I wrote an article HERE on how to save money on your groceries. In the article I explained how you have to change the way you shop. In addition to getting what you need, you also have to stock up on what is free or pennies on the dollar for that week, and stockpile for later use. You can save a bunch of money this way, but it does take some time and effort.
Think of it as a part time job. You will get "paid" for the time you put into it by saving money on your groceries. I probably put about 10 hours into obtaining coupons, matching with sales, cutting and organizing, and shopping in a few different stores each week. I save about $100 a week. So, I'm "making" about $10 an hour for this part time "job" of mine. That's an extra $100 in my pocket each week.
In order to stockpile the items that are at rock bottom prices, you need several copies of coupons to match with the rock bottom sale items. I buy anywhere from 4 to 24 (or even more) of the same item. I stock up for approx 3 (or more) months for that item. So, I need several dozen coupons!
There are a few ways to get these multiples of coupons. The way you chose depends on your area and what is available to you. Here are the more common ways used by most couponers I know on online message boards:
1) Buy them. There are many sites online, including ebay, where you can buy coupons. Generally, they ship quickly because they know you probably need them for a sale. You need to buy one copy of the newspaper and match your coupons to the sales ASAP, then go online and order the coupons that you need quickly so they will arrive before the week is over. Try to buy from someone who lives close to you. The coupons are very inexpensive, and you will still save a ton of money.
2) Trade them. There are many message boards for couponers. The ones I like are www.hotcouponworld.com , www.couponmom.com and www.grocerygame.com. Here, you can hop on a "coupon train" where women send envelopes of coupons to each other, or you can trade specific coupons you don't need for ones you do need.
3) Beg, borrow or steal them. Well, don't steal. Ask your friends, neighbors and family members to keep their inserts from their papers that have the coupons in them. Most people don't use them, and will be glad to save them for you. Also, if you get your paper delivered, talk to your newspaper delivery person and ask them if they can give you any coupon inserts they have left over. They often will have several copies left over and will be happy to give them to you. Tip them every so often for doing this for you.Check at your church. Some churches have coupon boxes where people put unused coupons. Also, the same idea goes for your place of employement - some people have a coupon box at their work.
4) Dumpster Dive for them. It's not as bad as it sounds. I don't mean jump into garbage dumpsters. I mean go to your local recycling center and go through the newspapers and pull out the inserts. If there are workers there, ask first so you don't get in trouble. Different towns have different rules about this. I talk to many shoppers who dumpster dive. I do it all the time, and at my recycling center, there are usually a few other people DD'ing at the same time, especially if it's a week where there are free dog food coupons. There is more information on dumpster diving at www.hotcouponworld.com.
5) Ask the store to save them. I used to have my local convience store save all their unsold newspapers for me. I went to the store, and asked if I could have them. They only throw them out anyway. I told them I would come and pick them all up at the time they usually throw them away (which was 9 pm Sunday night). I explained I wanted the coupons, and I would recycle the rest of the paper. The store liked this idea because the newspapers were getting recycled instead of being thrown away. I stopped doing this when I started delivering the papers. Now there is another woman who picks them up. Grocery stores might not let you do this, but check at convience stores, and drug stores, or anyplace that sells newspapers.
This article discussions coupons that are found in the Sunday newspaper, which is the most common form of coupons. My next article will discuss other ways to obtain coupons that do not come in the newspaper.
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Comments: 42
Thanks for sharing these tips.
Netty -- If your store does not double coupons, then it can be more of a challenge to save money. It can still be done though. We couponers call the areas that do not double coupons LOND - Land Of No Doubles.
Those are good ideas too.
Libraries
Recycling bins at public transit stations.
Floors and seats of public transit vehicles.
Break rooms at work.
Coffee houses
Barber shops
Your neighbor's driveway
I good way to get coupons for the items you use most is to email them a comment telling them how much you love their product. You usually get coupons in the mail. I've gotten some very good coupons that way. I'm having FREE On-Cor lasagna tonight for dinner and I have another box in the freezer for another day thanks to the coupons I got in the mail.
Shannon W - I would say try to sell them on Ebay, or on one of the online coupon message board forums. You won't make a ton of money, but you will be helping someone else out.
Be careful about buying/selling coupons. It is technically illegal and a federal offense if they are passed through the mail. I know most specify that you are paying for their time to clip & sort rather than the coupons, but it is a gray area in the law.
BTW, I stopped by one of the neighboring convenience stores -- one that has a paper box. The papers there are collected in entirety the day after the date on the cover (though sometimes later). The worker at the store complained that the collection person doesn't even leave a copy of the paper for the merchant to use, even if what was being collected was days old. The newspaper then does its own recycling.