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Tips, Tricks, and Sites I've Found to Save Money
Most of the time I consciously go out and look for deals. I'm a cheap skate. If I could have it for free and have it be legal, I would do it. So when I find things on the cheap by surprise, I'm pretty darn happy. Here are some things I've found:
+ Generic brand items - Not all generic brands are equal, but a lot of them are. Check the back of label of your favorite brand of whatever and you will more than likely find that the ingredients are exactly the same and in the same quantity.
When it comes to non-food items this works out great. Target is my favorite store for non-food generics. You can get a 1 liter of mouthwash for about $2.80 (something) generic and almost $6.00 for that same brand. Contact solution, toothpaste, sunscreen, paper plates, sandwich baggies, multivitamins, most of these items are exactly the same, just cheaper, and sometimes up to a few dollars cheaper.
As far as food items go, that's a little iffy. Some things I've found taste good, such as "pop tarts" (toaster pastries) and cheese, but some things like cereal (namely the Walmart version of Fruity Pebbles) I would recommend going brand name on a specialty type of cereal.
Their basic breakfast items (raisin bran, shredded wheat, oatmeal) taste great to me, but the "special" ones they try to duplicate don't taste the same (Fruity Pebbles, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Cap'n Crunch). It all depends on you and your taste buds, however. You may say they taste the same, and that means savings for you.
+ Old Navy Weekly - Are you in serious need of a new wardrobe? Every week Old Navy puts out various coupons for use in their store. ($75 off $100, 15% off purchase) The downside is you only get one a week and there are a limited number of quantities. Once they're gone, they're gone. They're also 'hidden' around the site, so you have to click around to find them. They make it a sort of game. Sometimes you move things around, sometimes you click things a number of times. It varies each week.
The really good ones, such as the $75 off of $100 go fast (obviously) and are even more limited than the others and are harder to find. The 'regular ones' tend to be more in quantity. If you find a coupon it will ask you to fill out your name and e-mail address (twice for verification). Do this with the first one you find. You don't have to keep it but it makes it easier. You can keep hunting, unless the coupon you find is the one you want.
Pay attention to the very top, it cycles through the coupons they have available. You can send it to your e-mail address or print it out right then and there. You can also send one to a friend.
+ Printable Coupons (blog)- Very nice and helpful site. I found a great number of deals. The webmistress breaks them down by category (health and beauty, home, etc), when they expire, and provides links to the coupons. I got a coupon for Office Depot there and saved $20.00 on a $100.00 purchase for office supplies for work.
+ Retail Me Not - Coupon Codes! Use them for your online purchases, such as Amazon.com or PetCo. Check the percent of success code on the side, but don't be afraid to use it even if it has a smaller success rate. It might work for you.
+Deal Seeking Mom.com (Not Just For Moms)- Moms have to save more money than most because of all the resources they have to devote to their children. I found a $2 coupon off of some movies there, including Underworld and Girl Interrupted. On the main page, check out the links on the bottom right side for other sites.
+University/Community Libraries - Books...well yeah, you can check those out, but some places, like my university library, also have up-to-date movies to rent, all for the price of a library card (or in the case of some universities, for free). The downside is they may not have what you want or they may only have one copy. And if everyone wants that movie too, you're out of luck until whoever checked it out brings it back. But it's free, mostly.
+ Redbox - If you are in some store and you see a little red box with 'Redbox' on it, you are in luck. Redbox is a place that offers movies for $1 rental a day. This saves you money if you bring it right back. And even if you keep it a couple of days, you only have to pay a couple of dollars, verses more for new rentals at big movie rental stores.
On top of that, you can also get movie rentals for free with Redbox codes at places like Inside Redbox . This amount covers the initial rental fee of $1 for a day. After a day they start to charge you, but if you rent the movie and take it right back, then you should get it for free. Minus gas, I suppose.
Con wise, you have to put in your credit card. This may be a turnoff for some people. There is also a limited selection of movies in each kiosk, primarily new releases. If you want Casablanca , sorry.
Do you have any other tips/sites/etc? Let me know!
