Moving to Miami for school is a genuinely great deal: world-class weather, a beach city with real energy, and campuses at the University of Miami, Florida International University, and Florida Atlantic that put you in one of the country's most dynamic metros. But Miami is expensive, spread out, and its own kind of city — and a little planning makes the difference between a smooth first semester and a scramble. This guide covers what students actually need to know.
Whether you're an incoming freshman, a transfer, a grad student, or an international student landing in Miami for the first time, here's how to choose where to live, what to budget, and how to get set up fast and affordably.
The quick version
Figure out which campus you're near first — UM (Coral Gables), FIU (west Miami / University Park), or FAU (Boca Raton) — because that determines everything about where you'll live. Budget realistically: Miami rent is high, so roommates are the norm. A car helps almost everywhere except a few walkable pockets. And the single biggest first-week stress — furnishing an empty apartment fast and cheap — is exactly the problem furniture rental was built to solve, especially with a student discount.
Step 1: Know your campus and where students live around it
Miami's universities are in very different parts of the metro, and "where to live as a student" depends entirely on which one you attend.
University of Miami (Coral Gables). UM sits in leafy, upscale Coral Gables, just south of the city. Students live on campus, in Coral Gables (pricey but close and beautiful), in nearby South Miami, and in Brickell and Coconut Grove (a short drive, more nightlife and energy). The Metrorail's University station connects UM to Brickell and downtown, which makes car-free-ish living more feasible here than at most Miami schools.
Florida International University (University Park, west Miami). FIU's main campus is in west Miami-Dade. Students cluster in the surrounding Sweetwater and West Miami neighborhoods, in nearby Doral, and in purpose-built student housing near campus. It's a car-oriented area — most FIU students drive. Rents here run lower than the coastal neighborhoods, which is part of the appeal.
Florida Atlantic University (Boca Raton). FAU is up in Boca Raton, in Palm Beach County. Students live on campus, in Boca's apartment complexes, and in the surrounding areas. Boca is affluent, suburban, and car-dependent, with a more relaxed pace than Miami proper.
The rule: pick your neighborhood based on commute to campus first, budget second, and lifestyle third. A gorgeous Brickell apartment is a miserable daily commute to FIU; a cheap west-Miami place is a long haul to UM. Match where you live to where you actually have to be.
Step 2: Budget realistically (and get roommates)
Miami rent is high, and students feel it. The single most important budgeting move is sharing.
Typical student rent (per person, sharing):
- A room in a shared apartment: roughly $900–$1,800/month depending on neighborhood and how many roommates
- A studio or one-bedroom solo: roughly $2,000–$3,200/month — usually out of reach without help
- Purpose-built student housing near FIU/FAU: often billed per-bed, competitive with sharing
Roommates are the norm, not the exception. Splitting a two- or three-bedroom brings the per-person cost down dramatically, and it's how most Miami students afford to live near campus. Line up roommates early — the good apartments and the good splits go fast before each semester.
Other costs to plan for:
- A car (most areas) plus Florida's high insurance, gas, and parking — or budget for rideshare if you go car-free
- Electricity (A/C runs most of the year; summer bills are real)
- Furniture and setup (see Step 5 — this is where students often overspend or scramble)
- Higher groceries, dining, and going-out costs than many college towns
The no-income-tax note: Florida has no state income tax, which mostly matters once you're earning, but it's part of why the metro is booming and why costs have risen.
Step 3: Sort transportation
Most of student Miami runs on cars — with a few exceptions.
- UM students have the best car-free options: the Metrorail University station links campus to Brickell and downtown, and Coral Gables and the Grove have walkable pockets.
- FIU and FAU students almost all drive — the campuses and surrounding areas are car-oriented and spread out.
- Rideshare fills gaps everywhere, especially for nights out (and Miami's nightlife runs late).
- Traffic is real — factor commute time heavily into where you choose to live. A cheap apartment 40 minutes from campus in traffic isn't the deal it looks like.
If you're bringing a car, budget for Florida's notably high insurance and for parking (which can be scarce and paid near campuses and in dense neighborhoods).
Step 4: Handle the logistics and admin
A quick checklist for landing in Miami as a student:
- Secure housing and roommates early — the best options and splits go before each semester starts.
- Set up utilities (FPL for electricity is the big one) and internet in your name or split with roommates.
- Get a Florida driver's license/registration if you're establishing residency and bringing a car (note: in-state tuition residency has its own separate requirements — check with your school).
- International students: handle your I-20/visa logistics, SSN if you'll work on campus, and a US bank account early; your school's international student office is your best resource.
- Find your essentials — the nearest Publix (the beloved grocery default), pharmacy, and laundromat if your place doesn't have a washer.
- Learn your building's rules — move-in procedures, and (in high-rises) COI and elevator-booking requirements for move-in day.
Step 5: Furnish your apartment fast and affordably
Here's the first-week problem nobody warns students about: you've signed a lease, classes start in days, and the apartment is completely empty. Furnishing it is where students most often either overspend, scramble with hand-me-downs, or spend the first month sleeping on the floor. Here are the real options:
1. Buy everything (cheap or otherwise). Budget furniture from big-box stores is an option, but it means shopping, transport (hard without a car or a truck), assembly, and a pile of stuff you'll have to sell or dump at the end of the year — furniture rarely survives a college move in good shape, and reselling used furniture in a churning student market is a hassle.
