If you are brand new to using coupons or just need a brief refresher – this is the place to be. A lot of people have asked me how I do what I do……and what is it that I do? Well, within the last month I paid only $0.03 at the store for over $97.00 worth of groceries!
Is it some type of magic? Some special deal I have with the store? NO! It is just simply using coupons to the best of my ability – and I am going to let you know how you can save just as much!
So, let’s get started. Some of the first things you will need to do to learn how to coupon is:
1. Find coupons and find a system that you would like to use to organize them
2. Take a look at what your family likes to eat – make a list
3. Follow sales weekly to see what coupons match up with a sale (especially for those items that are on your list that your family REALLY likes!)
4. Know the coupon policy for the store you are shopping at
5. Use advanced coupon strategies (Catalinas, Ordering coupons, Upromise, Cellfire, and Shortcuts!)
1. Find coupons and find a system that you would like to use to organize them
The best place to start collecting your coupons is by getting the Sunday paper. You can get a great deal HERE. On this page, scroll towards the bottom where it says “To subscribe to Community Press/Community Recorder”. You can choose the Boone County, Kenton County, or Bethel Journal…..and the best thing about this subscription is this - “If you live within a current Enquirer home delivery route, a Thursday subscription to the Boone County Recorder will also include a Sunday Kentucky Enquirer at no additional charge. This package will give you complete coverage of your local community” Okay, so maybe that wasn’t the best thing – the best thing is the prices! If you are in state and in county of the paper you choose, you will pay only $11.66 for 6 months!! If you are out of state or county, you can still get a great deal, it will just be a bit higher. This is a huge savings over purchasing the papers at the store!
The next best place to find coupons is the internet. Now, with a caveat here – there are some great coupons on the internet and there are also some coupons on the internet that are fake. I am going to provide you with some sites that are legitimate – through and through.
- Coupons.com- One of the best coupon sites around! You can print 2 coupons per computer! There is typically a big update of coupons at the beginning of the month, but some change throughout the month as well.
- Cool Savings - Another great coupon site! You have to register to get to the coupons – but it is well worth it!
- BettyCrocker.com - This has not only Betty Crocker products but often times a lot of General Mills products!
- Smartsource.com – Another online printing site – limit 2 prints per computer
- RedPlum.com – Another printing site – limit 2 prints per computer
Now, onto finding a system that works for you. There are basically two systems that I have heard of. One is clipping the coupons, one is leaving them together as inserts. I personally clip my coupons, and this is the reason why – I have a lot of coupons that I get not only from Sunday inserts, but also from Clipping Sites , Trading Forums, Mailer Lists, Printables, friends, family, etc. If I tried to not clip my coupons and just keep them in insert form – I would loose coupons. Those extras would likely get lost. So, I personally clip all my coupons.
I organize them by using a 3 ring binder and baseball insert sheets. You can purchase the baseball sheets at Meijer, Target, or you can order fairly cheap at Amazon.com
2. Take a look at what your family likes to eat – make a list
Make a list! Write out the foods that your family likes to eat. Think about meals, snacks, specialty items. Do this because then you have a working list to think of when matching sales and coupons! It also gives you an idea on what you need to stockpile when there is a great sale!
3. Follow sales weekly to see what coupons match up with a sale (especially for those items that are on your list that your family REALLY likes!)
Follow the weekly sales match-ups that I do on my site. I match up the sales for the week with coupons that are out there! This maximizes your savings. Sales typically cycle their sales about every 12 weeks, so if there is a really hot deal, you will want to stock up! Paying $0.25 for an item is much better than paying $3.49 for an item – especially if it is something you use a lot of!
If you see an item that is on sale and has a coupon, consider obtaining additional coupons for the sale. The best way to do this is to order from a coupon clipping service. You can find a list of all of my favorite clipping sites listed in my Order Your Coupons page. I have personally used all of these services and would recommend them 100%! Some even offer a discount for Saving Money Wisely readers!
4. Know the coupon policy for the store you are shopping at
Knowing the policy at your store can help you not only save money, but also save a lot of headaches! As unfortunate as it is, there are some stores/cashiers that do not know their own policy and will tell you anything they think of to reject your coupon. This doesn’t happen a lot, but it occasionally does happen. I remember hearing the story of someone whose coupon was rejected after the cashier told her “We don’t take these coupons – you can only use them at the SmartSource store!” (SmartSource is one of the main publishers for coupons 
So, like I said – it doesn’t happen often, but it can happen. Certain stores will double (in Cincinnati, Remke, Meijer, and Kroger have doubling) and if you are super lucky your stores may triple (none here in Cincinnati on a regular basis). Also, Walgreens, Meijer, and Target have their own coupons that can be “stacked” on top of a manufacture coupon.
I have quite a few store policies listed in my Coupon Policy Page and will soon be adding more!
5. Use advanced coupon strategies (Catalinas, Ordering coupons, Upromise, Cellfire, and Shortcuts!)
If you have heard someone talking about “cats” in the stores, they are likely referring to the paper kind, not the furry kind Catalinas are special coupon promotions that a certain store will have with the manufacture. The way you can maximize your savings with this feature is to find an item on sale, that has a coupon with it, and then offers a catalina back. You can often make money on these deals!!
For example, several months ago at Meijer I can’t believe its not butter sticks were on sale for $1.69. There was a $1.00/1 coupon available and Meijer had a $1.00/2 store coupon available (more in detail on those later!) This brings the price down to $0.19 each! BUT – there is a catalina deal – when you buy 1, you get $2.00 on your next order! This makes this deal a money maker. The catalina will print as you check out.
Catalinas can help you save in two ways. One, you can use them to purchase other items that are already on sale and help you stretch your dollar…….and two, you can use them on items that rarely have coupons available. A lot of times when I get a catalina, I will use it towards items like meat or produce, which are more difficult to find coupons for.
I touched on this briefly above, but to really build your stockpile of items your family uses – stock up when there is a great sale! To be able to do this, you may need to order additional coupons. You can view all of my favorite clipping sites on my Order Your Coupons page. I have personally used every one of these sites and would endorse all of them 100%! You can also order from Ebay – but if you do make sure to go through Ebates. This service will give you cash back on all purchases made from their site, and right now they are offering $5.00 bonus just for signing up!
Upromise is a great way to save money for college. It doesn’t have to be for you or your children either! If you have grandchildren, godchildren, nieces, nephews, or just a friends child – you can set up an account for them! The way Upromise works is that you can load e-coupons onto your grocery cards. Each time one of those coupons is redeemed you will receive a deposit into your account! A great way to add to college savings with something that you already do!
Cellfire is a great resource for additional savings! Another e-coupon program, you can register your grocery card and then load e-coupons! The excellent thing about this is that you can stack these e-coupons with manufacture coupons which results in even more savings for you!
Shortcuts is another great e-coupon site! This is similiar to Cellfire, where you register your store card and then load e-coupons to it. Again, these coupons can be stacked on top of manufacture coupons – meaning more savings for you!
