Couponers How do you do it?

Grimmerick

I have recently started couponing (yes I am using it as a verb lol) and WOWEEE what a difference. Now I look at coupons like cash money baby. I was confused at first as to how to best use the coupons and not buy things I didn't need just because I had a coupon for them or get too much and end up wasting. What I have come up with so far is to use my coupons to buy what's on sale that week (double savings YAY!) Then I take inventory of what I have, create a weekly dinner plan, and lunch plan with the left over ingredients from dinner (say I only need a half can of beans for that recipe, I put the rest in my Tuna for lunch) Then look at any extra ingredients in my dinner plan and see if I can sub them for stuff I already have and if not I pick up the rest of the ingredients at the store that week. Anyone do this, or do something slightly different that might be more effective. I am trying to lower my costs as much as possible and waste as little food as possible. Thanks!!!

healthydoseofglitter

I do my food/household budget was about 250 a week cut it back to 150 plus get WAY more stuff than before

thekrazycouponlady.com <

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coupon bible LOL

taylmarie

Where do you usually get your coupons? Newspaper? Online? I want to start as well. My husband is in med school and it would be nice to lower our grocery bill!

briteyes1002

I use.. livingrichwithcoupons.com

also couponmom.com both really good comparable sights..

I do AWESOME at the drugstores... Most the time I walk out with $40-$100 worth of free stuff.

TorridSkies4

bump

TracyTucci

Bump

I have tried to coupon, but have not got the hang of it yet.
Would love to learn to save!! Because i love to spend!!

DarlingThief

bumpy!

CMmrsfloyd

You're off to a great start. Take a look at the various grocery and drugstores you have available in your area and start learning the various coupon policies for them (you'll be amazed how much policies can differ from store-to-store). If you have any of the big drugstores in your area (CVS, Rite-Aid, Walgreens) start studying up on their rewards programs (CVS has 'extrabucks', Rite-Aid has 'up rewards', and Walgreens has 'register rewards') - you can stock up on health, beauty, and hygeine items super-cheap, free, or even them paying you to take them out of the store with those rewards systems. But they can be quite complicated for newbies to read up and ask lots of questions.

A couple of forums I like:

www.afullcup.com
www.hotcouponworld.com

What area are you in? Some grocery stores in some regions will double or even triple coupons - we just had a Triple Coupon event (any coupon under $0.99 tripled in value at the register) at one of my local grocery stores and I got some great deals. :-) We don't get Triples as often as we used to, usually it's Super Doubles (coupons up to $1.99 doubling in value at the register).

Mera_Mera

Interesting.

healthydoseofglitter

I buy 2-3 of the Sunday paper depending on the coupons

http://www.sundaycouponpreview.com/

I personally love Rite Aid and do extremely well there .... shop rite is also a new favorite

CMmrsfloyd

Where do you usually get your coupons? Newspaper? Online? I want to start as well. My husband is in med school and it would be nice to lower our grocery bill!

Purchase a couple of Sunday papers, check to be sure the coupon inserts are in there first b/c sometimes there are no coupons on certain holiday weekends and sometimes people steal the coupons right out of the paper.

Printable coupon websites:

www.coupons.com
www.smartsource.com
www.redplum.com
www.couponnetwork.com (also lists 'catalina deals' which are rewards you get back at the register for purchasing items during a promotional period)
www.target.com (scroll to the bottom and click on 'coupons' - some are Target store coupons and some are manufacturer's coupons that can be used anywhere)
www.bettycrocker.com

Also check individual manufacturer's websites and their Facebook pages as they will often offer coupons that you can print if you 'like' their page.

Some stores also put out coupons - Rite-Aid has coupons in the flyer each week, so does Walgreens, and Walgreens has a monthly coupon book and sometimes specialized seasonal coupon booklets for things like beauty and allergy products. Always keep your eyes open in whatever store you're in, sometimes there are displays with coupon booklets and sometimes there are machines that will dispense coupons (often referred to as 'blinkies' b/c of the blinking light on the machine).

healthydoseofglitter

oh and I dont use a binder I use an index card box ... I find it easier to organize and put it right in the shopping cart ....

