Getting Started

Coupons can save you a ton of money if you know what you're doing.  Here are a few tips to get you started.

1) Get some coupons!
The Sunday newspaper is a great source for coupons. Buy the newspaper with the largest circulation in the largest Metro area in order to get the best coupons.  One rule of thumb is to purchase one newspaper per family member.

Ask your friends and family for coupons. If they get a newspaper but usually throw out the coupons then they’ll probably be happy to give them to you.

Print them. There are many great online printable coupons and many places to find them! My favorite printable sites are coupons.com, Red Plum and Smartsource!

Check the store. There are many varieties of coupons that you can find in the store.  Publix, Target and CVS all have their own store coupons you can pair with a manufactures coupon.


2) Organize your coupons!
Envelopes are a great way to organize for beginners. You can start by clipping and putting them all in an envelope or check file. But, once you’ve been couponing for a few weeks you will need something bigger.

File by insert.  My favorite way to organize. With this method you just file your inserts whole by date in a file box or cabinet and use an online coupon database to find the coupon you need. This method doesn’t require much work but you might miss out on unadvertised deals by not having all of your coupons with you at the store.  I have found this to be the easiest way if you are able to check the sales online regularly.

Coupon Binder. With this method you would clip all of your coupons and file them in baseball card holders in a three-ring binder. With this method you can carry your binder to the store and have all your coupons with you while you shop. This method is time consuming but worth it because you can take it shopping with you.


3) Know your store’s coupon policy!
Loyalty Cards. If your store offers a loyalty card then make sure to get one. Some stores only give the sale prices to card-holders. Loyalty cards are Free! 

Double/Triple coupons. Double/triple coupons is when the store will take your 50¢ coupon and double it making it $1. This is done automatically at the register, you do not have to do anything to take part in this promotion. First, find out if your store doubles or triples coupons. If they do, then find out the maximum double/triple value and how many they will double/triple. My Publix will double coupons up to 50¢ with no limit.  So, at my Publix, my 50¢ coupon is actually worth $1.   (Please note, not all Publix stores double coupons.  I live in Alabama where they do double but at a Publix in Florida, they do not double.)

Stacking coupons. Some stores will allow you to use one store coupon and one manufacturer coupon per item. 

Competitor coupons. Some stores will accept competitors coupons.


4) Make a plan!
Weekly Ads. Read the weekly store ads to see what is on sale and which stores have the best prices on the items you need. If you don’t get the weekly ads delivered, you can usually view them on the store’s website.

Coupon Matchups. Match coupons to the sale items to get an even better deal!  Clip It To The Bank and other sites provide weekly coupon matchups for CVS, Walgreens, Rite Aid and more.

Pricematch. Some stores, like Walmart and Target, will pricematch. This means that if an item is on sale for a lower price at Target, you can take the Target ad to Walmart and at checkout tell the cashier that you would like to pricematch the same item. Show them the ad and they will sell you the same item for the Target sale price versus their higher price.

Make a List! Don’t go to the store without a list. Lists remind you what you came for and keep you from buying items you don’t need.

Rainchecks. If your store is out of the sale item, get a raincheck! Go to customer service and ask for a raincheck for the item you wanted. They will fill out a piece of paper with the item details and price. Then you can come back another day (usually no more than 30 days) and buy that item at the sale price by giving the cashier the raincheck. This also gives you more time to gather coupons for the item! You can still use a coupon if you are using a raincheck.


5) Don’t be fooled!
Some store have promotions items selling them 10/$10. You do not have to buy 10 items to get the $1 price! The only exception to this rule is if the ad states that you must! Those times are rare and most store do not require you to purchase all 10.

Don’t go out and use your coupon immediately! If you use a 25¢ off toilet paper coupon right away when it’s not on sale you aren’t reaching your saving potential! Wait until toilet paper goes on sale, then use the coupon.  Matching sales with coupons is getting a great price. Combining sales plus coupons plus another promotion (rebates, double coupons, store coupons) is getting the best price!

Most coupons say “one coupon per purchase” somewhere in the fine print. Cashiers will try to tell you that that means you can only use one coupon per transaction per day. This is NOT true! "One per purchase" means that you can only use one coupon per item purchased! So if you are buying 10 items and have 10 coupons then you can use them all! 

Bring your husband or leave the kids at home!  Shopping with kids will distract you and cause you to buy items not on your list or make you forget what coupons you are there to use.

Shop early. If you have couponers in your area then it’s best to get to the store as early in the sale as you can !

Bigger is not always better. The cost per unit of the bigger box of cereal may be less than the smaller one but with coupons and sales the smaller box is likely a better deal.

Watch the cashier. When checking out pay close attention to the price screen to make sure everything rings up at the correct price. Also, make sure that the cashier scans all of your coupons. Coupons sometimes stick together or get dropped or the cashier will scan the coupon but not realize that it didn’t go through. Kindly point out that they missed one and they will correct it.

Check your receipt. BEFORE leaving the store look over your receipt to make sure everything rang up correctly and all of your coupons were scanned. If there is a problem take it to customer service immediately so they can fix it. If you leave the store and come back at another time then it might not be fixable. If the cashier missed a coupon and you notice right away it’s easy to see the mistake. But, if you come back later after several other coupons have been added to the cashier’s stack or the stack is gone then there is no way to prove that they missed a coupon.