So you want to be a Couponer?
First things first. Let’s talk about coupons since they will be the most important part of your new adventure. I can not stress enough how important it is for you to READ READ READ as much as you can about couponing before you start using them. Nobody can do it for you. You have to educate yourself. And trust me…you’ll be glad you did. 🙂
The casual couponer will buy one paper on Sunday, clip only a fraction of the coupons inside and use them at their local stores to get maybe $0.50 or $1.00 off something that they might not normally buy…but do just because they have a coupon. Or even if you do normally buy the product, you are just getting one of them at a good price with your coupon. You are here because you want to take it to the next level and learn how to maximize every coupon to get max savings!!
The first installment of my Couponing For Beginners series will teach you everything you need to know about the coupons themselves.
What is a coupon?
Coupons are what manufacturers send out to entice people to buy their products.
Every coupon should have the following attributes:
:: Type of Coupon
Manufacturer or Store (stated at the top of the coupon).
:: Value
How much money will be deducted from your purchase, plus how many items you must purchase in order to use the coupon.
:: Terms
If the coupon says “save $1 on ANY Charmin product” then it can truly be used on any Charmin product, including the smallest size of toilet paper…or even Charmin flushable wipes since that is a Charmin product. If the coupon says “save $1 on Charmin Ultra Soft 6 Mega Rolls” then that is the EXACT product the coupon should be used for. If you use it for the 4 pack single rolls, that would be fraudulent use of the coupon and that ruins things for everyone.
:: Expiration Date
MOST coupons have an expiration date. If the expiration date is 6/30/13, you have until 11:59 pm on 6/30/13 to redeem your coupon.
:: Image
Manufacturers generally put the newest or most expensive product in the picture for advertising purposes, hoping you will buy that product. Although the picture can be useful if you have never heard of the product, it does NOT dictate what you must purchase. The TEXT on the coupon is what you need to follow.
Example: Since the coupon above states “Save $2 on ANY two Kashi Cereals” you can use it on the single cups! 🙂
:: Barcode
Every coupon needs a barcode. That’s what holds the information the cash register needs! If a printable coupon prints without a barcode – something went wrong. Try to print it again. If you are clipping coupons from an insert, be careful not to cut any of the barcode off because you need that! 🙂
Insert coupons (from the newspaper) will all have the same barcode. Printable coupons should all print with a unique code found in the upper right hand corner. This proves that each of your coupons was printed legitimately (not copied).
Printable coupons can typically be printed TWICE per computer or device. When you go to print, DO NOT change the number of copies to 2. That will print the SAME barcode. You need to go back to the original link and start from the beginning (or hit the back button to refresh the coupon page) to ensure you get UNIQUE barcodes.
Some manufacturers choose to release PDF coupons. These make me very nervous because we are all printing the exact same barcode and prints are virtually unlimited. Balance is needed when choosing how many coupons you will print.
:: Fine Print
Every coupon should show some type of instructions for retailers including a redemption address. There is also information intended for the consumer. Some of the most common clauses I have explained below.
Purchase Vs. Transaction Vs. Household Vs. Shopping Trip
This is VERY important! You might look at your coupons and think, “How do these people save so much money?” All the coupons I get say I can only use one! Well, in some ways that’s true but mostly it is just worded in a confusing way. It is important to educate yourself on coupon terminology so you can intelligently defend your case when redeeming coupons.
PURCHASE
Almost all coupons will say, “Limit One Coupon Per Purchase.” All this means is that if your coupon says “Save $0.50 on One (1) box of Cheerios” then you CAN’T use TWO coupons on that ONE box to get $1.00 off.
One coupon per purchase means = one coupon per ITEM(s) purchased.
- If you buy one box of Cheerios you can only use ONE coupon, if you buy TWO boxes of Cheerios then you are allowed to use TWO coupons.
- If your coupon says “Save $0.50 on Two (2) boxes of Cheerios” then you have to buy TWO boxes in order to use ONE of your coupons.
Confused yet? ; ) You’ll get it down. Don’t worry…we all started out just as confused as you. The main thing you need to remember is, you can’t use two coupons on one item. It doesn’t work that way.
TRANSACTION
You might even find a coupon that will limit you to how many you can use in a “Transaction”. This is one of those tricky words that people often mix up with “Purchase”. Let me explain the difference the best I can. When you go to the store, gather the items you want to buy and then take your cart to the checkout – EACH item that you place on the belt is a PURCHASE. Now the cashier is done scanning all your items and coupons and you pay (hopefully not too much!). Each time you pay, that was a TRANSACTION. You could have just purchased 100 items in that one transaction.