I have everything color coded and labeled

briteyes1002

I usually buy 5-10 sunday papers at the Dollar Tree every week.

I am also know do go dumpster diving a time or two :blushing:

CMmrsfloyd

oh and I dont use a binder I use an index card box ... I find it easier to organize and put it right in the shopping cart ....

I have everything color coded and labeled

I had an impressive coupon binder before I had my first baby. I discovered the whole couponing thing when I was still pregnant with him, got really good at it had the binder and everything. Then he was born, I didn't touch it for a couple of months, everything expired and I simply did not have time to keep up with it anymore. Now I have several of the little 'accordion files' - one for CVS, one for Rite-Aid, one for grocery stores. I clip out only the coupons I'm fairly certain I will use soon and then I file away the rest of the inserts so I can go back and easily find and clip those coupons if a good deal comes up. Takes a lot less time than I was spending back when I was clipping every single coupon and filing it in that binder.

arobinson2390

bump !

CMmrsfloyd

Also, take a look in your fridge and pantry and contact some of the companies of the items your family uses on a regular basis. Often if you contact them (phone or email) and comment on how much you like the product, they will mail you some coupons for your feedback.

AlsDonkBoxSquat

bump for later

kriztyn723

bump

CMmrsfloyd

Also, I don't know why I never thought of checking before, but there are a couple of Couponing Groups here on MFP:
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/search?phrase=coupon&order=0

I'm going to go ahead and join them myself. :-)

briteyes1002

I do have a very complexed coupon binder... Its very organized and its updated every week.. Couponing is fun and rewarding but also can take a lot of effort..

I will try and post some of my couponing pictures of what I was able to get and for how much.

jessicaacampbell1

I usually buy 5-10 sunday papers at the Dollar Tree every week.

I am also know do go dumpster diving a time or two :blushing:

My sister and I have dumpster dove for coupons, it's work it! Our biggest purchase was $400 worth of groceries for $40. It takes time and lots of patience but the reward it sweet.

CMmrsfloyd

I did a competition on a couponing site once where we had 1 week to buy as much stuff as possible and were only allowed to spend $5 (tax not included since it varies between different states). I ended up with over $1000 worth of product, everything from ice cream to toothpaste to diapers to diabetic supplies. And I did not win. LOL (lots of stuff got donated that week LOL) That was back in my crazier couponing days. And that's not a normal week of shopping even back in my crazy days, that was specifically for the contest. In a normal week I am much less interesting. LOL

blueeyedcristi

I am an extremely effective couponer. Not a hoarder like you see on that hideous show. I buy what my family and I need. I have taught several classes & actually worked for one of the major couponing sites. My recommendations for a beginner:

Buy multiple copies of the Sunday paper every week.
File your inserts whole (saves tons of time & you never know when a money maker will come along)
Pick a website that does store matchups (my favorite is southernsavers.com (this is not the one I worked for). Match ups will show you the best deals at each store and list which coupon to use - if it is from the newspaper it will list the date and source)
After you check the match up, go to your files and pull & clip the coupons you need
Don't freak out if you miss a deal. Trying to run after every deal will just burn you out. All deals will roll around.

I really could go on forever but that's a few to get ya started.

I find I am using a lot less coupons now that we are eating healthy and our HBA stockpiling is set for some time.

blueeyedcristi

One more thing for now....find a website that has ethics and will not share fraudulent deals. I have already seen one posted that posts deals all the time that are not legit. Please make sure you use the coupon only for the attended item or clear shelves as this only makes this harder on everyone. Since I began couponing many stores have had to update their coupon policies bc of that 'show' and many manufacturers have drastically reduced the coupon values.

xraylady33

I am very confused, I work 40 hours a week, I drive two hours a day, I work out, prepare meals, shop and have a very active teen. My house is always clean(little over the top) and i sleep about 6 hours a night. When is there time to search, cut, organize all these coupons, when I could save the time?

