Frugal Coupon Living

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Extreme Couponing | Couponing Acronyms and Explanations

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April 22, 2020 by Ashley at Frugal Coupon Living Filed Under: Beginners, Coupons, Extreme Couponing Leave a Comment

published date: September 08, 2011
modified datt: April 22,2020

When you begin Extreme Couponing, there will be a number of acronymns that you will see when going through weekly ads, reading posts, and trying to create your own list. It is important you refer back to these terms to maximize the most of your savings.

All of the acronyms I use for couponing are found on the center/right column of Frugal Coupon Living. Below, I have provided a more detailed explanation.

SS – Smart Source. SS is a coupon resource both online and in the Sunday paper.  The larger the city, the larger the SS Sunday insert and reverse rings true as well – the smaller the town, the smaller the insert size. Thus, Smart Source coupons can vary by regions.  Almost every Sunday, there is a SS insert in the newspaper. Visit Smart Source for printable coupons. Coupons found online are different from coupons found in the Sunday inserts.

RP – Red Plum. Much like SS, RP is a coupon resource both online and in the Sunday paper.   The larger the city, the larger the SS Sunday insert and reverse rings true as well – the smaller the town, the smaller the insert size.  Thus, RP coupons can vary by regions.  Almost every Sunday, there is a RP insert in the newspaper.  Visit Smart Source for printable coupons. Coupons found online are different from coupons found in the Sunday inserts.

P&G – Procter and Gamble.  Much likes the other inserts, P&G coupon resource is found in the Sunday paper.  P&G inserts tend to be consistent across the board. In other words the same coupons tend to be in every city/town.  Unlike the others, they come out once or twice a month.  Usually around front or end dates of the month. These coupons usually expire 30 to 60 days once published.

MFR – Manufacturer Coupon. A manufacturer coupon is coupon that is created by company or brand. It can be combined with a store coupon in most locations (grocery stores/pharmacies.)  Most MFR coupons have the most expensive item displayed as a picture on the coupon so it is important to read the fine print. Sometimes you can use a MFR coupon on a trial size item. When this is possible, it is best to do this because the savings is a much larger percent then if you were to buy they full size item. Ten bottle of trial size shampoo work just as well as one large bottle and can end up being FREE!

SC – Store Coupon. This is a coupon that can exclusively be used in the store in presents. For example if CVS puts out a coupon for Colgate, this can only be used in a CVS location.  This SC can be combined with an MFR on one item to produce a greater savings. Sometimes other stores will take SC coupons. For example, sometimes I can use a Winn-Dixie Grocery Coupon at my local Publix Grocery location. Check with your local stores to see if they accept store coupons from other locations.

CC – Competitor Coupon. A CC is a store coupon that can be used in another store. For example, I could take a Winn-Dixie coupon and use it at Publix. You can also create a combination of mixing and matching MFRs, SCs, and CCs for an even larger savings! Two places that regularly take competitor coupons are Publix and Home Depot.

B1G1/BOGO – Buy One, Get One. The name basically supplies the definition. When you buy one product, you get the next product for free. In some locations, B1G1 sales reduced items to 50% off so you can only buy one item in the B1G1 sale. I will make a note of this when this is the case. In most locations, for B1G1 sales, two products need to be in the purchase. I personally appreciate B1G1 sales because you can use two coupons. You are getting two products!

WYB – When You Buy. An example of when this phrase is used is get $1 off product x when you buy or wyb product y.

YMMV – Your Mileage May Vary. Your mileage may vary is a phrased to describe the situation where you have success at one store and not at another store. This is usually the case because clearance items, sales, or managers discretions may change per store. YMMV can be the case for two stores in the same city or for two stores on different sides of the country.

MIR – Mail in Rebate. A mail in rebate is a situation where you get back a percentage of the amount you spent on a product. A MIR usually requires a UPC (universal product code or bar code on the side of a box) , original cash register receipt, a form all mailed in a self stamped envelope.  During a MIR, you do need to pay for the product upfront but are refunded your money either in the form of a check or gift card.  Sometimes, MIRs provide you with a product instead of the refund of a check/gift card. In this case, you would know this before sending in the MIR. On average, MIRs take around 8 weeks for a full refund.

