Food warehouse or coupon clipping for large family...

[Julpost]

Which offers more cost savings, a warehouse like Costco or strategic shopping/couponing through something like Couponmom.com?? I'm looking at these coupon sites and my head is spinning. Is it worth the time and effort? I'd do it in a heartbeat if it does result in significant savings. We have such a large family though.....

[Veritaserum]

I've got five kids and I do both. I buy produce, milk, eggs, butter, and some household items at Costco and use coupons at grocery stores for almost everything else. I like pinchingyourpennies.com because they are free and my state's forum is very busy. Someone creates a grocery list for every major store in my area and matches it with coupons or just lists really great sales. It's awesome. :)

[turnin' 360s]

I use a lot of coupons, but have found it tedious to clip them from papers. I use a few from papers, but I buy most of mine off of ebay for a low price. For instance, we go through a lot of yogurt in our house so I buy 20 coupons for yogurt for about $1-2. The coupons are doubled, so I still save a lot by using them. This works great for larger families who may buy a lot of one thing.

[LibraryLover]

I do clip some coupons. I also use Mambo Sprouts coupons.

Edited July 22, 2009 by LibraryLover

[Jane]

I'll be following this thread. I don't bother clipping coupons because they are usually for packaged foods which we tend to not eat a lot of.

 

The warehouse clubs are excellent for gathering large portions of food, especially dried goods like rice, beans, and oatmeal. I love it that their large box of oatmeal is stored in sealed bags too as it ends up tasting fresher than the traditional boxes of oatmeal. If you choose them, be careful with their produce; some of the items aren't that great. Other items we select with more regularity. You'll soon find your favorites and run to the local grocery stores for the other items and things that the warehouse clubs do not carry.

 

HTH or at least stirs more debate to help you consider what is best for your family.

[Shenan]

I find I do much better by shopping sales. The only time we have ever saved any money by shopping at a big box store was when we purchased tires for our vehicle. But now with the Internet dh is able to find better deals on tires. The big box stores DO NOT save you any money!!

 

You do not necessarily have to use coupons in order to save. They are a help but there are plenty of other ways to save on your grocery bill if you do not wish to take the few minutes a week to clip them.

 

I would start by creating a price book. The Tightwad Gazette explains the use of a price book thoroughly. You will be amazed at the difference in prices between stores. When I started a price book many, many, many years ago, I discovered my FAVORITE store that I thought was the better value was actually charging me a $1.00 more for our favorite brand of Peanut Butter. They were also charging more for a few other items.

 

By changing my shopping habits I was already able to save a few dollars. I developed a routine where I shopped at x store one week and then y store the next to pick up the cheaper items. Also by keeping a price book you can see when an advertised special is a great deal or not. When you see the great deal (stores usually call them loss leaders because they are hoping you will spend your money on other overpriced items) you know you should stock up on the deal. I did that this week when hamburger meat went on sale for $1.49 a lb. (it's usually $2.39-$2.99 a lb.) I bought $50 worth (we have a crew of 8 to feed) and froze it in meal sized quantities. It will be enough to last me until the next sale. By keeping track in my price book of sales the next great sale on meat should occur in either Sept. or Oct. (This tracking doesn't always hold true, but 75% of the time it does.)

 

Coupons are great too! I have a few coupon queen stories I could tell, including two 'they paid me' stories, however where we now live we do not have any stores that offer double coupons. So it's really hard to earn a coupon queen status in this area. :D There are also many wonderful rebates out there you can take advantage of. In many states the beer/alcohol companies put out rebates for meat/salty snacks/water/etc. and you DO NOT have to purchase beer for the rebate. Just a receipt and being over the age of 21 is all you need. I did this with my meat purchase. I had a rebate that if I purchased $25 in fresh meat I could get $10 back from the rebate. These rebates can easily be purchased from coupon services on the most popular auction site on the Internet.;)

 

You can also save on your groceries in many other ways. Start cooking from scratch. Don't buy preboxed foods. Bread and even Mac N Cheese IS cheaper and HEALTHIER when made at home fresh. You can garden. You can purchase from pick your own farms. You don't have to buy all those expensive cleaners, especially when vinegar, bleach, and baking soda and elbow grease really do go a long way.

 

Change your shopping habits! Create a price book, and be amazed! ;)

 

Hope this helps!

