Since I've started trying to save money with coupons, I've discovered a wealth of information on the internet. If you're new to the world of couponing, here are some links to get you started. I'll warn you - it is addictive! In the past week or so I've had some great coupon shopping:
- double coupon days at Kmart, where my total was originally $90 and went down to $37 after coupons
- CVS deals where I paid only $1 out of pocket, and ended up with two Schick razors, two tubes of Burt's Bees lip balm, two boxes of General Mills cereal, an economy pack of peroxide, and a box of Excedrin! Plus I have $15 in extra care bucks to spend on my next shopping trip. Woo-hoo!
The theory of serious couponing is simple. Create a stash of coupons from your local Sunday paper, online coupon sites, "blinkies" (the little electronic coupon dispensers in the grocery aisles), "catalinas" (the slips of coupons that print at your grocery checkout), "peelies"(the little pads of tear-off promotional coupons found on the shelf or the product itself), and direct mailings/promotions from the manufacturers. Then match up your stash with weekly sales and promotions at places like Kroger, Meijer, CVS, Walgreens, etc. If you plan carefully and organize each week, you can maximize your savings and get great deals. It isn't unusual to get Crest toothpaste for $.50, free salad dressing, cereal for less than a dollar, etc. The mistake that novice couponers make is that they only keep a few coupons for the products that they already plan on buying, and discard the rest. The key to serious savings is to save all of the coupons for any product that you would ever possibly use, because you never know what will end up in the big sale ad next week!
A simple, well-known way to get coupons is from your local Sunday paper. You might want to buy two or three copies to add up the savings. Even better, find a neighbor, co-worker, or family member who has a subscription and doesn't use the coupons. Some weeks are better than others - to see a preview of each week's coupon offerings, go to a site like Taylor Town Preview. Also this post shows a predicted schedule of which weeks will contain which inserts...you don't want to buy three copies of the paper only to discover that there are no inserts that week!
Of course, with technology comes a slew of internet coupons to print. The bonus: print and keep only the coupons you want, when you want them. The caveat: some software is finicky and won't work with every computer, and you have to use your own printer and supplies. Also, some retailers will refuse printed coupons due to issues with coupon fraud. If you are willing and able to print online coupons, check these out:
Coupons.com - the mother ship of online coupons. They also have a master list of all of their available offers, including some from other sites, here.
Redplum
Smartsource
Also, visit your favorite company's website because many will offer printable coupons directly from their site.
Many stores have their own coupons and deal offerings.
CVS, for example, has an instant 'rebate' program with their extra-care customer loyalty cards. Each week in their ad they feature several items that have extra care "rewards". When you purchase these items, you will get a CVS "buck" for the reward amount to spend on your next shopping trip. By planning carefully, you can roll these extra care bucks into the next week, purchase more items with rewards, and earn more bucks for the next week. Walgreens and other stores offer similar deals!
Meijer and Target offer printable store coupons on their website, which you can combine with your other manufacturer coupons to get huge savings.
If you're lucky to have a Kroger near you, sign up for a Kroger Plus card. Then go to these sites with your card number to load virtual coupons to your card:
Procter and Gamble's e-saver site
Cellfire
Shortcuts
With these sites, your coupons are saved on your card and are automatically deducted after you scan your card at checkout. No coupons to clip, no papers to sort. Even better, these savings are deducted AFTER the sale price and paper coupons are deducted, which stacks your savings!
Some of the best information I've found is on other blogs. Some bloggers out there take this very seriously and can always be trusted to scout out the best deals. If you're new to blog reading, sign up to use a free reader service like Google reader which will keep track of all of your favorite blogs in one place, and make reading your favorites as easy as checking your e-mail. Even better, you can easily search all of your favorite blogs at once for keywords like "cvs" or "kroger" to see who has the latest, greatest deals! Some of my favorites to get you started:
Fiddledeedee
Centsible Sawyer
Deal Seeking Mom
Coupon Cravings
A Frugal Friend
Frugal Coupon Living
Buying diapers or formula for a little one? Don't miss the weekly "best deals" round-up at Baby Cheapskate - thanks to her deal list each week I've recently purchased jumbo packs of Huggies and Pampers for less than $4 each!
And, don't forget Upromise. Instead of saving your money at the register, upromise gives you money in your upromise account when you buy their featured items at the grocery or shop at their preferred online stores. The money you earn is put toward a college fund for you or your designated loved one. Visit their site to load "ecoupons" onto your kroger card that will give you even more cash back into your account.
Are you a natural foods shopper? Stay tuned for an upcoming post on how to save money on organic and "green" shopping choices!
