Sunday, August 1, 2010
Off Topic: Playing the Coupon Game
Like many of you, I am trying to cut down on our monthly expenses, especially now that my husband isn't working. With four kids, two of whom eat like adults, our grocery budget had ballooned to over $1000 a month, including toiletries, cleaning supplies, etc. I have used coupons forever, but not as intensely as the coupon queens out there who really know how to work the system. Recently I have embarked on the hunt for amazing deals, like getting free stuff, using the online coupon sites that match up the grocery store deals with the coupons and rebates. Now I am hooked. I LOVE finding free stuff or deals like toothpaste for a quarter! I am still learning the ropes and I hope that in time I really can cut our grocery bill in half like many have done using this method. My binder is growing every day using those baseball card clear pocket holders. What a great idea!
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7 comments:
I'm a coupon addict. It's become somewhat of an obsession. So I'm totally with you! Glad you could finally come over to the dark side!
Marybeth
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Megan, what is the online site that matches up the deals with coupons? And just so you know another way to save money is Walmart will match all of other grocery ads for the week. So when you check out you tell them the ad match price and they will give it to you-usually have to tell them what store though. Kinda of a pain but sometimes very worth it. Good luck-Amy
The coupons website I use the most is www.couponmom.com. She lists grocery deals by state and the matchups, including Walgreens, Rite Aid, CVS, Target and Walmart. Very convenient to just print out the list, find the coupons from the paper or print them from her site, and off you go!
I know that Kroger will double all coupons up to and including $.50; however, I find that buying generic saves more than clipping coupons. There are very few things that I buy that aren't store brand. Mainly some soda, toliet paper and diapers. I also know (since my husband is a store manager for Kroger) that a lot of the "Kroger" brands are made by the actual name brands or vice versa. Sargento cheese, Turkey Hill ice cream, and Shenandoah's Pride milk are all made by Kroger. With the milk, they literally just stop the process, change the labels and voila, a different brand.
You are right about store brands usually being cheaper. The only exception is at stores where they will double coupons up and including a dollar, and Harris Teeter even has triple coupon events. Then using a coupon can result in free items! Same at Farm Fresh on Wednesdays. I do buy a lot of generic stuff if it is less expensive than the name brand even with coupons. Thanks for the advice!
Oh, and another big savings is don't take the kids with you--they are way too distracting when I am trying to figure out which is the better deal!
Hi Megan,
I have cut my grocery bills tremendously by shopping at Aldi or Save a Lot. I also go to a meat market once per month and the regular supermarket once per month. Always shop with a list, and save leftovers in individual portions for quick meals or lunch. 4 adults here spending between 400-600 per month. Ocassionaly, it is less when I make sure to eat the stuff that will go bad first. There are lots of good tips on the frugal living blogs. Good luck.
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