I will be the first to admit: money savers don’t enjoy the best of reputations. 
I mean, remember that TLC Reality Show that had a lady stockpiling thousands of coupon clippings? That’s the image that tends to be associated with this practice. People perceive everyone who uses coupons as a crazed cheapskate whose sole purpose in life is to save every last penny. 

But what people don’t realize is that coupons have come a long way. In particular, the advent of digital coupons has completely transformed discounting. Now, you can not only utilize promo codes to get online discounts but print some of them for in-store use as well. 

Unlike in the old days, you don’t even have to go scouring through newspapers and magazines to get the best deals. Instead, a quick search on Google can help you save 100s of dollars (there’s a step by step guide of it below).
So if you’re someone who’s still paying full prices for every purchase, you might want to consider giving coupons a chance. 

Where to Start?

It’s estimated that coupon redemption will surge to 91 billion in the next three years. The practice is far from a taboo these days. In fact, if you’re not utilizing deals and discount codes —you’re in the minority according to the latest coupon statistics. 
For anyone who has yet to dip their toes in the waters of discount, there’s a simple way to start: 

1. Seek Deals and Discount Everywhere

Traditionally, you would look for coupons in the Sunday papers and magazines. While that’s still an option and many people still take that route. There are more than a few ways of seeking them. 

For instance, whenever you’re buying something online, consider doing this: 

1. Open Google in a new tab
2. Search “coupon”, “deal” or “discount” along with the retailer’s name (i.e WANDRD coupon code)
3. Upon discovering a coupon, apply it from the website or simply copy the promo code. 
4. You get a discount or a deal

You will find many websites that are dedicated to accumulating deals from all across the internet. ClothingRIC is one such website. 
If you feel like being a little crafty, you can add an item in your cart, put relevant information at checkout and leave without ordering. Wait for a while and the store will eventually mail or text you a discount code. 

2. Work Your Way Towards Bigger Deals

Majority of coupons help you save a small amount. But that isn’t something that should discourage you. Don’t look at every saving individually but see how they add up in a month or over a year. Small discounts together will have a significant impact on your budget. 

Over time, you will become a skilled discount seeker. You will learn how to follow your sales cycles, integrate coupons with sales and find appropriate coupons. “It’s very much like solving a puzzle”, says Emma Thomas of EMUCoupon. “Small pieces come together to create something bigger.” 

3. Follow Your Favorite Brands on Social Media 

Whether it’s Twitter, Facebook or Instagram, brands routinely promote their product on social media platforms through promo and discount codes. These offers range from 10% off to buy on, get one free. 

All you have to do is like their official pages and you might come across a money-saving coupon. Likewise, you can also sign up with a brand’s newsletter to receive their latest deals. Brands use coupons as a marketing tool to create hype and incentivize purchases. Consumers can take advantage of this and get unbelievable price-cuts. 

4. Don’t Use Every Coupons Right Away

Upon finding a cool discount code, one is enticed to use it immediately. But you might want to hold on for a while. It just so happens that sometimes a sale-priced item without a coupon is cheaper than a normal-priced product with a coupon. 

Look for annual sales and holiday deals. Barbecue items go on sales around Memorial Day weekend. Flight tickets are cheaper on weekdays. Look for promo codes of these products and services ahead of the season and hold on to them until there’s a sale. Combining vouchers with sales can lead to extraordinary discounts. However, you will have to take the expiration date into consideration. 

5. Learn Coupon Policy of Different Stores

Target, Walmart and Lowe all have their different discounting policies. Even if you’re planning to use a voucher at a local store, do look up their rules. You may be able to find it on their website. 
One of the important things to know is whether a store allows you to double a coupon. Stores have a certain threshold, meaning you have two $1 discount coupons, the store will allow $2 off. Likewise, some retailers only give discounts through a loyalty program. 
You may accumulate reward cards over time and claim them in the form of coupons. 

Can Couponing Work Against You? 

