Are Coupons Still Worth It?

If you live near a Kroger, you may have heard that starting this week, they are no longer doubling coupons. It has followed behind other stores like Meijer who stop also stopped taking double coupons last year.  For some couponers, double coupons can save them a lot of money.   A coupon worth .50, would double, saving them $1 instead.  With some coupons being as low as 25 cents, some people may wonder if using coupons is still worth it.  I am here to give you a gigantic YES, they are still very much worth it.  We  will just be saving and using coupons in  a different way.   

Disclosure:  This post contains some affiliate links 

Since I had to go grocery shopping, and because I had this $5 off your next shopping order coupon that expired today, I decided to make a trip to Kroger.  Starting this week, they are now beginning their new sale on Wednesday.  I went through the flyer, made my list, and went to check out the new sale.  

One the rack of sales flyers by the front door, I found a 4 page booklet of low seasonal prices, and a listing of which digital coupons that you can use up to 5 times in one transaction.  When Kroger announced that they were no longer going to double coupons, they said that they were going to lower prices, and offer more digital coupons to make up for it.   I really hope that this is true.  I tend to do my most of my grocery shopping at Aldi and Meijer, because overall they have much better prices than my local Kroger.  I would love to shop at Kroger more, because I can earn fuel points to save on gas, and it is the closest store to my home.  Right away, I did notice that prices did seem lower on many of the items that I needed.   

I spent only $35.27 on all of these groceries using a combination of sale prices, digital coupons and paper coupons.  I also earned back $1.75 buy using my Ibotta, Jingit, and Check Out 51 apps. Some of the great deals I found this week.. 2 lbs for strawberries for only $2.48, Laughing Cow cheese wedges for only $1.68 after sale and digital coupon,  broccoli for only .99, and a free Private Selection Mason Jar dessert with a digital coupon.    My coupon total for this trip to Kroger  was $15.59.  

This afternoon I also stopped by our local Meijer.  They were having a 10 for $10 sale, and had some really good digital coupons that I wanted to use.  Everything in these two pictures were free or almost free.  

Chips Ahoy Ice Cream Creations cookies Free with Meijer MPerks coupon.  Use the code freecookie14 to see if it is in your account.  

2 free  Wet N Wild nail polishes in fun summer color.  Regular price at .93, used two $1 coupons from newspaper flyers.   

Free 2 liter of Dr. Pepper from the 10 for 10 sale.  When you buy 10 participating items, the 11th is free.  

Free tomatoes from the 10 for 10 sale 

Private Select Mason Jar Dessert free with Kroger digital coupon 

McCormicks Salt Grinder only sale for $1, used a .75 coupon, final price .25 

2 Cat's Pride jugs of kitty litter..  Normally 8.99 this is probably my best deal of the day. They are on sale for $5.99 this week, and there is a rare  $10 off of 2 digital MPerk available.  Each jug of litter was only .99 each!   

My digital and paper coupon savings at Meijer this week, $22.20.  Total coupon savings for the day was $37.79.   That turns out to be more than $10 an hour as it only took me about an hour to make my list and find my coupons, an hour in Meijer and about 45 minutes in Kroger.  

  

Here are some of my  favorite coupon  tips to remember 

1. Always check the sales flyers before going to the store. You will save the most money when you match a coupon with something on sale. 
2. Use deal sites to find out the best deals of the week. 
3. Comparison shop. Find which store has the item for the lowest price
4. Consider going  to more than one store to get the best deals. Break them up into smaller trips, to make it less overwhelming.  
5. Make sure to stop by the store's coupon website to add their digital coupons to your account before going to the store.  
6. Print  coupons from sites such as Coupons.com, Brand Websites, and Facebook. (I will be sharing a post on where to find coupons soon) 
7. Cut coupons from newspaper flyers. If you do not get the paper,  the dollar store sells the Sunday paper for only $1. (be sure to go in early, especially the first Sunday of the month) 
8. Some stores will not accept a digital coupon with a regular coupon. Be sure to use the highest value coupon. 
9. Sign up to your favorite brands email list. You will be sent special coupons by email. 
10. Keep track of your savings. When you see how much you have saved, it will keep you motivated to continue. 

So while we might not be able to double coupon anymore, saving money is still very much possible.  Coupons, both paper and digital are still definitely worth it!