I know there are lots of people excited about using coupons thanks in part to the new reality TV show called Extreme Couponing. I know this little world can seem very overwhelming at first and I am getting lots of questions about where on Earth you can begin if you are new to using coupons.
I will have a series for you to learn the ins and outs of coupons from the very beginning. I am hoping this is easy to digest information that will have you saving big before you know it.
I should tell you that the show features people that are… well Extreme. I do not typically shop like the people showcased on the show nor do my children sleep in the bathtub so I can make more room to store my deodorant collection. I personally have a very reasonable pantry and we have very little space actually dedicated to the products that I buy or get for free.
So there is absolutely a comfortable middle ground for those that still want to be able to park the cars in the garage and don’t have 30 hours a week to cut coupons. I hope this series I am putting together will be beneficial to those of you that are interested in simply finding easy and fast ways to save a little money. There should be ideas and tips for those of you that really want to go big as well- I encourage you to find the place that makes you comfortable and works for your family.
Soooo.. are you ready?! Let’s get started!
I personally look at using coupons as just one very easy way to put extra money in the bank. I have three newspaper subscriptions that come to my home and I spend roughly 90 minutes a week total on coupons- organizing, printing, planning my shopping trips and our menu for the week etc.. I spend another 2 hours or so actually shopping each week.
I typically save at least 50% on my grocery bills- so I look at it is an extra 90 minutes per week and I probably save at least $300 or more per month. If I had more spare time, I am sure I could save even more.
One important thing I want to mention, is that coupons are not just for people on tight budgets or with limited incomes. The average coupon shopper has a household income of $70,000+. Using coupons doesn’t mean you can not afford to pay for groceries, it is just a smart way to save a little on something you need so you can put the money back in the bank or splurge on something you want!
So if you are interested in getting started learning how to effectively use coupons, the very first thing we need to do is get our hands on some coupons!
I like to suggest starting very small and working your way up. I do not recommend running out and buying 20 copies of the newspaper- because let me tell you this can be incredibly time consuming. I like to suggest people start small and get comfortable and then figure out what is going to be manageable to you.
So there are two primary ways to get coupons- the first is the Sunday paper.
The common perception of Sunday paper coupons is to flip through them and if something appeals to you, rip the coupon out and throw the rest away. The next time you head to the store grab that coupon you tore out and use it and you just saved yourself .50!
WRONG!
What you want to do now is collecting those Sunday paper coupons. I happen to get 3 subscriptions at my house (so 3 inserts each week) and I will leave it to you to decide how many you would like. Once you get those babies you can flip through and see what looks appealing- I usually cut about 10% of them out. Then I tuck them away in my little pouch and I wait for the right time to use it to get the biggest bang for my buck. The rest of the coupons, I toss in a basket in my closet. (And we can talk more about fabulous ways to organize all your coupons later. For now I’d like to start with the simplest things you can do to get rolling.)
Now you want to hold onto those coupons because you never know when they will come in handy. Some of them will expire in 30 days and some might not expire for an entire year. So just hold onto them.
So that is your first order of business, you really want to start researching the newspapers in your area. I would recommend checking out the papers in your city on both Saturday and Sunday- some areas have inserts available a day early and maybe you can get that paper a little cheaper. I recommend flipping through the papers because one paper in the same city might have double the amount of coupons as another paper. So it is important to really look and see what is available. Once you get that sorted out, you will want to track down the best price you can get. If you are paying $1.50-5.00 per paper each week, well that cuts into your savings. I pay $20 per year for my subscription- so .38 per Sunday newspaper. You might check Dollar Stores, call the subscription desk, ask friends- whatever you can do to track down the best price available on the newspaper in your area. (You can also check Discounted Newspaper Subscriptions and see what they offer.) You can absolutely get multiple copies of the newspaper sent to your home. Before you get crazy though ordering tons of subscriptions, I really suggest using coupons for awhile so you can see what you will really need. I know some sites will recommend getting 10 or more papers a week and I can tell you there is 0 chance I personally could manage that many coupons and I have been doing this for years.
