Key facts
- NS Flex Dal Voordeel costs 6.35 euros a month in 2026 and gives 40 percent off train travel off-peak, at weekends and on public holidays.
- Hermes and Arriva Bravo buses in Brabant have their own off-peak card: Brabant Dal Korting, 16 euros a year for 40 percent off.
- CJP is for everyone aged 12 to 30, and the first year costs 10 euros. An ISIC student card costs 12 euros.
- The Cineville pass starts at 19 euros a month, and Natlab and LAB-1 in Eindhoven both take it.
- The basic library membership (Bieb Budget) is free for Eindhoven residents in a pilot that runs until 31 December 2027.
- Telecom contracts can last at most 2 years. After the first term you can cancel for free with at most 1 month's notice.
What to do
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Before you cut costs, see if you qualify for healthcare benefit, rent benefit or support from the gemeente. Our allowances guide explains who can get what.
Download the free loyalty app of the supermarkets near you and scan it at every visit. Plan meals around that week's deals.
If you take the train more than a couple of times a month, NS Flex Dal Voordeel usually pays for itself. Check in after 09:00 on weekdays, but not between 16:00 and 18:30, and you get 40 percent off.
Aged 30 or under? Get CJP. Studying? Ask for student prices everywhere and consider ISIC. Watch a lot of films? Look at Cineville.
Check Marktplaats and thrift shops before you buy furniture, kitchen things or a bike new.
Energy, phone and internet deals change often. Put a reminder in your calendar when your contract term ends.
Groceries and eating for less
Supermarkets in the Netherlands run weekly deals, and many of the best ones are only for people with the loyalty card or app. Jumbo Extra's, for example, is free to join and gives discounts, points and 6 personal offers a week when you scan your pass. Albert Heijn (Bonuskaart) and Lidl (Lidl Plus) have their own cards and apps. Discount chains such as Lidl and Aldi are often cheaper for basics.
Too Good To Go is an app where bakeries, cafés, restaurants and supermarkets sell food they did not sell that day. You reserve a bag in the app and pick it up, usually at the end of the day. The company says the food costs roughly a third of the original price. You do not know exactly what is in the bag, so it suits flexible cooks.
Outdoor markets are good for cheap fruit and vegetables, especially near closing time. The market at the Woenselse Markt runs every Saturday from 10:00 to 17:00.
- Eat out at lunch instead of dinner; many places have cheaper lunch menus.
- Cook together with housemates or friends and split the shopping.
- Bring your own coffee and lunch to campus or work a few days a week.
- Use Tikkie or a payment request to split bills straight away, so small amounts don't pile up.
Cheaper trains and buses
NS, the main train company, sells subscriptions on your OV-chipkaart under the name NS Flex. Prices below are from the NS price list for 2026, 2nd class.
Off-peak hours for NS are Monday to Friday from 09:00 to 16:00 and from 18:30 to 06:30, the whole weekend (Friday 18:30 to Monday 04:00) and all public holidays. Your check-in time decides if you get the discount. The discount also works on trains of other companies, but not on buses, trams or metros.
- NS Flex Dal Voordeel: 6.35 euros a month for 40 percent off off-peak. You can also prepay it for 76.20 euros a year.
- NS Flex Dal Vrij: 127.95 euros a month for unlimited off-peak train travel. Worth it if you commute off-peak or travel a lot at weekends.
- NS Flex Weekend Vrij: 39.50 euros a month for unlimited travel at weekends, or 43.50 euros with the off-peak discount added.
- Weekend Voordeel and Altijd Voordeel are no longer sold since 1 February 2026.
- Group ticket: for 2 to 7 people travelling together off-peak. The 2026 price list gives 38.50 euros for 2 or 3 people and 4.50 euros for each extra person.
- Finished your studies in the Netherlands and had a Dutch student travel product? NS gives you one year of Dal Voordeel for free. Order it at least 48 hours and at most six months after you cancel the student product with DUO.
- Hermes city buses: Brabant Dal Korting costs 16 euros a year and gives 40 percent off on all Hermes and Arriva Bravo buses in Brabant, all day at weekends and on public holidays and outside rush hour on weekdays. You order it at mijn.hermes.nl and add it to your bank card, phone or OV-pas.
Student and under-30 discounts
Always ask if there is a student price, and carry your student card or proof of enrolment. Many cinemas, museums and theatres have one even if it is not on the sign.
