There's an old Jewish story that goes something like this: A rabbi was asked to teach someone the entire Torah (Jewish bible) while standing on one leg. The rabbi replied, "Treat your neighbor like yourself. The rest is commentary."
Well, that's how I feel about couponing.
The basics are to combine a coupon with a sale. That's how you get the great deals, freebies, or money makers. Making it all come together is a little more complicated.
Visit sites like
couponmom or
living rich with coupons which match up stores and the deals which go with coupons. They often have links to a coupon site where you can print your coupons through websites like
Smartsource,
Redplum or
coupons.com. Also, pharmacies like Rite Aid, CVS, and Walgreens are good places to coupon as well. In the age of smartphones there are several apps that you can use to double or triple dip earning additional savings such as
Ibotta or
savingstar. Target has their own app called cartwheel and many supermarkets have their own e-coupons. As you can see, it gets a little complicated, especially when you get into situations where you have to buy multiples of a certain item (with multiple coupons) to earn a discount, have coupon with an app deal, or have a certain scenario where you have to make multiple transactions. It can be fun and financially rewarding, but it also takes some effort.
Within the Five Boroughs it is more challenging since we don't have many supermarkets that have significant deals (such as Associated, Met, Fairway, etc) and I've never seen a NYC supermarket double coupons even if sister stores in the burbs regularly double (or triple) coupons (like ShopRite and A&P). I have gotten great deals and even freebies at Whole Foods since they offer their own coupons (which you can printout online or get a flier in the store) and match that up with a manufacturers coupon. I also love to shop at Bed, Bath, and Beyond since I always carry multiple 20% off coupons with me and can apply that to their clearance items. Love that!!! There's also a Rite Aid, CVS, or Walgreens on every street corner and good deals can be had there. However, if you travel to friends or family outside the area, that's a great time to visit the discount or double couponing supermarkets. Plus, Walmart (which is not in NYC) price matches and takes coupons.
As a disclaimer, I am not a huge couponer. I do use them, especially since my husband works in NJ and has access to supermarkets that double coupons, but I don't get multiple newspapers or buy from clipping services. Nor do I spend every evening scouring the internet for coupons for the weekly deals (though I do so when I can but not as often as I'd like). Mostly, I get my deals by knowing the best price and then stocking up when the lowest price becomes on sale. (More on this in a later post.)
In addition, I'm pretty health conscious and won't buy many packaged goods since they are chock full of additives and preservatives. I'd rather make it by scratch, spend a little more for a better product, or just do without it. Plus, I keep kosher and many packaged foods or meats on sale aren't kosher. However, NYC does have many awesome places to shop, though it does pay to know prices and quality (as always). Aldi's has good prices, though is pretty no frills, folks swear by their produce costs as well as many of their specials. Costco, Manhattan and Brooklyn Chinatowns (for produce and Asian foods), and various ethnic markets, have prices that are exellent. Jacks and Lot Less are discount stores that also sell food and can often have great deals. I cannot emphasize enough that you have to be able to recongize a good deal down to the ounce, otherwise it will be impossible to tell if a product is worth purchasing.
