Why I Quit Clipping Coupons

I used to waste a lot of time clipping coupons. I would go through the coupons in Sunday's paper and cut out every one that I may possibly use someday. Then, I'd put them in a small expandable coupon binder. My binder file got so fat that I eventually wasn't able to even close it. It was like George Costanza's exploding wallet. There had to be a better way.

I read Kathy Spencer's book, "How to Shop for Free" and started using her technique for organizing my coupons. Now, instead of clipping coupons, I keep a file for each type of coupon insert. I have a separate file for Smart Source (SS), Red Plum (RP), General Mills, and Procter and Gamble. Each Sunday, I write on the front page of the insert the date that the coupons were in the Sunday paper and the date when the coupons expire. I file the coupon insert with the most recent set on top. 

Each week, I look in the grocery sales flyer to see what's on sale. If I want to match a coupon to a sale item, I look the item up in the coupon database on howtoshopforfree.net. The coupon database shows the value of the coupon, the source date, the source name, and the expiration date. For example, Pepperidge Farm raisin bread is on sale for buy one get one free next week at Roche Bros. I searched for "Pepperidge Farm" on the coupon database. It found a coupon for $1/2 in the 03/25/2012 SS insert. SS stands for Smart Source. (RP stands for Red Plum.) I look in my Smart Source file to find the coupons from 03/25/2012. I find the Pepperidge Farm bread coupon and clip it out.

Once I have my coupons clipped for that week, I put them in my coupon binder. I have my coupon binder organized by store now. Every week, I go through the binder and put only the coupons that I need for that week in each section. I then purge any coupons that have expired. That way, when I get to the store I already have the coupons that I need organized. I find this to be a much saner way to manage my coupons and I can avoid the exploding wallet syndrome.