Coupon-Cutting: How Much Do You Really Save?

Coupons are found in magazines and newspapers, and they’re absolutely free (excluding the subscription costs). These small pieces of paper provide buyers with discounts on certain items so that people will buy these brands or products. Certainly, it’s more about marketing the product than giving the buyer a financial advantage. But can these coupons really help you save money?

The Most Popular Coupon Deals

Food, toiletries, cosmetics, and cleaning products have the most widely available coupons and coupon codes, both online and in written material. You can get huge discounts on bulk items like diapers, cereals, canned foods, and large containers of shampoo or detergent. These products are basic necessities which are used regularly, so it only makes sense to promote buying them in bulk.

You can also find plenty of special coupons that can only be used for certain purchases. For example, one coupon requires that you buy 1 Liter of Brand X cooking oil in addition to 1 Liter of Brand Y refined sugar to get a $2.50 discount on the combined price of the two items. If you only buy the oil or just the sugar, you won’t be able to get the discount. These coupons are often made by partner companies so that one of their low-selling products can be paired with a high-selling product and increase its sales.

Comparison of Prices: Original Price vs. Price after Coupon

Here’s an example of a coupon in action. You have a coupon that takes away $0.40 when you purchase 4 cans of Campbell’s condensed soup (any flavor). A single can of Campbell’s Chicken Noodle Soup is worth $1 at Walmart. If you buy four cans, that’s $4 in total. The $0.40 deduction is a 10% discount on your purchase. If you’re lucky enough, you can get 20-50% discounts on particular items using coupons.

Average Savings of Couponing Revealed

The average shopper is able to save around 40-50% of the entire purchase using coupons. Imagine if you apply this to your monthly budget. With a spending budget of $300, you only need to shell out $150 and let the other half be paid for with coupons. This gives you some extra cash for emergencies, personal needs, and small luxuries.

In most cases, shoppers are able to save 60-75% of their purchase costs. Some people ask about reality programs showing buyers saving 100% or even earning free money from their purchases. This is highly unlikely, unless all of the items that you buy are dependent on the coupons that you have in hand. However, you will probably not be able to buy all of the items you need, especially for cooking and personal hygiene, if you just buy based on coupon offers.

To Cut or Not to Cut Coupons

In conclusion, coupon-cutting is a very subjective hobby. Some individuals may say that the time they save from cutting coupons is more valuable than the mere cents they can get from using them. Others say that in the long run, the savings you get from coupon-cutting can add up and affect your finances significantly.

The truth is, it’s up to the person to make coupon-cutting a reasonable undertaking. If you think it’s worth a shot, then by all means, go for it! If you end up disappointed because you weren’t able to get the best deals that you expected for your efforts, then you can just return to buying marked down items and budgeting your finances.