Job # 2 will be to start collecting internet coupons. I post them all the time– the first time you print from most coupon sources like coupons.com, smart source or red plum, they will require that you download a coupon printer. Each coupon will have a unique barcode so that is why you need the download. If you install the software once you should not have to do it again. I think as you start getting more experience you will recognize the coupons you want to print ASAP. I will usually tell you if I think it is a hot coupon as well. So this is homework #2. Internet coupons are a great resource, so if you have a printer you will want to be ready to start printing away as coupons come up! The really good ones can be gone very quickly- most coupons will have a certain limit on how many total can be printed and you don’t want to miss out.
Two important notes on printables:
1. You can usually get 2 copies of the coupon by using your back bar to go back and the coupon should spool a second time. Don’t cheat yourself out of your second copy by forgetting to do that.
2. Sadly, you can usually only get those 2 coupons per computer that you have. If you want extras, you either need access to more computers or you need to sweet talk a friend into printing coupons for you. It is absolutely never, ever OK to photocopy coupons. That is actually a crime and please don’t ever put yourself in a situation to get in trouble.
So those are the primary ways to score coupons, you might also start keeping an eye out at the grocery store because you will start to see coupons can be found everywhere! Sometimes you see little machines that spit out coupons- if it is a product you can use grab one or two of the coupons and just tuck it away. You might also be on the lookout for little booklets in your stores that have coupons. Safeway, Publix and Kroger often have great coupon booklets available. (And there is such a thing as coupon karma so again 2 or maybe 3 booklets is plenty- no reason to take the entire stack.)
The very last step, is you will want to start understanding the coupon policies for your stores. Each person will have a slightly different experience and it is important you are aware of policies that might prevent you from getting great deals. You can go to the web site of your store (such as www.Safeway.com) and look for the coupon policy or you can just ask at customer service in your store. Remember those policies can change at any time so be sure you check back every few months for updates.
So that is part 1. You are already on the way to starting to score great deals! Please feel free to leave any comments or questions below. There is really a lot to learn so again I am hoping to just take this one step at a time and hopefully it turns into a fun and easy way to start saving big at the grocery store!
… You can continue along with this series by clicking the articles below:
- Extreme Couponing: Understanding coupon matchups
- Extreme Couponing: Ready for Action
- Extreme Couponing: Determining a Realistic Savings Plan
- Extreme Couponing: Understanding Buy One Get One Free Coupons
- Extreme Couponing: Organizing Your Coupons
- Extreme Couponing: Free Item Coupons!
- Extreme Couponing: Creating a Pricebook
- Extreme Couponing: Using the Coupon Database
and you can get even more information from the Where to Begin section or if you prefer to watch videos, scroll down here to see topics like price matching and organizing coupon binders.
Finally, you can subscribe to my free newsletter to get daily updates on all sorts of freebies, online deals, coupon deals and more!
Jess H says
Thank you for sharing! Do you recommend any other coupon sites such as coupon swaps or others where you can buy coupons?
Anna says
I’m so excited about you helping! I was just saying I wish someone could walk me through it all because that’s the way I learn best. thank you so much!!!!!!
Charlene says
Jess- I think I will cover that in its own post. Trading and buying coupons.
Barbra says
Thanks so much for doing this! I really could use the coaching! I didn’t know about that back-button thing to get an extra coupon!!!! Thanks again!
Dee says
I love that you don’t live and breathe for your stockpile. It makes this seem more realistic. I also truly enjoy that you post all your grocery purchases, including the stuff you can’t/don’t use coupons on (produce).
Thanks for all you do!
Jose says
SF examiner, is free in the bay area, and it comes with red plum, smart source and P&G inserts, you can even get the paper delivered for free!
I get one copy delivered and get some more at the boxes, but by noon they’re gone…
Lisa says
I haven’t been able to figure out how to get some of my coupons to print in black and white. I have my printer set up with the default to print in black and white, and for most things it does just that, but coupons.com, redplum.com, smartsource.com, target.com, etc. still always print in color. Any suggestions?
lilia says
Charlene, in what newspaper do you get your coupons? Which newspaper do you recommend? I also live in California about 60 miles from Sacramento.