HOUSEHOLD
It gets even trickier! Some coupons, mostly P&G (Procter & Gamble) will say something like “Limit One Coupon Per Purchase. Limit Of 4 Like Coupons Per Household Per Day” (these are now limit 1 or limit 2). Here’s where things get interesting. When using coupons like this it means exactly what it says. If you alone and go to the store and want to use your P&G coupons, you are only allowed to use FOUR of each kind (“like” coupons). You yourself are NOT allowed to use any more than FOUR of each one in a single day.
“Four Like Coupons…” means Four of the exact same coupons.
And a “Household” is defined as all individuals who live in the same dwelling. So out of everyone that lives in your home you are only allowed to use 4 of the same coupon, per day on these types of coupons. Even if cashier “lets it slide”, the manufacturer technically does NOT have to reimburse the store because they allowed more than the coupon limits. We don’t want that to happen.
SHOPPING TRIP
A shopping trip can be defined as each trip you make into the store with an empty cart.
So let’s say you have a coupon that says “Save $1.00 When you Buy One (1) bottle of Welch’s Juice” and the fine print says “4 Like Coupons Per Shopping Trip” but you wanted to buy 7 bottles of juice. In order to comply with the wording on the coupon AND get all the bottles you planned on buying you would need to get 4 bottles of juice, checkout and pay, take those items out to your vehicle and then go BACK in the store with an empty cart and go get your other 3 bottles of juice. Then you have completed TWO shopping trips and didn’t use more than 4 like coupons in either shopping trip. Be sure you are also complying with store policy regarding multiple transactions as well. Some do not allow it. Some let you go nuts! 🙂
:: Do Not Double
Some coupons will state DO NOT DOUBLE or DND. No Kroger stores double coupons any longer, so we won’t discuss this in this post.
Now that you’ve gotten to know your coupons, check out my other beginners posts:
So can you use another coupon that have different bar codes? And if so how many can you use? I have customers that come into the store and have alot of the same items and alot I mean alot of coupons they only have to pay taxes. How in the world does that work??????
always go to Krogers close to home and they have everything i need in Wheelersburg Ohuo
Very good information. Thank you very much.
Question on “4 like coupons”. Say i have a coupon that reads $3.00 off 5 boxes of cereal and it states i can use 4 like coupons. So i have 4 of those coupons can i use all 4 coupons on the 5 boxes or do i have to buy 20 boxes of cereal in order to use all 4 coupons? please help!!
I have a coupon that says “Limit one coupon per purchase of specified product and quantity stated. Not to be combined with any other coupons. Limit of two like coupons in same shopping trip. #1- Do I buy 1 product & have it scan twice? #2 – Do I buy 2 product & have it scan twice? #3 – Do I buy 1 product & have it scan once because I don’t have another coupon like it to purchase with product #2? SMHHELP!
Use your coupon for the item (aka purchase). If u have another exact coupon, then use for the SECOND item. 2 coupons per shopping trip.
*Being at the store constitutes as your shopping trip- 2 coupons for 2 items.
Do this mean I can use 4 coupon in one transaction?
So if my coupon doesn’t have a limit on how many I can use, can I use all the coupons I have?
Hi,
So I have this coupon and it say “limit ONE coupon per purchase of product indicated and a limit of FOUR like coupons in same shopping trip.
So I have to pay eight boxes in order to use the limit of 4 coupons? Am I correct?
Hi,
Can you please explain to me how would I go about doing this purchase with this coupon please. I’m a beginner and I’m trying to learn the most I can before going to the store with this coupon. Thank you in advance 🙂
I see a coupon online for Kroger that says use up to 5 times in a single transaction. Does that mean I can scan the coupon 5 times for one item? For example if it says $0. 50 off this item can I scan that coupon 5 times to get $2. 50 off that item?
Vera, you are correct. “Redeemable at Walmart” is an advertisement. As long as it says “Manufacturer Coupon” it is fine to use anywhere. Wal-Mart doesn’t even have store coupons. Very seldom you will see a manufacturer coupon that is only redeemable at one store, but it will say so: “Can only be redeemed at xyz.”
I had a coupon that said any Subway sandwich for $3.50. It didn’t say any one Subway sandwich. Does that mean you are limited to only one even though it didn’t indicate one. It plainly said any Subway sandwich.
