Couponing 102

So, you're all couponed up with no place to go. Let me help you. I'm going to take you through each of the stores I regularly frequent. Some might surprise you, but I assure you these are tried and true couponing methods. I will also assure you that I do not cheat stores. I will never offer you advice that is shady. If you ever have questions, feel free to ask but you can also check with stores, too. I will caution you though- many stores do not understand or even know their coupon policies. You might have to call corporate about it. You can also typically go to the corporate sites and print off copies of the corporate coupon policies. You will probably not need them unless you're planning an extreme coupon trip. Happy couponing!

1. Target: Did you know that Target has its own coupons? It does. If you go to the Target website and scroll down to the bottom, you can click on a "coupons" link. Then you check each coupon you want to print and print them off. Here's what is so fabulous about store coupons- you can use one store coupon and one manufacturer coupon together. This is NOT cheating the store. In fact, you will find that in most coupon policies it even states as much. Here's a "for instance": Orbit gum 3pks were on sale for $2 each. There was a printable Target coupon for $1 off of the 3pks. There just happened to also be a $1 off manufacturer coupon. Know what that means? Yep. I got 3 pks of Orbit gum for free! You can find amazing deals this way. You can also sometimes find Target coupons in the coupon inserts you find in newspapers. You can combine those coupons with MCs too!

2. Walmart: I don't typically shop Walmart. Too many people. But if I have an amazing coupon I make an exception. First of all, Walmart is unique in that it will actually pay you to take stuff home. I mean actual money in hand. This makes up for Walmart not having their own coupons. If your coupon is worth more than the product's price you will actually make money. No joke. It's even written in the corporate policy! This is not cheating, it's their own policy! Back in October there were $8 off of 2 Cover Girl products coupons. I had lots. They happened to have Blush and Bronzer for $2.94 each. So, when I purchased two for a total of $5.88 I made a little over $2. You can either be paid back that money or use it to buy other things, getting those things for free. In one shopping trip I used several coupons and got a bunch of groceries for free! Walmart also price matches. I suggest you bring your ad. If you want the convenience of getting everything in one place, this comes in handy. Plus, Walmart is typically a pretty coupon-friendly store with no hassel on the use of your coupons. Also, if the sale is really good, sometimes other stores (like Walgreens, who is notorious for running out of sale stuff) run out of the product. So, price match it. Plus, for stores, like Walgreens, that offer rewards on purchases, Walmart will match the "final" price. Example: Walgreens could have your favorite shampoo 2 for $8 and offers that if you buy 2 you will get $2 in Register Rewards (a store coupon good on your next shopping trip). So, it effectively makes the price 2 for $6, although you pay $8 out of pocket. Walmart will usually price match for the AFTER Register Rewards price, meaning they would price match the same product for 2 for $6. Plus you can still use coupons on it.

CVS: Quickly becoming my favorite store for so many reasons. First of all, you have to sign up for the Extra Care card. You can do it right there in the store and use it that day. Once CVS has processed the card, go onto the website and register your card and sign up for emails. They will occassionally send you coupons through your email. Many times the coupon will be $5 off of a $30 purchase. (But don't worry- you'll never spend $30 out of pocket). Then, they have a program called a CVS cash card deal. It's different every week so look at the ad (which can also be viewed online). There will be many products listed throughout, designated by a little cash symbol that are a part of the deal. What's the deal? Spend $30 total on participating products and get a $10 CVS gift card. Spectacular, because that $30 is pre-coupon total! Let me give you a for instance: One time they had Tide on sale for $5.94 and it was part of this deal. I had $2 off coupons. So, I purchased 5 for $29.70 plus 1 bottle of Dawn (also part of the deal) for $.99, meeting the $30 requirement. I then used a $5 off of $30 purchase, bring the total down to $25. Then I used 5 $2 off Tide coupons bringing it down to $15. Then I used a $.50 off of Dawn coupon to bring it to $14.50. I paid under $15 for 5 bottles of Tide and 1 bottle of Dawn AND got  $10 CVS gift card. Then, I went back. Because Pantene was also part of the deal, on sale for 2 for $7. There were $3 off of 2 Pantene coupons from the same insert as the Tide (Proctor & Gamble insert which comes out once a month). I bought 8 bottles for $28 and 3 more Dawn. I used 4 $3 off Pantene coupons and 3 $.50 off of Dawn coupons. Which brought my total from $30.97 to $17.47. Then I used my $10 CVS gift card to bring it down to $7.47. I paid $7.47 out of pocket for 8 bottles of shampoo and conditioner and 3 bottles of Dawn! Then, yes, I got another $10 CVS gift card to use later!! Typically, the cash card deal is good for up to 5 times per Extra Care card. The next week they had a great deal on Cottonelle and it was part of that week's $10 cash card deal. So, I bought 6, used 6 $.50 off coupons, plus my $10 cash card from the week before and got tons of toilet paper and another $10 cash card!! Some weeks the products are not great and the coupons are worse. But, there are plenty of times when the coupons rock and so do the deals!

Walgreens: I don't shop WG much anymore. While they do have awesome Register Reward deals, I prefer paying less out of pocket. Sometimes the deals are still very good. They do have monthly coupon books at the front of the stores full of SCs which you can combine with MCs. But Register Rewards are limited and you can only do the same RR deal once per transaction. If I were you, I'd price match at Walmart and pay less out of pocket.

Grocery Stores: These are difficult. For the most part, grocery stores are much more skeptical of coupons. I have found that even when I plan perfectly I still might get hasseled. While I am not trying to cheat the store, I find that I still have to deal with skeptical looks and a checker that digs through the bags to ensure I've purchased the right products. I appreciate that they probably have dealt with coupon frauders but I am not one of them. County Market is pretty good about coupons and if you are lucky enough to get a Penny Pincher in your Wednesday junk mail you can combine those coupons with MCs too! One time I got an amazing deal on Eggo waffles. The Penny Pincher made them 2 for $3 and I had $1 off of 2 coupons which made hem 2 for $2, or $1 a box! Meijer has made my life difficult on several occassions. I usually check out at the self checkout stations when I don't anticipate issues with the coupons. If you have a buy one get one free coupon or something of the sort, you have to have a cashier. Otherwise, checking out yourself gives you lots less headaches. If you like Meijer, go to their mperks website and sign up. You can virtually clip store coupons. At checkout, you simply enter your pin (at self checkouts there is a button on the screen that says MPerks and you push that and it asks for your pin) and it automatically takes each coupon off one time so long as you buy at least one of the item. Note: if you buy more than one of the product it still only takes the coupon off once. You will want to enter your MPerks before scanning your MCs because sometimes it messes things up.

Happy couponing!!