Charlene says
Lilia- I get the Sac Bee. On Thursday the Placer County papers have coupon inserts too and they are $.50. If you can get the Bee there is a promo code that worked awhile back for a great deal:
Marketing/1DaySun/SunHalf
That should drop the price to $19.99/yr of Sunday papers. I haven’t used it in ages so I don’t know if it works still- you have to call to get them to honor it. If you live in the Valley you can ask on the Savemart post or Safeway. There are a lot of local readers that like to help.
Charlene says
Lisa- I just have the printer set to B&W on every print. How odd that yours goes back to color!
Charlene says
Jose- When do you get the Examiner? I need to get my hands on the Target ad early. I know the Chronicle has it in the late Sat paper but that is so far to drive for an ad 😛
Jose says
They deliver very very early on sunday to me, i never checked Sat. paper since i only get sundays delivered, i’l check next sat. on the paper box =)
momrose3 says
Great Post! I’m glad you pointed out how the tv show really is ‘extreme’ so that people whom are new to couponing don’t get too overwhelmed. I started couponing about 7months ago and I’ve managed to cut our grocery bill by almost 75% (though I admit what I was spending on groceries before couponing was outrageous)!
Currently I get one sac bee but will try that code and order another one since I’ve bought a 2nd paper the last two weeks. Mostly I use internet q’s and I follow several blogs to make things easier. I probably spend 4hr a week printing/cutting coupons (it would likely take less if I didn’t have my 3 kids “helping” me LOL) and shopping definitely takes longer than it use to however I’ve noticed in the last few weeks I’m much faster than I use to be.
Also, I recently signed up for FREE saturday ads though I’m not sure what the ads are going to be.
Amy says
THANK YOU so much for writing this. I am a coupon newbie and have been starting off slowly…but I’m ready to really get going and this has been VERY helpful!
Kristen says
How do you get more than one paper delivered? We have asked our driver and he said there is no way you can get more than one. We’ve been buying our paper but they don’t come with all the inserts most weeks. Is this normal or should every paper come with all the inserts every week?
Charlene says
Kristen- have you called the newspaper and asked to subscribe to more than one? Usually they are happy to sell as many as they can.
tiffany says
I’ve found that coupons in groups of two (so 2, or 4 subscriptions) are usually the most helpful since many deals are 2/$$… just a tip!
Kimberly says
That show is CrAzY!!!! I personally don’t keep a stockpile like that either. It looks like clutter and clutter makes me bonkers. The couponers they showcased are shopping in areas that double coupons and that’s how they are getting those off the chart savings. We have no such retailers here in Vegas. I only have 1 Sunday paper delivered and I have neighbors that give me their coupon inserts. It’s a great way to cut down on the cost of your paper subscriptions. Thanks Charlene for the post!!!
Holly says
I was put off by last nights show. I’m afraid that stores will start to limit the amount of coupons even more so that can be used. No one needs 60+ mustards. I have couponed a long time and have a reasonable stockpile, but this is like hoarding. And clearing a shelf, that’s just rude. I see them buying a lot of unhealthy foods, as well
Charlene says
Holly, the unhealthy foods is a very valid point. I do not want to put anyone down for food choices- goodness knows those in glass houses (that eat Snickers eggs on the way to the gym) have no business judging others. However, I really believe the actual items that people purchased need to be clearly laid out because it sounds significantly more impressive when they do not offer any details. The hot dogs purchased are regularly .69 without coupons. The “steaks” someone purchased once I actually bought for my husband a long time ago and he said they were so disgusting he refused to give them to the dog 🙁 So again. Not judging at all but just saying these may not have been the highest quality items one could have purchased. 😉
Emily says
Charlene, I live in placer county are you talking about the press tribune? Just so happens it is Thursday so I might have to grab one 🙂 thnaks for the info. It definately helps to have some perspective on this that is not so extreme!
Kristen says
Yes I have asked about having more than one paper delivered and he said one per household which is a little frustrating because I live at least 25 minutes from the nearest town and getting papers can be a pain.
