There are many places to find coupons and it's easy to get quite a stash of coupons in a hurry. First you are going to want to subscribe to the Sunday newapaper for the largest paper in your area. The newspaper that reaches the most readers in a particular area has the best coupons. Coupons vary by region and by newspaper. There are almost always promotions running for specials on newspaper subscriptions. Ask friends, family and neighbors for their extra inserts if they don't use them. If your employer has a newspaper subscription, find out what happens to the inserts from the Sunday paper - they may be in the recycle bin just waiting for you to rescue them! Once you have compiled a nice stack of inserts, date them on the cover with the date of the paper they came in. No need to clip everything, just what you KNOW you need for your next shopping trip. Don't throw away those inserts just because you have clipped what you think you are going to use, you will need them for future deals. File them in date order in a file drawer or somewhere where you can easliy access them regularly.
Another place you can find coupons is online. There are several printable coupon websites and I have those listed on the sidebar. You can also find them directly on the manufacturer's website. Online coupons are generally high in value, and usually expire within two weeks of printing.
You will also find an abundance of coupons right in the store. All over stores there are peelies, blinkies, tearpads and hang tag coupons. Peelies are those coupons found directly attached to a product. Blinkies are coupons that are in those little machines that have blinking lights on them, and tearpads are usually attached to the shelves or somewhere in the aisle of the store. Hang tags are usually hanging from the neck of a bottle. Catalina machines at the register also print out great coupons, make sure the cashier gives you the coupons that print out when you check out, you don't want to leave those behind!
One more place to find great coupons is the magazine ALL YOU. You can get a subscription to this magazine and have it delivered right to your door, or you can pick up the latest issue at Wal-mart. This magazine is specifically sold only at Wal-mart stores. Sometimes I will pick up two copies when the coupons are really good. The money it costs to purchase the second copy is well worth it because the value of the coupons far outweighs the cost.
Getting Started: Printing Coupons
Here are some tips on Internet Printable (IP's) Coupons:
when you see it, print it - printable coupons have a print limit or maximum and once it's gone, it's gone
most IP's have a print limit two per computer, use your "back" button (you may have to click it a couple times) or click the "print coupon" button a second time and get two of each coupon, if you have access to more than one computer, print twice from each computer - some printables can be printed more than twice, but this is rare
save ink by printing your coupons in black only, they do not have to be in color to redeem them and save paper by using the extra paper left after clipping coupons for your lists
do not photocopy IP's - this is coupon fraud and they can be traced back to the computer/connection they were printed on, each coupon has a unique code and cashiers are trained to watch for identical codes
there are two types of IP's - store coupons and manufacturer coupons
most IP's expire two weeks after the print date
Getting Started: Stacking Coupons
There are two types of coupons: manufacturer coupons and store coupons.
Most stores let you combine a manufacturer coupon with a store coupon on the same item - this is referred to as "stacking".
Store coupons can be found as IP's, in store flyers, in Sunday inserts and in coupon books in the store. As you are shopping keep your eyes open for store coupons.
Go directly to the store's website for IP's of store coupons.
When stacking, ALWAYS hand over the manufacturer coupons first, and then the store coupons. This will allow for overage when the coupon values are greater than the item's value. If the store coupons are scanned first and the manufacturer coupon is greater than the amount left for the item, the coupons will beep and the register and cashier will not allow the overage. Yes, you can get paid to take free things home from the store!!
Getting Started: Using Coupons
Here are some general tips on using coupons:
- Don't think that you have to use the really great coupons right away. Hold onto them, they usually don't expire for a bit and sometimes the sales that come along a couple weeks down the road are better than what you can get it for here and now without a sale.
- Buy One Get One Free Coupons (B1G1) - if you combine these with a Buy One Get One Free sale at the store, then you get both items for FREE. Watch for these items to go on sale B1G1 and that's the best time to use them.
- Watch for coupons that do not specify a size. If there is a $1.00 off coupon on ANY size, then check out the travel size section of your store and see if the item is there in a small size. A lot of the time these items are under $1.00 resulting in a FREE product, sometimes with overage.
- Coupons for FREE items - do not run out and use these coupons the minute you find them, watch for the B1G1 sale and use it then to get TWO for FREE.
- B1G1 Free sales - technically you are "buying" two items, the B1G1 is a store sale. If you have two $1.00 off coupons for those items, you can use both - one on the item you are purchasing and one on the free item.
