There are some great sites out there providing guides and tips for couponing (Southern Savers and Jill Cataldo, just to name a couple). Extreme Couponing on TLC takes it a step further, showing how individuals save upwards of 90 percent with couponing.
Just keep in mind - this is work. The ‘extreme couponers’ have databases, buy multiple newspapers which they have to go through, comb the Internet, and spend hours upon hours for (typically) one big haul.
A few things about the extreme couponers.
It’s an actual job. A great deal of time is spent doing this. While it may be fun getting stuff for next to nothing, your time has some value.
They buy a lot of stuff they don’t use. One joker proudly displayed over 1,000 tubes of toothpaste. Others even remark about how they don’t even need antacid tablets, yet they clear the shelves because it’s so cheap with coupons.
You never see these people buy any fruits or vegetables.
It is a good idea to use coupons (coupons really are another form of money). So here’s how to save and put forth extremely minimal effort.
First, let all your coupons stack up. Save them and make a nice, neat little stack. When one of the grocery stores offers double coupons of $1.00 (or more, Harris-Teeter will go just under $2.00), start cutting. While cutting, separate the coupons by price (those with a face value of a buck-plus) and by area (e.g., frozen, health/beauty).
When shopping, concentrate on using the $1.00+ face value coupons, buy stuff that you use, and buy stuff that gets you the absolute lowest price (in other words, bigger is not always better). Even stuff not on sale may end up being free. For the coupons less than $1.00, use those at other grocery stores that double that may have lower costs if the other store does not appear to give you maximum savings.
For this little amount of effort, you’ll save somewhere between 40 to 60 percent. You’ll even be able to buy some fruits and vegetables.
Just keep in mind - this is work. The ‘extreme couponers’ have databases, buy multiple newspapers which they have to go through, comb the Internet, and spend hours upon hours for (typically) one big haul.
A few things about the extreme couponers.
It’s an actual job. A great deal of time is spent doing this. While it may be fun getting stuff for next to nothing, your time has some value.
They buy a lot of stuff they don’t use. One joker proudly displayed over 1,000 tubes of toothpaste. Others even remark about how they don’t even need antacid tablets, yet they clear the shelves because it’s so cheap with coupons.
You never see these people buy any fruits or vegetables.
It is a good idea to use coupons (coupons really are another form of money). So here’s how to save and put forth extremely minimal effort.
First, let all your coupons stack up. Save them and make a nice, neat little stack. When one of the grocery stores offers double coupons of $1.00 (or more, Harris-Teeter will go just under $2.00), start cutting. While cutting, separate the coupons by price (those with a face value of a buck-plus) and by area (e.g., frozen, health/beauty).
When shopping, concentrate on using the $1.00+ face value coupons, buy stuff that you use, and buy stuff that gets you the absolute lowest price (in other words, bigger is not always better). Even stuff not on sale may end up being free. For the coupons less than $1.00, use those at other grocery stores that double that may have lower costs if the other store does not appear to give you maximum savings.
For this little amount of effort, you’ll save somewhere between 40 to 60 percent. You’ll even be able to buy some fruits and vegetables.
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