Do you ever have something hit you and all of a sudden you're all over it? Like it's suddenly the best thing since sliced bread & you don't know why you've never been into in before? Well recently that happened with CVS coupons. Now, my favorite drugstore is Walgreens...no real idea why. I attribute it to like the feeling I have when it comes to Coke over Pepsi (definitely Coke) or the fact that I will only go to the Tire Barn in my town because they've always helped me with my tires - it's a mix of preference & habit. I just feel like Walgreens understands me. CVS just isn't my jam. But you know what is my jam? Saving money. And CVS has the easiest to understand coupon system. So I'm in love now.
Recently I threw away a $3 Extra Bucks coupon and was devastated. Isn't that how you know you're in love? When you lose something & just die a little inside? Well, I'm in love with CVS coupons. So, as you know, I've been really digging the cosmetic industry lately and as it goes into Summer I really want to try all the new products from various drugstore lines. I've made a resolution to only buy makeup if I have a coupon or there's a really good deal in the store. If you're interested in saving a significant amount but you're not ready to have TLC come to your house to film a show about you...CVS is a great place to start. Here's what I've learned so far - keep in mind these are things I've learn as I've just gotten into CVS coupons...so I'm no expert!
Sign up for their rewards card - Not only do you get coupons at the end of your receipt but you can scan your card at their little coupon box & get other coupons (like $5 off $15 or $3 off a Physicians Formula product, etc). You can also earn Extra Bucks if you're a part of their Beauty Club (I believe you have to sign up for that separately). It's just pretty fantastic to get like free money to shop around with! If you register your card you'll get coupons in emails too.
Extra Bucks are like money in the bank - CVS has deals every week where if you buy so much $$ of a certain brand or product you get Extra Bucks back. These print at the end of your receipt at check out & usually expire in a month or so. So literally, after shopping, you have money to spend on your next trip. You can maximize your Extra Bucks by using those bucks on other products that have Extra Bucks rewards as well, the next time you shop. So you're walking into the store with $5 in your pocket! That's what sold it for me...I was cleaning out a few of my purses & found a lot of Extra Bucks receipts that I just didn't use and didn't care about! Man...that was money in the bank!
Coupons at CVS are easy, it's not a waste of your time - Even if you just use the Extra Bucks rewards randomly & don't purposefully purchase items that give Extra Bucks....it's not a waste of your time to tear off the bottom of your receipt & save those Extra Bucks for later. You can take couponing as far as you'd like, but simple money in the bank as I see it is not a waste of your time. Saving money is never a waste of time! Also, go to the scanner...it doesn't hurt to see what coupons are available while you're in there. There might be a coupon on something you're going in for. You don't have to spend hours preparing...unless that's what you're into.
You might not be going on a shopping spree - I know that sometimes you just want to go buy stuff.....have a little bit of retail therapy.....but sometimes it's better to buy just one thing using your coupons. For example, I bought a CC Cream & Mascara from Revlon for $0.73 (seventy three cents) with a bogo 50% off, MFG coup for $2 off eye product & MFG coup for $2 off foundation/face product, $5 Extra Bucks, $5 off two Revlon products CVS coupon from the red box scanner thing, & $3 off $15 cosmetics coup from the scanner......seventy three cents, I'll say it again. It would have been better if I managed to get Extra Bucks on top of that but I'm learning. I know a lot of other couponers want to stockpile, but that's not what I'm shopping for. I'm not going to purposefully use all my coupons just because I have them...I'm mainly focusing on beauty items here. Also I've never been a fan of keeping things in a stock pile....I got a good deal on Pantene shampoo once & now I don't even want to use whats left of it because I found that Suave Moroccan Infusion is my favorite. I did once buy three of the Suave shampoos because I was out & knew I would use it in order to get Extra Bucks rewards. Another side note - if you're looking for the best price on a single item, CVS won't have it. For that go to Wal-Mart or Target, but you can use the specific CVS coupons to get things at ridiculously low prices!
Stop in often - Right across from where I grab lunch everyday is a CVS so I pop in, scan my card, check the coupons, and leave. It's not a waste of my time because it's literally a driveway away. You can scan your card about 2-3 times a week I've realized so sometimes I'll pop in & buy something or just stock up my coupons to pick something up on the weekend. Also coupons are good for a little while so you can totally pick & chose them to use with sales during the week. You can even make it a game if you want!
Multiple Transactions are allowed - While I've never done this you totally can do multiple transactions at a register. While I was reading up on CVS coupon policy one blogger mentioned doing a transaction then moving the back of the line - because do you really want to be behind someone doing 3 transactions at a register? Probably not. So coupon considerately....if you get what I mean.
I folded it over bc I bought Mother's Day Cards too and couldn't fit the savings in the frame.
Stack coupons - Now this might be a little too far but you can use CVS coupons as well as Manufacturer Coupons in your purchase. I tried this out in the example above & as you can see it's one MFG coup per item....so you can totally mix, match, & save!!! My receipt is above with that example.
So that's what I've learned so far from trying to save money on my beauty product habit! CVS has an easy coupon system so if you're trying to get into saving money or you want to see if you don get a coupon high check it out. There are tons of resources out there to learn from as well - my favorite place for drug store deals & info is a blog called Nouveau Cheap. Every week she posts a round up of the sales & mentions MFG coupons you can use to save even more money. CVS is a great way to casually get into couponing especially if you want to save money on drug store make up!
How do you save money on things you love? Are you a couponer?
xoxo, Moe
Hey. I just discovered your blogand I am fascinated. I love it so much, so well written posts. Such a helpful post and I dare say I have never tried cvs. Thank you for sharing!
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