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Using Coupons

52 Solutions

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January 28, 2005

My grocery store (Safeway) offers a strip of coupons with the register receipt. Sometimes the cashiers forget to give the coupons to customers so the strips can get pretty long. ]

 
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Bronze Feedback Medal for All Time! 153 Feedbacks
November 8, 2006

It's easy to save money while shopping! One trick is to gather as many coupons for items you use as possible. When the weekly flyers come out, spend a few minutes searching for items you use, and compare sale prices.

 
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September 2, 2005

Save your grocery receipts for at least 3 weeks. Coupons often come up for something you have already purchased, some stores will accept them within a reasonable amount of time after the purchase.

 
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January 25, 2005

Here is a really good tip. When you get any kind of coupons for free items, save them for times when you really need them. Times like these would be when you are low on money and/or when there is no triple coupon sales going on at that time, for those who have stores near them that participate.

 
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Questions

Here are the questions asked by community members. Read on to see the answers provided by the ThriftyFun community.

March 17, 2005

I live in Canada. Both hubby and I work. He works for a call center and I work for home care. Money is a very tight issue for us. How can I get my hands on coupons? I would love to use them but never can find or get my little hands on any. Things are just getting so pricey that it's start to kill us.

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Thank you for your time,
Karen

Answers

March 17, 20050 found this helpful

Subscribe to a Sunday newspaper that will be mailed to you that includes coupons. Perhaps you could find a coupon marketing company or several and offer to act as their rep. in your area, selling the service to your local newspapers. First make sure your grocery stores accept or even double or triple coupons. The New York Times has excellent coupons and is a great Sunday paper, as well, and well worth the investment.

 

Bronze Feedback Medal for All Time! 214 Feedbacks
March 17, 20050 found this helpful

We, in Canada, can NOT use USA coupons, so any coupons in the New York Times are not able to be used up here.
Some Sunday papers have coupons, some do not. Actually, there are very few coupons in stores and flyers now compared to years ago. I find that for ourselves, I am now only buying what I need and nothing else, not buying "name brand" particularly (unless it is on a really good sale) and just watching what I spend $ on. I find that the few coupons that do come in the flyers are for items that I would rarely buy anyways. Coupons that I do see now in the store mostly seem to be on or in items that are "frivolous" items...why buy a sugared cereal when the same amount of money can buy you a loaf of bread and 2 dozen eggs.

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Something that a friend of ours once said....if you look at the ingredient list on the box of what it is you want to buy and there are more than 5 things on the list or if you can not say all the ingredients then think twice about buying it. Potatoes, raw vegetables and plain meat (cooked in a multitude of different ways at home) are better for you than all those packages where you just have to add water and heat for 10 minutes and voila...a meal.
Could your husband or yourself, rather, change jobs to a higher paying job or go to school to upgrade your education so that life wouldn't be so challenging? When we got married, I worked and paid for our living expenses while my husband went to University. He was able to make enough in the 4 months he had off in the summer to pay for the University tuition for the fall and winter. We only bought what we had to and once he was done, then came better vehicles, a house, kids, etc. Could you run your own business from your home, (even taking on a few on the side) and do home care that way and actually get all the money that the client pays instead of the home care company getting most of it? (I do not know the province you live in or the rules in place for home care providers in your province.)
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Shop at Superstore or a grocery store in your area that matches everyone else's sale price and then buy items when they come on sale. This I find easier than buying one item at this store and another one at the next store just to get the best price, or to use the one coupon I did get in the mail. I also weigh the time I am using up in my day to go to the extra store...I put a value on the gas and wear and tear on my car that it takes to drive to the store to buy the item that I have the coupon for...and question whether I do really NEED that item or is it an item that has more than "5" ingredients.

Just some things to think about.

 
March 17, 20050 found this helpful

http://www.save.ca has coupons they mail right to your home.

When you are out shopping, pick up coupons from the shelf displays and hold onto them until you need them.

