Coupons 101

You can save loads of money with coupons.  I once got $800 for $23.  Here’s how:

Here are some ideas of places to get coupons:

·         The Sunday paper (inserts).  Ask people to save them for you.  Get the leftovers from gas stations, or dumpster dive.  I recommend Grainger in East Lansing.

·         From the stores.  Take tearpads, forms, hangtags, peelies.  Get enough for yourself, and a few extra for trading. 

·         Buy them on the internet.  You will find links of good places to buy coupons on the website.  Click on “links,” then “buy coupons.”  It seems silly to buy coupons, but if you find a great coupon that’s $1 off something your family loves, it’s worth it to pay $.05 each and then buy 20 of them.  That way, you can really stock up on that item cheap.  You’ll find that our local LSJ doesn’t get those great coupons.  Don’t buy the paper, just buy the coupons you want.   Check the selling sites each weekend when they post their new coupons, and if you see something your family will use, order them right away.  Don’t wait for the item to be on sale because you won’t get the coupons in time.  Nearly all of the coupons I use I buy on the internet.

·         Print them for free on the website.  Many of them have a limit of 2.  Never photocopy coupons.

Buy a nice little coupon holder or just use a shoebox and envelopes.  Sort alphabetically, and then keep your coupons with you all the time. 

Some stores double coupons.  Some have limits.  Some will let you use a manufacturer coupon AND a store coupon, called stacking.  Discuss Target, Walgreens, Kroger and Meijer.

Note:  Nearly all coupons say “do not double.”  This is usually irrelevant.  Rather, look at the barcode.  If it starts with a 5, it will double.  If it starts with a 9, it will not double automatically.  You will have to prompt the cashier to do it manually.

·         Scour your store ads.  Match your coupons to items that are on sale.

·         Try not to buy something that’s not on sale unless you NEED it.

·         There are websites that scour the ads and match coupons for you.  TheGroceryGame.com is a good one.  It’s $1 for a 4 week trial, then $10 for every 8 weeks after that.  If you join them, please use this e-mail address as your referrer:  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .  I use them and love them because they also list non-advertised sales.   Another site that does the same thing but doesn’t list the unadvertised sales is groceryguide.com, which is a free site.

·         Pay attention to catalina deals.  Catalinas are the coupons that print at the register.  Sometimes, if you buy certain items, you will get a catalina for money OYNO (off your next order.)  These are like cash to us!

·         Pay attention to BOGOF (buy one get one free) sales.  At Meijer, if you have a coupon for BOGOF, and it’s on sale for BOGOF, you get both free!

·         Pay attention to promotions that go like this:  “Buy this and that, get $5 off at the register.”  This can mean great savings when you use coupons, too.  See how many times you can do it in one transaction.

·         I hope you already know that if a sale is “10 for $10,” you don’t have to buy 10.  Each one will ring up at $1.

·         Forget brand loyalty.

·         Set those coupons aside in a separate envelope.  Take another empty envelope shopping to put your coupons in as you add items to your cart.  These are the coupons you will hand to the cashier. 

·         Take all your coupons with you when you shop.  Check the clearance section.  Often it’s hidden by the pop can return.

·         Buy small to save big.   If you have lots of multiple coupons, you’ll usually save the most money if you buy the smallest size of the product.

For example, if the big bottle of Heinz ketchup is on sale for $2, but the small size is only $1, and you have a $.50 coupon, doubled, you’ll get the smaller size for free.  So don’t overlook the smaller size products, even if the larger size is on sale.  Remember to check the trial size items, too.  Read your coupon carefully to be sure it’s doesn’t specify a certain size.

Another example:  Recently, there have been coupons for $1 any Huggies Clean Team product.  Most of the products cost $2.50 or more.  These are often luxury items that we don’t need, so you still wouldn’t buy them, even for $1.50.  But, again, look for the small items.  They make 10 count packages of Clean Team face wipes that sell for $.99 to $1.39!  So for free or $.39, I stocked up on this luxury item.