[LeeAnn Balbirona]

I think it depends on how you cook and what you like to eat. If you prefer a wide variety of meals--or don't mind buying whatever is on sale and adapting your menu to suit--then clipping coupons and stocking up on grocery store deals can be the best way to go. My family has food allergies that keep us on a fairly strict diet. I prefer to keep things simple and prepare pretty much the same meals over and over in a very short rotation. For us, the Costco membership is hugely beneficial. I like the large quantities--we never have too much of any item (OK, other than the bean dip, since only 2 of 6 of us like it!)--nothing goes bad before it is eaten in our house! I pretty much buy the same items every month. I like the rebate check every year! And yes, they do have the best prices on many things. I do head over to Target or Safeway and Trader Joe's or the organic foods co-op a few times a month for specialty items Costco doesn't carry (stevia, gluten-free pastas, iced tea mix, etc). I would estimate 90% of our food and household supplies come from Costco. It just depends on how your family eats.

[Brilliant]

x

Edited July 23, 2009 by OC Mom

[sandellie4]

We do both. Purchasing the paper products and staples such as rice, beans, and flour makes it worth the membership. I clip coupons for other items for some variety. Cooking meals from scratch with items bought on sale saves us quite a bit of money, and having a garden is quite a savings (and fresh veggies taste so much better than store bought) because we really eat a lot of produce and it's very expensive. My next big purchase will be a large freezer, so we can buy more frozen foods when they're on sale (we don't eat much meat, but I'd like to be able to buy frozen foods in bulk and also freeze produce from the garden).

 

Good luck in your search -- saving money is a big deal in these economic times!

 

Sandy

[Dobela]

We do both. I do buy some coupons in bulk from clipping services. And I have been part of coupon trains before where we traded coupons. Coupons can be time consuming, especially at first when you are trying to build up your supply. However, the only way coupons lead to big savings is if you can also combine them to sales in the stores. To do that well you will need to stick with websites that have ads and already match them or get a newspaper. Sometimes buy matching coupons to sales I have reduced my grocery bill by as much as 80%. But then again, most of that savings was on things like Lysol,cleaning supplies, and personal products like shampoo. It is very difficult to get coupons for organic products, most canned goods, or fresh foods.

[lmrich]

The quality for the money is the best at Costco. I also buy the ready to eat meals and it "feels" like we have gone out - the quality is that good and the prep is that easy, but the price is fabulous.

[Shenan]

I don't have a large family, but I'm a pretty good shopper. I disagree with the statement that the big box stores don't save money. It might depend on your buying habits. But I have a Costco membership, and even if I only used it for cheese, I'd save enough every month to cover my membership fees.

 

 

 

I disagree! WHOLE HEARTEDLY!

 

I just purchased 2 lb bags of shredded Mozarella and Cheddar Cheese on SALE for BOGO! That works out to be $3.35 for 2 lbs. How much did you pay for your Cheddar Cheese at Costco?

 

The week before that I purchased 16 oz. packages (24 ct slices) of Kraft American Cheese for $2.00. How much did you pay at Costco?

 

Changing your habits, shopping and stocking up on sales saves you more money than shopping at Costco.

 

However, if you prefer to shop at Costco because of the convenience then by all means shop there.

 

I however prefer to save my dh's hard earned dollars!:)

Edited July 22, 2009 by Shenan
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[LeeAnn Balbirona]

I just purchased 2 lb bags of shredded Mozarella and Cheddar Cheese on SALE for BOGO! That works out to be $3.35 for 2 lbs. How much did you pay for your Cheddar Cheese at Costco?

 

The week before that I purchased 16 oz. packages (24 ct slices) of Kraft American Cheese for $2.00. How much did you pay at Costco?

 

I don't buy shredded cheese or American cheese, so I don't know their prices at Costco. Not *everything* at Costco is the lowest price always. But here is a sampling of the best deals I purchased yesterday:

 

2 gallons whole milk $3.89 ($1.94/gal)

1/2 gallon half-and-half $2.45

whole rotisserie chicken $4.99

5.5 lbs green apples $5.99 ($1.09/lb)

3 pk chai tea concentrate $8.75 ($2.92 ea)

 

Besides that I think the quality of their fresh food is higher than our local grocery stores (your mileage may vary). Since I mainly buy fresh foods (due to health restrictions and special diet) this is important to me. And these are their regular prices. I don't have to wait for something to go on sale to buy it.

 

I do know families that are VERY successful and buying loss-leaders and couponing, but it didn't work well for me. It was both too troublesome (I did Grocery Game for a long time) and too restrictive in what I could purchase (I ended up with lots of packaged processed foods that would no longer be allowed on my family's diet).

 

Whatever works for you though!

[Tutor]

It depends on your eating habits and access to double coupon and box stores, but I don't find coupons to be worth the effort since we very rarely buy name brands and are slowly cutting out a lot of prepackaged foods. Our BJs membership offered a great savings (our membership was a Christmas gift), but since we've moved, the Sam's club membership isn't worth it; it didn't provide the same amount of savings the BJs had and is about an hour away.