FAR – FREE After Rebate. This case is usually accompanied with a MIR. The item would be FREE after you submit a rebate for a refund of a check/gift card.

$1 SS 1/4 – $1 coupon in the Smart Source Inserts on January 4th. I use this phrase when matching coupons to sales. If we were talking about Dove Deodorant, I would be directing you to cut the $1 Dove Coupon in the Smart Source Insert that came out January 4th. If you keep your inserts intact, with the date on the front, this is easy to locate. You can keep them in a binder, in a file system, or cut them up and arrange the coupons by month or by type (health and beauty in this case.)

OOP – Out of Pocket. This is the money you are required to pay out of pocket. This money is usually amount you will pay before a rebate or “reward money” found in the form of Extra Care Bucks or Register Rewards (See CVS 101 and Walgreens 101 below.)

WFC – Weekly Flyer Coupon. This is a coupon found in a store weekly sales flyer. This coupon is required for the discount on the item. It is not a “clip free” coupon.

$1.50/2 – $1.50 off two items. In this example you get $1.50 of the price of two items. If I do not provide a back slash and number, then the discount is off one item. I provide the discount price followed by a slash and number to share with you when you have to buy more than one item for the coupon reduction.

ECBs – Extra Care Bucks. This is a money system found at CVS stores. It is like paper money that can be used on products in their store only. ECB sales are found weekly in their store flyer. Sometimes, CVS has items that are FREE after ECBS (much like the FAR system.) See more on shopping at CVS with ECBs below.

Wags – Walgreens. Acronym used for Walgreens.

RRs – Register Rewards. This is a money system found at Walgreens (Wags) stores. It is like paper money that can be used on products in their store only. RRs sales are found weekly in their store flyer. Sometimes, Wags has items that are FREE after RRs (much like the FAR system.) See more on shopping at Walgreens with RRs below.

Related Posts:

Eight Tips to Couponing HERE

CVS 101 HERE

Walgreens 101 HERE
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WHAT’S TRENDING? Looking for a few engaging activities? Grab Themed Minute to Win it Games – Traditional, New Year, Valentine’s Day, Easter & more! Use these fun activities in the office, classroom, or at your next party.

Big Crumbs – Earn Money When You Shop

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March 10, 2020 by Ashley at Frugal Coupon Living Filed Under: Beginners 7 Comments

published date: January 28, 2010
modified datt: March 10,2020

Shannon recently introduced me to Big Crumbs. Big Crumbs work just like Ebates and Shop at Home. You earn cash back by going through their site to shop.

Items to Note on Big Crumbs:

1.) Earn cash back without minimum payments.

2.) Refer your friends and earn cash back on what they earn!

You can get paid via Pay Pal but note there is a payment processing fee of 2% with a $1 cap – no more than $1 will be taken out for your payment.

I am adding Big Crumbs to your Ebates and Shop at Home options because it will allow for cash back on some stores not on the other two sites and also offers some larger percentages on popular stores than the other two programs offered.

Get started with Big Crumbs HERE.


WHAT’S TRENDING? Looking for a few engaging activities? Grab Themed Minute to Win it Games – Traditional, New Year, Valentine’s Day, Easter & more! Use these fun activities in the office, classroom, or at your next party.

Coupon Printing 101

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March 10, 2020 by Ashley at Frugal Coupon Living Filed Under: Beginners, Coupons 12 Comments

