Check the free coupon offers to the right —–>>>
This is a guest post by Lorraine, one of our new readers:
For me, organization is the key to saving money with coupons. I work on finding and organizing coupons just once a week, and generally save $5 or $10 a week from my shopping bill. I search for online sites that offer coupons for the items I usually buy, and register and bookmark the pages for easy return. Some sites allow you to load coupons to a store card electronically. Others allow or require you to print the coupons. I normally look for food coupons, but I also use coupons for cleaning supplies.
Next, I check the local advertisements, and once I know what products are being offered for a good price, I pull out any coupons that can be used on my next shopping trip. I also use some higher-denomination coupons to try out a new but higher-priced item, or to occasionally splurge a bit on a special item. Since an expired coupon is a useless coupon, I keep the printed versions in a small tabbed file container, about the size of a recipe file box. Each coupon is stored according to its expiration month, so I never encounter problems at the checkout counter.
When I am in the store aisles browsing merchandise, I compare prices associated with the coupon-item I’m thinking of buying. If there is another acceptable brand that would be less than the discounted item, I put the coupon away for later use. It is important to check whether a coupon discount will really get you the best deal. Sometimes there are other offers that beat the coupon you have – a different size that is even less expensive, or an in-house sale price that cannot be combined with coupons, for example. By using coupons to look for the best deals, I also learn to shop with discrimination. It pushes me to check the price-per-unit of a grocery item, and to consider no-names or generics.
Coupon use also helps me to plan out my shopping, rather than pick up items from memory (or impulse) as I go down the aisles. I am sure that focusing on coupons, and the list of items I intend to buy, has saved me even more than just the coupons alone. Remember to toss out expired coupons, and to share higher denomination coupons with friends who may want them. You can find coupon sharing clubs on the internet, at church, work, or through you network of friends. Everyone enjoys getting a good deal, and if all else fails, I’ll leave an unexpired coupon (for something I have decided not to buy) right next to the product on a store shelf. Who knows, the next person to come along may be looking for that exact item and use the coupon themselves!
Tags:
Money Saving Tips,
save money,
Save Money With Coupons,
saving money
Related posts
Posted by Leila D:
There are tons of ways to save money on monthly expenses but most of these ways consist of cutting back on day to day luxuries that we don’t really need. I’m always trying to find good ways of saving money and I always end up finding something new to “get rid” of in my life. But this can sometimes be a good thing. Let me talk about a few ways.
The first for me would definitely start at home. I live in Texas so the weather gets a little crazy here. I find that weather sealing my windows and doors saves me a ton of money during the winter. Spending a mere $50 dollars in the first month to make my gas bill in the low $100′s the rest of the season is way better then spending close to $300 a month for almost four months in a row.
Next in home would definitely be energy saving bulbs and fans during the summer months. I once had an electricity bill of close to $600 bucks in a one bedroom apartment. That is all it took to wake me up and make me more aware of how much electricity I was using each month. I found that the energy saving bulbs cut it back about $8 bucks a months so they pay for themselves in the first month.
Next I bought some plug-in stand up fans for each room. I figured that the air conditioner cooled the whole house, but why would I need to cool the whole house if I’m only in one room at a time? Well I don’t! So for about $100 bucks at a place like Wal-Mart or Target you can almost cut your electric bill in half depending on the size of your house.
Now we move on to eating habits. Eating fast food everyday like the average American can lead to it becoming a habit of spending $15 to $20 bucks everyday just to eat! I pride myself on breaking that habit and spending $15-$20 bucks on food a week. That’s roughly a $120 a week difference. But not only do you save a ton of money, you can lose weight, feel better, and overall end up healthier. Plus you learn a lot of fun fruit and vegetable recipes. So just remember, the grocery store is the way to go. Also try to learn some once a week cooking tips. Check the link for more information and some great once a week cooking recipes.
Last but not least is saving money on gas. This one isn’t for everyone, but for some of us, its huge. I personally live about a half a mile from work. So of coarse, I walk or ride my bike. Some people spend close to a grand a month on gas. That to me is insane. I drive only when I have to. Which is going out of town, across town to see friends or family, or in a minor emergency. And in this case, just like with food, you lose weight and become more healthy from walking or riding a bike.
These are just a few simple ways to cut back on money each month. You can always come up with new and improved ways to save money. So feel free to use mine and come up with some new ones of your own.
Tags:
monthly expenses,
save money,
saving money,
ways of saving money,
ways to save money
Related posts
(click the book to purchase)
In this guide to frugal living, Deborah shows you how to live within your means and enjoy doing it. Among other things, she shows you how to:
* Take the sting out of gift-giving
* Dress well on a budget
* Save on family expenses
* Slash household expenses
* Involve the whole family in saving money
* Save more for the things you want
Frugal Living for Dummiescovers all areas of life with common sense advice and guidance on:
* Working with your partner to achieve financial goals
* Going to the grocery without being taken to the cleaners
* Quick and thrifty cooking techniques
* Providing kids the basics on a tight budget
* Looking good and feeling good on a tight budget
* Frugal holiday fun year round
* Saving money around the house and driveway
* Finding quality in pre-owned merchandise
Packed with tried-and-true techniques for cutting costs, Frugal Living For Dummies is the ultimate financial survival guide for the rest of us.
Tags:
budget,
financial goals,
food budget,
Frugal,
frugal books,
grocery budget,
holiday fun,
household expenses,
Money,
Money Saving Tips,
saving money,
tips for saving money
Related posts