- Make sure that you read the description of the coupon, don't rely on the photo on the coupon. If the coupon states that it's good on ANY item, but only has a few of the products pictured you can use that coupon on ANY item that manufacturer produces, not just what's pictured.
Taxes are a sure thing, even in the world of couponing. Uncle Sam never misses out on his share of the pie. You always have to pay tax on your items, even if they are free after coupons. Sometimes your overage will cover the tax, which is a bonus. Technically, stores are not supposed to charge you tax on items that you use a FREE coupon on (where the coupon states a FREE item, no purchase necessary), but they usually do.
Getting Started: Overage and Making Money with Coupons
When couponing, overage can happen - and it's a wonderful thing! Overage is when your coupons total more than the item's price. Overage is a gift, not a right - shoppers are not entitled to overage. Some stores allow overage, some don't. Some stores/cashiers don't even realize its happening when completing your transaction. The most important thing to remember when shopping and expecting overage is to make sure you have items in your cart to use up your overage in your transaction because a cashier will never give you money out of the register when your balance is negative! You don't want to be scrambling at the register to throw in packs of gum and candy bars to get you out of the negative. Use up the overage on things that you need or don't have coupons for.
The best way to get overage when using store and manufactuer coupons is to hand over the manufacturer coupons first. Store coupons take the amount off each individual item resulting in the value being lowered. Manufacturer coupons come off the total value of the complete sale and therefore won't effect the price of individual items.
Another way to make money with transactions is when you get Catalina coupons (also called Register Rewards @ Walgreens) at the register. These are usually coupons for a certain value off your next shopping trip. I will go into more detail on Catalinas and Register Rewards later.
Getting Started: Coupon Organization
There's no right or wrong way to organize your coupons. You have to use whichever method is right for you. If you are just starting out you may find it easy to just use an envelope, but if you have been doing this awhile you many need something bigger. Here are some ideas for organization:
envelope - use a plain letter envelope to store your coupons. You may want to have one envelope for food and grocery items and one for personal care, toiletries, pet items, etc. Keep like coupons together with paper clips so you can easily flip through them as you make your way through the store.
coupon organizer - these are a little larger and have divided sections for keeping like coupons together. They usually have some sort of clasp to keep them closed.
empty check book cover - if you aren't going to carry a lot of coupons with you, ask at your bank for an extra check book cover and use that to carry your coupons in.
3 ring binder - method is for those who carry a lot of coupons with and like to be organized at the store. Try to find a zippered one so if it gets turned on it's side you won't loose everything tucked inside.
box - you can use some sort of box to store, sort and carry your coupons in. I have seen shoe boxes used, large recipe boxes and plastic containers with lids.
Whichever method you use, I highly recommend keeping coupons in some sort of order that follows the way the stores are laid out. I also really recommend making sure your name and contact info are on your organizer also, it's easy to misplace your coupons, and with the amount of time invested in clipping and printing you are going to want to make sure that you get it back if it's lost.
I started out using envelopes with paper clips, and then moved up to the coupon organizer, but these didn't seem to work for me. I had too many coupons and they were taking over my purse - my purse had become a coupon bag and nothing more.
I switched to the 3 ring binder method of organizing and I LOVE it! A friend of mine (Thanks, Dawn!) suggested trying it and I am so glad that she did. I was able to find one for .99 and it's a really nice one. It has a zipper and a zippered pouch on the outside where I store my lists. It has an accordian type area where I keep copies of store coupon policies and extra coupon books that I find at the store. It also has a zippered section where I carry a pair of scissors and pens. I found a free zippered pencil pouch that I put in there to hold some coupons if I need to set them aside for any reason. I have divided it in sections by products. I used file folders to make the dividers for the sections. My coupons are kept in plastic pages that can be purchased at any hobby store or office supply store. I use the baseball card size pages for smaller coupons and then I found some pages that hold 4X6 photos that I store larger coupons and internet printed coupons.
For photos of my binder see my original post here.
I organized it so that when it sits in the seat of the cart I can flip through the pages and see each coupon and it's information (exp date, value, size, etc).