published date: January 25, 2010
modified datt: March 10,2020

I often get frustrated emails over coupon printing. While I am not the tech savvy person you all believe I am, I do have some helpful hints that will hopefully help you out – PLEASE understand, I might not be able to offer you every detail of explanation for a question you might present. I will do my best.
…
Note: Most coupons can be printed twice. Use your back button to get back to a printer to print. Sometimes this requires clicking your back button a few times.
…
Coupon Printers
Printing coupons DOES require you to install a Coupon Printer. There are a few types I have seen – one you see often is on Coupons.com or with Bricks, another on Smart Source, and another on Target’s website. For Smart Source coupons you will need the latest version of Java which you can get HERE. For PDF coupons, you need the latest version of Adobe which you can get HERE.
…
Installing the Printer
When you select a coupon to print and click the print button, you will be asked to install a coupon printer (if you have not done this before.) If your computer keeps asking you to install the coupon printer after you already have, one solution might be to check your spy/virus program to make sure this program in allowed to be used. Also, try a different browser (switch to Internet Explorer -IE, Safari, or Firefox-FF.) If it keeps giving you trouble, move on. I have had this happen before and sometimes I just don’t see a solution.
…
Bricks Coupons
You can recognize these coupons because the start out with the web address http://bricks. Bricks Coupons can be a little tricky as their address/code can be specific to the browser you are using (IE, FF, Safari – you can not print them in Chrome.)
So in the Bricks address, you are looking for key letters to know which browser to use. You can see the image below.
…
Internet Explorer (IE): wi or vi
Firefox (FF): wg or vg or xg
Safari: vi or xs
…
How do you know if you are in the wrong browser? Well the letters above should tell you, but the coupon will also say please wait or never print. Open a new browser and try again.
Places to Print Coupons
Smart Source
Red Plum
Coupons.com
Eat Better America
Pillsbury.com
Betty Crocker
Home Solutions
…
Electronic Coupons
Cellfire
Upromise
Shortcuts
…
Trouble Shooting Guides
Smart Source
Coupons.com HERE
Red Plum
…
Related Posts:
Eight Tips to Couponing HERE.
Couponing Acronyms and Explanations HERE.
What is a Catalina? HERE.


WHAT’S TRENDING? Looking for a few engaging activities? Grab Themed Minute to Win it Games – Traditional, New Year, Valentine’s Day, Easter & more! Use these fun activities in the office, classroom, or at your next party.

Couponing Acronyms and Explanations

This post may contain affiliate links or ads. Read my privacy policy and disclosure policy here.

March 9, 2020 by Ashley at Frugal Coupon Living Filed Under: Beginners 60 Comments

published date: December 31, 2009
modified datt: March 09,2020

All of the acronyms I use for couponing are found on the center/right column of Frugal Coupon Living. Below, I have provided a more detailed explanation.

SS – Smart Source. SS is a coupon resource both online and in the Sunday paper.  The larger the city, the larger the SS Sunday insert (and the smaller the town, the smaller the insert size.) Thus, Smart Source coupons can vary by regions.  Almost every Sunday, there is a SS insert in the newspaper. Visit Smart Source for printable coupons that change/vary each month.

RP – Red Plum. Much like SS, RP is a coupon resource both online and in the Sunday paper.  The larger the city, the larger the RP Sunday insert (and the smaller the town, the smaller the insert size.) Thus, RP coupons can vary by regions.  Almost every Sunday, there is a RP insert in the newspaper. Visit Red Plum for printable coupons that change/vary each month.

P&G – Procter and Gamble.  Much likes the other inserts, P&G coupon resource is found in the Sunday paper.  P&G inserts tend to be consistent across the board. In other words the same coupons tend to be in every city/town.  Unlike the others, they come out once to twice a month.  Usually around the front end of the month. P&G e-coupons HERE.

MFR – Manufacturer Coupon. A manufacturer coupon is put out by the company of the item represented. It can be combined with a store coupon in most locations (grocery stores/pharmacies.)  Most MFR coupons have the most expensive item displayed as a picture on the coupon so it is important to read the fine print. Sometimes you can use a MFR coupon on a trial size item. When this is possible, it is best to do this because the savings is a much larger percent then if you were to buy they full size item. Ten bottle of trial size shampoo work just as well as one large bottle (and can end up being FREE!)

SC – Store Coupon. This is a coupon that can exclusively be used in the store in presents. For example if CVS puts out a coupon for Colgate, this can only be used in a CVS location.  This SC can be combined with an MFR to produce a greater savings.

CC – Competitor Coupon. A CC is a store coupon that can be used in another store. For example, I could take a Winn-Dixie coupon and use it at Publix. You can also create a combination of mixing and matching MFRs, SCs, and CCs for an even larger savings! Two places that regularly take competitor coupons are Publix and Home Depot.

