[Ross]

I was just referred here by a JF member. Great site!!!

My wife actually started doing this just about a year ago and it has saved us literally THOUSANDS of dollars in just this amount of time.

The basic gist of everything is, you buy things that you would normally buy but at a good sale price combined with a coupon. Many times my wife comes home with things that are free to her getting a few cents back because the deal ended up saving more money than the product was being sold for.

Now you can do a lot of this yourself for free if you have the time but there are a number of sites and programs that keep track of the sales for you.
The best site we have found so far is Coupons, Grocery Coupons - The Grocery Game :: Home
The "list" you get every week tells you how good of a deal everything is so you know if you can stock up or just buy what you need.

Honestly we thought it was a scam at first but after my wife came home from her initial shop and told me she saved 40% we knew it was real! Now that we have a decent stockpile of food/ supplies built up we can now easily save between 75 to 100% every trip depending on what you buy.
Right now we probably have enough of everything to last us about 4 months (limited storage space).

Give it a shot! If you're not up for making all of your food this is the only way to go.

 

[MaryV]

I have started just going to the store and looking for sales, I check all the sales and if an item I use is on sale, I buy as much as I can at the time.
i havent had any luck with coupons here in Canada, we dont have the same as in america. the coupons i see are mostly for items i dont use or need, not for food. but I buy meat from the marked down area, where the best before date is just a few days away. I get most of my meat hafl price. for my food storage, I do have a lot of dehydrated veggies now, but I am now storing up canned foods i find on sale. foods i normally eat.

 

[The_Blob]

I trade work on the vehicles of the local mennonites in the area for food, they pay for the parts I just tally up my labor hours & calculate a market rate... the cost of food in the US is still so low that I could probably stop working on their stuff & still get food for probably another 2-3 years.

 

[Herbalpagan]

I heard about that and checked it out, but as we only have 3 supermarkets here, it's not worth it...no Walgreens or some of the other places they mention.

 

[MaryV]

cost of food here is going up. every time i go to the store it seems prices are higher.

 

[Canadian]

I have a connection that owns a bulk food store downtown. Prices are going up on a regular basis. A lot of Canadians don't notice because the increase in dollars seems small. But some of the prices have doubled.

 

[NaeKid]

I was just referred here by a JF member. Great site!!!

My wife actually started doing this just about a year ago and it has saved us literally THOUSANDS of dollars in just this amount of time.

The basic gist of everything is, you buy things that you would normally buy but at a good sale price combined with a coupon. Many times my wife comes home with things that are free to her getting a few cents back because the deal ended up saving more money than the product was being sold for.

Now you can do a lot of this yourself for free if you have the time but there are a number of sites and programs that keep track of the sales for you.
The best site we have found so far is Coupons, Grocery Coupons - The Grocery Game :: Home
The "list" you get every week tells you how good of a deal everything is so you know if you can stock up or just buy what you need.

Honestly we thought it was a scam at first but after my wife came home from her initial shop and told me she saved 40% we knew it was real! Now that we have a decent stockpile of food/ supplies built up we can now easily save between 75 to 100% every trip depending on what you buy.
Right now we probably have enough of everything to last us about 4 months (limited storage space).

Give it a shot! If you're not up for making all of your food this is the only way to go.

Thanks for that link .. I was planning on stockin' up on the staples tonight after work anyway. Now I can zip through it to see what I can get for a better deal .. awesome!

BTW: Welcome to PS!

 

[George_H_M]

This is what my wife and I do as well. She goes threw the circulars , looks threw her coupon keeper. Then we go shopping over the next week. It works out very well. we usually save about 30 to 50 percent off the be for savings price.

Also welcome to the boards Ross.

 

[TheMightyQuinn]

Here's one I like: MoneySavingMom.

It's free and they keep you apprised of any good deals, assuming you live near these stores (and in the US.)

 

[mandiex4]

I also love coupons, I am able to buy our groceries for little or nothing most of the time, but we have a wide variety of stores including the Tinker Commissary. I know it doesn't mean much and I can't eat it, but today I got deodorant for free. I have 4 little ones, so it is important that I save money, that way I am able to get more and have it here for when we really need it! Here are a couple of free sites for couponers and people that like to save money.....

www.couponqueen.com
check out there forums!

