Another New Coupon Policy: Wal-Mart

I do not generally shop at Wal-Mart (preferring to buy my guns and censored music elsewhere). But some recent changes to their coupon policy had me intrigued. Like several other stores, Wal-Mart will accept Catalina coupons from other stores. But here is the change that I was most interested in:

"If coupon value exceeds the price of the item, the excess may be given to the customer as cash or applied toward the basket purchase."

At other retailers, when your coupon exceeds the price of the item, they generally adjust the coupon price down. This policy allows you the full value of a coupon, regardless of the price of the item.

I was skeptical about how this would work, so I wanted to try it out before I posted about it. Armed with my printed copy of the coupon policy and several high value coupons (with no size restrictions), I braved a trip to Wal-Mart.

(5) Purex Complete 3-in-1 Laundry Sheets ($0.97/each in the travel section)

(2) Secret Clinical Strength Deodorant ($2.47/each in the travel section)

= $9.79

- (1) $3/1 Purex coupon (2/20 Red Plum. Expires 3/19)

- (4) $1/1 Purex coupons (3/13 Red Plum)

- (1) $2/1 Secret coupon (2/27 P&G insert)

- (1) $3/1 Secret coupon (P&G mailer)

= -2.21

+ $0.93 tax

Grand total = -$1.28

As you can see above, I actually got the $1.28 back in cash. After the cashier rang up all the coupons, the system said that manager approval was needed. The approval was given electronically (didn't have to wait for a manager to come over). The receipt printed and the cashier was a little confused. She said "It says I'm suppose to give you $1.28?????". I smiled and said "Yep". And she did.

This new policy is not going to make me a regular Wal-Mart shopper, but I could see venturing in for money making deals like this one. If you are going to give this a try, I highly recommend having a copy of the coupon policy on you.

Anyone try out any of these new coupon policies yet?

Two Daily Deals Worth Checking Out

Today, Deal Pulp is offering a $3 credit when you sign up and another $3 credit if you share the site with a friend and they sign up. I love deals like this. It's a great way to score a cheap deal even cheaper. Head here to sign up.

Also, check out the daily deal on Eversave Seattle. $25 for a $50 voucher to luggage.com. Use the coupon code LUCKY to save $3 and bring your price down to $22. I had some Save Rewards in my account so I was able to pick up this deal for $10. I found some really cute stuff on luggage.com and ended up buying two duffel bags (one for my son and one Christmas present for my cousin). I had to pay $7.96 in shipping, so my overall cost for each bag was $8.98. Even without the extra credits, you would be able to get 2 duffel bags for $14.98 each. That is 62% off the regular price.

They had a ton of cute designs. I choose this one for my son.

If you aren't in the market for kid's luggage, they also have tons of other items (suitcases, purses, lunch bags, etc.). Head to Eversave (here) to get this deal.

Walgreen's & QFC

I was feeling self-conscious about posting yet another shopping trip this week. I really don't want you to think that I spend all my time shopping. Like I've said before, I plan all my trips in advance and most trips take 10-15 minutes. I know this type of shopping doesn't work for everyone. My goal in sharing my shopping trips is to give you information on how to get the best deals. One of the keys to successful couponing is to find a system that works for you. You can still save a ton of money even if your lifestyle/schedule allows you to shop once a week or at a few select stores. I'd love to hear how you have made couponing work for you.

Moving on....Walgreen's and QFC had a couple sales this week that were worth an extra trip. Here's what I bought.

Walgreen's

Item	Regular Price	Sale Price	Coupon	I Paid
(6) Right Guard Deodorant	$4.49	BOGO	(3) BOGO coupons (3/13 Red Plum)	FREE
(2) Pure Protein Bars	$1.99	$0.99	BOGO	$0.49/each
(1) Zone Bar	$1.59	$0.99	$0.55/1	$0.44

Total = $1.43 + tax

Saved 95%

QFC

Item	Regular Price	Sale Price	Coupon	I Paid
(3) Frank’s Hot Sauce	$3.89	$1.99	(3) FREE coupons (3/13 SmartSource)	FREE
(5) Annie’s Natural Mac & Cheese	$2.09	$0.99		$0.99/each
(2) Pedigree Dog Food	$1.49	$0.99	BOGO (3/6 Red Plum)	$0.49/each
(12) Pretzel M&M	$0.89	B2G1	(4) B2G1 (3/13 SmartSource)	$0.30/each



= 8.61

- $5 for buying 10 participating products

Total = $3.61

Saved 89%

I'm loving the Pretzel M&M's. If you care about such things, each bag is only 150 calories or 4 Weight Watcher Points Plus!

Grocery Store Round-Up: 3/16

Each week, I will try and post my favorite deal(s) from each of the local grocery stores. Plus, I'll link you to my favorite bloggers who have the full list of match-ups for each store.

I don't see much in the Safeway ad this week, but there is a good catalina offer that starts on Friday (3/18).

McCormick Grinders (on sale $2)

- (3) $1/1 McCormicks' spices (3/13 Red Plum Insert)

OOP = $3

Receive catalina for $2.50

Grand total = $0.50 or $0.17 each

See more Safeway deals over at Frugal Living NW. 