B1G1/BOGO – Buy One, Get One. The name basically supplies the definition. When you buy one product, you get the next product for free. In some locations, B1G1 sales reduced items to 50% off so you can only buy one item in the B1G1 sale. I will make a note of this when this is the case. In most locations, for B1G1 sales, two products need to be in the purchase. I personally appreciate B1G1 sales because you can use two coupons. You are getting two products!

WYB – When You Buy. An example of when this phrase is used is get $1 off product x when you buy product y.

YMMV – Your Mileage May Vary. Your mileage may vary is a phrased to describe the situation where you have success at one store and not at another store. This is usually the case because clearance items, sales, or managers discretion may change per store. YMMV can be the case for two stores in the same city or for two stores on different sides of the country.

MIR – Mail in Rebate. A mail in rebate is a situation where you get back a percentage of the amount you spent on a product. A MIR usually requires a UPC (universal product code – CHECK ON ACTUAL ACRONYM – bar code on the side of a box) , original cash register receipt, a form all mailed in a self stamped envelope.  During a MIR, you do need to pay for the product upfront but are refunded your money either in the form of a check or gift card.  Sometimes, MIRs provide you with a product instead of the refund of a check/gift card. In this case, you would know this before sending in the MIR. On average, MIRs take around 8 weeks for a full refund.

FAR – FREE After Rebate. This case is usually accompanied with a MIR. The item would be FREE after you submit a rebate for a refund of a check/gift card.

$1 SS 1/4 – $1 coupon in the Smart Source Inserts on January 4th. I use this phrase when matching coupons to sales. If we were talking about Dove Deodorant, I would be directing you to cut the $1 Dove Coupon in the Smart Source Insert that came out January 4th. If you keep your inserts intact, with the date on the front, this is easy to locate. You can keep them in a binder, in a file system, or cut them up and arrange the coupons by month or by type (health and beauty in this case.)

OOP – Out of Pocket. This is the money you are required to pay out of pocket. This money is usually amount you will pay before a rebate or “reward money” found in the form of Extra Care Bucks or Register Rewards (See CVS 101 and Walgreens 101 below.)

WFC – Weekly Flyer Coupon. This is a coupon found in a store weekly sales flyer. This coupon is required for the discount on the item. It is not a “clip free” coupon.

$1.50/2 – $1.50 off two items. In this example you get $1.50 of the price of two items. If I do not provide a back slash and number, then the discount is off one item. I provide the discount price followed by a slash and number to share with you when you have to buy more than one item for the coupon reduction.

ECBs – Extra Care Bucks. This is a money system found at CVS stores. It is like paper money that can be used on products in their store only. ECB sales are found weekly in their store flyer. Sometimes, CVS has items that are FREE after ECBS (much like the FAR system.) See more on shopping at CVS with ECBs below.

Wags – Walgreens. Acronym used for Walgreens.

RRs – Register Rewards. This is a money system found at Walgreens (Wags) stores. It is like paper money that can be used on products in their store only. RRs sales are found weekly in their store flyer. Sometimes, Wags has items that are FREE after RRs (much like the FAR system.) See more on shopping at Walgreens with RRs below.

Related Posts:

Eight Tips to Couponing HERE

CVS 101 HERE

Walgreens 101 HERE

WHAT’S TRENDING? Looking for a few engaging activities? Grab Themed Minute to Win it Games – Traditional, New Year, Valentine’s Day, Easter & more! Use these fun activities in the office, classroom, or at your next party.

Walmart BOGO Price Match Policy – Good New Florida Shoppers

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October 12, 2013 by Ashley at Frugal Coupon Living Filed Under: Beginners, Store Deals, Walmart Leave a Comment

published date: October 12, 2013
modified datt: October 12,2013

walmart-bogo-price-match-policy

 

Good news Florida Walmart shoppers! We have a new Walmart BOGO Price Match Policy. Unfortunately this new policy is only valid in Florida, but maybe if it goes well we’ll start to see it in other states as well?

