There are a lot of places to find coupons, not just the Sunday Paper and you may be surprised how many you’ve missed once you look over this list. But since the Sunday paper is the most common place, I wanted to go over a few things to help you out when purchasing the paper, especially if it’s just for coupons.
Sunday Inserts
Just about every Sunday there is at least ONE coupon insert, if not more. Some major holiday weekends there will not be any coupons but I will let you know ahead of time when that is, so you don’t buy any extra papers looking for the coupons. I suggest before you purchase the paper, you take a quick look to see if all the inserts are there because unfortunately they may be missing.
Not all newspapers will include every insert. You could purchase two different papers in the same town and they may have different inserts. This can be very discouraging for a new coupon user, but after a couple of months you’ll be able to see who carries what. Of course that can change at any time, which is why you should look before you buy.
Unfortunately there are a lot of dishonest people in the world and some will take the inserts from the paper leaving you with none. This is extremely frustrating for those of us that do things the proper way. A quick glance through the paper will help you to identify if they are all there.
If there are a lot of coupons that you think you may use, purchase an extra copy of the newspaper to get more coupons. When I do this, I look for the least expensive paper that has the coupons that I want. This is perfect if you want to stockpile a few items when they are on sale. You can get an idea of what coupons will be in the paper each week from my Sunday Coupon Preview.
Not all coupons that are in my paper, will be in your paper. The values may be different because across the country they offer different savings for the same item. This is what we call regional differences. The prices of items are not the same on the east coast as they are on the west coast. Because of this the manufacturer’s will issue different coupon values to suit the prices in different regions across the US. This can even vary in boarding states. Since I live close enough to Connecticut and Massachusetts, I will sometimes grab a newspaper from either of those states along with my Rhode Island paper and I do find different coupon values from time to time. So keep that in mind when looking at the Sunday Coupon Preview, coupon match ups or the coupon database – the coupon you have may be slightly different in value. I try my best to include all the values that are available but not all of them are in the database, though most are.
The best value for getting newspapers is always to purchase a weekly subscription. If you are using the coupons each week then you’ll make money on this subscription purchase by the money you are saving. So the more you can save/make the better right? If you find you always purchase the same paper each week, then a subscription is the way to go and you’ll save time and gas on going to the store. If there is a week where you want more than one paper, you can always run to the store for a second copy. A great place to get deals on newspaper subscriptions is DiscountedNewspapers.com.
One of your local papers, especially town papers may offer a Saturday edition with coupons included. If you find one of these then you’ll save even more because these are always priced lower than a Sunday paper and will include the same inserts. Check your stores to see if they have any and then you can get them a day early at a cheaper price.
The Dollar Store is also known for carrying the Sunday paper for only – you guessed it – $1.00! Not all of them carry the paper but give your local store a call to see if they do. Then you’ll save the most on the paper and it’ll be easier to grab an extra copy for more coupons.
Looking to learn more about couponing? Check the Coupon Basics for more helpful information. More will be added over the next several weeks.