2. Hand-me-downs and marketplace finds. Cheap, but time-consuming to source, inconsistent, hard to transport, and often not in great condition. Fine for a budget, rough on the timeline.
3. Rent your furniture. Increasingly the go-to for students, because it solves the whole problem at once: a coordinated apartment delivered, assembled, and set up in days — often within 48 business hours — then picked up at the end of the lease. No shopping, no truck, no assembly, no end-of-year selloff, and a student discount makes it genuinely affordable.
Why renting fits student life specifically:
- It matches the lease. You furnish for the school year (or your program) and it's gone when you leave — no storing furniture over summer or hauling it to the next place.
- A student discount makes it affordable. GROVI offers 10% off, with higher discounts for multi-room rentals — so a group of roommates furnishing a whole apartment together saves the most. Reach out for the details.
- It's move-in-ready fast. Delivered, assembled, and installed in days, so you're settled before classes rather than weeks into the semester.
- It splits cleanly among roommates. A monthly furniture cost divides neatly across a shared apartment, and it covers the shared spaces (living, dining) plus each bedroom.
- No end-of-year problem. When the lease ends, it's picked up. No Craigslist marathon, no dumpster, no "who takes the couch."
We break the money side down in detail in our student rent-vs-buy furniture guide, and the fast-setup playbook is in how to furnish an apartment in a weekend.
A student's first-month checklist
- Pick your neighborhood by commute to campus first, then budget, then lifestyle
- Line up roommates and housing early — good splits go fast
- Budget for rent (sharing), car/rideshare, A/C, and setup
- Sort transportation — car for FIU/FAU, car-light possible around UM
- Handle admin — utilities, license/registration, international-student logistics, residency
- Furnish fast and affordably — rent for the school year with the student discount, split among roommates
- Find your Publix, pharmacy, and campus essentials
- Get out and enjoy it — the beach, the culture, and the city are the reason you came
Frequently asked questions
Where should students live in Miami?
It depends on your campus. UM students live in Coral Gables, South Miami, Brickell, or Coconut Grove (with Metrorail access to campus). FIU students cluster in Sweetwater, West Miami, Doral, and purpose-built housing near University Park. FAU students live on or near campus in Boca Raton. Choose by commute to campus first, then budget, then lifestyle — and plan on roommates to make the rent work.
How much does it cost for a student to live in Miami?
A room in a shared apartment runs roughly $900–$1,800/month depending on neighborhood and roommate count; solo studios and one-bedrooms run $2,000–$3,200 and are usually out of reach without help. Add a car (and Florida's high insurance) or rideshare budget, year-round A/C, and setup costs. Sharing with roommates is how most Miami students afford to live near campus.
Do students need a car in Miami?
At FIU and FAU, almost certainly — those areas are car-oriented and spread out. At UM, you can get by car-light thanks to the Metrorail University station linking campus to Brickell and downtown, plus walkable pockets in Coral Gables and the Grove. Everywhere, rideshare fills gaps, and traffic is heavy, so weigh commute time carefully when choosing where to live.
How do students furnish an apartment in Miami cheaply?
The three options are buying budget furniture (shopping, transport, assembly, and an end-of-year selloff), sourcing hand-me-downs (cheap but slow and inconsistent), or renting furniture (a coordinated apartment delivered and set up in days, picked up at lease-end, with a student discount). Renting is increasingly the student go-to because it's fast, splits cleanly among roommates, and has no end-of-year disposal problem.
Is there a student discount on furniture rental?
Yes. GROVI offers 10% off, with higher discounts for multi-room rentals — so roommates furnishing a whole apartment together save the most. It covers the shared living and dining spaces plus each bedroom, delivered and assembled fast and picked up when the lease ends. Reach out for the current details.
When should I start looking for student housing in Miami?
Early — the best apartments and the best roommate splits go before each semester begins. Start lining up roommates and touring (or virtually touring) places a few months out, especially for fall move-in when demand peaks. International students should coordinate with their school's housing and international offices as early as possible.
What's the best neighborhood for University of Miami students?
Coral Gables is closest and beautiful but pricey; South Miami is a bit more affordable and still close; and Brickell or Coconut Grove offer more energy and nightlife a short drive or Metrorail ride away. Many UM students balance cost and commute by sharing a place in South Miami or the Gables, or splitting a Brickell apartment for the lifestyle.
Can international students rent furniture in Miami?
Yes — furniture rental is especially convenient for international students, who often arrive with little and don't want to buy (and later dispose of) a full apartment's worth of furniture for a program of a year or two. A coordinated set delivered and set up fast, then picked up at the end, avoids shipping, buying, and selling furniture across a move abroad.
The bottom line
Moving to Miami for school comes down to a few smart early decisions: choose where to live by your commute to campus, line up roommates to make the rent work, sort out transportation for your area, handle the admin early, and get your apartment furnished fast and affordably so you start the semester settled instead of scrambling. The city itself — the weather, the beach, the energy, the culture — is the easy part. Get the logistics right in the first few weeks, and you're free to enjoy one of the best places in the country to be a student.
Furnish your student apartment, move-in-ready
GROVI furnishes student apartments across Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach — near UM, FIU, and FAU — with coordinated collections delivered, assembled, and set up within 48 business hours for in-stock orders, then picked up at lease-end. A 10% student discount (with higher discounts for multi-room rentals) makes it affordable, and it splits cleanly among roommates. Entry-level collections from $307/month, or $277 with the student discount.
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