Walmart will price match any BOGO sale listed in a local competitor’s ad such as Publix or Winn Dixie. Better yet, if Walmart’s Everyday Low Price beats the competitor’s BOGO price, they’ll honor the BOGO sale with their Walmart price! Walmart is limiting each BOGO price match to 2 per item. You can also use coupons when working this deal to make your price even lower!

For more details on the Walmart BOGO Price Match Policy, be sure to visit Walmart’s Facebook page.

Thanks, Addicted to Savings!

Get more Walmart Deals or Publix Deals at Frugal Coupon Living!

WHAT’S TRENDING? Looking for a few engaging activities? Grab Themed Minute to Win it Games – Traditional, New Year, Valentine’s Day, Easter & more! Use these fun activities in the office, classroom, or at your next party.

Walgreens 101

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February 5, 2013 by Ashley at Frugal Coupon Living Filed Under: Beginners, Walgreens 1 Comment

published date: January 04, 2011
modified datt: February 05,2013

In my area, Walgreens (Wags) is truly like my neighborhood drugstore. I LOVE Walgreens and the employees at the store I have couponed at for years can vouch for that.  They have watched my babies enter the world and grow up, they are the first to know when we have a new virus, cold, etc, and they have kept in touch with me even when they have left the store.  Much like their competitor store, they have their own system of money and there is a true strategy to getting items you use everyday for incredibly low prices (you might even find yourself making money.)

What are Register Rewards? A Register Reward (RR) is like “monopoly money” for Walgreens.  Weekly, Walgreens offers deals that give you back RRs.  RRs print out on a machine called a Catalina machine (this machine sits beside the register when you buy your merchandise).  Cashiers will hand you your RRs with your receipt at the end of your purchase.  Most RRs are limited to one per purchase, so keep that in mind.  RRs have an expiration date, so pay close attention to them.  You can use these RRs on ANY* item in the store (not on the same purchase for which you receive the RRs). Walgreens does not have a reward card that must be scanned for you to get a RR.

What kind of Coupons will Walgreens take? Walgreens takes manufacturer (MFR) coupons and store coupons (SC or Wags coupons). There is a little bit of a catch you need to remember when using coupons in a transaction. The number of coupons you use must be the same number or less than the number of items you purchase. If you purchase 5 items, you can only use 5 coupons. Keep in mind, Walgreens considers RRs coupons. When you find yourself in a tight predicament like this, try to find a “filler” item. A filler item is a very cheap item (a $.25 piece of candy) that allows the amount of items you have purchased to come up but the number of coupons have to remain the same.

Where can I find Wags Store Coupons? Email, Weekly Ads, Booklet, Magazines. 1) Sign up at Walgreens to get coupons sent to your email account. 2) Walgreens has coupons in each of their weekly flyers and their monthly coupon booklet. You do need to use these coupons to get their discount. While many of their sale items do have reduced prices without a Walgreens coupon, some do require you to cut the coupon from their flyer. The good news on these coupons is that if you get 3 items, you only need ONE coupon to reduce the price on all three items. 3) Booklets at Walgreens can range. Sometimes they have kids coloring booklets that have coupons, sometimes they have seasonal booklets (found in the non-over the counter area with coupons), but each month they have a booklet that is good from the start to the end of the month. This booklet is either found at the front of the store or near the cashier.  4) Take a look in the non-over the counter medication area for the Diabetes and You Magazine. It is a free publication.

What order should I give my coupons? I usually give manufacturer coupons, Walgreens coupons, and then register rewards.

What are Rain Checks? Rain checks are issued by the cashier on regularly stocked items that are on sale but no longer available in the store. Unlike CVS, you cannot get a rain check on an item that issues RRs. You can only get rain checks on sale items.  These can work for and against you. They can work for you because a coupon might come out later for your rain check item or this can work against you because you might have a coupon that is about to expire.

What do I, personally, do with my RRS? I don’t use RRs on items I need (unless I have an overflow on extra RRs.) I use my RRs to buy my next RR items.  This means I keep recycling my RRs.  This can be a bit tricky because you need to remember that you cannot use RRs to buy the same RR item. You also need to make sure you don’t have more coupons than you do items (as mentioned above,)

*RRs cannot be used for alcohol, tobacco, non-over the counter medications, and some other similar purchases.

