Coupon Basics 102

For those of you who don't know me personally, I'll let you in on a secret. I'm obsessed with organization. I love fresh new binders and paper, the new plastic bins under my bathroom cabinets make me squeal with delight. Being a couponer requires organization. Sorry to let the wind out of the sails of all the unorganized aspiring couponers.

So how do I stay organized? A binder, of course. C'mon, you should have seen that coming.

This is my love.


I have tab dividers that keep my coupons in perfect order: food/drink, girls (dogs), household, cleaning, hygiene, health/beauty, stores, rewards, and restaurants. Your tabs will probably vary, but this is a good base. You can buy business card or trading card inserts to hold the coupons. Personally I prefer trading card slots because they're bigger. If I have two or more coupons for a product, I group them into one slot together, with the one that expires first on top.

I keep the extra coupons in an accordion folder. I only started doing this in June when I realized I was throwing away coupons I could be using.


The next obvious point of discussion is where to get all of these coupons. Obviously, the Sunday paper is the best starting point. I got a Sunday Only subscription for $14 for 6 months. At only $.58 a paper, I'm saving $.42 a week off Dollar Tree prices and don't have to stand in line to fight the mob in my local Dollar Tree every Sunday. If the inserts are too good to resist, I'll get another paper, but that's usually only when there are 3 inserts (like this week, July 31).

To print more coupons, visit Smart Source, Red Plum, All You, and A Full Cup. If your stores accept competitor coupons, visit Target's coupon site, Whole Foods' coupon site, and look for circulars in the store. Publix and Winn Dixie often offer savings booklets which are typically in the stand next to the current circular or at the Customer Service desk.

If you know you're going to buy a product frequently, sign up for email promotions on that product's site. (If you plan to sign up on a few sites, you may want to consider making an email address specifically for this.)

Wander on over to Southern Savers and Hey! It's Free and sign up for their daily emails. They send coupon and free sample alerts.

If you have another coupon website you like, please share!

Couponing takes some practice, but is well worth it when you get the hang of it. If I've confused anybody, please let me know and I'll try to clarify.