Get on the coupon train

So how do you build up your coupon stash?

There are several different ways, and most people use one or more of the following:

Sunday inserts
The best way to know what newspaper your Grocery Game listmaker uses is to contact Customer Service at the Grocery Game. It’s most likely the newspaper with the largest circulation in your geographical area.

It’s very surprising the difference between our local paper and the Chicago Tribune, which is the paper that is used for my lists. The inserts look the same on the outside, but they are vastly different on the inside. Seems all the good coupons go to the larger papers. And subscribing to just the Sunday edition is the cheapest way to go if you are going to get an outside paper. I get two copies of the Sunday Chicago Tribune.

Family, friends, and coworkers:
Ask your family, friends, neighbors, and coworkers for their unused coupon inserts.

Clipping services
I’ve used a clipping service a couple of times. I use them for specific items that I’m very brand picky on and want to stock up on a lot. A couple of reputable (endorsed by Grocery Game) clipping services are

TheCouponClippers.com
TheCouponMaster.com

I’ve used both and found them to be very fast and very accurate. There are other clipping services as well as clippers on Ebay. (It’s illegal to sell coupons so you are essentially paying for their time to clip the coupon). Prices vary by the value and popularity of the coupon. There is usually a $5 minimum.

Magazines
Several magazines have coupons inside, but one that I’ve found to have a LOT of coupons is called “All You.” It’s published by Walmart, although the only way you would know that is that Walmart is the only place you can buy it (I believe K-Mart has their own version of this type of magazine). You can also subscribe. It’s actually a pretty good women’s magazine, and there are usually about $40 worth of manufacturer’s coupons inside, which can be used at any store – not just Walmart. Pick one up and see if it meets your needs. Keep in mind, however, that those coupons will not be on the Grocery Game list. It’s just a good way to get coupons for additional items that you may need or want.

Coupon trains
A coupon train is simply a list of people who exchange coupons. Each week, each “rider” sets aside the coupons that they won’t use and then sends them on to the “rider” after them. Each week as it moves along the list of people, that envelope picks up extra packages of coupons from each person on the train. When a rider receives it, they remove the coupons they don’t want, put their coupons into the package, and send it on to the next rider. Each week, every rider gets a new package of coupons with increasingly more coupons inside.

Some trains are nationwide, which gives you a very wide selection of coupons that might not have been published in your area. Some are regional, which usually has a faster turn around. Some trains are dedicated to food items only or to coupons over a certain value. The “conductor” (the person that starts the train) can set whatever rules they wish. It’s a good way to pass on coupons that you won’t use and get some that you might.

You can look for a train to join at the message boards at the Grocery Game.