How to Organize & Maintain Grocery Coupons For Shopping Days

Coupons really cut costs. Getting & staying organized for shopping days will save you time and cash. Coupons do not have to be a time consuming hassle.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• 1 box of letter size envelopes
• coupons
• rubberband

1. 

   Customize your envelope categories according to what you personally prefer to buy.

2. 

   At the top front of each envelope, create a written category to reduce fumbling in the store & to maintain week to week organization: freezer items, dairy case items, canned food, soups, cereal/ granola bars/ oatmeal, baking items, snack food items, personal hygiene, medicine, air fresheners, laundry, cleaning supplies, pet supplies....etc.

3. 

   Include a weekly envelope marked "USED". While your out shopping, this is where you should temporarily store the coupons that you will redeem in the checkout "after" you have placed that specific coupon item into your cart. This will keep your "using" coupons secure and separate in the cart- this also reduces shuffling & holding up the checkout line.

4. 

   Try writing your weekly shopping list directly on the "USED" envelope and store it on top of your pile of coupon envelopes. Keep a rubber band around the stack. At home, I like to place a new "USED" envelope in my kitchen for each week. This keeps my "staple" shopping list going all week as I run low of certain supplies.

5. 

   Before adding the new weekly coupons to each of your specified envelopes, pull the out dated ones as you go. Don't waste your precious time carefully selecting specific items only to find out that your coupons are outdated when you get to the checkout line.

6. 

   The key to this system is a one time 30 minute weekly maintenance. Remove, add, customize- thats it. Overtime, the savings will add up immensely.

Tips & Warnings

• Clip only the items you know you can use or can afford.
• Coupon shopping is a task but this coupon system takes up very little time & helps you become a more consistent couponer.
• The envelopes will carry over from week to week saving you time. Add an envelope if you want a new category, or replace another w/ a fresh envelope.
• Use coupons as an opportunity to inexpensively treat your family to something new or different.
• If you don't carry a bag, leave your coupons in the car's glove box.
• Make sure the cash register receipt actually reflects your coupon savings. I hate & won't return to the store for errors. You have to be sure your efforts are paying off. Check your receipt BEFORE you leave.

[momandpopoften]

on 6/3/2008 This system is great for families with less than 6 people and for people who will use coupons in the traditional way.

I store mine differently because I use a lot more coupons than the average person. I REGULARLY buy over $100 in groceries for less than $10. Take a look at my articles where I share how I do it: http://www.ehow.com/members/momandpopoften-articles.html