Where Do I Start!?
yes, it's a lot of work, but trust me it is worth it. Do not put it off until you have tried it. & it's up to you how far you want to take your couponing. you do not by any means have to be an extreme couponer. you can use store coupons when you shop & keep it simple or you can go all out like I do :)
WHAT YOU WILL NEED:
-BINDER
or whatever you choose to use. I tried a zipper binder & found it wasn't for me so I'm using a regular 3 inch binder. but I know some people don't clip their inserts but choose to file them until they need them. (I started out with envelopes for each store with dividers I made since I didn't have a binder. After that I had a little 13 tab envelope thing I used to separate coupons by store once I knew what coupons I wanted to use so I didn't have to take my binder with me... I soon found not taking my binder with a big mistake when I needed to find coupons!! Now I use envelopes for my store I do double coupons at & I have them labeled by transactions! I have up to 7 envelopes which are pictured below.)
-COUPON SLEEVES
for your coupons of course! I bought mine on Amazon with free shipping (you can mix & match with the cheapest prices as well) --> STARTER PAGES
-SCISSORS
to clip your coupons & to take to the store with you in case you find coupons in your store ad or booklet so you can clip them without ripping off the barcode or any other information that is needed like the expiration date etc. I keep mine in my purse :)
-CALCULATOR
to keep track of your spendings & to calculate prices of products to see how much you're paying or getting for each. I use my calculator on my phone, but I tend to drop it & the battery comes out. Luckily I remember all the prices just from looking at the product or I have them written down. Before couponing I would have to walk around the store to look at the prices again. Know what is easiest for you & go with it.
-BINDER
or whatever you choose to use. I tried a zipper binder & found it wasn't for me so I'm using a regular 3 inch binder. but I know some people don't clip their inserts but choose to file them until they need them. (I started out with envelopes for each store with dividers I made since I didn't have a binder. After that I had a little 13 tab envelope thing I used to separate coupons by store once I knew what coupons I wanted to use so I didn't have to take my binder with me... I soon found not taking my binder with a big mistake when I needed to find coupons!! Now I use envelopes for my store I do double coupons at & I have them labeled by transactions! I have up to 7 envelopes which are pictured below.)
-COUPON SLEEVES
for your coupons of course! I bought mine on Amazon with free shipping (you can mix & match with the cheapest prices as well) --> STARTER PAGES
-SCISSORS
to clip your coupons & to take to the store with you in case you find coupons in your store ad or booklet so you can clip them without ripping off the barcode or any other information that is needed like the expiration date etc. I keep mine in my purse :)
-CALCULATOR
to keep track of your spendings & to calculate prices of products to see how much you're paying or getting for each. I use my calculator on my phone, but I tend to drop it & the battery comes out. Luckily I remember all the prices just from looking at the product or I have them written down. Before couponing I would have to walk around the store to look at the prices again. Know what is easiest for you & go with it.
WHERE TO FIND COUPONS:
-LOCAL STORES, GAS STATION, RESTAURANTS
ask around & see what everyone knows. Every place is different.
-A COUPON EXCHANGE
our super one has one & I love it! There are coupons people leave in a box that I otherwise wouldn't have access to.
-YOUR LOCAL STORE ADS or store websites
will have coupons in them! So make sure to pick one up when you come into the store. They also have coupon booklets they do for 2 weeks. I always get one in the mail & grab a few when I go. You can also look online like on familydollar.com & you can check the ad online to see what they have on sale for the week before you go so you can see if you have coupons to match & what good deals you can find. (ads are always available online on sundays or the day after).
-ONLINE
you can find tons of sites with coupons likes coupons.com & redplum.com. you just have to look.
*you can also google them. just type in the product you are looking for. ex. huggies diaper coupons. & then click around & see what you can find. you will be surprised!
*if you want a certain product just go to the product website like oldorchard.com, kraft.com... if they don't have any available I always email them & ask where I can get some because I love their product & sometimes they will send you some!