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Try to work a coupon exchange with someone at work, or if you are in an apt building, put a coupon exchange envelope on the bulletin board.

Buy generic and store brands, avoid "convenience" items and buy your produce fresh and in season. 5 pounds of carrots can be had for about $2.00 right now and 10 lbs of spuds for about the same $2.00. Buy whole frozen chickens instead of parts and avoid deli meats... use leftovers for lunch.

 
By (Guest Post)
March 17, 20050 found this helpful

Call the manufacturers of the products you are interested in and ask them to send you coupons.

Tell them you really like their product but are on a tight budget, you will be surprised at what you will get.

Espeicially if you tell them that you will have to buy a cheaper brand.

Most of the companies have a toll free number on the package.

I do not recommend using this if you do not need to however.

 

Bronze Feedback Medal for All Time! 104 Feedbacks
March 17, 20050 found this helpful

If Canada is anything like Australia there are very few coupons, and what there are are for reduced price take away foods or prepackaged/pre prepared items. Basically things that do not even approach frugal. I would have to second a lot of what beanygirl and valleyrimgirl say - buy loss leaders, basic foodstuffs, cook from scratch, menu plan and stick to your shopping list. This will save much more than a few cents off a bought pizza or a dollar off a trip to the cinema.

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Also, if money is tight, do you know where its all going and have a written budget? I was very surprised when I started recording my spending and working on a budget to find how the small amounts I had previously frittered away on non essential things really added up. If grocery money is tight you may find other non essential spending areas that you can get rid of and add that cash to the grocery budget. Just a thought - you may be doing this already!

Regards

Jo

 
March 17, 20050 found this helpful

Thank you all so very very much..... i love the ideas and find every single one of them very helpful. I will keep you all updated on how things are going

 
By hank (Guest Post)
March 17, 20050 found this helpful

search the manufacturers web pages. they often include coupons they will send you or you can print them out.

 

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March 17, 20050 found this helpful

Hi Karen~~I'm also from Canada and have joined a group of people who do trains of coupons. If interested you can look into it at tradingpostcoupons@yahoogroups.com. Hope this helps you.

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Ruth

 
By Trix (Guest Post)
March 18, 20050 found this helpful

You can aslo sign up for all kidns fo newsletters taht will help you find Canadian coupons. Try going to yahoogroups.com (or a similar site) and search for Canadian coupons or freebies.
Also, if you're buying anything online, make sure you do a google search with the store name and words like coupon codes, or discount, etc. You can often save a lot of money or shipping fees just by doing this search.

 

Silver Post Medal for All Time! 263 Posts
April 8, 20050 found this helpful

I subscribe to a wonderful refunding magazine that is really helpful on what to look for at the grocery, couponwise & refund/rebate form
wise. People send in their ways to save, pictures, etc. They have a website. You can use the following url to get there: refundcents.com/subscriptions.htm?RefID=6VD. You can go to this website to see if this is something that you'd be interested in or not. Go & check it out. I'd be totally lost without this website as much as I'd be lost without ThriftyFun.com!

If it's where you can grow your own veggies, it'll be a great investment till the end. The flavor of homegrown fresh veggies are the best, far better than anything bought at the grocery produce counter. Best of luck in your hardship.

 

Bronze Feedback Medal for All Time! 214 Feedbacks
April 15, 20050 found this helpful

Refund cents magazine is published in the US which means that we in Canada can not use it. You also have stores there that we do not have. But it does sound like a great magazine, for those who live in the US.

Save.ca is available for us in Canada and seems like an easy site to use. I have just used it for the first time and saved it into my favorites, to use in the future.

