How to Use Coupons to Save Money

Ready to SAVE!

Are you discouraged by high grocery prices? Do you cringe at the thought of paying $4 for a box of cereal? You can save hundreds of dollars by using coupons! Coupons can be found for just about anything you purchase--from grocery items to meals at restaurants, movie passes to auto repairs.

Things You'll Need

• sale ads for your favorite grocery store
• Sunday edition of your local paper
• index card file or similar organizational device
• scissors
• pen and paper

Instructions

1. 

   Gather coupons. The Sunday newspaper holds a goldmine of manufacturer's coupons for everything from breakfast cereal to laundry detergent. Manufacturer's coupons can also be found in magazines, inside of dog food bags and cereal boxes, and in your mailbox. Signing up to receive special offers from companies such as Proctor & Gamble and General Mills will also provide an extra source of coupons.

2. 

   Coupons are everywhere, if you know where to look. At the grocery store, coupons can be found popping out of little dispensers in the aisles. These devices are typically located in the cereal and cracker aisles, where you will most likely see kids ripping them out as quickly as the machine can dispense them.

   When you check out, your cashier will hand you receipt and sometimes a string of coupons called Catalina coupons. Catalina coupons are generated based on the type of products that you have just purchased, usually for a competing brand of the same item. It's common to find Catalina coupons that can be redeemed for $2 off your next purchase, which can be used on anything in the store.

3. 

   Once you've collected your coupons, it's important to organize them so that they are quickly and easily found. Unorganized coupons are likely to be forgotten until after they have expired.

   I use an index card file that I purchased at the Dollar Tree. It has tabbed dividers that I have labeled with different categories, such as: Laundry, Breakfast, Pantry, Frozen Food, etc. This system allows me to immediately find what I'm looking for.

4. 

   With a pen and paper ready, sit down with the current week's sale ad for the grocery store of your choice. Make a list of all of the items you plan to purchase, placing a star next to the items that you have a coupon for. By combining sale prices with coupons, it's possible to get many items for a fraction of the original price and often for free.

5. Deposit the money you save from using coupons and sales into a savings account without a minimum balance requirement. Small contributions of a few dollars will add up quickly.

Tips & Warnings

• Manufacturer's coupons can be combined with store coupons for double the savings. Never buy something just because you have a coupon for it. It's still necessary to determine whether or not a particular item is worth buying, regardless of the price. Check out web sites that offer printable coupons. Meijer Mealbox is a great site that contains store coupons on name brand and store brand products. Ask friends and family members to save their coupon inserts for you. Find a store that doubles manufacturer's coupons and watch your savings add up twice as fast! When you find deals that allow you to get products free that you don't typically use, donate them to your local food pantry. Involve your family in the fun! Kids love clipping coupons and being in charge of filing them in the appropriate location.

• Prolonged use of coupons can cause one to become obsessed with never paying full price for anything ever again. Individuals who do not use coupons will not share your excitement in getting a box of cereal for $0.12.

Resources

• Sarah's Blog