My divided sections are as follows:
Stores - this is where I keep store specific coupons
Hang-tags/Wine-tags
Beverages
Snacks, crackers, cookies
Cereals, granola bars
Sauces, spreads, canned items
Breads, pasta, rices, spices
Dairy, yogurt, frozen produce
Meats, frozen pizza
Toothpaste, brushes, mouthwash
Razors, shave cream
Personal hygeine items
Baby
Hair care, body wash, soap, deodorant, medicine, first aid, Q-tips, make-up
Office supplies, school supplies
Cleaning, laundry, paper products, bug control
Pets
Toys, games
Making the switch over to this method was a little time consuming, but well worth it. The time that I spend setting it up has helped me save time everytime I file coupons or go shopping. If you are going to be serious about coupons (and why wouldn't you?) and use them as a regular part of your shopping trips I highly recommend the binder method for organization. Remember, you aren't clipping all the coupons that you get, you are only putting coupons in your binder that you KNOW you are going to use.
Getting Started: Coupon Look-up
Need to find coupons to match up to your grocery list or sale flyer? Head over to Coupon Tom and search for it. You can also find a link to Coupon Tom on the sidebar to the right. Coupon Tom tells you exactly which flyer to find your coupons in. Type in a brand name or just the item and a list will show where all the relevant coupons can be clipped. It will give a date and the abbreviation for the insert. It also lists an expiration date so you know how soon you have to use it. You can also find some internet printables on Coupon Tom.
Getting Started: Buying & Trading Coupons
If you find yourself needing more coupons than what you have access to, there are a couple more options you have to expand your coupon stash.
ecoupons.com is a great place to trade coupons and it only costs the price of two stamps and .99. How it works is really very easy. You go to the website here and sign up, then you mail them 25 coupons that you aren't going to use along with a self addressed, stamped envelope and .99. Once they receive them, they will credit your account with one order credit. You can then sign on and choose 25 coupons from their list. I have used ecoupons.com for quite awhile and it works really well, when a great sale is coming up I can stock up on coupons of items that my family uses. I try to have several credits on file so that if I see some really good coupons I can order what I need without having to wait for more credits to arrive in my account. They are located in New Jersey so it does take a couple days for the coupons to arrive in the mail.
Trading with friends is a great way to get more coupons that you need, and there are coupon swaps forming at a lot of local libraries.
You can purchase coupons for pennies on the dollar at places like The Coupon Clippers, which is a clipping service. There are several different services like these out there, but I am not familiar with any of them because I have never used them.
Ebay is another place to buy coupons. Sellers are varied and I have never used Ebay for a source for coupons either so I am not familiar with their pricing.
Getting Started: Store Coupon Policy & Cashiers
It's a good idea to be familiar with the store's coupon policy when you are shopping. Coupon policies can usually be found on the store's website or you can go to the "contact us" section of the store's website and send them an e-mail asking for their policy. They will usually e-mail it back to you. I keep copies of the store's coupon policies that I shop at in the front section of my coupon binder so I can refer to it while I am out shopping if I need to.
Sometimes a cashier will try to deny your use of coupons and you can refer back to the store's policy if you have it with you. Some cashiers can be really picky about coupon useage and will try to tell you that you can't use certain coupons for certain items. A lot of the time the cashiers just aren't trained properly on coupons, some don't even know their store policy on coupon useage. If you know the policy, you can (politely) give them the information they need to understand that what you are trying to do is within the store's coupon policy.
It's always a good idea to be as polite as possible with cashiers, you don't want to be labeled as a rude couponer or even worse, a fraudulent couponer. If you cannot convince them that what you are trying to do is right according to their policy, just let it go, there's no sense in extensive arguing because even though you might miss out on this deal, there's always another deal right around the corner - possibly a better one for the same item. It's OK to question their decision and even ask for a Customer Service Manager, but don't be too harsh. If it's a store that you shop frequently at, you want to have a good relationship with them. Trust me, they do remember you, cashiers and store staff talk. Just today the store manager at my Walgreens store addressed me by my name, and I was shocked because I never told him my name, but the other staff there knows me and I know that they all talk! I have a wonderful relationship with my Walgreens store staff and I would not risk that for one little coupon issue, I don't want to be embarrassed going into a store because I am rude or try to use coupons that I shouldn't. In looking at the big picture, it's better to just let it go.
