choosing. This student discount does come with a few strings attached however:
You must sign up for circle rewards to access it
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- Circle rewards is the Target Reward program that is free to sign up for. It also has some other great benefits such as access to exclusive deals, birthday rewards, and more!
- The offer is only for back-to-school times
- On the target website, the offer is valid from July 16th (7/16) to August 26th (8/26). It is a bummer that you can’t redeem your discount at any time during the year, but the offer is annual. This just meaning if you miss it this year, you can always try for next year!
Target currently carries a number of great travel coffee mugs such as:
- Camelbak
- Contigo (The stainless-steel mug option is a top pick for me)
- Zojirushi
And many more! So, the choice is up to you on which one you want!
Get this Contigo travel mug for $17 here!
If you want a full travel mug breakdown, check out this guide created by good housekeeping on their favorite travel mugs. Many of the travels mugs I have used are featured on this list as well so I stand by the research!
BONUS: you can discount stack with your student discount at Target! This means if you find another coupon you want to use, let’s say…. 50% one purchase, you can combine both the student discount AND the 50% off or get EVEN MORE OF A DISCOUNT
#3: Fellow: 15% using student beans, free shipping on $75+
Firstly, what is student beans?
Before writing this post, I unfortunately had never heard of student beans. Student Beans is a UK based company that focuses on making the student life cheaper and easier.
When you go on the Student Beans website, you can scroll through a number of categories. There are so many brands paired with the company so you can see if the ones you love offer a discount code that you may not have known about!
Overall, the website looks to be a great place to grab a promo code and save some big money.
Now moving into Fellow…
Fellow is again, not a company I’ve ever heard of before researching for this post, but I checked out their website after finding them and I’m impressed!
Their entire brand is dedicated to home brewing coffee and how to make a coffee lover’s life easier.
Fellow has loads of accessories and goods to help you brew better coffee, ranging from pour over equipment to containers for storing coffee beans.
Fellow also has a number of different drinkware options for you to pick from, with their travel mugs ranging from $30-$40. The price does varies based on the mug size, model and if it is apart a specific collaboration such as the one below.
Get the classic 16 oz travel mug for $35 here!
Some of their travel mugs also have beautiful designs on them that have been created as part of their artist series. My favorite one being is this 12oz tumbler with teal print on top of the black base or the plant themed mug below!
The reviews on these travel mugs go above and beyond by not just talking about the ability to keep hot drinks hot and also how well these mugs keep cold drinks like your favorite iced coffee at the perfect temperature.
If you’re looking for the perfect student gifts, fellow would also be the website to head to! They have an entire section dedicated to gifts. You can sort by the budget youre working with and can create your own custom mugs if you want it to be a bit more personalized.
This section has pretty much just turned into me being overly excited about all of fellow’s products, so I’ll end this one here.
Since I haven’t actually used on of their mugs, I am solely going off presentation and reviews for this recommendation. BUT definitely be sure to check out their website, it’s honestly a do not miss.
#4 Keep Cup: 15% off Discount, free shipping on $50+
Keep Cup is one of the tried and true reusable cups made specifically with baristas and the café industry in mind. Originally created in Melbourne, the coffee capital of Australia, the keep cup claims to be.
a barista standard reusable cup for people to enjoy better coffee on the go.
Honestly, I am not 100% what the definition of “barista standard” is, but what I gather is the keep cup was specifically made for easy barista and customer use. In contrast to other travel mugs that have been created for a number of uses, Keep Cup seems to have been created for coffee drinking specifically.
I am unsure what changes were made for this to become a more coffee friendly mug but considering the popularity, it’s definitely working!
Additionally, Keep Cup is an extremely progressive brand, being 100% women owned (always great!) and always keeping an eye on their environmental impact.
The popular coffee mugs come in a variety of colors and sizes and are some of the most popular resuable coffee cups around the world. One of the unique things I’ve noticed about Keep Cups is the cork edging seen on some of the glass reusable cups.
I see cups with a silicone sleeve more frequently, but the cork used here is actually made from the “Waste of wine cork production in Portugal”. How cool is that!
Get the 12oz glass travel mug for $32 ($27 if still on sale) here!
You can get this student discount easily by entering your school email info on their site, the code will be sent straight to your email!
#5 Kleen Kanteen: 15% discount through Student Beans
Lastly, we have Kleen Kanteen on the list! Another Aussie based company that focuses on the health of the planet and creating fantastic reusable cups, bottles, and mugs at the same time.
The company initially started with the mission (that has since been successful) to create the
first stainless steel, BPA-free, reusable water bottle in 2004 because we wanted a non-toxic solution to single-use plastic water bottles
They have since extended their reach to many more products including some fantastic coffee tumblers and travel mugs!
Get the 12oz classic black travel mug for $30 here!
Kleen Kanteen sits right in the middle of the group cost wise, with the Insulated TKWide 16oz (473ml) with Café Cap sitting at $33 and the product range being around $35-$80, depending on what type of cup or set you’re looking for.
I absolutely love that they sell sets of coffee mugs and other reusable items like the one seen below. You get a fantastic deal while getting a larger variety! If you’re looking to get more than one item and want the best deal, Kleen Kanteen would be the brand to go with!
Final Thoughts on The Best Student Discounts for Travel Mugs
Although I can personally vouch for both Yeti and Contigo, the decision on which reusable cup you think is best is completely up to you! Whether you’re buying someone the perfect gift or keeping it for yourself, keep in mind these important factors such as
- how easy it will be to clean (I have found that mugs with a slider lid can be more difficult to clean as liquid gets easily trapped in the sliding area)
- spillage potential
- how easy it may break (I stay away from ceramic & glass travel mugs for this reason specifically)
when choosing your travel mug so you can get the most use out of it!
An extra money saving bonus is at many cafes, you will get a discount for bringing your own cup/mug! It may only be $0.50 but it adds up when you’re getting a coffee per day!
BTW: if you’re thinking of studying or working in a café, check out this blog post on why you might actually be more productive working at a cafe!
Here are some additional resources to help guide your travel cup picking journey if you want more specifics on how each cup performs
- For Yeti lovers: The Best Yeti Cups & Mugs
- Forbes breakdown of the best travel coffee mugs of 2023
But for now, that’s all I have for you!
Study hard and Happy Procaffinating