 

I have found shopping the loss leader sales, buying veggies in bulk and as drops from farmers markets, buying meat on the sell-by date, and having a freezer and some extra shelf (or under the bed or behind the sofa) space to stock up when we find good deals to offer better savings for a lot less effort.

[LMA]

BJ's accepts coupons and they send you their own coupon books. They also have instant rebates on items. Last month, I bought $150 worth of stuff and had $38 in coupons (manufacturers and BJ's). The mozzarella balls, feta cheese, and blocks of cheddar are the lowest prices around and I can use coupons on those. The vegetables are quite fresh.

[Renee in NC]

I disagree! WHOLE HEARTEDLY!

 

I just purchased 2 lb bags of shredded Mozarella and Cheddar Cheese on SALE for BOGO! That works out to be $3.35 for 2 lbs. How much did you pay for your Cheddar Cheese at Costco?

 

The week before that I purchased 16 oz. packages (24 ct slices) of Kraft American Cheese for $2.00. How much did you pay at Costco?

 

Changing your habits, shopping and stocking up on sales saves you more money than shopping at Costco.

 

However, if you prefer to shop at Costco because of the convenience then by all means shop there.

 

I however prefer to save my dh's hard earned dollars!:)

 

I have never seen prices like that anywhere. I do know that when I lived somewhere where the cost of living was low, the warehouse stores weren't beating the regular stores prices. When I have lived in places with higher costs of living, the warehouse stores had better prices on many items.

 

Making sweeping statements about a situation for everyone is foolish when grocery prices vary so much from area to area. I to want to save my dh's hard earned money, and that includes buying some things at Sam's.

[AuntieM]

The thing about Costco is that you have to be very disciplined to stick to your list! Now that I have 3 kids in the double-digit range who are eating me out of house and home, I find that I can buy in large quantities without waste. The quality of Costco's meat is better than Aldi's or the Super WalMart where I make up the balance of my groceries (things I don't need in bulk or are cheaper elsewhere), except for the few things I buy at Whole Foods, which are items I wouldn't compromise on anyway.

 

I don't clip coupons because I like the store brands of many products and find them to still be cheaper than a name-brand product with coupon applied. What I DO do is get them to price match. I get a mailer every Wednesday from area grocery stores, if I take that in and present it to the cashier at WalMart, they match the lowest advertised price. This is easier than clipping coupons.

[Susan in TN]

I find that in general, I can save more using coupons and using them when the items are on sale. There are many regional websites that do the sale/coupon matchups for me, so I don't have to figure it all out myself. Then I just make out a list of the things that I want to stock up on, and buy a bunch of it.

 

However, I still shop at a warehouse club when I really need something right away, and for shredded cheese (usually $1.60/lb), cream ($2.94/qt), and butter $1.45/lb), which I very rarely find for less, even with a BOGO sale and coupon :). You may want to write down the prices at your warehouse store and see how they compare.

 

Couponing takes time and organization. And usually shopping at several different stores. Sometimes it doesn't seem worth the time for me (I have 6 kids, including an infant) but since groceries can be one of the easiest areas to save on your overall budget, it can be a good way to cut back.

 

It helps if you can buy several papers each week, print coupons from the internet, and have a place to store things - you may find that you end up with 10 jars of peanut butter and 20 packages of pasta when you have good coupons and can buy them on sale.

[Shenan]

I have never seen prices like that anywhere. I do know that when I lived somewhere where the cost of living was low, the warehouse stores weren't beating the regular stores prices. When I have lived in places with higher costs of living, the warehouse stores had better prices on many items.

 

Making sweeping statements about a situation for everyone is foolish when grocery prices vary so much from area to area. I to want to save my dh's hard earned money, and that includes buying some things at Sam's.

 

If you had read my previous post to this comment you would see that I stated that shopping and stocking up on sales and changing shopping habits saves more money than shopping at the big box stores.

 

These were posted sale items that I stocked up on. The post you quoted was in response to someone who strongly disgreed with my statement.

 

I have been shopping sales and stocking up for over 20 years. Our grocery bill is averaging $700 a month for a family of 8!!! (we live in the NOVA area where regional prices tend to be higher than average and have 2 grown men and 2 teenage boys to feed) So far in the 3 weeks of this month I have only spent $500. I have only used $15 worth of coupons and have a freezer and pantry full of REAL food. Not processed boxed junk. Deals ARE to be had, WHEREVER you live! You just have to look for them.