Sometimes cashiers act as if the money is coming out of their own pockets. You can politely remind them that the store actually MAKES money accepting coupons. Maufacturer's pay the stores an additional .08-.12 for each coupon they submit. The store gets the full value of the coupon, plus that extra "handling" fee. I know it can be hard to be nice to someone who is being rude to you, but just "kill them with kindness"! It's the right thing to do to take the high road.
When stores submit coupons to manufacturers for reimbursement, the coupons all go into a big box, bag or envelope and get sent to a clearinghouse. They do not get sorted, matched to receipts or audited. A cashier may tell you differently, but it's a good thing to know when they are trying to tell you about fraudulent coupon use.
Getting Started: Holidays
Some weeks you will notice that there are no coupon inserts in the Sunday paper and that's because of a holiday schedule that the manufacturers follow with coupon inserts. There will be NO inserts the weeks of major holidays. To see a list of the inserts and when there will or won't be coupon inserts go to Coupon Tom and click on "Insert Schedule" up on the top navagation bar. If you purchase your newpapers at a retail outlet just for the coupon inserts, you want to be aware of this schedule so you don't purchase papers when you don't need them. If you have a subscription delivered to your house and only get it for the coupon inserts, you could call and put a vacation hold on your paper for that week so that you are not paying for papers that you don't need.
Getting Started: Returns & Refunds
It's OK to return or exchange items that you bought with coupons. Coupons are essentially just like cash - only with an expiration date. When you return an item that you used a coupon to pay for, if the store cannot return your coupon to you, then they should refund the face value of the coupon in cash to you. If the store does not refund the value of the coupon to you in cash, they are profiting from your return. They have submitted the coupon to the manufacturer for that item, and will get reimbursed the face value plus .08-.12 for that coupon. Make sure you are credited correctly when making a return or exchange.
Getting Started: Hang Tags/Wine Tags
Hang-tags or wine-tags are a great source for coupons. They are just as their name states - they hang on bottles, usually liquor of some kind, and more often than not, they hang on wine bottles. They are manufacturer coupons, sometimes on a specific product or sometimes as a general dollar amount off a category, such as "$1.00 off fresh produce" or "$4.00 off ground coffee". There are even rebates for certain items on hang-tags, for example "$3.00 off any whole turkey". A lot of the more serious couponers use hang-tags, I didn't learn about them until I had been couponing for quite a long time. They are a hot item to get your hands on.
With hang-tags, one would assume that you have to purchase the bottle of liquor that the coupon is hanging on in order to obtain it. In the state that I live in, Illinois, it is illegal to make a customer purchase alcohol to use these coupons and it usually states it right on the coupon. It usually says something like "No Wine Purchase Necessary" or in the fine print on the back it excludes IL as having to purchase alcohol by wording something like "No wine purchase necessary in IL". So, while at first you may feel a bit uncomfortable cruising the aisles of the liquor department collecting coupons from bottles, it's perfectly legal to take them. If a cashier tries to tell you that you have to purchase the wine/liquor in order to use the coupon, you can politely point out that in IL there's no restrictions for alcohol purchase.
Next time you are shopping at a store with a liquor department, stroll down the aisle and see what you find!
Getting Started: Double Coupons
Some stores run double coupon promotions or regularly double coupons up to a certain value. This is another reason why it's important to know your store's coupon policy. The store that you shop at may regularly double coupons that you are not aware of. Locally, we have Kroger (Hilander) and Schnucks (Logli) affiliate stores that both double coupons up to .55 daily, it's their policy. I do know that Kroger's double coupon policy varies by region so it may be different where you live.
K-mart also runs a double coupon promotion about every 6-8 weeks or so. K-mart's double coupon promotions are like a sale, they usually run Sunday through the following Saturday. They double coupons up to $2.00, which means a $2.00 off coupon instantly becomes $4.00 off at the register. They do not allow overage at the double coupon sale, so if the item price is less than the coupon doubled, they will only take off the full value of the coupon and double up to the item's price. The K-mart doubles sale was my favorite as a new coupon shopper because it was easy to do and I could build up my stockpile very quickly in a short amount of time. When doubling up to $2.00, a lot of items become free. Sometimes there are limits on how many coupons per day each shopper can double, sometimes your total has to be a certain amount before coupons ($25), and the rules change each time. You have to read the small print of the ad. I have even seen where they only double coupons on certain manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble. The double coupon sale is usually advertised in K-mart's sale flyer, but if you read any of the money saving blogs, you will know ahead of time so you can prepare. K-mart is not having another double coupon sale until 2010.