Jolene Mittelstadt says
What I also found interesting regarding the show is most of them shopped on double or triple coupon day. I have not found a store in the area (Sac) the offered doupon couple, so there discount would be soo much less with out the double and triple coupon amounts.
Emily says
Kristen – that is silly especially since you are willing to pay for the extra paper to be delivered.
I don’t think any stores in Sac or sorrounding areas double or triple coupons.
Kristen says
I know it’s silly. They also will not let you have a Sunday only subscription you have to have a weekend subscription that cost more.
susan says
The problem that I am having with couponing is that we live in a small rural town in the middle of nowhere. The closest city is two hours away – the closest Target is over an hour away. I appreciate that you have started including Walmart deals – Walmart is it around here. Thanks for all the time you put into the website. I have sent many fellow moms here!
Liz says
Thank you so much for this post. I’m slapping myself upside the head as I type! lol. It never occurred to me that I should be looking in cheaper papers for the same inserts.
I’m also a big fan of using the coupon database. That way, if I see something that looks close to a good price, I can check to see if there’s a coupon that I forgot about.
Andrew says
I ( along with my wife, who the brains of the organization) have challenged ourselves to jump in with both feet and give it a go, once.
if it works as well as portrayed, we might just have to keep it up permanitly. we also have agreed that we are doing this for our family and friends as well. after all who needs 77 bottles of mustard???
Charlene says
Oh Andrew- this is just my opinion but I would say start slow. It will not go perfectly- you really have to figure things out. It is like learning to ride a bike- you have a few scraped knees before you are cruising down the road wind in your hair. Once you get more comfortable it just really does get to be pretty easy. I have seamless transactions the vast majority of the time and I can’t even remember what it is like to shop like a normal person. I usually say I save $300 a month but I am sure that is wrong. I just base it on when I spent $100-150 a week before we had kids and before I couponed- years ago. I am sure if I didn’t know how to use coupons, we would probably spend double that each month. So I probably save significantly more. I just am out of touch with reality because I can’t imagine not using them anymore. I hope it works out for you guys!
linda says
Holly, I agree with you it is not necessary to clean out a shelf, but some consider using several coupons at a time, as horrding anyway. I say to that… if it’s cluttering the house and making it impossible to clan around then it is horrding, but if it set back for use or given as a donation to a foodbank or shelter then clear that shelf for them.
Also one can write or email companies and ask for bran name coupons. Most coupons are online now days, but sometimes some companies still have contact email address and will send the coupons by mail or give a website address for printable coupons from their comany. I didn’t ask for them for my self, but for a friend, an older lady that was a shut in. They sent her two coupons for two gallon jugs of free tea. She was delighted. I save the online coupon sites I frequent in my favorites to save time.
As for the newspapers some restaurants leave a Sunday paper out for customers to read that visit often, then the waitresses throw them away at the end of the day, coupons and all. A small tip to the waitress may help to get them to save you the paper instead of tossing it, but be sure to pick it up on time.
Vivian Costa says
I live in South FLorida and I have followed the rules above but can’t figure out how to bring the total down to nothing… I spent $154 and saved $98, not bad but didn’t pay below $20 like on TV. What am I doing wrong? I feel like the stores down here don’t bring down their prices enough for me to walk away with free stuff. Can that be possible? My choice of store is Winn DIxie
Help!