Hope this gets you started! Don't worry - it seems intimidating at first but with just a little effort and research, you can easily save lots of money off your grocery bills. Have any tips that I've forgotten? Feel free to list them below!
- double coupon days at Kmart, where my total was originally $90 and went down to $37 after coupons
- CVS deals where I paid only $1 out of pocket, and ended up with two Schick razors, two tubes of Burt's Bees lip balm, two boxes of General Mills cereal, an economy pack of peroxide, and a box of Excedrin! Plus I have $15 in extra care bucks to spend on my next shopping trip. Woo-hoo!
The theory of serious couponing is simple. Create a stash of coupons from your local Sunday paper, online coupon sites, "blinkies" (the little electronic coupon dispensers in the grocery aisles), "catalinas" (the slips of coupons that print at your grocery checkout), "peelies"(the little pads of tear-off promotional coupons found on the shelf or the product itself), and direct mailings/promotions from the manufacturers. Then match up your stash with weekly sales and promotions at places like Kroger, Meijer, CVS, Walgreens, etc. If you plan carefully and organize each week, you can maximize your savings and get great deals. It isn't unusual to get Crest toothpaste for $.50, free salad dressing, cereal for less than a dollar, etc. The mistake that novice couponers make is that they only keep a few coupons for the products that they already plan on buying, and discard the rest. The key to serious savings is to save all of the coupons for any product that you would ever possibly use, because you never know what will end up in the big sale ad next week!
A simple, well-known way to get coupons is from your local Sunday paper. You might want to buy two or three copies to add up the savings. Even better, find a neighbor, co-worker, or family member who has a subscription and doesn't use the coupons. Some weeks are better than others - to see a preview of each week's coupon offerings, go to a site like Taylor Town Preview. Also this post shows a predicted schedule of which weeks will contain which inserts...you don't want to buy three copies of the paper only to discover that there are no inserts that week!
Of course, with technology comes a slew of internet coupons to print. The bonus: print and keep only the coupons you want, when you want them. The caveat: some software is finicky and won't work with every computer, and you have to use your own printer and supplies. Also, some retailers will refuse printed coupons due to issues with coupon fraud. If you are willing and able to print online coupons, check these out:
Coupons.com - the mother ship of online coupons. They also have a master list of all of their available offers, including some from other sites, here.
Redplum
Smartsource
Also, visit your favorite company's website because many will offer printable coupons directly from their site.
Many stores have their own coupons and deal offerings.
CVS, for example, has an instant 'rebate' program with their extra-care customer loyalty cards. Each week in their ad they feature several items that have extra care "rewards". When you purchase these items, you will get a CVS "buck" for the reward amount to spend on your next shopping trip. By planning carefully, you can roll these extra care bucks into the next week, purchase more items with rewards, and earn more bucks for the next week. Walgreens and other stores offer similar deals!
Meijer and Target offer printable store coupons on their website, which you can combine with your other manufacturer coupons to get huge savings.
If you're lucky to have a Kroger near you, sign up for a Kroger Plus card. Then go to these sites with your card number to load virtual coupons to your card:
Procter and Gamble's e-saver site
Cellfire
Shortcuts
With these sites, your coupons are saved on your card and are automatically deducted after you scan your card at checkout. No coupons to clip, no papers to sort. Even better, these savings are deducted AFTER the sale price and paper coupons are deducted, which stacks your savings!
Some of the best information I've found is on other blogs. Some bloggers out there take this very seriously and can always be trusted to scout out the best deals. If you're new to blog reading, sign up to use a free reader service like Google reader which will keep track of all of your favorite blogs in one place, and make reading your favorites as easy as checking your e-mail. Even better, you can easily search all of your favorite blogs at once for keywords like "cvs" or "kroger" to see who has the latest, greatest deals! Some of my favorites to get you started:
Fiddledeedee
Centsible Sawyer
Deal Seeking Mom
Coupon Cravings
A Frugal Friend
Frugal Coupon Living
Buying diapers or formula for a little one? Don't miss the weekly "best deals" round-up at Baby Cheapskate - thanks to her deal list each week I've recently purchased jumbo packs of Huggies and Pampers for less than $4 each!
And, don't forget Upromise. Instead of saving your money at the register, upromise gives you money in your upromise account when you buy their featured items at the grocery or shop at their preferred online stores. The money you earn is put toward a college fund for you or your designated loved one. Visit their site to load "ecoupons" onto your kroger card that will give you even more cash back into your account.
Are you a natural foods shopper? Stay tuned for an upcoming post on how to save money on organic and "green" shopping choices!
Hope this gets you started! Don't worry - it seems intimidating at first but with just a little effort and research, you can easily save lots of money off your grocery bills. Have any tips that I've forgotten? Feel free to list them below!