Getting Started: Coupon Wording
You will need to be familiar with some of the common wording seen on coupons. Most of the fine print on coupons is easy to understand, but a few issues can be misinterpreted.
Sometimes coupons are issued at a store (for example, Walgreen's Register Rewards), or on a store's website and those coupons will have that particular store's logo or name on them. Sometimes they will say things like "Redeemable at Walgreen's". The one thing you want to remember about these coupons is that if they don't have the phrase "Redeemable ONLY at Walgreen's" they can be used at any store with a coupon policy in place that allows other store's coupons. A lot of stores will take manufacturer coupons with other store's logos or names on them, as long as they don't say "ONLY redeemable at XXX" and they have an address to submit them to for reimbursement. Check with the store's coupon policy or ask a Customer Service Specialist (or manager) at your store about taking these coupons. Another approach you can try is to ask the cashier to scan it at the register. If the register lets it go through without beeping, they can take it.
The other important wording on coupons that can get confusing is the "one per transaction" and "one per purchase" wording. One per transaction purely means just that, you can only use one coupon for each transaction. You can do 5 transactions and use one of that particular coupon in each transaction. Most coupons have the wording "one per purchase" and each item you are buying is considered a "purchase". There can be 5 of the same item in a transaction and you could use 5 coupons with that wording because each one is considered a purchase.
Getting Started: Stockpiling
One of the main ideas behind couponing seriously and seeing a reduction in your family household budget for groceries and other consumble items is stockpiling. The sales "lows" on items usually run at approximately 12 week cycles. When you see an item that your family uses at it's lowest price (with a sale AND coupons), you want to stock up on enough at that price to last your family 12 weeks. This is why I stress to accumulate as many coupons as possible by getting more than one insert per week - you will need multiple coupons when these items go low. This way, you can shop out of your pantry/linen closet when you need more, rather than purchasing items at higher prices when the need arrises.
You will want to keep your stockpile very organized so that you can see what you have easily to take an inventory for the next sale, and so that you use them in order of expiration date. Some people get very creative in finding ways to store their stockpiles, and it makes sense to do so when you are saving so much money.
You will quickly learn what the best prices are on items that you use regularly so that you know what the lowest price is when it comes around. When you just start out, you will be elated to get certain things cheap, but then you may realize later, that even that "cheap" price is too high and if you have a good stockpile to draw from, you will be able to wait to get it at even greater savings or FREE!
It will take you a good 6-9 months to build up a stockpile of items that you use regularly because you are using your stockpile as you are building it. Don't get discouraged if you use items faster than you anticipated, there's always the next time around to stock up with more.
I have always been a "stock-up" shopper and I loved shopping at Sam's Club. When I first got started couponing like this I had my doubts that Sam's Club would be more expensive than shopping with coupons. I thought for sure there would be no better way to shop than at Sam's Club - boy was I wrong!! I went through the store and compiled a list of the most common things I was buying at Sam's Club and broke it down by price per ounce, pound, package, etc. I put it all on a list and started to compare it when I was out couponing. Couponing is much cheaper than Sam's Club shopping. If you would like to see my list of items and the price break down, send me an e-mail and I would be happy to share it with you!
If you find that your estimates are too high and you purchased more than your family can use before it's expiration, please consider helping out family and friends, or donating to a needy family. There are so many ways to donate, and there are so many people in need right now.
Getting Started: Catalina Coupons
Catalina coupons are a couponers best friend - seriously. You really save a ton of money when you "work" the catalina deals.
Catalina coupons are called "Catalinas" or "cats" because it's the name of the company that issues them. Catalina coupons come out of the machines located right by the registers when you check out and the company that owns those machines is the Catalina company, the stores do not own the machines. Not all stores have Catalina machines. The Catalinas at Walgreens are referred to as "Register Rewards" and other stores may call them different names, but they are all Catalina coupons.
