If you’ve recently come to the conclusion that it’s time to tighten that belt, you need to consider using coupons. Coupons are easy to use and can save you a ton of cash each month. The following article will show you some of the best ways to save money by using coupons.
When you have a manufacturer’s coupon, you can stack that coupon with store coupons. This is a great way to get items for next to free or almost free. Use the store’s coupons from their weekly circular and match them up with coupons from the manufacturer off the Internet or from the newspaper.
You need to ensure that you hold the best available coupon. Many times, companies offer a plethora of different coupons. Sometimes a coupon for a specific amount will not net the same savings as a percentage off deal. Consider what coupon is the best one to use, but you should take along both coupons to be used at two different times.
To find out about coupons you might not otherwise hear about, be friendly with your store cashiers. They see coupons of all kinds for hours a day. Chat them up a little, and you might just get some tips on coupon tricks specifically useful to the stores that they work at.
Remember that the coupons produced at check out can’t be doubled. If you want to get your coupon doubled, make sure you check for manufacturer’s coupons instead of one printed by the store’s cash register.
Don’t buy an item just because you have a coupon for it. The purpose of using coupons is to save you money. You don’t save any money if you ate buying items you don’t normally buy. If you do use a coupon for a new item, only buy one to make sure you like it.
Match your coupons up with sale items. Once you get the ad for the grocery store’s weekly sale, find items to buy that you use and have coupons for. Using a coupon on a sale item saves you even more money than just using the coupon on a regular priced item.
Learn what the regular prices are for items that you use frequently, or for expensive items that you only purchase occasionally. Sometimes, stores will raise the prices of items before putting them on sale or offering other in store specials. By learning the true regular price, you are prepared for these events.
Those of you who are bargain shoppers and who love to use coupons to save would be wise to browse through a store’s clearance section. The savings you can get with a clearance item coupled with a coupon can be quite significant. Make sure to see if any items on clearance are still eligible for coupon use.
Some of the best coupons that you will find are going to be in your local newspapers. These coupons will be for the stores that are local in your area and very easy to get to, which will improve the level of convenience you have and reduce your stress level.
When you are trying to acquire the best coupons, one of the things that you will need to do is make sure that they are not expired. The worst thing that you can do is spend unnecessary time cutting out coupons that are no longer valid to use on your purchase.
Set up a dummy email account and sign up for all those coupon sites! Most of us don’t like getting spam in our regular mailbox, so have an address just for the purpose of collecting all those amazing coupons, along with whatever else you might get. Your savings will be phenomenal, but your email won’t be over-loaded with junk.
Try and find any hidden costs that maybe associated when using a coupon. A coupon for $5 off some Chinese food for example may seem like a good deal until you discover that there is a delivery charge you have to pay, not to mention the fact that you must also pay a tip.
Coupons can help you amass a stockpile. Clip more than one coupon for an item. Buy as many sale items you can with the coupons you have. In other words, when cereal goes on sale, use all four of your cereal coupons to buy for boxes. This will keep you from paying full price in the future when you need peanut butter.
Try to remember that couponing is not free. You do have to invest your time and organization into the ordeal. Also, never just buy something because you have a coupon. Stay within your budget. If you spend money just because you feel like you are saving money, you are in fact wasting money.
To save at restaurants with coupons, be sure to read the fine print before heading out to eat. You might have a 25 percent off coupon, but make sure that it’s not limited to, say, Sunday afternoons or Tuesday nights. This will save you from an embarrassing moment when the check comes.
Make a schedule for your coupon clipping. If you want to take this seriously, it should be something you do on an every day basis. Pencil in hours when you’ll do nothing but clip coupons. If you don’t have coupons to clip, start looking for more coupons online. Check up on these sites as they often will have new coupons available.
As you can see by now, saving money by using coupons is really very simple. Try it, and soon you’ll have a healthier bank balance. Apply what you’ve just learned to start saving money today. Enjoy your savings and having more money to spend at the end of each month.
