Coupon Tips

I received an email this morning:

Brandy -

I noticed that you spent $1600 last year in groceries. That is $140 per month!!! I am curious, do you have a family or are you purchasing groceries for yourself? I have a family of five and have recently started using coupons on a regular basis. I am envious of you talent for using coupons and am wanting to know if you can share some of your secrets with me. I live in Florida and do not have a Kroger grocery store here. I typically shop at Publix.

I already responded to her but I wanted to share some of that information with all of you.

My household consists of my husband, an 18 year old stepson and me so I only buy for three people. (Or ten stomachs if you gauge the appetite of a teenage boy. LOL!)

I'm not familiar with Publix since we don't have one here. However there are several coupon forums that can help you find deals at your local store.

I recommend checking weusecoupons.com, ourcouponhome.com or afullcup.com as a starting point. Go to forums, then scroll down to find your grocery store.

Check out all three to find which is the most active for your store. Then start reading and asking questions. I'm in several different forums on these sites and everyone has always been extremely helpful.

Sign up for any newsletters that your store offers and be sure to check out their website. You never know when they might offer a coupon or discount for email subscribers. And if nothing else then you can keep up with the sales!

Start watching sales and pair your coupons with items already on sale in order to really maximize your savings. If it's already at a sale price and you can use a coupon then you've got a really good deal! (Remember that sales typically run every 6 weeks so if you miss one, it will be back around.)

Try to keep track of prices for things you buy all the time, then buy as many as you can afford/use when they are at their lowest price. For example, I usually stock up on chicken breasts when they go on sale for $1.88 or less. That's my "stocking" price point. (Many people find a price notebook to be helpful for this.)

Plan according to what you have, not what you want. If you are making a special trip to the store because of a last minute decision to have hamburgers, chances are you will pay regular price for most, if not all those ingredients. Instead take a look at your freezer and pantry and plan your meals around what you have.

Remember anytime you go into the grocery store then you risk picking up extras that you didn't budget for.

I also tell people don't buy things you don't need just because of a coupon. And don't buy brand name just because of the coupon. I always check the store brand and sometimes determine it's cheaper to buy store brand even though I have a coupon for the brand name product.

Having said all that, some of it depends on your families likes and dislikes. If they are extremely picky about brands then you might not be able to buy store brands, or switch brands based on savings.

That's okay!

You're still going to save money by waiting for a sale and stocking up. Remember that even saving 10% is 10% more money in your pocket!

I hope that these tips will help you start using coupons & saving on your grocery purchases!

Anytime you have questions please feel free to email me! I'm happy to answer them and spread the gospel of couponing. :)