While they’re pretty useful, coupons are not magic cards that immediately fix all your financial vows. In fact, they can work to your disadvantage if you’re not careful. 
How? Well,  let’s say you spent hours finding the best deals and discount codes, which helped you save $100 on 12 cereal boxes. But did you really need that much cereal in the first place? To quote Captain Obvious, saving money on items that you don’t require can be detrimental to your finances. 
In contrast, if you are able to save money on grocery or even clothing items you need —that’s couponing done right. In fact, smart couponing can help you stay afloat in a tough economy. 
In the end, vouchers can help you save money if you’re not being lured into spending on products you have no use for, just for the sense of achievement that comes from gaining a discount. 
One way of avoiding this is by creating a budget and sticking with it. Go in with a plan and set certain limitations on how much money you can spend within a month. This way, you wouldn’t get off track and keep your financial situation stable. 

Conclusion

Coupons, vouchers and promo codes are extremely useful tools for anyone living on a budget. While it’s true brands use them for a marketing purpose, they do work in favor of customers at the end. It’s what you call a win-win situation. 
Meanwhile, the stigmas around couponing are a thing of the past. It’s not cheap to seek discounts anymore. In contrast, those who are able to get price cuts should take pride in their money-saving skills. 
However, don’t go around using vouchers on unnecessary items and have a monthly budget prepared. Get the basic rights and coupons would become a useful weapon in your financial arsenal.

Every couponer relies on a variety of resources when it comes to hunting for coupons and deals, since getting advice from fellow couponers can make the difference between a cartload of free clothing and paying a week’s salary at checkout. However, finding reliable websites that can direct you to the best coupons and deals can be a challenge, since it’s often difficult to know which ones are trustworthy.

Since the calendar recently turned to 2020, it’s a good time to find out which coupon blogs and resources will help you meet your savings goals. We’ve created a list of the best sites where you can save big money this year, basing our criteria on the ones that will save you the most money, those that are updated the most frequently with the freshest content and sites that are easy to read.

Best Sites for Coupon/Sale Matchups

The best way to get free or low-cost items from the store is to match coupons to sales, allowing you to double down on your savings. It can be difficult to do the matching on your own, since it takes time to correlate each available coupon to every store sale. Fortunately, there are blogs that do the work for us.

One high-quality site that’s easy to navigate, which allows you to either search for deals by state or by the store you’d like to visit. For instance, if I click on deals in California, I can see a list of stores where I can save. From there, if I click on UK Vouchers, the site lists how I can get free lipstick and razors, as well as some deals that are not only free, but also give money back because the coupon value is worth more than the sale price.

Another site with excellent matchups. On this site, you’ll scroll to the store you plan to visit and then you’ll find a list of the best matchups that week. For instance, when I clicked this week’s ShopRite deals, I found a list of nearly a dozen items I can get for less than $1.00, thanks to the discounts available when I combine sales with coupons.

Best Sites for Deals on Non-Grocery Items

You can also match up deals, coupons, rebates and points with sales on non-grocery items to save big. This includes products such as clothing, furniture and shoes, among many other things. There are several great coupon blogs online that can help you locate these discounts.

One such blog which posts deals each week for discounts at national stores such as Kohl’s, Target and more. For instance, the site advises how you can get free and discounted products from clocks to furniture and beyond by combining deals with cash back offers so the end result is that you’ll save big money.

Another great website for finding discounted and free non-grocery items is Coupon Pro, which explains how to combine offers at restaurants, brick-and-mortar stores and online retailers like Amazon to get great deals on everything from beauty products to books and beyond.

Best Sites for Freebies

If you’re strictly looking for free items, there are several sites that will simply list every deal you can get that week for free by combining offers or that will send you free samples of various products in the mail.

A great site that lists free items is the Free Best Voucher, which goes through the various deals and circulars on any given week and breaks out the specific items you can get for free at national retailers. If you click on one of the deals listed on the site, you’ll get detailed instructions on exactly how to get the freebie, including where you can find the coupon and how to stack deals.

If you’re looking for free product samples, which lists items that you can get for free. Many of the offers require you to “like” pages on the companies’ social media pages or to sign up for loyalty programs, but the site gives you details about what’s required to get each free sample.

The Bottom Line

By getting to know the nuances of each website, you can learn how to stack deals and save money on all of your favorite items.