Hi! I have 8 coupons $2/1 Huggies diapers. Three say “off Snug and Dry”, three say “little snugglers” and two say “any package” are these considered identical? Can I use all 8 coupons if I get 8 packages of diapers?? I’ve been trying to figure it out. I’d say theybare not identical because they specify a different ‘style’ of diapers, even though they are the same brand Thank you
Please explain to me what does 4 coupons for same product per house hold, per day really means? Let’s say I have 8 coupons for Tide. Today I went and used 4 of them, can I go again tommarow OR is that it for the month?
Please help me.
I am shopping at Kroger and I have multiple coupons I’d like to use. Each coupon is for a complete different item. The coupons say limit one coupon per household. Does this mean I can’t use all of my coupons even though they are for different items? Or does it mean the same coupon.
This is really a great website you are giving me more motivation to keep going. I look at all the hauls and deals and I become clueless like why am I not able to do this? I am excited to learn all I can about couponing. Thank you for breaking down the coupon lingo. Thank you for the tutorial of the website. I know I will have questions and some of them may be redundant or dumb so I am asking for forgiveness now. I am very happy I found you 🙂
@Angie! It means you can use 4 of the same that you actually clip from the newspaper! You can NEVER. Print copies of coupons! It’s against the law!
I’m confused when it says “Limit of 4 Identical Coupons”… Does this mean I can literally copy the same coupon (with the same barcode) 3 more times?… Or does it mean I can have the same coupon (but with different bar codes on all 4)?
Well, I gave it a shot and took in exact copies of the coupon – and they worked! Horray!
It means you can cut 4 of the same coupon from newspaper inserts and use them on 4 products at the same time. You are NEVER allowed to make copies of coupons! It’s against the law!
Does anyone know if this will this also work if buying Goodnights?(2 cats)
How many items I get..I have 4 coupons for $2off in Irish spring body wash ..how many I can buy and save $$
I’m still a little confused on how to double coupons..who takes them, how many can i use,how do I know I can double a coupon on what product…ugh I just started out and want to get this right. All other information was awesome!!
Vera- if the coupon has another stores name on it Kroger won’t take them because they won’t get paid for them when coupons are collected. It’s the policy of the store.
my store does not accept printing from home coupons because they never are scanned, what can I do, first I thought it was my printer that didn’t print well, buy I tried with different printers and still the scanner doesnot read them? PLEASE HELP ME
Newbie here 🙂 Just to make sure I understand. I can get one box of cereal and use two or three different coupons on the same box or do i use one coupon per box? A friend told me I could “stack” coupons but I have no idea what that means lol!
this was very helpful to me thanks.
katie!!!! this was a great post(as are all of your posts), however, you have really helped alot of people that are new and learning with all you already do..this is taking it to a higher level,….kudos to you for teaching others to coupon correctly..love it! keep up the great work!!!!
Wonderful post! I will keep reading. I have been couponing for 2 years plus now. I found the DND statement very interesting.
I had a coupon I was using that said “Limit One Per Purchase” and the cashier told me that I couldn’t use them all b/c my entire “transaction” was one purchase. I tried explaining to her that everything I was purchasing was one transaction and that the coupons were all valid. She refused to budge and I ended up only being able to get one of the items….which was for free.
I had same experience. 🙁
Lately, I feel like a thief when I use coupons at Kroger. I just tried to use the ice cream coupons, i.e. $2.00 Snickers and Drumstick. Clerk couldn’t scan and told me I couldn’t use because they had redeemable at Walmart. I explained (maybe not so nicely because it is always something) and she had to ask two other people and finally she was told to take them. I had a $3.00 Kroger coupon on $15.00 frozen foods that wouldn’t work. Never know what price is counted when buying items-before mega or after mega. As this was the 2nd time I thought I had bought items and tried to use this this coupon, felt I had already bought double the items for the coupons. I make sure to count my coupons and keep track because quite often one (or more) of my coupons are missed. Anyone else about to give up on Kroger???? I feel better-just had to vent!!!!!
Me…I am about to give up, I went there yesterday to get the Nutella deal, so I got it and handed the 4 coupons to the cashier and she wont take it she said it says there limit 1 per purchased and I can only use one so I voided it. Today I went back again and got same product and they said they can only use 3 coupons for same item so I voided it again.
Perfect Katie!!! I really appreciate you doing it the right way and teaching others to do the same. I learned something about DND too:) Thanks!
Thanks for that post. I have been using coupons for quite a while and there was some very useful information in that!