If an item on sale is out of stock on the shelf, always get a rain check!  Look for just one variety to be out, even.  Then you have a sale in your pocket, ready to use when the next coupon comes out for that item. 

This may be the most important way to save money, even if you don’t use coupons.  When you can get a good deal on something your family will use, buy lots of it and stock up!  We call this stockpiling.  Back to the example of the free ketchup.  If your family uses a lot of ketchup, get 5 bottles of it for free.  Watch the expiration dates, of course.  Keep in mind that sales and coupons usually cycle every 12 weeks.  So in about 3 months, you will likely be able to get the deal again.  Try freezing food more often.  Cheese freezes great.  Some people even freeze milk.  Soon, you’ll have to build lots of shelves and get an extra freezer to store your stockpile, but it’s worth it.  If you stockpile stuff when it’s free or cheap, you won’t have to pay full price later!  That’s the key:  never pay full price.

Not all cashiers and folks in line behind you will appreciate your efforts to save money, especially when it takes you a long time to check out. 

·         Politely let the people behind you know that you have a lot of coupons, so it may take a while.  I often play coupon fairy and give them coupons for stuff I see in their carts.  People get a real kick out of it.

·         Be patient with the cashier.  Respect their need to inspect your coupons.  Sometimes their job is at stake, and not everyone uses coupons honestly, so they may be leery of you.  It will help them if you are organized.  Keep your coupons for free items (the ones where the cashier has to write in the price) at the end of your order, with those items also being last on the belt.

·         Do watch the cashier, though.  With a lot of coupons, it’s easy for them to make mistakes.  Politely point out the error and help them fix it so you save all the money you’re entitled to save.

·         Check your receipt when you get to your car, before you leave.  Sometimes an item scans wrong.  You should take the receipt back to customer service and point it out to them.  Michigan has a scan law that entitles you to the difference times 10, up to $5 if an item scanned wrong and you paid that higher price.

I won’t discuss rebates in length, but if you have the time to do them, you can save even more money!  Some quick tips:

·         The easiest rebates are from Rite Aid and Walgreens because you can enter them online.

·         Save receipts and UPC’s if you really want to be good at doing rebates.  That way, you don’t have to go out and buy the product when the offer comes out.

·         Keep your eyes peeled for new rebate offers, especially around the Holidays.

·         Keep records and maybe even copies of each rebate you send.

Take advantage of pharmacy transfer coupons.  I rarely get a prescription filled without using one of those gift card coupons for a prescription transfer.  I pay my copay, then get a $20 gift card to the store!  That’s great!  A lot of pharmacies will even accept competitor’s coupons.  Call first and check.  Do be careful, though, because the pharmacist is the last person who checks your medication interactions.  If you’re on several meds or dangerous meds, don’t switch pharmacies.  But do it with simple things like prenatal vitamins.  It’s free money!

Use coupons everywhere, not just the grocery store.  Use them for oil changes, eating out, even buying clothes.  

Don’t give up if you have frustrating moments in the beginning.  When you first start, couponing like this will take you a long time to get organized and shop.  And you may have some frustrating moments, but don’t give up.  Remind yourself that you’re saving hundreds of dollars, and that it will get much easier and faster in a few weeks.

Keep track of your savings to stay motivated.  Keep in mind that the first few weeks, you may spend the same on your groceries and you did before.  BUT, notice that you are bringing home a LOT more!  After a few weeks, you’ll have a really good stockpile built up, and then your grocery spending will decrease dramatically.

Share your hobby with your friends.  You’ll find that you’ll want to chat and brag, and sometimes only other couponers understand.  Start a coupon trading box at church.  Leave coupons you won’t use, take the ones you will use.  If life gets hectic for a while, take a break and just shop the cheap store brands.  (I highly recommend Aldi’s.)  When life calms down again, get back into couponing.  You’ll really enjoy your stockpile during those hectic times, I guarantee it!  Have fun!  You can consider couponing a part time job.  If it takes you 4 hours to do your couponing in a week, and you save $100, you just got paid $25 an hour!