 

Big box stores thrive because people do not wish to take the time to LOOK for and take advantage of the sales at other stores. (this only takes me 15 minutes every Sunday to look over the sales adds in the paper) This is a persons personal perogative to choose which way they want to shop!

 

I was just stating the FACT that you can save more money on your grocery bill without having to join a big box store. Deals are to be had. It is up to the WISE consumer to find them. :) If the consumer so chooses not to look for the deals than so be it.... That is their choice!

 

Resorting to calling my statement foolish is just YOUR personal opinion!

[Quiver0f10]

Which offers more cost savings, a warehouse like Costco or strategic shopping/couponing through something like Couponmom.com?? I'm looking at these coupon sites and my head is spinning. Is it worth the time and effort? I'd do it in a heartbeat if it does result in significant savings. We have such a large family though.....

 

I think a lot of it depends on what you like to eat. My friend feeds her family cheaply by using coupons, but most of the stuff she buys is not stuff my family likes to eat ie: prepackaged foods etc. Also, she has stores available that double and triple coupons. I do not have that option.

 

I do shop at SAMS and a food co-op and then pick up odds and ends at Wal-Mart. For me, SAMS and the co-op save me the most money for the types of foods we eat.

[Tammyla]

I prefer the warehouse for savings and convenience. The savings usually matches the coupon clipping and extra store running around needed without the extra work. I still keep a few coupons, but my main yearly savings is at the Sam's.

[Jennifer in MI]

I'm firmly in the "it depends" camp! I found that shopping at Sam's actually cost me more money. But it was because I'd see thing that I thought were deals there and buy it, when it was actually cheaper at my grocery store.

 

I spend about $100/week on my family's food. (There are 6 of us.) I buy all my grains from my food coop. That really helps!

 

I buy quite a bit from Trader Joe's - no coupons there. They're just the cheapest around!

 

I'll buy what's left from Kroger. I do check couponmom.com and if there's anything free or next to free, I'll buy some as a treat or to donate. I also know when things go on sale and stock up (someone else already mentioned this).

 

I don't buy cleaning products - I use vinegar and water.

 

The biggest/best money saving thing I do is to shop the sales at CVS and Rite Aid. I don't pay for anything there! I get all our razors, shampoo, conditioner, school supplies, TP, sometimes milk (last week it was $0.99/gallon!), deodorant, cereal (a real treat around here - this week I'll be getting 3 boxes of Kashi for free!), etc, etc, etc. I combine coupons, sales and their rebate programs. Many items actually MAKE me money. It's worth it for us!

[Brilliant]

x

Edited July 23, 2009 by OC Mom

[Brilliant]

x

Edited July 23, 2009 by OC Mom

[FO4UR]

It depends:iagree:

 

Shopping in the big box stores takes discipline and knowing the price per unit at the grocery store.

 

The storebrand staples (milk, bread, eggs, apples, potatoes, pasta.....) are often cheaper at the big box stores. Brand name stuff - notsomuch! You have to actually eat what you buy - it's not worth it to buy apples at a cheaper price per apple if you end up wasting 1/2 of them. So, you have to look at what you need and price it out.

 

The temptation at those stores is buying more than you need, and stuff you don't need at all b/c "it's such a good deal."

[BamaTanya]

I save more money by purchasing only the sale items -- even stocking up to keep my pantry supplied for the future.

Good luck!

[Renee in NC]

It depends:iagree:

 

Shopping in the big box stores takes discipline and knowing the price per unit at the grocery store.

 

The storebrand staples (milk, bread, eggs, apples, potatoes, pasta.....) are often cheaper at the big box stores. Brand name stuff - notsomuch! You have to actually eat what you buy - it's not worth it to buy apples at a cheaper price per apple if you end up wasting 1/2 of them. So, you have to look at what you need and price it out.

 

The temptation at those stores is buying more than you need, and stuff you don't need at all b/c "it's such a good deal."

 

The things that I can not find cheaper shopping sales include yeast, flour, spices, beef and chicken bases, sugar, grits, oatmeal, oil, honey, and rice. I don't buy many convenience foods, so I don't know how they add up. I really pay attention to unit pricing (both at the big box stores and sale items.)

 

I did try the Grocery Game a couple of years ago, but I found that coupons are for foods I don't normally buy. I rarely buy cereal or prepared foods.

 

Here in FL, buying produce at actual produce stores are much cheaper than other stores - that was something I didn't have in NC.

 

There is a scratch and dent store near my brother's that I want to try out.

 

I think that a frugal shopper's tips and tricks encompass all types of stores, but you have to really know your prices to see if you are getting a low price or not.