Posted 12:16 PM by Bonnie

Recently two people made very strange comments to me about my using coupons. I don’t work, so the coupons are my way of contributing to the family budget. Even while working I continue to use them because they do add up to some good savings. I’ll give you some examples in a moment, but first I want to address the comments.

First a man I worked with for awhile with said it was a waste of time to use coupons because you still had to pay tax on the price before the coupons. First, there are no taxes on food items and here’s an example of the tax paid. Total prior to coupons - 40.41 (tax was 1.50) – total coupon savings 19.98 = 20.43. So, what he was essentially saying is that it is not worth saving $19.98 because he had to pay $1.50 tax. I don’t look at it as saving $1.00 on one product, $.75 on another, but as a total savings off my final grocery bill. I mean if you found $20 would you throw it away? Neither would I!

The other was a woman, who said, with her nose in the air and looking at me as if I were nothing, that she didn’t use coupons because they were only on unhealthy processed foods and she didn’t put that into her body. Hmmmm….let’s see… here are my savings from Walgreen’s today – which is the money example I used above.

Paper plates normally $1.79 for 100 were .99 per 100 plates with in store coupon
Video tapes normally $1.99 each were .99 with in store coupon
Scott Toilet paper was 2/$5 with in store coupon and using my 2 - $1.00 off each pkg. coupons the total was 2/$3 or $1.50 for four rolls. Not bad!

But my best savings was Crest toothpaste. Walgreens had a Buy 1 Toothpaste Get 1 get the Mouthwash free ($3.99 savings)…BUT! I also had a coupon for the toothpaste B1G1F (another $3.99 savings) so in the end I got 2 tubes of toothpaste and one bottle of mouthwash for $3.99. In case you didn't know it Walgreen's allows you to combine manufacturers coupons with their in store coupons.

I also purchased a couple other items that were in store sales not needing coupons. But, the point is not one item on there is a food product, so not ALL coupons are for processed foods.

We have a lot of cats that need fed so I have a stack of $1.50 off 15 cans of Friskies. I buy them in stacks of 15 at .99 for 3 cans. That would total $4.95 for every 15 cans. But minus the $1.50 a coupon that brings it down to $3.45 for 15 cans…but the savings don’t stop there! For every 15 cans I buy, at Food Lion, Friskies pops out a $.50 savings on your next grocery trip coupon. So, -$.50 on every 15 cans that brings it down to $2.95 for 15 cans. That's less than $.20 a can from the original $.33 a can. That really adds up when you buy as much as we do. Today it was a total of $10.00 saved on 75 cans. $1.50 x 5 (stacks of 15) = $7.50 add in the 5-.50 coupons that Friskies gives you from the store that's another $2.50 savings for $10.00 off the cat food.


Food Lion also has the new Cheerios Fruit cereal on sale at B1G1F a savings of $3.49 which made it less than $1.75 a box. BUT! You knew there would be a but. I had a coupon for $1.00 off each box! So that made it $1.49 for two boxes or about $.75 per box.

Jenny-O hot turkey dogs (okay they are processed but I think a lot of people eat hot dogs) are $1.19 a pack. Get ready for this! I have $1.00 off coupons on Jennie-O products so in the end pay $.19 per pack!

We eat a lot of soy products including Morning Star Farms. I had the good fortune a month ago to have a handful of $1.00 coupons when they had a sale marking down from $3.99 a pack to $2.99 a pack making my final price $1.99 per pack! I stocked up on the burgers, sausage, chicken strips! Also, a Soymilk coupon of $1.00 off each item makes it more affordable.

The kool-aid packs where you pour it into a bottle or glass of water are marked down from $3.99 a box to $2.99 a box - using my $1.00 coupons that makes it $1.99 a box and a reasonable price to pay.

So, my point is coupons are not a waste of time and they are not only for processed foods. Yes, there are a lot for frozen dinners… I leave many around the stores for items I don’t purchase and for items I do buy but will not be able to use all the coupons by the expiration date. Don’t have the time to clip and file coupons? Do you watch TV? Or home movies? That’s when I clip and file mine. I don’t use an elaborate system. I have a little plastic child size tool box with alphabetical index cards. I file the coupons in alphabetical order under their letter. It’s so easy to pick up that little box when I go shopping and if I see a sale for something not on my list I can easily find a coupon to match. I’ve considered hiring myself out as a professional grocery shopper to help people save money. Anyone want to hire me?

Anyway…I won’t tell you that you must use coupons, I won’t look down my nose at you if you don’t because some people just don’t like to bother with them. But when you see someone else using them think about this missive and instead of looking down on them consider how enterprising they are. Happy Shopping!!

Anyone want me to do their shopping for them? Or get together and either trade coupons or learn how to use coupons to their greatest advantage? You know how to get in touch with me!