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This is Part 4 of our Couponing 101 series. Click here for Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3, or here for Part 5.

Our last post talked about finding a coupon matchup site. If you’ve done that, you’re almost ready to start shopping. But first I’m going to show you how to find deals. We’ll use my favorite matchup site, Southern Savers, as an example, with Harris Teeter as our example store. I’m going to this post in the Harris Teeter section, the most recent sales as of the time I’m writing this blog. Browse this post for a moment to see if it makes sense to you.

It might look a bit confusing. What are the numbers in parenthesis? What do all those abbreviations mean? Which coupon do I use?

The numbers in parenthesis represent the price of one item for Buy One, Get One deals. At Harris Teeter, you don’t have to buy two to get the “BOGO” price – if an item is BOGO, each rings up half price. But at some stores, you do have to buy both items to get the BOGO price. (Another reason why you should know store policies!)

The coupons currently available for the item are listed under the item title. Printable coupons are denoted with a link to the coupon; sometimes print limits have been reached and coupons are no longer available. (It’s a good idea to print high-value coupons you know you’ll use right away so you have them.) If the coupon is from an insert, it will say RP (RedPlum), SS (SmartSource), or PG (Proctor & Gamble) with the date of the insert. See why we labeled each insert? You can easily flip through your stack of RedPlums to find, say, the October 7 insert. There may be several coupons listed under a product, but the website should recommend which one to use to get the best price. Note that it may not be the highest value coupon depending on whether or not your store doubles. If your store doubles coupons up to 99 cents, a 75 cents off coupon would be more valuable than a $1.00 off coupon because it would double to $1.50 off – and the $1.00 off coupon would not double. Flip through the insert to find the coupon recommended to get the best deal, then clip it.

Occasionally, you may not find a coupon that’s supposed to be in a particular insert. Coupons vary by region, so that coupon may have been available in the region the blogger lives in but not where you’re at. So you may find that you miss a few good deals, but don’t worry – you’ll catch them at some point.

This week at HT, Smart Balance butter is on sale, BOGO for $2.69. Remember, at HT that means each item rings up at half price, $1.34. I have a coupon for 75 cents off, which doubles to $1.50 off – that means I get free butter! If you have more than one coupon, you could get more than one pack of butter for free. I do this when it’s free, since butter freezes.

Go through the list to find the items you’re interested in and clip those coupons. See why we didn’t clip them at first? It’s easier to leave them in the insert, since the matchup site will tell you exactly where to find them. Most sites will let you print a list of only the items you want, or you can write down your own list.

Now we’re ready to hit the store, but wait until you read the next post before you go!

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This is Part 3 of our Couponing 101 series. Click here for Part 1 or Part 2, and or here for Part 4.

Now that you know some of the basics of couponing, you’re one step closer to saving money! But there are a few more steps to take before we can start shopping.

First, decide where you’ll shop. If you have several different grocery stores in your area, it may be tempting to keep up with the deals at all the stores so you don’t miss anything. But this is very time consuming, so to begin with you should start with just one store. We will use Harris Teeter for this example.

Once you decide on your store, do some research on its coupon policy. This can usually be found on the store’s website, but most coupon matchup sites will list the coupon policy too. It’s a good idea to print a copy of the policy so you have it when you checkout, because it’s not uncommon for cashiers to be unclear about the policy. Harris Teeter’s policy can be found here, and here are some items to note:

• One manufacturer’s coupon per item (this is true for most stores, but some allow you to use a store coupon as well as a manufacturer’s coupon)
•  You won’t receive cash back if the value of the coupon exceeds the value of the item (if the item is priced at $1.89 and your coupon is for $2.00 off, the value of the coupon essentially becomes $1.89, giving you the item for free without giving cash back)
•  Item purchased must match size/flavor/variety written on the coupon (you won’t necessarily have to buy the exact variety in the picture on the coupon unless the coupons states so – but you must buy whatever is in the written description)
• Manufacturer’s coupons up to 99 cents will be doubled (if you have a coupon for 75 cents off, HT would double it to $1.50 off) – UNLESS the coupon says “Do not double” (doubling policies vary from grocery store to grocery store, and some don’t double coupons at all)
• Only 20 coupons will be doubled per household per day

Study your store’s policy so you understand what it means. If you’re unclear, you can usually post comments on the coupon matchup sites and another shopper will help clarify.