Charlene says
Vivian- they are doing other things which is why the total is zero. Here is an example that was incredibly blatant. Let’s say Winn Dixie has yogurt for $1. Now let’s also say I have 42 coupons for $1 off that yogurt. My total is zero. Is that reasonable? No it is outrageous. To get that many coupons you would need 24 computers. So I guess if you called every person you know and they printed them, your total would be 0 as well. One of the shoppers did that. Let’s say you spent 3 or 4 weeks emailing companies and they sent you free item coupons… to use a very specific example. I received a free Arm and Hammer laundry soap coupon valued up to $10 at a blog conference. Can anyone get a coupon like that? No. Can I get coupons like that regularly? Of course not. But one shopper had something like 8 of those coupons- now that is $80 off her bill. And if the laundry soap was $8- she got $2 in overage for each one. It all adds up. So I won’t say it is cheating. But misleading at the very best. Another example from the laundry soap and the yogurt lady is this. What if you went into Winn Dixie on Tuesday and they have a $5 catalina for every 3 boxes of cereal you buy. So you spent $50 on cereal and got $40 in catalinas. Now let’s say the next day you went back to the store and bought $40 in items. Then you use your $40 in catalinas to pay for it. Is that a reasonable representation of coupon shopping? Of course not! Your $40 transaction was not free- you spent $50 to get $40! I hope that helps you understand a little more what these people did. I think to say the transactions were unreasonable is putting it politely. What if I bought a $50 gift card to Winn Dixie and went in the next day and bought $50 in groceries? Does that make me a super couponer? They had that on one of the shows!! Outrageous.
Rachel says
Thanks so much for taking the time to share this info! I’m wondering though, why get multiple copies of the same paper when most coupons say ‘one coupon per purchase’ or something similar ? I can’t figure out how exactly a person could get 72 bottles of anything on one purchase…. Not that I want 72 bottles of anything, but there are times I may want 3 or 4. Can you give me any clarification? Thanks again!
Charlene says
Rachel- there is a difference between One coupon per purchase and one coupon per transaction or per customer. A purchase is a single item. So if I have 6 bottles of shampoo and 6 coupons- I can use one of those coupons per item if they say one per purchase. I can not buy 1 shampoo and use 6 coupons on that single bottle. If a coupon says one per transaction or per customer, you would need to go through the checkout line more than once if you want to buy several items.
Katie says
I live in a small town about 20 from the closest “big” grocery store and about 40 miles from the BIG city. What do you suggest I do to get more coupons since none of the papers around here are big enough to have coupon inserts?
Charlene says
Katie, you would really need to rely on printables mostly. You might even consider a wireless printer if you have any other electronic devices that you can print coupons from. You get 2 prints per computer so if you have an iPad, smart phone or anything you can print coupons from that might help. Otherwise, you need to buy coupons online. You can buy from Ebay or sites like thecouponclippers.com.
Bethany says
I love your post. Thank you so much for it.
I have watched the show a few times and I totally get wanting to save money. But, some of the people seem to be just flat out mean at the stores. (I sort of feel bad for the cashiers).
I tried what you recommended and started slow. Today I saved $20 with coupons. And, I think I am happy with that.
My question is along another line. Since the economy isn’t so great right now, and a lot of people have had to give up pets because of the cost of food, I could see myself donating around 10-15 hours a week couponing for pet food and supplies to donate to The Humane Society and other local animal shelters.
Do you have pets? Have any luck saving significantly on pet supplies? I live in the Tampa Bay area and the shelters are over loaded and begging for help. Any suggestions you have would be greatly appreciated!
Thank You,
Bethany
Charlene says
Bethany, there are deals pretty regularly on dog food and cat food. I post as many as I find so you sort of have to sit and wait until they come along. We have a dog but he gets Iams or other premium food. It goes on sale for good prices every few months.
Kathy says
I took the time to call a few stores in my area and found out the coupon policy really is different; for example, Giant grocery will double all retailer coupons up to $1 total value, no limit; also, internet coupons are accepted UNLESS they are for a FREE item and limit up to $5 per coupon (you can’t use the $7 off Swiffer here).. I called Karn’s, and if you have multiple coupons for the same product, i.e., 50cents off campbell’s soup, you can use 10 coupons for 10 cans of soup BUT they will only double the first coupon! Also, same internet coupon policy, but kind of vague on the ‘dollar limit’ here.. good to know!
Corry says
Does anyone know where it states in walmarts policy it says coupon may not be duplicated. Can I still get 10 of the same items and use one coupon for each of those?
