How to Organize Coupons

I have been collecting coupons for about three months now and use a binder system. I have a big binder full of sports card inserts which are divided into several categories (frozen, cans & jars, health & beauty, dairy, etc). Into each slot on the insert go my coupons, front and back. I personally do The Grocery Game (www.thegrocerygame.com) so I'm clipping & using coupons every week. If you're already into couponing, you may want to give it a try; I've been able to feed my family on $200/month.

Congratulations on the baby!!!! I never even looked at coupons before I got pregnant; now I've had a little over a year's experience and really like my "system". We were SO happy to hear that we were having a baby, but had only been married a month so we weren't exactly prepared and wanted to use as much wisdom as possible with the money we have. First, I keep a "basic" knowledge of what I have in my kitchen at all times. Then when the sales papers come in the mail, I check to see if there's any big sales on meat or whatever. I clip the coupons for what we use (don't bother with stuff you won't use!). I keep them in a simple little index card box and use the index card tabs to keep them separated. I wrote my categories as food, baby stuff, cleaning supplies, bath (toothpaste, toothbrushes, soap, etc), going out (restaurants or event coupons), and misc. (stuff that doesn't fit in the other categories like ziploc storage containers or catfood, etc). Taking into account what I have at home, what's on sale, and what coupons I have that week, I make a rough menu for the week and then make my shopping list accordingly. If I have a coupon for it, I draw a * by the item on my list so I can keep track of it in the store. I put the coupons that I will be taking to the store (the ones on my list only) in my billfold so I don't have to dig around for what I need at the register. I keep my little coupon box in the same place I keep my shopping list. It really doesn't take much time; in my case it SAVES trips to the store to write out the menu and then the shopping list. The coupons are just one extra step which I do during my son's naptime. I keep the older coupons in front and put newer coupons towards the back so I know what's expiring so I can use them or toss them. I generally do this all on Sunday when I get the paper.

First off, I just have to say CONGRATULATIONS on the baby! (He has an awesome birthday, btw, because that was my 42nd!!) :)

Second, when you are dealing with coupons, you really have to figure out if you have more "time" to invest in what you are buying, or more $$....If you have the $, but not the time, skip the coupons. If you have the time, you just need to make sure that you stay organized with them, and make sure you set them in a singular place every day, like you do with your keys or your purse when you walk in the door.

Coupons can be organized by 1 of 2 ways:
1. Organize by expiration date. I try to keep mine organized so the ones that are going to expire first are in the front.

2. Organize by category. If you do it this way, again, you will want to keep the coupons that are going to expire first in front.

Try not to cut out coupons for things you never or seldom use, unless you know specifically that you are going to use them within that month. It also helps to shop ONLY with a LIST of items you need, and put a star next to the items you have a coupon for (as suggested by the other mom). The next thing is...just take the coupons you will POSSIBLY use for that shopping trip! (It really cuts down on the having to "hunt" for a particular coupon at check-out.)

I've also found a company that I can buy *almost* ALL of our cleaning, laundry, and personal care items for online, and that really saves me $$$ every month!! (Not to mention saving time at the store, especially with a new baby!) If you'd like to know more, just email me at ____@____.com, or you can go to the website www.livetotalwellness.com/J.. Click on "Get More Info"; any information you provide is STRICTLY confidential! I will contact you at your convenience, and get you additional information.

Congratulations on the Baby, again!! Hope to hear from you soon (about anything).

~J.~
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I use a CD organizer. I separate them by category so I can get what I want easily when I shop. And then the weekend before the last day of the month, I go through all my coupons and pull out the ones that are going to expire. I use the ones I want that week and then toss the rest.

Do you play the grocery game? If you are a coupon user, the grocery game is a must! www.thegrocerygame.com

Try www.grocerygame.com - they tell you when to use your coupons and what to buy. The average family can save around 50% once you've been following it for a little while. It's fun and it takes the guesswork out of what coupons to buy, what sales to follow, etc. They do the work for you.

Hi JJ,

I have a great organizer that I got from www.RefundCents.com It is bigger than I thought I would ever need (never really been a couponer) but since I found www.TheGroceryGame.com I love saving money and this bigger coupon box really helps me. This is from TheGroceryGame website:
What is The Grocery Game?
The Grocery Game is a fun, easy way to save hundreds of dollars on groceries each month. TERI'S LIST reveals the "rock bottom" prices on hundreds of products each week and matches them up with manufacturers' coupons for the best possible savings at your local supermarket. The Grocery Game has exclusive databases that track manufacturers' coupons along with weekly sales and specials, both advertised and UN-advertised. With TERI'S LIST, the days of time consuming work required for effective coupon-ing are over. The Grocery Game does all the hard work and research, presented in a quick reference format on the internet each week, as TERI'S LIST. Members log in, spend a few minutes with a pair of scissors, and they're off to win The Grocery Game! - By the way, she knows when your coupons are going to expire so she will direct you to use them when they will get the the best bang for the buck.

I really do save hundreds a month!! I just get a newspaper (I get Houston Chronicle) and she (her name is Teri) does the rest. I get a list each week of what is the best price (combining their special and my coupons) and I decide what I want to get. The box I have for coupons has about 15 different tabs that I can arrange by food type. I used to use a small accordian file, but I just got too many coupons. If you want to know more about that or want to know the tab names, I would be happy to tell you more.

GOod luck finding something that works well for YOU!

M. L
www.WellnessStartsInTheHome.com
www.WorkingWithFamilies.com

I use a 1" binder with CD holders. I have them labeled A-Z and file the coupons alphabetically by product. I look through the circulars on Thursday and prepare a grocery list for the weekend. I then pull all the coupons I will need and file them in an empty CD slot. I take the binder with me when I shop, and then pull any other coupons I may need at the store. It's worked well for me the last two years. I tried other filing methods, and this seemed to work the best.

Hope that helps!

i bought a coupon organizer from walmart! in the office supply section, it was probably around 2 bucks! i organize them by the month they expire so at the beginning of the month i look through them and see if there's any for products i need that month. i usually do 2 large shopping trips per month b/c we get paid on the 1st and 15th every month. so when i make my list is when i look through the coupons. i then put them in my wallet next to either my debit card or cash...whichever i plan to use. i also make an asterik beside the item on my list so i know i have a coupon for it and can make sure i get the right thing. if you're serious about coupon clipping, sign up on every website you can think of! a few off the top of my head are kimberly-clark, J. & J., and of course all the diaper manufacturers! there's also coupons.com, just make sure your store takes internet coupons first. good luck and congrats on your new baby!

Get a book that has the categories in them and sort them out every month. Also at Walmsrt they some times take expired coupons. I frankly have stop cutting coupons. I will only cut them the week I'm goint to the store b/c I have found that I will sometimes buy what I don't need b/c of the coupons.....
Good Luck...

It seems like I'm doing it right the other ladies have the same idea I do. I just wanted to throw in that we have a coupon club in our neighborhood its interesting to see that not everyone uses the same products so you can get first dibbs on the coupons that I find in the bag when it makes it to me. I to go thru them once amonth to throw them away. Every week I make a menu for our meals and a grocery list, I also keep a list on the frig and everyone in the family writes what they are wanting from the store so I then pull out the coupons i'm going to use then off I go. When my kids got old enough it became one of their chores when they were watching tv to cut out coupons then I would file what I wanted and the rest go in the club bag so other neighbors had a shot at them. Good luck

I use a glasses case for my coupons. Mine happens to be a hard clamshell with spring type, but I suppose any type that opens on the side would work. On mine, the coupons stick out a little but the spring tension keeps them in place.

Every week I get what bills I'm paying and I make a grocery list. When I make the grocery list, I make it by what coupons I have. Then I put the coupons I'm going to use with my list in my puse. I always write (coup.) after each item on my list so I don't forget that I have coupons. It works for me. I pray it does for you to. God Bless You and your Family.

I have bought a small organizer that I put in the diaper bag which always goes to the store with us. I put the coupons in the slots by date of expiration... it's like a treasure hunt for my daughter and me when we go shopping to see how much "free money" we have to spend.

J.