How to manage your coupons

[BSClay]

Have you been watching "Extreme Couponing"? It is amazing to watch the strategies of people going in and buying hundreds of dollars in goods and spending next to nothing. I wish I had the patience to do it but there are a few tips for those of us out there looking to use coupons in the more realistic fashion.

Coupons can save you money—but they can be tough to keep organized. The key is learning how to manage your coupons. When you sit down to make out your grocery list, it’s a good idea to check if you have a coupon for the item. If you do, mark a “C” next to the item on the list. That way you won’t forget to have the coupon ready for your visit to the store.

If you have an older child or someone else helping you with your shopping, it can be beneficial to make two lists. One of the lists will be items that you have coupons for, the other list will be regular items that you have no coupons for. Then get two carts and each of you can go off and get the items on your lists. This saves time at the checkout and can make your visit to the store a much more enjoyable experience. Keep a “coupon box” handy when you’re going through newspapers and magazines. Clip as you go, and it won’t seem like much of a task.

Go through your box of coupons every other month and purge the ones that are expired.

[pennypinch]

I love the show "Extreme Couponing"! It's amazing how those women save all of that money.

I have been couponing more lately and I have been saving some but not nearly like they do.

My biggest problem is finding coupons for the items that I use. Most of the coupons I come across are worthless to me. I have found some good ones on the internet though.

This morning I was so pumped because I know my local store has their Kelloggs cereal on sale for 6 for $10. Thats $1.66 each! Awesome deal all by itself. What got me excited though was I printed internet coupons for the cereal. With the coupons I could have gotten eight boxes of cereal for $1.12 each! But to my dismay that store will not accept internet coupons at all!!!!! GGGRRRRR! I was so bummed! I still got a great deal though. With three kids you can imagine how much cereal we go through!

Thanks a ton for the great tips BSClay! I will be using them! I need to learn how to save more!

[BSClay]

It is fun but at times overwhelming to plan with coupons so I commend you. My fiance used GroceryGame.com for a while and it was very promising but you have to take the time to do it. Good luck!