As I mentioned here, I heard about great Kashi waffle coupons that were not available in my area. I decided to trade for these coupons and was able to purchase 10 boxes of Kashi Waffles for .50/box.
Personally, I prefer to trade coupons rather than buy them but you can decide what works best for you. Buying coupons can be a very quick and easy process, whereas trading can often take a little more time.
TRADE: I am a member of a coupon forum called Hot Coupon World. HCW offers forums that are dedicated to specific stores, such as Target, or topics such as Coupon Trades. Once you log on and create an account you will need to apply to become a trader. At Hot Coupon World, you are a trader in training and once you complete a few successful trades you can move up to Trader status.
It is fairly straightforward to complete a trade- you simply post what you are looking for or you can just respond to someone that has posted a coupon you need. In my case, I posted that I wanted the Kashi coupons. To make things really easy, I also posted a hot tearpad coupon that I had several of. The other option is to get a list of items from the trader that they are looking for. I was able to trade 20 Kraft salad dressing coupons for the Kashi coupons. Since they were the same value ($1.50) it was a simple trade. I rarely trade coupons and if you are considering doing this you need to keep a few things in mind:
1. Most traders will not have a large amount of insert coupons or IPs. The Kashi coupons were a tearpad so I knew traders would have a large quantity of them.
2. You need to factor your time and the cost of postage into the trade. For example, it might not be worthwhile to trade for one coupon at a time as you will be out a stamp, envelope and your time in posting. I typically trade for a larger quantity (5-20) coupons at a time on items I want to really stock up on. The exception is high value coupons like the $5/1 Huggies coupon that came out last month.
3. You are trusting the trader to actually send the coupons. It is important to look at the feedback on prior transactions to make sure you are dealing with someone that is honest and will actually send what you asked for.
4. The coupons won’t necessarily arrive in time. In my case, I stated I need a fast trade and I got my coupons before the sale ended. If it is a straight sale (and not a register reward or catalina promo) you can always ask your store for a raincheck on an item to take advantage of the price after the sale ends.
BUYING COUPONS:
There are lots of resources available to purchase coupons, from the forums mentioned above to EBay to private companies. This can be an incredibly easy way to get your hands on a large quantity of coupons for very little money.
The Coupon Clippers is probably the best known clipping service. They require a minimum order of $3.00 and have restrictions on the minimum number of coupons you can order. They also charge a handling fee of .50 per transaction plus shipping. You can choose from a variety of methods to pay but remember your payment must post before the coupons will be sent. You can also pay $20 and have a credit for future shopping trips. The price varies depending on the face value of the coupon and I have found they typically have a huge quantity of each coupon.
Some things to note when buying coupons:
1. HOT coupons sell out very quickly. Sometimes before the Sunday paper comes out! The Electrasol coupon coming in this weekend’s paper is a great example. They can also put a limit on the number of coupons you can buy- especially for these super hot ones.
2. You might not get the coupons before the sale ends. As I mentioned above, you can always request a rain check but if it is a catalina promo or gift card promo you might go through all the trouble and miss out on the sale.
3. Factor in the cost of the coupon, shipping and handling to your deal. In the scenario I mentioned below with Electrasol, I am going to assume to Electrasol coupon is .25 from Coupon Clippers (is it not up yet so I am not certain on the price.)
If you bought 8 coupons at .25 it would be $2.00. The minimum order is $3.00. I am also going to assume there will be a limit on this coupon, but for the sake of this scenario let’s say you buy $2.00 in coupons, pay $.42 for shipping and .50 for handling to total $2.92. The scenario I outlined has 8 boxes of Electrasol for $1.92 after coupons and catalina at Safeway. If you add $2.92+ $1.92= $4.84 or .60/box. This is still a great deal and you can see how it might be worth your time to invest in buying coupons.
You might want to research options in your area for getting multiple inserts before considering either of these options. Some areas have advance inserts in the Saturday paper for .50. Where I live there is a local paper that has advance coupons on Thursday for .50. I also have a coffee shop by my house that dumps a ton of papers in a basket that are free for customers. I have found multiple copies of inserts in these baskets for free. You can also ask friends, neighbors and family members to keep their inserts for you. If nothing else, many drug stores and dollar stores will sell Sunday papers for $1.00 rather than $1.50. I have heard of couponers going to small mom and pop stores or gas stations and making arrangements to purchase the unsold papers at a fraction of the price at the end of the day.
Do you have experience buying or trading coupons? We’d love to hear your suggestions!
For more great ideas check out Frugal Friday at Life As Mom.
Boyd Team says
I just completed my first purchase from TCC. I wont always buy there as some deals are better on ebay but I purchased my Vitamin Water coupons for A LOT less than ebay. I was thrilled!
I don’t consider my coupon purchases a cost. I have an ebay store and sometimes sell coupons and other items I’ve gotten for free such as Glade and Razors. I take some of the proceeds from my sales and put it back into buying coupons. I consider it an investment ๐
Charlene says
Hi Brea! I am hesitant to use Ebay since I hear horror stories about tearpad and peelie stealers that sell on Ebay! Nothing makes me madder! Thanks for the tip though- I will check it out.
Sarah says
Other than purchasing coupons through the Sunday paper, I have never purchased them elsewhere. I don’t trust ebay, too many weird coupon stories from there. Thanks for the Hot coupon tip.
Hoosier Homemade says
Great tips! Thanks for sharing!
~Liz
Single Income Dual Kids says
Thanks. I love that you add your coupons cost into your deal scenario–I do the same. I see so many scenarios that forget to factor the “buy in.”