 
By binabug. (Guest Post)
May 7, 20050 found this helpful

there are other sites that do coupon trains as well and we have alot of coupons in canada and even our grocery stores will sell you a coupon book for a buck with a great amount of savings inside (ie safeway)
i recommend using cnd tire money for day to day things such as dish soap, foil paper etc

 
By (Guest Post)
May 23, 20050 found this helpful

If you live in golden horse shoe try www.smartflyer.ca

 
By wendy Ingram (Guest Post)
March 8, 20060 found this helpful

I cant get through to smartflyer.ca

wendi2 @ hotmail.com (remove spaces)

 
By bootie (Guest Post)
August 12, 20060 found this helpful

this has nothing to do with coupons, however this is a site that has saved me money and is helping the environment. check online if you have a freecycle.com site available in your province. people offer and accept free items of all sorts there. my sister got a free air conditioner that actually works,a computer and i've gotten things like dog food and furniture. simply put evreything there is free and stays out of the landfills. hope this helps.

 
By LINDA LOZON (Guest Post)
November 3, 20070 found this helpful

We find plenty of coupons in the stores and now that we're seniors my brother shares his coupons with me also I get them from save.Ca.

 
By Christina (Guest Post)
October 8, 20080 found this helpful

Does anyone here know if Canadian grocery stores double or triple coupons? If so, which ones?

 
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April 12, 2011

There is a new show that is called Extreme Couponing. Personally I think they should combine the show with the show Hoarders since all of the people have a problem.

My question is, how do you get coupons for meat? There are coupons to be found for staples, but a wall of free toilet paper isn't doing anyone any good unless you're reselling it. Does anyone know how to get deals on meats like steaks, chicken, and seafood?

Thanks.

By Patti from Ewing, NJ

Answers

April 12, 20110 found this helpful

I watch for sales and buy several packages of meat, which I break into meal-size portions and freeze when I get home. When I go into the meat department of my grocery store, I look for "buy one, get one free" deals for stocking up. Mostly I stick with a few cuts of meat; so it is fast to check for sales. I also belong to a warehouse store, and check there for competitive prices.

I often get amazing deals on meat that is on the last day or two of sale. My store slaps a "manager's special" sticker on them. I keep my eyes peeled for those stickers, too. I buy a good quantity of that, take it home, repackage and freeze it.

 
April 13, 20110 found this helpful

I find first thing Monday morning is a great time to do shopping. The local Superstore has "50%" and "30%" stickers - my freezer rarely has anything that is regular price. Its always meat that is just nearing the expiry date but if you freeze it that doesn't matter unless its previously frozen. Also, I have a close friend who also likes this marked down meat so we will pick up extra for the other person if we find a large quantity of something. It's nice to have this agreement with each other, I wonder if you could do something like that?

 

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April 13, 20110 found this helpful

I agree with you, the extremes that those people go through is amazing and definitely hoarding! And who (especially the 1 couple) needs that many candy bars or boxes of pasta or tp? And their final bill does not include the price they paid for the coupons and the services some of them subscribe to!

They should donate it!

Ask your butcher at your local store, Safeway, Winn Dixie etc. what their markdown days are. Some are 30% with a day or two to go, some are 50% that you need to use that day or freeze. I try to plan my menus for the week, but always walk by the discount and can change my menu for the week if I need to. Also try internet connections, FB if you "like" a product sometimes you'll get coupons. Contact companies you like, say a lunchmeat and get coupons. I went onto a website to vote for a "favorite" sandwich and printed out 2 $1 coupons for some low sodium lunchmeat I use, at WalMart they are $3 for an 8oz. tub, with my coupon $2 for a half a pound of meat!

 
April 13, 20110 found this helpful

Ive never really seen coupons for meat, but another idea would be to get in touch with a local farmer or hunter. Usually you have to purchase a whole animal though, but per pound it is usually cheaper (and tastier)! Plus it encourages sustainability. You could ask some neighbors or friends to pitch in and you can split it up. Or, join a warehouse store like Costco, and buy in bulk (again, it's cheaper per pound and you and some friends can split it up). My neighbor and I did this for years, until we moved & it worked out really well. Just another idea in addition to the ones already suggested.

 

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April 13, 20110 found this helpful

There are already some good ideas here for purchasing meat inexpensively but I'll add to keep an eye on Sunday grocery store weekly flyers because sometime they have a one, two or three day special. There are meat coupons out there but they are from high priced fancy dancy company meats and you end up paying more per pound even with a coupon than if you purchased the store brand at the store brand top price.