Hot Coupon World

 

[MaryV]

i dont think in Canada we have much to save using coupons, not like in the US. for one thing, there arent many coupons, esp for groceries. and usuallly if I find a coupon, it cant be used along with a store sale, you never get an item for free. the coupons I found on that site didnt seem worth pursuing, a one time deal of a dollar off, only one per family, that just isnt worth pursuing. imo. I go to the stores and check for all the sales, and then buy what I use, and how much I can afford at the time. i am getting to know the prices and what store is good for what items. I think thats important, to know prices, and to know which store is good for what. I never used to care or worry about it, it just seemd like a lot of work, now I do care, since i am trying to make a food storage on a limited budget. I am learning...

 

[Canadian]

I have to agree that Canada is not a coupon nation. I find in store coupon programs are uncommon. I personally hate coupons. I often find myself standing in line behind a person who has one and can't find it...

"Must be in here somewhere... How much is the total? Oh, I didn't think it would be that much... Can you put the carrots back. How about the milk too?"

"I'm sorry miss but if I take off too many items I have to get a code from the manager to continue this transaction."

"Okay dearie I've got all night."

-Manager comes and types in the code-

"Where is that five dollar bill... I had it in here somewhere..."

-A lynch mob is silently forming now that the line is twenty people long-

" I know it must be in here somewhere... Oh, I think I put it in my coat..."

Me: (Slapping a five dollar bill down on the belt) "The onions are on me. Now take your stuff and go. NOW!

Like I said I hate coupons. If I have to die of old age it isn't going to be standing in line at the supermarket.

 

[The_Blob]

my personal rule of thumb when choosing which check-out aisle to use is to goto the one with the most men (by themselves) in it... they're usually only buying a few things or lots of the same thing, don't use coupons, and almost always use cash.

Of course, that's terrible advice to anybody getting in line behind ME, because I am a 'coupon-warrior'...

 

[mandiex4]

my personal rule of thumb when choosing which check-out aisle to use is to goto the one with the most men (by themselves) in it... they're usually only buying a few things or lots of the same thing, don't use coupons, and almost always use cash.

Of course, that's terrible advice to anybody getting in line behind ME, because I am a 'coupon-warrior'...

LOL, me too! And, that is my job as a wife and stay at home mom.....save money so that I am able to stay home with my 4 kids (all of which stay home with me). I call myself a coupon freak. I don't always like doing it, but when I can feed my family for less than 50 dollars a month (on great food), I love it. I feel my job as a wife and as someone that is preparing for the unknown is to be able to make our money last and stretch. I am lucky I can shop on base where meat is cheap. I buy it, can it, and we live on it. I buy pretty much everything else on coupons, except milk and veggies. Yes, I am sure I get people behind me that hate me while checking out, but then they see I got 30 items for like 2 dollars and they usually ask how I did it or they don't care because they have there own coupons. And, lol sorry for this, but I don't give a dang, lol, my money, my coupons, my family. I am there to help my husband, saving money is one way to do it. LOL, go to a different lane if you don't like it.

 

[Canadian]

I don't mind coupon holders if they have their act together. When you combine stupid with coupon it form a new substance that is toxic to everyone within fifty feet.

 

[Expeditioner]

I like to shop late at night or early in the morning to avoid waiting. I have managed to get a $300 week grocery bill down to $100 through coupons and specials.

 

[Canadian]

I just buy everything by the case. I also go to the store either very early or late. The problem is that in a 24 hour a day city like Toronto there are crazy people in front of you in line no matter what time of day you go shopping.

I've seen a group of fourteen year old school girls buying armloads of PVC pipe and copper wire at midnight at the Home Depot. Honestly, what are people doing with all this weird stuff at all hours of the night?

 

[mandiex4]

LOL, probably nothing good!

 

[Lucy]

I also save a lot by using the tips on MoneySavingMom.
The Sunday paper with the coupons and ads is the only paper I buy. It does take time to match up the coupons with sales, but it really helps. Especially when you get free things !
I also preserve a lot of food from friends homes, a small garden we grow, and at farmers markets, things like that. My neighbors know I will take most any food and do something with it.
Hope you all find some great deals. We all need help during this economic time.

 

[EvilTOJ]

I've seen a group of fourteen year old school girls buying armloads of PVC pipe and copper wire at midnight at the Home Depot. Honestly, what are people doing with all this weird stuff at all hours of the night?

Building their science project that's due in the morning