Most Catalina coupons that print are manufacturer coupons, but sometimes store coupons print on these machines as well. Sometimes the coupons that print are for specific items, like $1.00 off any Crest toothpaste, but a lot of the time the coupon is a certain $ amount off your next shopping transaction (OYNO=on your next order). Sometimes the print out may not contain any coupon but it will be an alert of an upcoming sale or Catalina offer. You want to pay close attention to your Catalina coupons that print out and make sure your cashier hands over all the Catalinas that print from your transaction. You will even want to look for Catalinas left behind by other shoppers. You would be amazed at the number of Catalinas that you can find in carts, in the parking lot, left behind at the self check-out registers or in the trash...keep your eyes open for these!
There are a lot of unadvertised Catalina sales running all the time. Some stores will advertise the Catalina sales, like Walgreens or Jewel-Osco in their weekly flyers, but there are many more Catalina deals that aren't advertised. This is why it's important to watch the alerts that print out as well as checking money saving blogs where bloggers post about unadvertised Catalina sales. The sale will usually be something like, buy a certain $ amount of ceratin products and get a Catalina coupon for a certain $ amount off your next shopping transaction. Sometimes its as simple as buy one item and get a Catalina back for that same value that you paid for the item - Walgreens usually works their Register Rewards like that. Walgreens is really great about advertising most of their Register Rewards each week so Walgreens is a great place to get started with Catalinas. I will be posting about Walgreens and how the rules are different there soon, so make sure you watch for that before diving into Walgreens shopping.
If you know a Catalina is going to print and it doesn't, make sure you take care of this right away at the store. If they won't give you the Catalina coupons or make it right, you can return everything on the spot for a refund. Sometimes it's because you purchased the wrong size, or wrong product, or not enough of the listed items. Sometimes it has nothing to do with the purchase and the machine is down, turned off or out of paper or ink. If you plan ahead of time, you shouldn't have any problems with Catalinas not printing, unless its a hardware/technical issue. The only time I have had problems is when I get careless and rush my shopping trip. Catalina machines uplink to the satellite between 11PM and 2AM so Catalinas don't print during those times. If you shop a 24 hour store or late at night you are taking a big risk that the Catalinas won't print.
If you realize after you are home that you didn't get all the Catalinas you were expecting, you can contact Catalina directly at 1-888-322-3814 with your receipt information and they will mail you your missing Catalina coupons. I have never had to do this, so I am not sure how long it takes to receive the Catalinas in the mail.
A lot of the money saving blogs will also post UPC code lists of items that are included in the Catalina deals. Most of the time there are more participating products than what are listed in the sale flyer. These are a great tool in helping assure that your Catalinas will print. If I am going to shop a BIG Catalina sale I always print out the list of UPC codes so I can double check my purchase to the list before I check out. This eliminates the guesswork of wondering if the Catalina will print - you KNOW it will print if you have all the right items.
A lot of the time Catalinas will "roll" meaning you can use them to pay for the next round of Catalina deals. This works a little differently at Walgreens though. You can "roll" Catalinas from one deal to the next, but if you use the a same Catalina that is supposed to print out to pay, then you won't get it. You can use a different Catalina (from a different offer) to pay for your transaction as long as it's not the same parent company. Occassionally at Walgreens you will find that they do roll, but that's not the norm. Again, reading the money saving blogs will help determine which at Walgreens are truly rolling and which aren't.
The most effective way to get the maximum benefit of the Catalina sales (not including Register Rewards) is to only buy what the deal requires in order to receive the Catalina and "roll" it into the same deal again (in another transaction). For instance, the Catalina sale may be "spend $30 (on certain products) and get a $15 Catalina OYNO. So in order to work this so that you get the best deal for your money in your first transaction, purchase only $30 in participating products. You will get your Catalina coupon for $15. Your next transaction would be another $30 in participating products, but you would use the prior $15 Catalina to pay for this transaction, greatly reducing your out of pocket.
One of the BEST aspects about using Catalinas is that you can combine them with other manufacturer coupons. You can use the individual item coupons on everything that you are purchasing and then use your Catalina coupons to pay down the balance due on your transaction. It's about the only time that you can "stack" manufacturer coupons.
Register Rewards will print out with the statement "Redeemable at Walgreens" but they don't say ONLY at Walgreens, so other stores who take competitor coupons will take Register Rewards (and other stores Catalinas). I regularly use my Register Rewards from Walgreens to pay for my groceries and other Catalina deals at Jewe-Osco stores. Many other stores take them as well...I know that Meijer and Dominick's stores take Catalinas printed at other stores also. Check your store's coupon policy.