 
April 13, 20110 found this helpful

Since the main idea is to spend less for meat, maybe you could try this. No coupons involved. Many local farmers will raise beeves, whether steers or heifers, and parcel out the meat in shares agreed to with previously committed buyers.

You, of course, will need a decent size freezer to take advantage of this. As all our rich 'cousins' know, you must invest money in order to save money. My family began doing this in 1949 when I was a pup, and my cousins still do. A cousin living near Portland, OR, raised four heifers last summer for shares. A processor picks them up when they are ready, you get wrapped freezer packages of whatever you ordered.

My cousin, of course, got the best deal because he had to buy the yearlings and feed them all summer, thus taking the most risk. He had the space to feed them on natural grass. The cattle are generally 'tuned up' with a richer diet for their last few weeks. But you can't possibly find more naturally raised meat. No drugs, no pesticides in your meat. Assuming you know and trust the person who raises them.

 
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March 19, 2010

How many grocery stores accept coupons printed from the Internet? I'm seeing more and more tempting coupons on-line.

By Liz

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Bronze Feedback Medal for All Time! 186 Feedbacks
March 19, 20100 found this helpful

My local WalMart supercenter takes coupons that are printed online. I don't know about the other grocery stores in town. I don't go to them because they are too expensive, plus being too far away to take a cab to.

 

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March 19, 20100 found this helpful

You should talk with the grocery store manager and ask if they accept the on-line coupons.

Some of the dollar stores will not accept on-line coupons, I found out the hard way. I printed out some General Mills cereal coupons and drove to Dollar General since they had a sale on Cheerios. I went to pay for the cereal and was told that they wouldn't accept the coupons. Well, I didn't buy the cereal and wasted my ink.

The manager did tell me that if the coupons were from a local newspaper, they would accept them.

 

Bronze Feedback Medal for All Time! 109 Feedbacks
March 19, 20100 found this helpful

Most coupons you print off the internet are manufacturers coupons and will usually SAY they are so when you print them. As long as you go to a big name grocery store like Food City, Kroger, Ingle or Food Lion you should have little to no difficulty using the coupons you print out. It cost manufacturers big bucks to have coupons printed in local papers and many of them are switching to internet only coupons because of the cost savings. Smaller stores that don't accept printed coupons from the internet 50% of the time won't take coupons at all.

Either way, the cost of printing the coupon and saving some money is worth the time and effort even if the store you normally go to won't accept them. In that case don't throw the coupons away, give them to a neighbor, friend or church. They won't go to waste. Another option is Coupons for Troops for coupons you can't use. Just do a search here on ThriftyFun.

 
March 21, 20100 found this helpful

I have never had a problem with legitimate coupons printed off the net. Stores even Target accept them. I also google for online coupon codes whenever I buy something from an online store. They may be for free shipping or a % off, those usually work too.

 
March 21, 20100 found this helpful

I have use printed coupons at CVS, Walgreen, Target, Kmart, Safeway, Albertsons and WalMart. Walmart is the only store that gives me a hard time. I just ask them to call a manager and they take care of me.

 
March 22, 20100 found this helpful

Could you give some sites where you can get these coupons?

 

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March 22, 20100 found this helpful

Here in Idaho I have used them without problems at Albertson's, Smith's and Walmart. So far the Associated Foods chain is also accepting them. I learn about the good ones from a web site I belong to, called RefundCents.com. There are other sites as well.

 
March 27, 20100 found this helpful

I've not had any trouble with them around here (Ohio) in the big chain grocery stores, though I haven't tried them at other places. Walmart actually states in their coupon policy that internet coupons are allowed and exactly what they need: "Internet coupons should be legible and say "Manufacturer Coupon." There should be a valid remit address for the manufacturer and a scannable bar code." walmartstores.com/7655.aspx

I actually carry a print-out of that page in my coupon holder just in case a clerk doesn't want to accept a coupon, but have never had to use it, which is kind of disappointing when you're all prepared, LOL.