-There are also sites like Coupon Dede & The Coupon Clippers where you can buy whatever coupons you want without those extras you won't use. I always make orders from them, sometimes more than once a week! You can also find these links under the 'COUPONS' tab.
-MAGAZINES
I subscribed to ALL YOU magazine & it's filled with tons of great coupons & tips for saving & fashion etc. I love it! They have a webpage as well with printable coupons!
-IBOTTA PHONE APP
there is an app for your android or iphone that you can download for free. if you cannot print coupons you can make money off of coupons when you play trivia, watch videos, read recipes... all you do is select one of the offers for a product you bought, select where you bought it from, take a photo of your receipt, select the product & hold up your phone to the bar code on the product so it can take a photo & match it to the product. Then it will be pending until it says earned under completed. pretty easy!
-LOCAL STORES, GAS STATION, RESTAURANTS
ask around & see what everyone knows. Every place is different.
-A COUPON EXCHANGE
our super one has one & I love it! There are coupons people leave in a box that I otherwise wouldn't have access to.
-YOUR LOCAL STORE ADS or store websites
will have coupons in them! So make sure to pick one up when you come into the store. They also have coupon booklets they do for 2 weeks. I always get one in the mail & grab a few when I go. You can also look online like on familydollar.com & you can check the ad online to see what they have on sale for the week before you go so you can see if you have coupons to match & what good deals you can find. (ads are always available online on sundays or the day after).
-ONLINE
you can find tons of sites with coupons likes coupons.com & redplum.com. you just have to look.
*you can also google them. just type in the product you are looking for. ex. huggies diaper coupons. & then click around & see what you can find. you will be surprised!
*if you want a certain product just go to the product website like oldorchard.com, kraft.com... if they don't have any available I always email them & ask where I can get some because I love their product & sometimes they will send you some!
-There are also sites like Coupon Dede & The Coupon Clippers where you can buy whatever coupons you want without those extras you won't use. I always make orders from them, sometimes more than once a week! You can also find these links under the 'COUPONS' tab.
-MAGAZINES
I subscribed to ALL YOU magazine & it's filled with tons of great coupons & tips for saving & fashion etc. I love it! They have a webpage as well with printable coupons!
-IBOTTA PHONE APP
there is an app for your android or iphone that you can download for free. if you cannot print coupons you can make money off of coupons when you play trivia, watch videos, read recipes... all you do is select one of the offers for a product you bought, select where you bought it from, take a photo of your receipt, select the product & hold up your phone to the bar code on the product so it can take a photo & match it to the product. Then it will be pending until it says earned under completed. pretty easy!
WHAT DO I DO ONCE I HAVE MY COUPONS?
-CLIP YOUR COUPONS if needed
if this is how you choose to do it. some people only clip them when they need to. others clip all that they will use. I usually don't have to clip any coupons unless they're out of an ad or coupon book. I buy all of my coupons online or get them from our coupon exchange so it's just a matter of organizing them into my coupon binder. I taped together a bunch of papers & drew lines to separate them from one another & labeled them to match my coupon binder. I unfold the pages & take my stack of coupons & arrange them on my organizer. Then once I'm done I stack them up in order & start from the beginning of my binder & put them where they go. Easy :)
-PRINT COUPONS
when you know that you will use them, otherwise they may go to waste because you print too many & end up not being able to use them. I do this a lot. But don't wait too long because they go fast! (also make sure to have extra ink on hand. I have gotten stuck with no ink & going shopping without coupons I needed. It's no fun)
-SORT YOUR COUPONS
in your binder by categories, alphabetical, expiration date... or whichever system works best for you. this way you can find them easily when you need to & don't miss anything. I got dividers from Amazon --> 26 TAB DIVIDER
-MAKE YOUR GROCERY LIST
I usually start out with a list that has whatever we need on it & go from there.