I am not being sarcastic, but the time I would spend on doing this activity is time I should use for me, or to relax...although I rarely relax. I aplaud you for your vigorous work, but I would rather take an extra hour of call, and save the time.

kuregisto

... If you have any of the big drugstores in your area (CVS, Rite-Aid, Walgreens) start studying up on their rewards programs (CVS has 'extrabucks', Rite-Aid has 'up rewards', and Walgreens has 'register rewards') - you can stock up on health, beauty, and hygeine items super-cheap, free, or even them paying you to take them out of the store with those rewards systems. But they can be quite complicated for newbies to read up and ask lots of questions.

A couple of forums I like:

www.afullcup.com
www.hotcouponworld.com
...

Seconded. Especially the suggestion of reading up on them first. There are people who make a killing in savings using the drug stores route.

CMmrsfloyd

One more thing for now....find a website that has ethics and will not share fraudulent deals. I have already seen one posted that posts deals all the time that are not legit. Please make sure you use the coupon only for the attended item or clear shelves as this only makes this harder on everyone. Since I began couponing many stores have had to update their coupon policies bc of that 'show' and many manufacturers have drastically reduced the coupon values.

Completely agree - no matter what 'deal' you see listed, double-check your coupon to be sure the wording actually indicates that it is appropriate for the item.

I am very confused, I work 40 hours a week, I drive two hours a day, I work out, prepare meals, shop and have a very active teen. My house is always clean(little over the top) and i sleep about 6 hours a night. When is there time to search, cut, organize all these coupons, when I could save the time?

I am not being sarcastic, but the time I would spend on doing this activity is time I should use for me, or to relax...although I rarely relax. I aplaud you for your vigorous work, but I would rather take an extra hour of call, and save the time.

There is definitely a time investment, especially when you are first starting out and having to build your coupon stash, learn policies, organize, and learn to plan weekly trips. Some people really may not feel like they have the time for all that on top of their daily lives. For some people it is worth the time b/c of the financial benefit (saving money on items your family needs). But it doesn't necessarily work well for everyone, some people get started and find it's too tedious for them to do on a regular basis. Using the websites that people have suggested can be helpful, they will list the best deals for each store each week based on the advertised prices and deals, and they will also 'match up' coupons to the sales - they will list the item on sale and then list either which Sunday insert to find an appropriate coupon or they will list a link directly to a printable coupon for the item. This is much faster than combing through the ads and compiling a list yourself for each store you're interested in, but it does still take time. Many people who are very busy may benefit from choosing only 1 or 2 stores to do their coupon shopping (maybe 1 favorite grocery store and 1 drugstore) so they don't feel like they have to drive all over town every week to get every single deal.

LTRUITT3

BUMP, I love using coupons

Grimmerick

I am very confused, I work 40 hours a week, I drive two hours a day, I work out, prepare meals, shop and have a very active teen. My house is always clean(little over the top) and i sleep about 6 hours a night. When is there time to search, cut, organize all these coupons, when I could save the time?

I am not being sarcastic, but the time I would spend on doing this activity is time I should use for me, or to relax...although I rarely relax. I aplaud you for your vigorous work, but I would rather take an extra hour of call, and save the time.

Luckily for me I have no children, I do work over 40 hours a week but for the most part I have all the time in the world. But it only takes me an hour in front of the TV on a sunday and I find it very enjoyable and rewarding when I have to go to the grocery store now. Also I am an x ray tech as well and I still save more with coupons than I would with an hour of call not to mention I would rather be home than at work. I track how much I save and so far I have saved an extra $200 a month, and I only cut coupons one hour a week and go to the store like I always have. Seems well worth the effort to me. The longer time you put into it the more you save of course.

mzteebell

I do my food/household budget was about 250 a week cut it back to 150 plus get WAY more stuff than before

thekrazycouponlady.com <

---

coupon bible LOL

I agree. The Krazy Coupon Lady website is the best EVER! I carry my coupon binder everywhere I go.

chubby_checkers

bumping for later.