These are not your mother’s coupons!  You can find coupons now in everything from samples, home mailers, tearpads & blinkie machines at the store, the internet, magazines, and of course – the Sunday paper.  There are even electronic coupons that you can load onto your store loyalty card.

How do you organize them?

I use a hybrid method I developed myself over time.  I maintain a hanging file box and organize the whole newspaper inserts themselves as described by Jill Cataldo on her site, SuperCouponing.com. “SAVE your newspaper inserts. When you get coupon inserts in your Sunday newspaper, save them all. Don’t cut anything out, and don’t remove the pages. You’re going to need the inserts intact in order to be able to find the coupons easily later! Just write the date on the front (I use a Sharpie so it’s really easy to read) — stick the insert in a folder or expandable file and keep it.” ~Jill Cataldo, 7/27/2009.

HOWEVER, I also go through ONE of each insert each week and clip items that I might see on clearance when I’m in a store.  For me, these are usually items like deodorant, shampoo, and the brand of shampoo my husband uses.  I keep these, plus coupons I have printed from the internet or picked up in the store, into a small photo album that holds 120 4×6 photos.  I took small envelopes and labeled them by category (diaper wipes, frozen pizza, etc. – anything that might work with what I had clipped). I put the few loose coupons in their respective envelope and slide it into one of the photo compartments.  This book is now lightweight, but I have some coupons with me, just in case.

Each week, using the store ads as well as sites such as Jill’s, I will make my shopping list. Most of these blogs will indicate which insert to go to for the coupon you need. Then I go into my hanging file system, pull out the insert, clip the coupon and put the insert back in it’s file folder to use later.

I bought a coupon holder for $1 at Target and I labeled each compartment with a specific store (Dominick’s, Jewel, CVS, etc).  The coupons that I plan to use go into the specific store’s section. I also store my store loyalty cards in these sections. Then I slip my list into the front section and I’m ready to shop! On those days I plan on 2+ stops (CVS & Dominick’s for example), I have my list and what I need in their respective places. Quick and easy shopping!

But, each person needs to find what works for them!  Experiment (this is the THIRD method I’ve used since I started)!

Resources:

Abbreviations and Lingo

Guide to e-coupons

Where to find coupons

How to stockpile (coming soon!)