Charlene says
Corry- that means if you have one single coupon you printed out or cut from the paper and you take it to Kinkos and copy it 52 times to have 53 coupons they will haul you off to jail 😉
Janie says
Another newbie thanks you for some really good-sense, down-to-earth tips on how to start using coupons more. IMO, a lot of current TLC shows are almost sensationalistic in the subjects they cover & how they cover them & “EXTREME COUPONING” is no exception. There are clearly some elements of hoarding, OCD and other psychological disorders going on with SOME (not all) of the shoppers profiled that TLC doesn’t address. Like someone else commented, NOBODY needs 60+ bottles of mustard (and she can’t even remember her husband doesn’t use it?!) The $2k a year spent buying newspapers to get the inserts, money spent buying all their organizing materials (the clear plastic sports-card collectors’ pages aren’t cheap), & other things I’ve noticed would definitely take away from the “bottom line” savings. Still, it’s worth learning that many of us can save 30, 40, 50, etc.% off our grocery bills with reasonable effort & investment of time. Thanks, & please keep this great information coming!
Jackie says
I always remember clipping coupons w/ my mom when I was little, so it’s always been a part of me to look for and use coupons. However, thanks to the TLC series, I decided to take couponing a little more seriously. I never expected to save 90% on my bill, firstly because we have no stores here that double/triple coupons and secondly because I don’t really have 30+ hrs a week to dedicate to clipping and looking for coupons/deals… However, with my 2-3 hours a week, I manage to save approx 50% on my bill, and I love it. I have stockpiled some things like deodorant, toothpaste and laundry detergent, but it’s not taking up my house. I’m glad that most of us here are pretty reasonable and not clearing shelves for a deal… And for all the newbies, please don’t take the show seriously. The show doesn’t portray couponers in the best light… By the way, I LOVE COUPONS 😀
Priscilla says
Question, what do we do if our store brands are almost always cheaper? I too remember clipping coupons with my mother and going out shopping with her to look for the best deals and she tought me one or two basic skills about couponing but never to the extreme. As I child I lived in a larger city but now I only have HEB and Walmart as grocery stores and I am not the type of person that goes to 5 different store for there best deals. I am a one stop shopper for the most part. How do I shop with coupons if the HEB brand is a few cents cheaper anyways? Please help with any advise or suggestions!!! Have a great Day!!
Charlene says
Priscilla, in general the store brand will be more expensive than if you use coupons and shop sales. Now considering the 2 stores you have to work with, I would say that is not going to be your experience. This week there is a great example of the difference using diapers as an example. Huggies are as low as $.97 a pack at Rite Aid but you needs lots of coupons and you have to jump through several hoops to get it. The store brand is $3 after one coupon at Walgreens. So while Walgreens shoppers are paying more for a store brand, they are having a much easier shopping trip and they can do one transaction etc… So I guess that is your boat 🙂 and people hitting Walgreens are still getting great deals. You just need to watch the unit prices of items and if the generic is cheaper- well so be it. Really the bottom line is watching prices and buying when stuff is cheapest.
Brandi Hall says
I have a question, can you extreme coupon in Oregon? We don’t pay sales tax here and a lot of the coupons I see cannot be paired with any kind of store sale.
Charlene says
Brandi, I don’t know of any manufacturer coupons that specify you can only use them on the regular price of an item. I think you might be misinterpreting the language on a coupon.
sherry says
where is the best place to start on the coupons
Tree says
I appreciate the walk through and the logic of getting newspapers as well as coupon. I’m hoping to be able to do a little saving in the beginning and then work my way up. So thanks again!
dee says
It’s so easy. Just use google. started one day and never stopped …..I’m 24 years old, I was a highschool single mom, Who put myself through college , got own house and then I was diagnosed with Stage 3 C. Cancer and I knew I had to change something to make it work , I am now able to help All the single moms at my work,Charties , my husbands family, my family, my friends and neighbors everyone pretty much, looks to me for everything and its amazing. who would have thought and in 1 year I have a grocery store in my house that is at free use to anyone that I know. Why keep it too myself half the stuff I get I would never use and plus I donate to the shelter and I make gift baskets and give them to different raffels and anything else that I can do i Will – By the way I live in Cleveland , Ohio I work a 14 hour a day job 5 days a week and I have a 5 year old and it can be done . Take a chance and do some research I promise It’s worth it and you can do it.