FAQ Part 1-"Where do you get all of those coupons?"

Ever since I started couponing, there are a few questions I've been asked over & over. One of the main questions people ask me is "Where do you find all of your coupons?". So, I'm starting a FAQ section to hopefully help all the beginners out there! Part 1 will hopefully show you where to find the coupons you will need in order to maximize your savings and get the best deals.

• Inserts 

Your local Sunday newspaper is a wonderful place to find coupons! Many people feel having to pay $2.00 for the paper defeats the purpose of  using coupons to save money. I disagree. One insert can often have over $20 to $30 worth of coupons in it and most weeks, your local paper will have at least 2 coupon inserts located inside.  So for me, spending $2.00 in order to have access to those coupons makes for a good deal.

But if you really can't make yourself spend $2.00 for the Sunday paper, there are a few other ways you can save when purchasing coupons. First, you can order your coupons or inserts.  This is good idea when there is only 1 really great coupon for something that you use all the time.  You can order clipped coupons off of  Ebay or from several different coupon clipping services, such as Coupon Clippers!  

Another way to save when buying your local newspaper is to use your CVS Extra Care Bucks (ECB’S) or your Walgreen’s Register Rewards (RR’s) to pay for your papers. Not familiar with ECB's or RR's? It's ok-we'll discuss that later. 

• Printing

Before I was introduced to the world of couponing, I didn't realize how many sites there were to find good, useful coupons to print! These days, there are a lot of wonderful sites available for you to use to print your coupons from. Here are a few of my favorites:

Coupons.com

RedPlum.com

SmartSource.com

You can also find good coupons to print on Target.com(many are Target store coupons, but there many times when they list manufacturers coupons on their site)

Most sites allow you to print each coupon twice, per computer. This is a wonderful perk, especially when it comes to B1G1 deals!! And just to remind you, printable coupons from the major sites usually reset on or around the first of each month. I'll try to remind you to print, print, print!

• Store Coupons

I love store coupons! No matter what store you will be shopping at, store coupons are wonderful because they can be stacked with manufacturer's coupons. What is stacking, you may ask? Stacking is when you can use 1 store coupon and 1 manufacturer's coupon for the same item to maximize your savings! In a word, it is awesome:)

There are many stores that release coupons. I've already mentioned Target has both store and manufacturer's coupons available to print on their site. In addition, Publix & CVS often have store coupons available on their sites and in their ads and Walgreens and Rite Aid usually have many coupons in their ads.

• Contacting Companies 

My final tip when it comes to collecting coupons comes from one of my favorite bloggers, Kristin over at Couponing to Disney. She suggests writing to companies, to whether compliment their products or file a complaint and in turn, you may receive some coupons in the mail! I've tried this and it worked for me! So it's definitely worth a try!

In the end, don't expect your stash of coupons to grow instantaneously. Be patient, be methodical and eventually you'll have a nice stockpile of coupons to use when shopping!

Thanks for the great idea, A Few Short Cuts!