Day 3: Where to Shop

Welcome to Day 3 of my 5 day's of couponing series. Here is a reminder of what we will be covering during this series. If you are new to NWA Deals, please check out the great information in these posts.

Day 1 - Where to Start
Day 2 - How to find High Value Coupons
Day 3 - Where to Shop
Day 4 - How to get everyday items for FREE
Day 5 - Getting Paid to take things home

Today I am going to give you a run down of local and national stores that I shop at. I will try to cover coupon policies (To the best of my knowledge) as well as what I typically buy at these stores and my strategies for shopping and getting the best deals.

Walgreens has some great deals on Toiletries and Cleaning Supplies, I also tend to purchase any Makeup, Lotion, Shampoo or Conditioner at Walgreens. This is a great place to get things Free if you know the right strategies.

Coupon Policies: This can get really confusing but I will try my best to explain it.

You can combine 1 Walgreens Coupon with 1 Manufacturer's coupon

Walgreens Does accept Internet Coupons

You can use 1 Manufacturer's coupon or Register Rewards per item (So if you have 4 items you can have a total of 4 coupons and register rewards. The 5th coupon or register reward will not go through)

If the value of the coupon exceeds the price of an item the value of the coupon is adjusted down to the price of the item.

(This is where it get's tricky. Most store managers and cashiers will not always do this in our area, however I have emailed the District Manager and Corporate about this and have received the exact response listed here, so if you have a problem, I would contact them through the walgreens website)

You Can use a coupon to purchase an item that gives a Register Reward as long as it is not from the same deal, or the same manufacturer.

If there is a B1G1 Free Sale you can use 2 coupons because you are purchasing 2 items.

You can also use a B1G1 Free Coupon with a B1G1 Free Sale to get 2 items Free.

Register Rewards are also a great way to make money at Walgreens. If you want more information you can check out my post on Understanding Walgreens

Walmart is great because they accept most coupons. There has been some confusion in our area about Walmart accepting Internet coupons. I suggest Printing the Walmart Coupon Policy found on their website and keeping it with you in case you have a problem.

Walmart also does Price Matching so I love to do this with items listed in competitors ad's especially if I have a coupon that another store won't accept. (Typically an Internet coupon)

I buy a lot of Grocery Staples at Walmart. I keep my eyes open for Sales and try to use coupons most of what I buy. I rarely buy Health and Beauty items at Walmart unless they are on rollback or clearance, I have found I can get these items for less at Walgreens.

Target has great deals! I buy all kinds of random stuff at Target including some food and lot's of baby stuff.

One of the best ways to save is to combine Target Store Coupons with Manufacturer Coupons.

You can find Target Store Coupons Here and on Hot Coupon World

Target does accept Internet Coupons as long as they scan. If the Target Store coupons won't scan, they will type in the number and that typically works better.

I rarely shop at Kmart unless they are running Double Coupon events. Each time these run the rules change, so stay tuned for the details and upcoming events. Last weeks event went up to and including $2.00.

You can get great deals on Cleaning Supplies, Food, and Health and Beauty Items during these double coupon events. Just watch out, sometimes the prices are enough higher that even with the coupon you aren't really saving.

I always look for Free or almost Free items during these events.

Harps has a great ad every other week. You can check out great coupon match ups here on NWA Deals every other Wednesday.

In NWA: Harps Doubles Coupons up to and including $0.50

In the River Valley: Harps Doubles Coupons up to and including $0.60

Harps in NWA does accept Internet coupons as long as they scan. The only coupon policy I have found posted for harps is Here.

I only purchase items at Harps that are on sale or a great deal with a doubled coupon.

I always scan the inserts for coupons that are $0.50 and cut them out, I try to keep these together so that when I get to Harps I can check the prices on these items.

Also, Harps regularly runs specials in store that are not advertised so that makes them a great place to bring your coupon binder to.

I have found that the Harp's in NWA all run different promotions. The ones that have gas stations run promotions to save money on gas, others run promotions with catalina deals when you make a purchase and others tend to have items marked down lower.

Typically I purchase sale items, double coupon items and meat at Harps. If you go early in the morning you can find meat marked down. I always stock up when I find good deals and store this in our freezer.

Did you know CV's is the Same as Marvin's IGA in Fayetteville and Lowell? I do weekly match ups for CV'/IGA here at NWA Deals. You can get some great deals at these stores, but you have to keep your eyes open. Also, I have found some great coupons on the shelves at these stores so make sure you keep your eyes open when you are shopping, you might find something you didn't plan on buying when you walked in.

Both CV's and Marvin's IGA double coupons up to and including $0.50

CV's accepts Internet coupons, but IGA does not

I typically price match the IGA ad at Walmart if I have an internet coupon and if I have a double coupon then I run into the store when I am already shopping in the area.



Aldi's does not accept Manufacturer's Coupons. Some of my favorite things to buy at Aldi's include Fruits and Veggies. I also like to buy Milk there because it is raised without added hormones and it's always cheaper than Walmart or Target.

There are lot's of other great stores to shop at in NWA that I did not mention above. Here are some of my other favorites:

Little Debbie Store in Tontitown, Big Lots (Watch for 20% off your purchase coupons), & Dollar General (Accepts Manufacturer's coupons),