Arrowhead 6 pack water (on sale $1)
- $1/2 printable coupon
= $0.50/each

See more Albertson's deals over at Coupon Connections.

QFC is running a Buy 10 participating items and receive $5 off promotion. The deals aren't as great as last time, but there are still some decent buys.

Annie's All Natural Mac & Cheese (on sale $0.99)
Buy 10
- $5.00 off
Total = $4.90 or $0.49/each

Nabisco Snack Crackers or Ritz (on sale $1.67/each with in-ad coupon)

- $1/2 Nabisco coupon (1/30 SmartSource insert)

or

-$1/1 Ritz Munchables coupon

or
-$1/1 Triscuits Facebook coupon

or

-$1/1 Wheat Thins Facebook coupon

= $0.67-$1.17 depending on coupons

See more Fred Meyer deals over at The Coupon Project.

Albertson's Doubler Trip

Each week I get three Sunday newspapers. This is key to successful couponing, because many deals require more than one coupon to make the best deal.

But I don't get all three newspapers delivered to my house. I get one Sunday paper from the Seattle Times. The other two papers are the Everett Herald and are delivered to my friend, Kelly's house. We split an awesome deal set up by Amber at Coupon Connections to get a daily paper and 5 Sunday papers for $99 for 6 months. Kelly keeps 3 papers and brings me 2 to work on Tuesday (I have Mondays off). This works out great because the Seattle Times doesn't have a deal that even comes close to this price, but I live outside of the deliver area of the Everett Herald.

That was a long, roundabout way of explaining why I don't do my Albertson's shopping until Tuesday. When the Sunday paper has Albertson's doublers, I wait until I have them all to do my shopping. Sometimes I miss out on deals, but overall it is a good system.

Here's what I picked up this week.

Item	Regular Price	Sale Price	Coupon	I Paid
(6) Steamfresh Vegetables	$2.79	$1.00	(3) $1/2 (3) Doublers	FREE
(2) Glade Scented Oil Plug-In	$1.99		$1/1 (2) Doubler	FREE
(1) Better Oats Oatmeal	$1.29	$1.25	$0.55/1 Doubler	$0.15
(3) All Free and Clear	$5.99	$3.99	(3) $1/1 (3) Doubler	$1.99/each
(3) Purina Cat Food	$2.99	$2.69	(3) FREE coupons (3/13 SS insert)	FREE

= $6.12

-         $1 Catalina on Glade Plug-Ins

Total = $5.12 + tax

Saved 90%

More free cat food for our pet food drive at work!

I was really excited to find the Steamfresh Brown Rice included in the sale. I love having this on hand for a quick side dish.

I am currently obsesssed with these Better Oats. I got 4 boxes free a couple weeks ago at Safeway and have been eating them every morning. You can print a Buy One, Get One coupon here. Try them. Seriously. They are delicious.

Amazon Fresh-$75 off for New Customers

If you live in the Seattle area, here is an awesome deal for you. Amazon Fresh is offering $75 off orders for new customers! This is $75 off orders of at least $75.....which means FREE groceries.  Head here to sign up and place your order.

I got one of these deals several months ago and got $100 in FREE products. They also carry many household items. I got a bunch of groceries and a Sonicare toothbrush for FREE.

This offer is good for the first 1000 new customers that place orders by 2pm PST tomorrow (3/16).

Amazon Fresh delivers to the following zip codes: 98004, 98005*, 98006*, 98007, 98008, 98011, 98012, 98019, 98021, 98024*, 98027*, 98028, 98029*, 98033, 98034, 98039, 98040, 98052, 98053, 98056, 98057, 98059, 98065, 98072, 98074, 98075, 98077, 98101, 98102, 98103, 98104, 98105, 98106, 98107, 98108, 98109, 98112*, 98115, 98116, 98117, 98118*, 98119, 98121, 98122*, 98125, 98126, 98133, 98136, 98144*, 98146, 98155, 98164, 98178, 98199.

*limited delivery

Thanks to Seattle Moms Deal Finder!

Changes to Coupon Policies

Several stores have recently updated their coupon policies. One of the biggest changes is that several stores will now accept catalina coupons from other stores as long as they say "manufacturer coupon". Yay!

It is a good idea to print a copy of a the stores coupon policy to have with you. While most cashiers are well informed, some are not clear about their stores coupon policy.

Fred Meyer:

"Most Catalina coupons are manufacturer and are stated as such.  Effective February 9, 2011, Catalina coupons that are printed with another retailer name may be accepted at Fred Meyer"

This includes catalina coupons that are for a particular product and ones that are for an amount off your next purchase.

Fred Meyer does not have a written coupon policy, but you can see (and print) the letter that Amber at Coupon Connections recevied from corporate here.

Safeway:

Safeway will now accept catalina coupons from other stores as long as they say "manufacturer's coupon". They will only take catalinas for a particular product, not the catalinas for an amount off your next purchase.

View and print the Safeway coupon policy here.

Other Stores:

Albertson's

Rite-Aid

Walgreen's

Target