How I Organize My Coupon Stash by Tara Huff
Hi! It’s Tara from Froogaloo, again! Now that you know where to find coupons, it’s time to get organized! Here is a quick summary of how I organize my coupon stash.
I hate clipping coupons, so I don’t do it unless I need to. Simple as that.
Each week I label the Sunday inserts with the date and file them in my coupon box. I keep separate folders for each type of insert – Smart Source, Red Plum, Proctor & Gamble, or General Mills. I also have a folder for printable coupons that I haven’t clipped yet, restaurant coupons, and miscellaneous coupons and booklets that I receive in the mail.
Back in the day, I would clip all of the coupons my family might use and then file them by category. Now that I’m a super-couponer, I don’t have the time to mess with that (and I want to avoid carpal tunnel syndrome.) I’ve found that my “clip-as-you-need-it” system makes it so much easier to find the coupon I’m looking for. If I’m using a coupon match-up list, I just look up the insert by name & date and clip what I need. Easy.
Or if I need a specific product, such as bread, I go to couponmom.com. You do have to register for this website, but it’s free and so helpful! First, select Grocery Coupon Database on the left, then select your state, and type in the product you are searching for. I love CouponMom because the coupon database is organized by state. The Sunday newspaper inserts do not always contain the same coupons from state to state, so this is a great feature. CouponMom will also tell me the name and date of the insert I need, I locate it in my file, and continue on my merry way.
I also have a small expandable coupon file to store those coupons that get clipped and not used right away. This is organized by category – frozen food, refrigerated food, shelf food, beauty products, medicine, & baby. These categories work well for me, but you can customize this however you need to. The categories can be as specific or vague as you like.
So, maybe my organizational style isn’t really that organized, but it works for me. How do you organize your coupon stash?