Related Posts:

Walgreen’s Deals HERE

CVS 101 HERE

Eight Tips to Couponing HERE

Couponing Acronyms and Explanations HERE
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WHAT’S TRENDING? Looking for a few engaging activities? Grab Themed Minute to Win it Games – Traditional, New Year, Valentine’s Day, Easter & more! Use these fun activities in the office, classroom, or at your next party.

What is a Catalina?

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October 10, 2012 by Ashley at Frugal Coupon Living Filed Under: Beginners 2 Comments

published date: January 24, 2010
modified datt: October 10,2012

What is a Catalina?

Named after the company who creates them, a Catalina is a coupon that prints out with a receipt.  The Catalina can be used as a coupon or as store cash (a well known example is Walgreens’ Register Rewards.) Many people throw out these precious coupons because they see them as a receipt – garbage or advertisements that come with their receipt. This is NOT the case.

Is a Catalina a Store Coupon or a Manufacturer Coupon?

This depends. If a Catalina is a manufacturer (MFR) coupon,  it will state so on the top – most often this is the case. If it is a store coupon, it will say.

Can I use a Catalina at another store?

If the Catalina is a MFR coupon, the answer is yes but YMMV. This is a manufacturer coupon – like something you would print offline or get from your Sunday inserts, but some stores (who don’t print Catalinas) look at this like another stores coupon. So give it a try.

What if my Catalina Doesn’t Print?

Sometimes this problem happens – it can be a broken machine, an error on what you picked up, or missing paper in the machine. If you have a Catalina that was supposed to print you can talk to the manager or call the Catalina company. If you call, have your receipt in hand.  Don’t worry they won’t know what you are talking about. I have called before and they were very clear and understood what I was trying to explain to them.  Remember, they create the machine so they know how it works and when it is supposed to print. Call 1-888-322-3814 or 1-888-8COUPON (1-888-826-8766).


WHAT’S TRENDING? Looking for a few engaging activities? Grab Themed Minute to Win it Games – Traditional, New Year, Valentine’s Day, Easter & more! Use these fun activities in the office, classroom, or at your next party.

Extreme Couponing | Organizing Your Coupons

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September 11, 2011 by Ashley at Frugal Coupon Living Filed Under: Beginners, Coupons, Extreme Couponing 3 Comments

published date: September 11, 2011
modified datt: September 11,2011

One of the most important things to do when beginning Extreme Couponing is organizing your coupons. If you don’t know where to find a coupon you have (due to a stash full of unorganized coupons) then you are not able to reach your full saving potential. Below I am going to show you different organizations methods that work.

Method One: Organize Inserts by Date
This method has been the method I have used for years. I prefer it as it requires the least of my on my Sundays.

How to Start:
1.) Pull your inserts from the Sunday Paper and write the date on the front.
2.) Hole-punch the left margin of the coupon (In all my years, have not had problem with this messing up barcodes to scan.)
3.) Place your inserts in a large binder with oldest in the back and newest in the front (arranged by date.)

Pros:
1.) This makes finding a certain date’s coupon VERY easy to locate.
2.) All your inserts are in one place.
3.) Doesn’t require much time to organize each week.
4.) Easy to get rid of expired coupons. Clean your binder starting in the back.
5.) You have every coupon that came out in the Sunday paper – no coupons went to waste. So even if there is a coupon for a product you don’t buy, you might find the product cheap/free and you can donate the item.

Cons:
1.) Bulky
2.) When searching for a particular coupon (toothpaste), it is not easy to locate. I could be anywhere in your binder.
3.) There is a lot of “extra” advertisement paper (coupons only take up so much room on each insert.)
4.) Doesn’t leave room for loose coupons – another method is necessary to attach to this style of organizing.

Examples:
• See My Example HERE.

Method Two: Organize Coupons by Type
This method is the most common for couponers. Most coupon “pros” (if we can call them that) arrange their coupons this way.