If the coupons have a bar code and are printed through a "coupon printer" program so they have a customized expiration date and you're limited to only printing one or two, they seem to be as accepted as the clipped kind.

 
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December 9, 2012

Do coupons really save money? No really, I'm being serious. They always end up costing me me more. Help? I tried the coupon craze and ended up raising my grocery bill by almost $200 a month. We are very frugal generally and I am good at feeding our family of 4 on about $400-$500 a month, (with diapers), but I started couponing and my budget went way up.

I didn't spend much on coupons, just a few Sunday papers and I did buy a few online, but just for a few dollars total. What did I do wrong? Is it just me or do you still get a better deal sticking with the house brand and clearance stuff than the coupons?

By Jae Rue

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April 26, 2011

I have been trying to improve my couponing skills. I got a few tips from the extreme coupon shows but would like to know how people are getting items for free. My local stores only double coupons for $1.00 or less. And now most coupons are buy two items for $1.00 so the cost of using the coupon is really too high of an investment. I'd like some advise about how to either get better coupons or how to use them more wisely.

By Teressa Goebel from Akron, OH

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December 21, 2007

Does anyone know of any rebate or couponing newsletters still in publication?

Carol from Tehachapi, CA

Answers

December 22, 20070 found this helpful

I used to subscribe to two (at different times), and both are still in operation.

Refundle Bundle was the first (refundlebundle.com), and Refunding Makes Cents! was the second (refundcents.com).

Quite honestly, I liked both publications when I first started. However, refunding itself became "big business" (people selling forms and qualifiers -- and the subscriptions are now quite -- in my opinion -- expensive), so I let my subscriptions lapse.

Besides all that, I remember when rebates didn't require the CRTC. You should have seen my qualifier "stash!" I threw everything away when I saw all those ooooold UPCs for which there were no rebate offers.

Not to put you off, but just my 2¢ worth!

Best of luck,
Sharon B.

 
By Susan (Guest Post)
December 23, 20070 found this helpful

I subscribe to Refund Cents. There is an online version ($12 a year) and a written publication (10 issues and it includes the online access- $25 a year) I have been a subscriber for years, and LOVE it!! The daily "deals" more than pay for everything. Go to http://www.refundcents.com to look around and see if this is for you! :)

 
By CArol in PA (Guest Post)
December 27, 20070 found this helpful

There is one called the Penny Pincher Gazette that you can view online. I receive the newsletter for free, but cant remember the URL. You need to be careful when you do your search for the site as there are many imposters. I think its www.ppg.com, but am not sure about that. You will know it when you see it. Best of luck always,

 
By Sherri (Guest Post)
January 4, 20080 found this helpful

The web site to the Penny Pincher Gazette is:
http://www.ppgazette.com

 
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April 23, 2009

I'd like to learn about trading coupons. This is my first time here. The site looks like lots of fun. I am also new to couponing and live in a small rural area where there is not a huge variety of coupons in my local newspaper. Most of what I get is not for items I use, so I would like to trade for the ones I do use. Any advice for a beginner would be greatly appreciated.

By Rhetta Domingue from Lumberton, MS

Answers

April 23, 20090 found this helpful

There's a couponing/rebate website called refundingcents.com that is excellent for what you need. Also you can get coupons that you do use by paying a fee to the seller for the cost of cutting and processing the coupons on ebay.com.

 
April 23, 20090 found this helpful

You 1st need to build your reputation. Go to hotcouponworld.com. In the forums section you can register and go to the trades section.
Make a list of coupons you have to trade and a list of coupons you would like in return. Post that on the trades section.
One way to build your reputation is to offer ROAK (Random ACT Of Kindness) Offer coupons free of charge in exchange most people will rate you as a trustworthy trader. The more trades you do the better your reputation and the easier it is to do trades.
You can also join a coupon train. The train starts with a conductor who has people sign up for the train. The conductor makes a list of names and addresses of each person who has signed up. They send and envelope with 50 or so coupons to the 1st person. The 1st person takes the coupons they want and replaces what they took before sending it to the next person. It goes through the list until it is returned to the conductor by the last person. After it has run a full round each member can decide if they would like to get off the train or keep on riding another round.
I have been on good trains but I have also been on trains where people are jerks and just put in coupons for things like hemorrhoid cream and flea powder etc.