Catalina coupons always have an expiration date and you will want to pay close attention to that. The expiry date is usually 2 weeks from the print date, but since Catalinas are such a great value you don't want to let them expire! If you find that they have expired, you can always try to redeem them at a store that takes expired coupons. Dominick's stores will take coupons expired within 6 months of the expiry date.
Catalina deals work a little differently at Jewel-Osco stores and I will also post a seperate entry about Jewel-Osco as well as Walgreens.
Getting Started: More Ways to get great Coupons
There's a few more ways you can get great coupons for products that you need or use.
If there's a product that I use but don't generally see a lot of coupons for I contact the manufacturer directly. I go to their website and find the "contact us" section. I send a nice e-mail telling them that I have been a long-time customer of their products and that I try to save money and help meet my family budget by using coupons. I include my name, address and contact information. Usually they will respond by mailing you some great value coupons. They wouldn't want you buying a different manufacturer's products if you find coupons for the others and not theirs. Sometimes they will tell you that they don't keep mailing lists for customers for coupons and that they put coupons on their website or in the inserts, but "nothing ventured, nothing gained" is the way I see it and it didn't cost me anything to ask, so if they can't or don't send me any coupons I am not out anything but the few minutes of my time it took me to send that e-mail. It really doesn't hurt to ask!
Another great way to get high value coupons is by signing up for free samples. You can find these offers at manufacturer websites and store websites. Walmart and Sam's Club usually offer samples at their websites, and so does Costco. You will receive the samples, which are usually the small trial size items but along with those trial sizes are some great coupons. I have never received a trial or sample that was not accompanied by great coupons.
You will want to watch packaging for additional coupons as well. A lot of the time, manufacturers will print coupons on the inside of boxes and other packaging. We do see a lot of those "peelie" coupons on the outside of packages but we often forget to watch the inside of the package for coupons. Sometimes if there's an insert in the package there will be coupons printed on that. Make sure you check all the packaging before tossing it into the recycle bin!
Magazines other than All You have manufacturer coupons printed in them along with advertisements. Some of the more popular ones that I have noted recently with great coupons are Parents Magazine, Country Living and Prevention. Keep your eyes open in your magazine subscriptions or when you are sitting the doctors or hair-dressers waiting rooms!
Getting Started: Rain-checks
One way to extend a sale beyond the date that it ends is to get a raincheck for the items that you want to purchase. A lot of stores offer rainchecks if they are out of stock on items that are on sale. I know for sure that Walgreens and Jewel issue rainchecks. When asking for a raincheck, you usually have to specify a certain number of that particular item that you want and I recommend always bumping up that number by a few more. You don't have to buy as many as are on the raincheck, it's just nice to have the extras to work with. If you have really great coupons, you may be able to get more of that coupon by the time the store has the item back in stock, then you can get more at the sale price with the coupons. You don't have to purchase the items at the same store that issued the raincheck, so if you happen to go to a different Walgreens store and find the item on the shelf, you can use it there. Keep in mind though, if the sale involves some sort of Register Reward or Catalina deal, if you purchase them after the end date of the RR or Catalina they won't print. You only get to take advantage of the RR's or Catalinas during the sale, stores can't make the machines print certain coupons or issue them manually.
Getting Started: Printer Ink
If you are going to take advantage of all the great online internet printable coupons you are going to use a lot of ink. Printer ink gets pretty expensive, so in order to help with those costs there are a couple things you can do. You can get your cartridges refilled and Walgreens usually has a decent price on ink refills, sometimes with a store coupon you can get a discount. You also can use Register Rewards to pay for your ink refill. If you do not want to go the refill route, there's one other way you can save big on ink. Do a search on
E-bay for your brand and model and see what comes up. There will be a lot to choose from because there are a lot of ink sellers on E-bay. You will find that a lot of sellers offer expired ink at a great discount - expired ink works perfectly fine, even years past it's expiry date. Just make sure you are buying original cartridges, not re-manufactured ink cartridges. Also be sure that they are sealed in their original packaging. The discounts on expired ink are fantastic! This will help you print coupons and not break the bank doing so.
Getting Started: Rebates & Rebate Receipts
A little information about submitting rebates:
* You can use coupons on items that you are going to submit a rebate for, if the rebate is for the full value of the purchase price, this turns your product into a money maker.
