Eating Well on a Budget (or, Why I Gave Up Couponing)

I used to be an avid couponer. I had a CVS card and was expert at rolling over Extra Care Bucks on toothpaste and shampoo. I would go to my local grocery store that doubled coupons and would get pizza rolls for free.

But a few years ago, I gave it up.

Now, why, you might ask? Well, there are several reasons.

1.) It was no longer worth my time. I would spend several hours a week clipping coupons and comparing them to my store circulars. As I get older, I notice my time is getting more valuable. I don't really WANT to sit for hours clipping little pieces of paper...most of which I will never use. Which brings me to my second point:

2.) I was spending money on things I didn't need. Thomas Jefferson once said, "Do not buy what you do not need because it is cheap. It will be dear to you." There's no point in buying a can of soup I won't eat, just because it costs 25 cents after double coupons. I can't tell you how many bottles of shampoo and mouthwash went in the donation pile because it never got used.

3.) Most coupons are for foods I am trying to cut out. As I get older, I am trying to eat more healthily. (Not saying I won't eat potato chips now and then.) A lot of coupons are for processed foods...and very few are for fresh produce and staples.

4.) A lot of stores are catching on to the couponing game. Walgreen's, for example, only offers free-after-register-reward items on VERY niche-y items now (such as overly specific vitamin mixes). Plus, they make it VERY hard to roll RRs over.  CVS very rarely has anything for free after ECBs anymore.

5.) It was no longer worth the hassle. I didn't like going to five different Walgreen's to find what I need. Nor did I like being interrogated by the Cash Register Gestapo at the grocery store every time I used coupons.

In a later post, I will tell you how I do save money on groceries!