-GATHER & CHECK STORE ADS
for all the places you shop at. you can go to your store & get these, find them in your Sunday newspaper or paper that's sent to you or you can view them online on Sundays.
-MATCH COUPONS WITH DEALS
you find in your ads. make sure you know that they are good deals. sometimes they sound like good deals but aren't. once you get use to it you will know what the lowest is a product will go down to & know that you need to wait until it gets to that price before using your coupon.
-TYPE YOUR LIST & PRINT
it out so that you have it with the items, limit you can buy, how many you want to buy, the price before & after coupons, how much you're saving, what coupons you have to use & total. I also use this when I have multiple transactions to make sure I have all the right items in the right place! It has saved me a lot.
-SORT YOUR COUPONS BY ISLE
in whatever you choose. I use envelopes for each store. For Copps I have my envelopes labeled by transaction numbers otherwise when I do one transaction I put them in one envelope & order them by isle. then when you're done shopping, grab the coupons you will be using & make sure you double check them so you know you have them all & haven't missed anything. I have gotten home to find out I forgot to give the cashier some of my coupons & spent way more than I had to. that's the most frustrating thing ever!
-PRINT STORE COUPON POLICIES
for every store you shop at so you know their policy. & never be afraid to ask questions if you get confused or aren't sure about something or cannot find an ad or coupon book etc...
-CLIP YOUR COUPONS if needed
if this is how you choose to do it. some people only clip them when they need to. others clip all that they will use. I usually don't have to clip any coupons unless they're out of an ad or coupon book. I buy all of my coupons online or get them from our coupon exchange so it's just a matter of organizing them into my coupon binder. I taped together a bunch of papers & drew lines to separate them from one another & labeled them to match my coupon binder. I unfold the pages & take my stack of coupons & arrange them on my organizer. Then once I'm done I stack them up in order & start from the beginning of my binder & put them where they go. Easy :)
-PRINT COUPONS
when you know that you will use them, otherwise they may go to waste because you print too many & end up not being able to use them. I do this a lot. But don't wait too long because they go fast! (also make sure to have extra ink on hand. I have gotten stuck with no ink & going shopping without coupons I needed. It's no fun)
-SORT YOUR COUPONS
in your binder by categories, alphabetical, expiration date... or whichever system works best for you. this way you can find them easily when you need to & don't miss anything. I got dividers from Amazon --> 26 TAB DIVIDER
-MAKE YOUR GROCERY LIST
I usually start out with a list that has whatever we need on it & go from there.
-GATHER & CHECK STORE ADS
for all the places you shop at. you can go to your store & get these, find them in your Sunday newspaper or paper that's sent to you or you can view them online on Sundays.
-MATCH COUPONS WITH DEALS
you find in your ads. make sure you know that they are good deals. sometimes they sound like good deals but aren't. once you get use to it you will know what the lowest is a product will go down to & know that you need to wait until it gets to that price before using your coupon.
-TYPE YOUR LIST & PRINT
it out so that you have it with the items, limit you can buy, how many you want to buy, the price before & after coupons, how much you're saving, what coupons you have to use & total. I also use this when I have multiple transactions to make sure I have all the right items in the right place! It has saved me a lot.
-SORT YOUR COUPONS BY ISLE
in whatever you choose. I use envelopes for each store. For Copps I have my envelopes labeled by transaction numbers otherwise when I do one transaction I put them in one envelope & order them by isle. then when you're done shopping, grab the coupons you will be using & make sure you double check them so you know you have them all & haven't missed anything. I have gotten home to find out I forgot to give the cashier some of my coupons & spent way more than I had to. that's the most frustrating thing ever!
-PRINT STORE COUPON POLICIES
for every store you shop at so you know their policy. & never be afraid to ask questions if you get confused or aren't sure about something or cannot find an ad or coupon book etc...
if you have any questions, comments or anything you think should be added feel free to send me an email by going to the "Contact" tab.