 
May 4, 20090 found this helpful

Rhetta, They (Thrifty fun) has a coupon swap on their website. I too am from a small town in Mississippi, so I know what you mean. Good Luck!

 
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December 1, 2013

I want to know how to coupon. Can anyone offer some tips? Thank you.

By Kimberlly

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August 14, 2010

I've been reading a lot about coupon clipping and stacking coupons. Does anyone in the Pittsburgh North (Cranberry Twp/Butler PA) know of a good place to start grocery shopping? I just can't seem to figure out how to get all the good deals I hear/read about. Thanks!

By Lisa from Cranberry Twp, PA

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Bronze Feedback Medal for All Time! 109 Feedbacks
August 15, 20100 found this helpful

First thing: coupons are best accumulated from your Sunday paper. If you don't get it either start making an effort to buy it when you go out Sunday or subscribe to Sunday only delivery.

Second thing: you can go to the websites for the grocery stores in your area and see what is on sale or what coupons they may have. Just print out the ones you think you will use.

Third thing: there are websites that specialize in providing coupons. A few absurdlycool.com/, www.mysavings.com/ ,print.coupons.com/.../Index.aspx?pid=13687&nid=10&zid=xk38, www.dealigg.com/coupons.php just to name a few.

Forth thing: some stores have specials for saving money. They include buying bulk of something for a lower price, daily or weekly sale, senior day. Senior day is nice and is supported by Kroger. The first Wednesday of each month you get an extra 10% off everything you buy (before coupons). If you aren't 65 or older get a Kroger card for your mother or father. My parents got 4 cards in the mail and gave me one to use.

 
August 18, 20100 found this helpful

Great uses of coupons is best done with great planning. You get wonderful coupons from the sunday papers, you might want to get two or three sunday papers each week, this will allow even more savings and is worth it.

I don't limit my shopping to grocery stores for food, I get great deals from walgreens and cvs also. Plan your week and try to visit each store you want without going out of your way. Walmart usually matches items on sale from other groceries so this is a great way to do it if you live close by and the items are not store brand items.

You can stack a store coupon on top of a manufacturer's coupon and get more discounts. Some stores allow coupons after expiration dates, know the store rules. Good luck.

 
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April 1, 2014

I need lots of help with couponing 101; anybody willing to help?

By Amanda W.

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Links

February 28, 2008

This tip for people who use coupons. There is a website called couponmom.com that you can print coupons on.

 
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December 8, 2017

This is a page about combining coupons. If you take the time to get organized with coupons and rebates before you shop, you can save a lot of money. Coupon stacking is when you use a store coupon and a manufacturer's coupon on the same item, which typically results in a very reduced price once they are both applied. Here are some tips for how to best combine coupons.

Coupons With Scissors

July 5, 2017

To save some money at the dollar store, keep an eye out for coupons you can use when you shop there. This is a page about using coupons at dollar stores.

Several coupons and a pair of scissors.

March 16, 2017

Having more coupons to use will definitely give you more opportunity to save money when you shop. This is a page about how can i get more coupons?.

Coupon and scissors.

Archives

ThriftyFun is one of the longest running frugal living communities on the Internet. These are archives of older discussions.

August 14, 2010

I use coupons every week at the grocery store, but often times I feel like a complete failure when I walk out with a $70 or $80 bill for what I purchased and only saving about $4 - $8 in coupons.

 
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May 13, 2009

This is a tip for shopping with Target coupons. Some people do not realize that you can pair their in-store coupons with manufacturers' coupons.

 
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