First, a reminder about why I’m doing this whole couponing experiment…
{smile}
Ok, here is what my $20 “learning how to coupon” budget bought this week.
Our town has 2 grocery stores, Weis and Giant. I usually prefer Weis because they are less crowded and the Giant is in a shopping center with a busy parking lot that is not fun to navigate with multiple young kids, Weis has less expensive regular prices, and Weis doubles up to 4 of the same coupon per transaction, whereas giant only doubles the first coupon.
However, Weis doesn’t stock as many items, so I’m finding that a lot of the coupons I have I can’t redeem there simply because they don’t sell the products.
I knew this would be a good week to try Giant because I was running low on prenatal vitamins and they had the brand I use on sale, buy one get one free, plus I had coupons for them.
While I was there I saw a few other things I had good coupons for, so I bought some of those as well.
Cheerios: On sale 2/$5 + used 2 $1 off coupons = 2 boxes for $3 or $1.50 each (normally $3.79 each)
**My favorite deal: Dole salads: on sale 2/$5 + the produce department had put $1 off peelie coupons on each because they expire in a few days + used two 75 cents off coupons + one of the 75 cent coupons doubled (That’s $5-$2-$2.25)= $0.75 for 2 or 38 cents each! (Regularly $3.69 each)
Goya Adobo seasoning: $1.39, not on sale – $1.10 (55 cent coupon doubled)= $0.29
Kraft Shredded Cheese: On sale 2/$6 + used 2 coupons for $1.50 each= $3 for 2 or $1.50 each (regularly $3.59 each) I have a big stockpile of shredded cheese after this first month, but it freezes well according to Google, so we’ll see about that.
Idahoan Instant Potatoes: On sale for $1 – $1 off coupon= FREE
Nature Made Prenatal Vitamins: on sale 2/$10.77 + 2 $1.00 off coupons= 2 for $8.77 or $4.39 each (regularly $10.77 each)
Altogether I paid $15.81 after using coupons & the store card, and more than half of that went toward the vitamins. The original total was $46.57, so I saved about 66%.
I was happy I was able to save more than 50% on every item I bought this trip, I only bought stuff we normally use anyway (except maybe the instant potatoes, but, hey, they were free) and this was my first time saving on produce.
So, to review, this month I’ve used coupons to buy all this stuff for $93:
I think $93 seems like kind of a lot, but I have managed to save at least 30%-50% off the total each time, which is certainly better than paying full price and once you get the hang of it, it gets kind of fun to match up the sales & coupons. I actually bought/saved a lot more than I showed you on my regular grocery store trips, these are just the times I tried to stay under $20 for practice.
What I learned:
- It takes a few weeks to build up your coupons and for the first few weeks, it will be hard to match anything up with store sales.
- Even though you look kind of silly, it really is easier to take an organized coupon binder to the store with you
- Look up the circulars online before you go to the store. I also look up regular prices on my store’s ishop website (they let you order groceries online and even if I’m not placing an order, it’s a good resource for looking up prices of things that aren’t advertised in the circular)
- Print multiple copies of each coupon so you can use 2 coupons on buy one get one free deals.
- Search several different zip codes when looking up coupons online.
- Follow a service like Couponpro on Facebook because they do all the hard work for you, then all you have to do is print the coupons as they come up.
- Most of the high-value coupons are from liking companies on Facebook.
- Since I’m not trying to stockpile 100’s of items, I am fine just printing 2 of each coupon from my home computer. I did not use any Sunday paper coupon inserts, I just printed everything online from coupons.com and the Red Plum and Smart Source websites or Facebook or manufacturer websites.
- If a coupon has a store logo on it but says “manufacturer coupon” at the top, you should be able to use it at different stores, especially if the bar code starts with a 5.
- Only coupons that start the barcode with a 5 will double.
- Oh, and this guy is awesome.
Are you trying non-extreme couponing too? Do you have any tips?
Curious about my previous couponing adventures?
Ben and I have been couponing for awhile now…well, I guess since the spring. It’s funny because he was definitely more into it than I was and really kept pushing it. But now, I’m totally on board. We too, have a binder, and yes, I feel awkward sometimes but then I remember how much more the peeps giving me funny looks will be paying and then I don’t care.
We shop at Safeway since we are lucky enough to have one pretty close to us. Safeway’s prices are higher than the Giant nearby, but the sales and their coupon policies always result in the better deal. They say they double up to $1, but we’ve seen $0.55 coupons double to $1.10 too. And as far as I know, there isn’t a limit on how many of the same coupon to use. Ben has bought some coupons on eBay a few times and we ended up walking out of the store with 20 of those Mentos gums for free. (Well, technically whatever he paid for the coupons, but it’s always paid off…um, no pun intended.) Another cool thing about Safeway is that they have online coupons that I can put on my club card. These end up being “store coupons” that I can use in addition to my “manufacturer’s coupons.” And then if the item is on sale too, man, we’re excited!
Initially, I think the biggest mistake people make with coupons is buying something simply because they have a coupon. I can’t stress enough that you only use a coupon if the item is already on sale. I used to make this mistake tons of times. (Like, oh I got a coupon for makeup! This means I can buy makeup! WRONG!)
Sometimes, I have a hard time passing on coupons when I’m cutting. “If I can get it for free, would I want it then???” If the answer is still no, move on. Even still, I end up clipping A LOT and throwing away A LOT. But it all takes time. I usually set aside some time early Saturday or Sunday morning to clip and organize. If I’m in the store and have a coupon that expires that day or in the next few days and I know it will only go to waste in my possession, I’ll leave it sitting by the item. A little “coupon magic” I like to leave for the next customer coming along who desperately needs to pay full price for that jar of mayo. For the record, I’m sure the store hates me for leaving what they consider “trash.”
A lot of people ask me where I get my coupons. I cut mine from the the paper and Ben’s mom saves her papers for us. We end up getting a lot of doubles, but since she lives in a different (and more expensive) county, sometimes we get better coupons and even different coupons. Like I said before, Ben searches for some on eBay for items that we (as he puts) “always wish we had a coupon for when we are in the store shopping.”
The different zip code tip you listed is a good one. Since everything is expensive in say, California, their coupons will reflect the same. For the record, I can’t say if we’ve managed to get our hands on these. I guess eBay would be where you could find them.
Also, as a gentle reminder for those reading this- buying coupons on eBay is tricky in the respect that it is ILLEGAL to “sell coupons.” They get around this by selling you their “time they took to clip them.” It’s totally safe for you to buy them, it’s just something you should be aware of when you are asking questions or leaving feedback.
Yikes, I wrote a lot. Happy Couponing, Everyone!
-Lisa
Thanks for responding Lisa! I’ve been wondering if it was really worth it to purchase the coupons from services or ebay. That’s one of the things that annoys me about that show Extreme Couponing, when people buy the coupons they never factor that into their final price, but I still love that show. đŸ™‚
I don’t extreme coupon either, but I think it’s a good idea to extreme coupon on non-perishable items like toilet paper, paper towels, shampoo and conditioner, soap, etc. If you find yourself in a situation where money is extremely tight or those products are hard to come by, you would be glad you had a stockpile:) also…cheese really does freeze well! 2 pound bricks came on a really good sale here so I bought 6 and grated 4 of them, stuck them in freezer bags and we have been grabbing a bag out of the freezer when we need it. SO nice! Just remember if you are grating your own to spread it out on a cookie sheet and stick it in the freezer for about 10 min before putting it in the freezer bag, otherwise it will stick together and clump up in the freezer! I think you are doing great at couponing!