How to Start:
1.) Pull your inserts from the Sunday paper and cut. (Note: If you have multiple copies of the same type, lay individual, like pages on top of each other and cut coupons from multiple inserts at the same time.
2.) Once your coupons are cut, organize them by type. You can arrange by type using photo sheets or baseball card inserts.
3.) Place photo/baseball card inserts into a large binder. You can add as well a zipper pouch for scissors, pens, paperclips, etc.

Pros:
1.) Organization at its best. If done right, this system is very orderly and neat.
2.) Easy to navigate for type of coupon. When you are in the store you can easily go to your health section for a toothpaste coupon.
3.) Easier to see when a coupon is about to expired.
4.) All your coupons are in one place.
5.) All the “extra” paper in the Sunday inserts are recycled or throw away. You do not have an abundance of extra weight due to unneeded paper.

Cons:
1.) Time – you do need to find time to cut and organize coupons each week.
2.) Bulky.
3.) Hard to find a coupon by date. If you need to go to the 1/3 SS insert, you don’t know which coupon came from where.
4.) You must search page by page for expired coupons when cleaning out your binder.
5.) When cutting coupons, you are most likely throwing away coupons you don’t use/need. If there is a sale where that coupon makes something free or cheap, you don’t have that coupon to donate that product to others.

Examples:
• See or buy binder example HERE – She actually sells them as well so you don’t have to make your own.

Method Three: The File System
The title basically says it all. Acquire a file cabinet for all your coupons.

How to Start:
1.) Acquire a file cabinet or cube crate that can hold handing file folders
2.) Take your inserts and arrange by date. Each handing folder will house a different date’s coupons.

Pros:
1.) Clean and Neat.
2.) Requries the least amount of time.
3.) This makes finding a certain date’s coupon VERY easy to locate.
4.) All your inserts are in one place.
5.) Easy to get rid of expired coupons. Clean your files starting with the oldest date
6.) You have every coupon that came out in the Sunday paper – no coupons went to waste. So even if there is a coupon for a product you don’t buy, you might find the product cheap/free and you can donate the item.

Cons:
1.) Bulky – the most bulky method.
2.) Not really portable. You will not walk into the store with this method in your hand/cart.
3.) When searching for a particular coupon (toothpaste), it is not easy to locate. I could be anywhere in your file system.
4.) There is a lot of “extra” advertisement paper (coupons only take up so much room on each insert.)
5.) Doesn’t leave room for loose coupons – another method is necessary to attach to this style of organizing.

Examples:
• Please share if you have/see an example to where I can link.

Additional Methods
When couponing, you will most likely want to mix in other organizational methods. Of the above methods, method 1 and 3 don’t allow you to do it all in one place. You might be able to do it all with method 2.

Accordion File
For loose coupons, it is nice to have an accordion file. You can arrange this by type of coupon. You organization can be as specific ad dairy or as broad as grocery. Other tabs include health and beauty, baby, cleaning, household goods, etc. The accordion file is VERY easy to carry in the store. It can be as small as an envelope size or as large as a piece of paper (in width and height comparison- not depth.) This is a great place to organize peelies, catalinas, blinkies (store dispenser coupons), etc.

Envelopes
When shopping in a store, I plan my lists ahead of time. Like I have shared before, I do not walk in with my large coupon binder. Instead I carry in envelopes (and usually my accordion file mentioned above.) My envelopes are arranged by store name. For example, when I organize my CVS list I carry instead my envelopes coupons I need for THIS trip, Extra Care Bucks, My CVS Card, and rain checks. At the end of my CVS shopping, the envelope will be 95% empty from what I came in the store with.

Smaller Binder
My particular grocery store, Publix, often has a lot of additional coupon flyers/booklets. When I have extra booklets, I hole-punch the booklets and arrange them in a smaller binder. This I call my store coupon binder. If you desired, you could add some photo/baseball card inserts and place additional store coupons inside this binder as well. These would be coupons earned through rewards cards, food/baby clubs, etc. They usually are mailed, printed, or acquired in the store.

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I am a wife, mother, daughter, blogger, teacher, friend – a woman of many different hats. My delights are my husband, my five kids, reading, shopping, and spending time with friends and family. I am a Florida girl transferred to the heart of the DC-Metro area. I'm glad you're here! Learn more about Ashley.

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