Wait, what’s a coupon matchup site? Basically, it’s where you find all the deals. It would take hours to go through all your coupons trying to match them with items that are on sale at the grocery store to find the best prices – luckily, there are bloggers out there who will do this for you. My favorite is Southern Savers, but if you’re not in the South you’ll need to find a different one. Coupon Divas lists many stores around the country. If you don’t find your store, do a Google search for “Your Store + coupon matchups” and you’ll come up with at least a few helpful blogs.

So your assignment after reading this is to become familiar with your store’s coupon policy and find a coupon matchup site for your store, then we’ll get to work couponing in the next blog!

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This is part 2 of our Couponing 101 series. Click here for Part 1, or here for Part 3.

Everyone seems to have an opinion on coupons. Some people don’t leave home without them; others think they’re a waste of time. Some of the negative opinions are based on misconceptions that I’m going to address in this post. Hopefully after I’ve debunked some of these myths and you start to see how easy couponing is, you’ll be more interested in learning how to do it.

Misconception 1: I don’t have time to sort, cut, and organize all those coupons!

Reality: You don’t have to clip all the coupons! Just get as many coupon inserts as you can, but don’t cut coupons from them yet. Write the date on the front page (if they come in the mail, write the next Sunday’s date). If you don’t remember which date an insert was from, it’s written in very small print along the left spine of the insert. Next, store your inserts in a binder, on a shelf, or wherever you want. That’s it. No need to even flip through them yet.

Misconception 2: I have to spend money on a Sunday paper.

Reality: You don’t have to buy a paper unless you want to. In some areas, the same inserts that come in the paper come in the mail – but you’ll want more than one copy of each insert to get the best deals. At my apartment complex, people leave their unwanted coupons in the mail room for those who want extras. You could ask friends or neighbors who receive coupons in the mail or subscribe to the paper for their inserts. You can also buy inserts for cheap at sites like Sunday Coupon Inserts. Other ways to get coupons are from dispensers in-store, “peelies” on certain products you buy, or the Internet.

Misconception 3: Coupons are worthless and won’t save me more than a few bucks.

Reality: It’s all about timing. To maximize savings, wait until the product you want is on sale, then use a coupon. You can score big when items are “buy-one-get-one”. Say you have a coupon for 50 cents off a $3 item. The item is BOGO this week, so you get 2 for $3. If you have two of the 50 cents off coupons, you can use both (since you are getting two of the item). This means instead of 50 cents off one item, you get $1.00 off two items, which would have cost $3 without the coupons. Use the coupons and you’ll get both items for $2! This is why it’s important to get multiple copies of inserts, because they’re especially valuable for BOGO sales. See how that 50 cents off coupon can really save you money when used at the right time?

Misconception 4: You can’t eat healthy on a “coupon diet.”

Reality: There are actually coupons for all kinds of health foods. I’ve used coupons on produce, organic milk, eggs, cheese, meats, all-natural snacks, you name it. Not all coupons are for junk food.

Misconception 5: Coupons make you spend money on things you wouldn’t otherwise buy.

Reality: They can have that effect, but you have to fight it. Don’t buy coupon items in addition to what you’d normally buy – buy them INSTEAD of what you’d normally buy. I usually buy Healthy Choice meals to take for lunch. If I find a great deal on Stouffers meals or Uncle Ben’s Ready Rice pouches, I’ll stock up on those instead of Healthy Choice.

Hopefully couponing is starting to sound better to you. Stay tuned for our next post, and keep stocking up on inserts!