Ive been working on and off all day getting the coupon mess organized, had 6 weeks of inserts not filed at all, just laying in a heap, yuck…in the binder I had “super inserts” from all the way back to July…oops…like I said yesterday, I need an intervention =)
Ive tried a few different methods of coupon organization over the years and I go back and forth and in between on what I like to use the best. Alot of how my organization is depends on my current circumstances and how much time do I have or want to devote to organizing everything. Most weeks the answer is not much. Here are the 2 most common methods of organizing your coupons:
Insert Filing
This is a really simple method of organization, first take the weeks inserts and lay then out in a row.
Next combine the inserts in to a “super insert”
Write the date on the front of the “super insert” and file it away… when you visit Save The Coupons for your weekly CVS Deals or Walgreens Deals and you see something like “use $o.75/1 Post Cereal, 12/5 SS” all you need to do is pull out your 12/5 SS find the page and clip it! Really easy.
Binder Method
This one takes a little more work, but pays off big when your shopping the clearance aisle or come upon an unexpected sale.
To make a coupon binder you need:
- a 2″ or 3″ binder
- page dividers with tabs.. You want to label the tabed dividers with categories such as dairy, produce, canned, meats, snacks, cereal, canned goods, baking… some people even do the tabs alphabetical by manufacturer…but that’s a little much for me!
- baseball card pages or photo pages
First build your “super insert” then go through and clip out all the coupons of items you know that you buy or would buy if it was really inexpensive or free. Dont throw out the rest of the insert, just wite the date on the font and file it in your coupon insert file.
Next slip the coupons into the baseball card pages filed under the appropriate category… Its pretty simple, when you go thru the weekly match ups on Save The Coupons, you can just open your binder and pull out the coupons you need to get the deal, if the coupon isn’t in your binder you know you used it or it may have been regional.
Heres why I love to use the binder method….It forces you to become “intimate” with the coupons, you KNOW what you have coupons for in your binder because you’ve seen them multiple times… you saw them when you made your “super insert” and again when clipping them, and then again when filing them into your binder. When you know what coupons you have, you can score even more deals! You can go thru the clearance aisle and when you see a great product marked down, you can flip open your binder and pull out the coupon then and there!
Take your binder one step further:
At the front of my binder I have a few folder pockets. I have one folder for each store that I frequent, Walgreens, Target, CVS, Pick n Save and Piggly Wiggly. In each folder I put the current weekly ad and I have a copy of the coupon policies for each store. For Walgreens I also keep my Monthly coupon book in the folder. For Target, I also slip in any “target mailers” or Target IPs or coupons….This is also where I keep any store Catalina’s, gift cards or rain checks.
In the back I have my coupons sorted into several categories, this is how mine is set up…
FREE
Dairy/Refrigerated
Meat
Frozen
Boxed and Starches
Canned
Baking
Snacks and Candy
Drinks
Condiments
Health and Beauty
Paper items
Cleaning supplies
Medicines
Baby
Pet
Misc Houshold
When I go into the store I always take my binder, that way I’m prepared and always have everything I need with me… its like my baby, but it doesn’t talk back…
