How to Coupon When You Are a Working Mom {my method}
Couponing is an amazing way to save money, but it can also very quickly turn into a full time job. The people you see on shows like “Extreme Couponers” often work from home, stay at home moms, or just have extra time on their hands and this means they have more time than many working moms to search out deals, find coupons and even clip the coupons they will be using. {this is not to say that you can’t do it, but as a working mom myself… it can be hard to juggle a ton of deals plus everything else!}
Don’t feel defeated, though! There are plenty of ways you can coupon effectively even if you are a working mom. Here are some tips on how to coupon when you are a working mom.
How to Coupon When You Are a Working Mom
So many times I get asked how do you save a ton of money each week on such little time? Well, here’s a few of my tips:
Focus on 1-2 stores rather than all of them in your area. You will “get good” at shopping those stores and knowing their sales cycles and coupon policies and shopping with coupons will get easier. You won’t have to be over-whelmed with too much at once. When I teach coupon classes or just give coupon advise, I always tell start with one store. It’s always important to learn the ins and outs of each store. Here at A Mitten Full Of Savings, I have narrowed my blog to focus only on a few key stores. Meijer, Kroger, Kmart/Sears, Target and then online deals. I post matchups for all the stores, but all of the best deals/hot deals are for these targeted stores. And I only shop at a few stores myself. It helps saves on time and I learn everything about that store.
Join forums for your local area that deal with local stores and savings. You will often find people talking about the sales in your area and you can get out and get them as they are mentioned without having to do all the work. Most other couponers are happy to help. Seriously this can be a HUGE lifesaver. It can also be overwhelming at time to see a ton of deals posted in these forums, but if you are just focusing on one or two stores then it works! I run a small forum for Meijer only deals, Kroger only deals, then a regular coupon group. Feel free to join any or all of them!
Follow deal blogs. You will be alerted to savings that are great as soon as they are known. Make sure to subscribe to their emails and newsletters, too, so you can get daily savings delivered to your inbox. You will also find coupons available to print right from home with no searching needed. Take a moment to subscribe to this blog to get all of the best deals that are posted daily!
Focus on specific products. These can be products you use the most of or products that you are trying to save the most money on. Sales and coupons happen in cycles every year and season. If you focus on a few specific products, you can build a stockpile of them when they are on sale and take a break the rest of the time. This allows you to still save big with coupons, but not spend too much time doing it.
Stay organized. Keep coupons together in categories and watch for sales when they happen. Then, when they do, you will have coupons ready to run out and quickly grab what you need. Make sure you go through your coupon stash once a month or so, so you don’t end up with a bunch of coupons that are expired when the deal comes along. A few things I do to stay on top of my coupon organization is cutting out coupons and organizing while at the dentist office, sitting in the carpool lane, soccer practice and any time you have a few moments to spare.
Using digital apps for coupons and cashback. A great way to start saving money and a way you don’t have to clip coupons and keep them organized is to go the digital route. We have so many new cashback apps that will you help you save money on groceries, hygiene items and more. Also most stores have digital coupons that are the same manufacturer coupons that you can find in the store. Like Kroger has the Plus card where you can load digital coupons (and they give out a freebie every Friday). Meijer has the mperks program– where you load digital coupons. Target has the Cartwheel App and so forth.
Related: Top 5 {PLUS} Apps To Save Money On Groceries
My Method: I spend about 2-3 hours per week looking for my own deals, including shopping for them. I usually stick to shopping at Meijer, Target or Kroger. On a HOT week (when I need to stock up on hygiene products) I may add Walgreens. I don’t shop at these stores every week. I do have a stockpile on hygiene products, paper products and cleaning supplies. I also shop at my local Farmer’s market (you can find great deals on produce, meat, and more).
I do not cut coupons. (well, I do cut printable coupons, but not the ones from the papers). I order my coupons (from the paper) by the coupon. It comes to my already cut and clipped (it’s 10 of the same coupon for $1.50). I order via Wiz Clipz and to me this is the biggest TIME saver. My time is very important to me. Time= money in my book. I used to spend about 20 hours a week cutting coupons, running after every deal, organizing coupons, and putting deals together. THAT process is exhausting and can take a lot out of you. YES, you’re still saving big money.. but at what cost? With my method, I still save 50-90% off. We are a family of 5 and keep our budget within $300-$350.
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