- CJP: a culture card for everyone aged 12 to 30, with discounts on cinema, museums, theatre and festivals. The first year costs 10 euros.
- ISIC: the international student card, 12 euros from isic.nl, with discounts in many countries, for example on flights.
- Cineville: unlimited films in more than 80 cinemas from 19 euros a month. In Eindhoven, Natlab at Strijp-S and LAB-1 on Keizersgracht take part.
- LAB-1 without a pass: Monday and Tuesday are the cheapest days at 9 euros. Students and CJP holders pay from 9 euros on any day.
- Van Abbemuseum: 16 euros, or 8 euros for students and CJP holders. Free with a Museumkaart, and free for everyone on Tuesdays from 15:00 to 17:00.
- Museumkaart: one yearly card that gets you into hundreds of Dutch museums. Worth it if you visit more than a few museums a year.
- Student Sports Centre Eindhoven (on the TU/e campus): TU/e and Fontys students pay 155 euros for a full year, or 31 euros a month, for the sports card.
Second-hand: furniture, kitchen things and clothes
Marktplaats is the biggest classifieds site in the Netherlands, for new and second-hand things. You can arrange payment and shipping in its messages, and there is buyer protection (kopersbescherming) for items that are shipped. For anything big, pick it up and see it before you pay. Never pay through a link someone sends you outside the app.
Thrift shops are called kringloopwinkels. Emmaus Eindhoven on Genneperweg collects, repairs and sells donated goods at low prices. ReShare Store Eindhoven sells second-hand clothing and festival gear and also does repairs.
Eindhoven also has many vintage shops, for example around Strijp-S and Kleine Berg. They are fun, but usually not the cheapest option.
End of the academic year (June and July) is a good time to look. Many students leave and sell furniture and bikes cheaply.
Free and cheap things to do
Our What's on page lists the events we pick each month, and many of them are free.
The library is a great free option. Since summer 2026, the Bieb Budget membership is free for Eindhoven residents as a pilot by the gemeente that runs until 31 December 2027. Anyone up to 18 can join for free at any time. The central library is in De Witte Dame, a former Philips factory, with free places to study and work.
Van Abbemuseum is free for everyone on Tuesday afternoons from 15:00 to 17:00. Parks, lakes and the big events in the city cost nothing to visit.
Energy, phone and internet deals
Fixed costs add up. Once a year, check if you can switch to something cheaper.
For energy, ConsuWijzer (from the ACM, the Dutch consumer authority) advises to use more than one comparison site. A fixed-rate contract keeps your price the same for the whole term, for example 1 year, but you usually pay a cancellation fee if you leave early. With a variable or dynamic contract, the supplier can change the price, but you pay no fee when you switch.
For phone and internet, a provider can tie you to a contract for at most 2 years. After that first term you can cancel for free, with a notice period of at most 1 month. If you do nothing, the contract renews automatically, often without the welcome discount. Compare the price, minutes and data, and check one-time costs.
Mistakes to avoid
- Paying full price for trains every week; Dal Voordeel pays for itself after a few trips.
- Checking in on the train just before 09:00; the discount depends on your check-in time.
- Forgetting to scan the supermarket app, so you pay the normal price for things on offer.
- Buying new furniture in your first week, before you have checked Marktplaats and thrift shops.
- Letting a phone or energy contract renew without comparing.
- Paying a Marktplaats seller through a link sent outside the app.
Useful links
See 23 more links
More official sources
Other useful links
Providers and community groups we found useful. We don't get paid for these links.
Sources we checked
Coming up
-
Until 3 Jan 2027
The Collective Response
Foundation We Are
A free design show at Strijp-S about what happens when people work together.
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Until 28 Oct · Mon-Fri 08:00-20:00, Sat 12:00-17:00
World Press Photo 2026 at TU/e
Atlas building, TU/e campus
The year's best press photos, free to see on campus. Last chance before it closes on 28 October.
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Thu 15 Oct · 17:30-19:30
Innovation Café
Kazerne
Free talks and debates on tech and design in English, with drinks and a chance to meet the speakers.
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Thu 15 Oct · 19:30-23:00
Mix & Mingle
Changes weekly (posted on Meetup)
A relaxed drinks evening where people from all over the world meet. Good if you are new in town.
Related
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We checked this guide against its sources on 13 October 2026. Rules change: the official source always wins. Spotted something out of date? DM @gone.with.us or email contact@gonewithus.nl.