Now that your coupon file is set up, you’re ready to create your shopping list. Click here to read how to set up your file.
Supplies needed:
- Computer
- Printer
- Pen
Visit couponmom.com. This is the same site as cutouthunger.com. Either address works. For your first visit, you’ll need to join the site. It’s free. After that, it’s quick and easy to use. This is my favorite site because it is free, easy to use, national, and its purpose has been to encourage people to donate to food banks.
So, you’re all set up. You’re at the website. Click on “Grocery Deals by State”
On the next screen, click on your state.
Next, choose your store. For this demonstration, we’ll use Kroger. Plus, I need to make my list for the week!
At this point, you have to log-in with user name and password (usually it’s saved, so you just need to click, “Log In”). Then, you’ll get a list of sale items.
For the life of me, I can’t figure out how to get a clear shot to copy. Argh! (Do you know how?)
Let’s try this anyhow. The first thing to do is check if the list is sorted from highest percentage saved to lowest (far right column). If it isn’t, click the little triangle that the big arrow on the right (between #6 & 7) is pointing to. Usually that will already be done for you.
Next, look down the list, clicking the little boxes on the far left (that the double red arrow points to) for any items that you plan to purchase. If you are only interested in saving 50% or more, then only go that far down the list. There is also a separate link you can click on the bottom of the grocery store page (that previous page we used) for “Extreme Grocery Deals in (Your State): 50+% off”, if you would prefer to use that.
Back to explaining our store shopping list in the quasi-illustration above. . .
1. Is the Manufacturer’s Coupon Date. At the bottom of that column, I circled “11-08 RP”. This means that the coupon can be found in the Red Plum coupon insert dated. 11-08.
We’ll come back that this information later.
2. The Description includes any special information you need to know to purchase the item.
3. This lists the face value of the coupon.
4. Tell you how many items you need to buy to use that coupon. For example, a cereal coupon might read, “$1.00 off the purchase price of 3 boxes of Crunchy Circles”.
5. This is the sale price at the store (without use of coupons).
6. The final price of the item after the sale price and use of the coupon.
7. The percentage you saved on that one item.
Let’s get back to our shopping list.
So, you look at the list–which you’ll get pretty fast at doing over time–and click the little box on the far left for any item that you plan to purchase. I usually stick to the area of the list with savings of 40% or more and either don’t read any further down the list or scan it super quickly.
When you’ve finished going through the list, click on “Display Selected Deals”
And you’ll get a (legible) document something like this:
Although the words aren’t legible in the example above, you can see where the print buttons are. Click one of them and you’ll get a tidy list–much like the one you were choosing items from, only with just the items you clicked.
It’s helpful to make a note of when the prices on your list expire. I usually just scribble it in the top corner. The date printed (next to Kroger Deals) is the date the list was generated and printed.
You could also just send the list to your phone or tablet, but I find it it most helpful to be able to see all the information at once, so good ol’ paper it is for now.
Other posts in this series: