Couponers, how do you organize?

[pennymom]

I'm looking for advice from some couponers...but some background first...

I was getting very good at watching sales, using coupons and staying organized, but a couple of years ago I went back to work part time, then we accidentally found a new house (were just driving by and fell in love with it), put our old one on the market, shattered my ankle while we were getting it ready to show , moved with me in a cast, DMom moved in with us, my younger DS started full-time school, both DSs got involved in activities, and I got very active in the PTA. I got away from watching for bargains and hated it every time I paid too much $$$ in a store.

Now I find that I may be laid off in the fall, and probably will take this school year as a SAHM to get us organized. To do that, I plan to return to bargain-hunting mode. I picked up a box-shaped index file with a handle, like a check file but thicker, and some dividers, and am organizing my coupons. I had a check file the last time, and it just didn't hold enough. (I've seen some ideas for binders, but don't think that will work for me.)

So, my questions is, what is the most efficient way you have found to organize your coupons? For example, I used to just have a section for toiletries, but with the pile of coupons I have in envelopes right now, it is too unwieldy to keep all 'toiletry' items together. Do you have any tips for dividing/subdividing sections? I feel like a complete newbie at this, and would love to hear your ideas!

Thanks!!!

 

[travelitis]

I use a 3 ring binder/trapper that zips closed and put baseball card holders in it. The coupons go in the card holders. Sometimes I have to fold the coupons, but it makes seeing my inventory very quick and easy in the stores and when planning. I like a lot of categories. Off the top of my head I have:

bread, canned, cereal, condiments, dairy, entrees, meat, misc., paper & plastic, spices and baking, toiletries, hair & make-up, cleaners, snacks.

Then in some of the categories I'll have sub-categories. Like all yogurt will be together under dairy, and all dental products go together under toiletries.

I use Southern Savers for planning my shopping along with a few other sites.

 

[CajunDixie]

I tried cutting out all my coupons and organizing them in a file box but I ended up with tons of coupons in the box, taking forever to get thru a store and later having to sort thru my box for expired coupons I had not used. Not to mention all that cutting "just in case" I might want to use the coupon someday.....that cuts into my facebook time!

Now I make my lists and clip my coupons as needed at home. I read thru the sale ads online with sites such as couponmom, iheartcvs, and iheartwags. Its so much easier to keep the coupon inserts intact and write the date on the front. Then when I see a store has a sale/coupon matchup I can pull out that insert clip the coupon in put it in that stores envelope. When I'm done I pull the coupons out and organize them pretty quickly in the order of the store layout. If I need an item that is not on sale I use coupontom to see if there is an available coupon for the item and again pull the insert and clip the coupon.

I try to flip thru all the inserts once a week in case something new or really good is about to expire. And I have the Kroger creditcard so they send me coupons based on what I purchase and they also send out lil booklets that will have a few themed coupons that may match up to a recipe in the booklet. When reward points build up they send certificates for $ off your next grocery trip. And fuel points build up based on how how much you spend there too.

My next goal to to make an effort to do more rebates. So far I have followed thru on a couple from Menards and I just sent in the hydro razor one last week.

 

[pennymom]

Thanks, travelitis and CajunDixie! Both ways sound useful, but just as an example, I was in the market on Sunday, and saw a few items on the clearance shelf that I know I had coupons for at home... These were for baby food that I could donate to our local food pantry, and would have been a GREAT deal with the coupons. I plan to go back tomorrow, but hate to make a separate trip. I often find that I'm out with just a list and the coupons that match it, and see I deal that I missed in the ad. Have either of you found a good way to handle that?

 

[hambirg]

I don't clip my coupons either. I have a bag. . actually a scrapbooking one that was meant to organize papers. . .it's basically like a file folder box. I just write the date on the front of the inserts and file them. As far as not having the inserts that you knew you had when you got to the store, I just throw that bag in my trunk when I go shopping. That way if you run into a situation like you did with the baby food, you can just run out to your car. HTH

 

[Rantybaby]

I put my coupons in envelopes. They are labeled:

Restaurant (for eating out)
Food (groceries)
Health & Beauty (Deordant-Lotions-Toothpaste)
Plastics (this one covers Plastics-Paper Goods-Film & Batteries) and
Household (Soft Scrub-Tide-Downey)

I keep these in a small notebook that I carry all the time. I try to buy 2 newspapers every Sunday. Plus I have coupons.com on my computer. I also use club rewards at Albertsons.

 

[Nik's Mom]

I used to use an accordian file folder thing that I found in the $1 bin area at Target. It was 4"by7", so not too big. The problem was, I would always miss coupons as I tried to run through the different tabs.

I just switched to a small photo album. Instead of putting pictures in the pockets, I put my coupons. It's a lot easier to see which coupons I have this way. I put them grouped together, like breads, cereals, snacks, dairy, etc. But I do it in alphabetical order. This is my second week with this system and so far I love it!

 

[ForTheLoveofDisney]

I use a zippered 3 ring binder with baseball card holders. Like another poster said, I have to fold some of my coupons to get them to fit but it's a good system and easy to have with me at all times.

 

[njmom47]

a square plastic container with an attached lid.
It is kinda bulky but I have canvas bags that I use,
and I just put it in there.
I separate into many sub-categories within general
categories. (Ex: frozen, pizza, meals, veggies, etc).

I know what coupons I have, and I match up while reading
the flier and getting my list together.
I do like the notebook/baseball card holder idea though...

 

[danacath]

I use a deep, rectangular baby wipes container. (Hey, I'm frugal and it works. ) My coupons are alphabetized by brand or the prominent name on the package... General Mills, Kelloggs, Colgate, etc. I made dividers out of poster board, all labeled with the letters of the alphabet. When I make my list, I read the store ad and pull out all the coupons I'll use on that shopping trip and put them in the very front part of my container. Makes things very easy when I'm at the store. The container is also able to hold small scissors for coupon clipping, as well as pens, a small pad of paper for lists, and an envelope for rain checks. I also like that it can hold large or odd-sized coupons without a problem. The container fits nicely in the top part of the grocery cart, too.

When I clip coupons from the flyers, I sit at a table with plenty of space. I clip the ones worth keeping and put each one in the right alphabetized pile on the table as it is clipped. When I'm done clipping, I just gather up the "A" pile and file it in the container with the other "A" coupons I already have. Then I gather up the "B" coupons and so on. It might sound more complicated than it really is, but it's worked great for me for many years!