* You can submit for the same rebate in your spouse’s (or other family member) name at a different address (work, parents house, etc)
* Keep copies of your rebate submissions so that you know what you are expecting
I am not a big rebater but when there's a really great, high value rebate I am on board. Sometimes two great rebates coincide with an awesome sale and that makes it really worth taking advantage of the deal. If this happens you will want to ask for a “duplicate receipt” or a “rebate receipt” at the register when you are checking out.
Getting Started: Electronic Coupons
There are several websites that you can access to load electronic coupons to your store shopping cards. You can do this by signing up at the website and registering your cards. Then you can browse the coupons available to load to your card. Once you make your selections, these coupons link to your shopping card and when you make your purchase of these items using your shopping card, the coupon automatically comes off at the register - no clipping necessary. The great thing about using electronic coupons is that you can also use clipped or printed manufacturer or store coupons on those same items really reducing your out of pocket. It's about the only time I can think of that you can actually use TWO manufacturer coupons on one item.
Here's links to some electronic coupons:
PGeSaver.com
Shortcuts.com
Softcoin.com
Cellfire.com
Upromise.com
The electronic coupons at Upromise work a little differently than the rest. At Upromise, you load the electronic coupons to your cards and when you buy those items, instead of the coupon coming off at the register, the coupon amount is deposited into your Upromise account.
You are also going to want to check with your store or shopping card's website to see if they also offer electronic coupons or offers. One of the cards that I have for Jewel grocery stores offers regular coupons each week and then there is a section of coupons tailored specifically for me and things that I shop for based on my past shopping habits. I do, however, have to login and update these offers every week because they expire. They usually run the same schedule as the sale flyer does.
I have added links to these electronic coupons on the sidebar so that they can be easily accessed.
Getting Started: Planning your weekly shopping trip
Once you change your shopping habits and get into a routine with using coupons there really isn't a lot of time involved with planning your shopping trips if you stay organized and on track.
I usually use Sunday evening, after my son is in bed, as time to go through the coupons, scan the ads and plan my trips. The first thing I do is look through the sale ads at the stores that I shop at. I take note of sales on things that I need for the week and I watch for items that look like a really great deal, especially with coupons. I also take a few minutes to sit down at my computer and check CouponTom for coupon match-ups. I look up coupons for all my items that I need and check for coupons on those sale items that are really great. If I find that there's coupons for these items I write on the ad which insert those coupons are in. I also search manufacturer websites (for coupons) and for printable coupons. Then I start a list for that store and clip my coupons from the inserts and use a paper clip to attach the coupons to my list. I do this for each store that I plan to shop at for the week and I keep the sale ad with my list for reference at the store. I make notes on my list if I have coupons for the items (manufacturer and store) and if I am expecting a catalina coupon on those items. Keeping these notes helps you cut down on time in the store and lets you easily know that your deals went smoothly.
Next, I scan through the coupon inserts and clip coupons for items that I KNOW we will use and file them in my coupon binder. I don't clip every coupon to file in my binder, that would just take way too much time. The inserts get filed in my hanging file folders by date.
Lastly, I read money saving blogs to make sure that I haven't missed any great deals for the week. The blogs are a great resource for a lot of deals that might otherwise go unnoticed. If I find something posted that I missed, I add it to my list (with notes) and find the coupons. I tend to check these blogs daily because new deals are added several times a day. They usually have coupon match ups and link you to printable coupons. A lot of the time bloggers post about clearance deals at stores that are not advertised in the sale flyers. They also post about unadvertised catalina promotions and freebies with coupons. It doesn't take much time to keep up with my regular blogs since I know where I left off on the blog - I just check to see if anything new has been added since my last visit.
I keep my coupon binder in a canvas bag where I also have all the week's ads. I don't leave the house without my coupon bag - you never know when the opportunity will arise to stop in a store and take a look around. Some stores will price match competitors so I always keep the ads with me, even if it's for a store I don't normally shop at. They may come in handy for a price match at a store with a better deal.
If I am not able to get everything on my list in one trip, I cross off the items that I purchased and then keep the list for my next visit or store. Sometimes in a week I will visit several different Walgreens (or Wal-mart, Jewel, etc) locations to get everything on my list. Having the original list makes this a little easier, plus I can add to the list through the week if I find deals on the blogs.
You can find a list of the blogs that I check regularly on the sidebar.
