Couponing in Canada

Canadians can be extreme couponers too! The first thing I’m going to discuss is where to find coupons

• Tearpad coupons are found on coupon boards or near the product in store. The best coupon boards are typically found at Real Canadian Superstore, in my experience. It is important to remember to only take as many coupons as you need from these to make sure everyone else gets some.
• Insert coupons are coupon booklets found in some newspapers with flyers.
• Print coupons can be found on various websites (including save.casmartsource.ca and websaver.ca) and also sometimes included in promotional emails directly from companies. The important thing to remember with printable coupons is photocopying is NOT allowed because each coupon needs to have a unique pin in order for stores to be reimbursed.
• Demo/ rep coupons can be found when products are having a demo and often times there will be coupons available. These typically can be found at Walmart on the weekends.

Other things to remember when using coupons:

• Be sure to know your local store's policies on coupons.
• Check your coupons for expiry dates before using them in store.
• Check if there are size restrictions on your coupon to ensure you are buying the correct product.
• Only 1 coupon can be used per product unless you have a London Drugs near you (Western Canada) and then you are able to stack certain coupons.
• Always be polite to cashiers; it goes a long way.

Overage is given only by Walmart (at manager's discretion). You can get overage when your coupon value is worth more than the product. For example, I bought some Dove body wash at Walmart. I pricematched for $2.99 and used a $4 coupon meaning I had $1.01 in overage to use towards the remainder of my purchase. If using a coupon over the value of the product at any other store, the cashier will value the coupon at the same value of the product.

You can also Price match in Canada at certain stores. I use the apps Flipp and Rebee to see my local flyers and then I can Price match using my phone. Each store has different policies but most times Walmart and Real Canadian Superstore Do Price matching. Most New flyers come out on Wednesday or Thursday but you can sometimes see previews on the apps for upcoming flyers so you can plan your shops early.

One of my favourite ways to save money is cash back apps! There are three apps I use: Checkout51, Caddle, and Zweet. These apps allow you to submit your receipt to get money back on certain items; these items change every Wednesday night at 12 and you can purchase and claim your money back on purchases from Wednesday to Wednesday. I have been using these apps for just over a year and have made over $500 back so it is definitely worth checking out.

A mistake a lot of new couponers make is buying too much or buying things you don’t need just because you can get it for a low price. If you do find yourself buying too much you can always donate items to the food bank. One of the easiest things to get for free is toothpaste so I make a lot of donations with toothpaste. Couponing is about saving money but it can also be about giving back.

In order to ensure that companies continue to offer coupons and deals, we as couponers have the responsibility of using the coupons as directed because companies can stop offering great deals if we take advantage of them.

I will continue to write about couponing and saving money in Canada.