Tips, Tricks, and Sites I've Found to Save Money
Most of the time I consciously go out and look for deals. I'm a cheap skate. If I could have it for free and have it be legal, I would do it. So when I find things on the cheap by surprise, I'm pretty darn happy. Here are some things I've found:
+ Generic brand items - Not all generic brands are equal, but a lot of them are. Check the back of label of your favorite brand of whatever and you will more than likely find that the ingredients are exactly the same and in the same quantity.
When it comes to non-food items this works out great. Target is my favorite store for non-food generics. You can get a 1 liter of mouthwash for about $2.80 (something) generic and almost $6.00 for that same brand. Contact solution, toothpaste, sunscreen, paper plates, sandwich baggies, multivitamins, most of these items are exactly the same, just cheaper, and sometimes up to a few dollars cheaper.
As far as food items go, that's a little iffy. Some things I've found taste good, such as "pop tarts" (toaster pastries) and cheese, but some things like cereal (namely the Walmart version of Fruity Pebbles) I would recommend going brand name on a specialty type of cereal.
Their basic breakfast items (raisin bran, shredded wheat, oatmeal) taste great to me, but the "special" ones they try to duplicate don't taste the same (Fruity Pebbles, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Cap'n Crunch). It all depends on you and your taste buds, however. You may say they taste the same, and that means savings for you.
+ Old Navy Weekly - Are you in serious need of a new wardrobe? Every week Old Navy puts out various coupons for use in their store. ($75 off $100, 15% off purchase) The downside is you only get one a week and there are a limited number of quantities. Once they're gone, they're gone. They're also 'hidden' around the site, so you have to click around to find them. They make it a sort of game. Sometimes you move things around, sometimes you click things a number of times. It varies each week.
The really good ones, such as the $75 off of $100 go fast (obviously) and are even more limited than the others and are harder to find. The 'regular ones' tend to be more in quantity. If you find a coupon it will ask you to fill out your name and e-mail address (twice for verification). Do this with the first one you find. You don't have to keep it but it makes it easier. You can keep hunting, unless the coupon you find is the one you want.
Pay attention to the very top, it cycles through the coupons they have available. You can send it to your e-mail address or print it out right then and there. You can also send one to a friend.
+ Printable Coupons (blog)- Very nice and helpful site. I found a great number of deals. The webmistress breaks them down by category (health and beauty, home, etc), when they expire, and provides links to the coupons. I got a coupon for Office Depot there and saved $20.00 on a $100.00 purchase for office supplies for work.
+ Retail Me Not - Coupon Codes! Use them for your online purchases, such as Amazon.com or PetCo. Check the percent of success code on the side, but don't be afraid to use it even if it has a smaller success rate. It might work for you.
+Deal Seeking Mom.com (Not Just For Moms)- Moms have to save more money than most because of all the resources they have to devote to their children. I found a $2 coupon off of some movies there, including Underworld and Girl Interrupted. On the main page, check out the links on the bottom right side for other sites.
+University/Community Libraries - Books...well yeah, you can check those out, but some places, like my university library, also have up-to-date movies to rent, all for the price of a library card (or in the case of some universities, for free). The downside is they may not have what you want or they may only have one copy. And if everyone wants that movie too, you're out of luck until whoever checked it out brings it back. But it's free, mostly.
+ Redbox - If you are in some store and you see a little red box with 'Redbox' on it, you are in luck. Redbox is a place that offers movies for $1 rental a day. This saves you money if you bring it right back. And even if you keep it a couple of days, you only have to pay a couple of dollars, verses more for new rentals at big movie rental stores.
On top of that, you can also get movie rentals for free with Redbox codes at places like Inside Redbox . This amount covers the initial rental fee of $1 for a day. After a day they start to charge you, but if you rent the movie and take it right back, then you should get it for free. Minus gas, I suppose.
Con wise, you have to put in your credit card. This may be a turnoff for some people. There is also a limited selection of movies in each kiosk, primarily new releases. If you want Casablanca , sorry.
Do you have any other tips/sites/etc? Let me know!
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