Step 1: Know Your Prices!

I'm not going to sugar-coat things when I tell you I spend a LOT of time on my matchups.  Scouring sale ads rom several stores, clicking around a dozen different blogs, flipping through hundreds of coupons, searching manufacturer websites for coupons, it all takes time.  A massive time-saver that you should familiarize yourself with is the Grocery Circular Roundup from AllYou.com, which is also a great site to find freebies and coupons.  This doesn't always list all of the sale items, so you're still going to be searching the ads.  If you don't already subscribe to All You, I highly recommend it.  The coupons alone are worth it.  Want to get cash back on your subscription?  Go to Ebates and check the sites that offer magazines.  There are usually a few that have 40% cash back!  Don't need any magazines?  Shop just about anywhere using Ebates, and you'll get a check in the mail quarterly.  I've saved over a hundred dollars in the last 6 months using Ebates.  They're also giving a $5 bonus if you sign up now.  You'll get it with your first quarterly check.  Now.  Know your prices.  Stores can vary wildly on the price of the same item, sometimes as much as $5.  This week, Aquafina is 3 for $10 at Giant Eagle, which is $3.33/each.  The same thing is 2 for $9 at Kmart, making them $4.50/each.  You'll spend $1.17/each more, which is one you would've been able to spend elsewhere.  Know your prices.  I can't say it enough.  Saving money is hard, there's no need to make it even harder by paying more for the same product because you didn't do your homework.  In the next few days, I'm going to break down prices a little bit more.  I'll even go so far as to tell you target prices on staples, health & beauty, cleaning products, and just about everything else in the store.  Before you clip one coupon, you need to make a trip to every store you plan on shopping at.  Wander the aisles, write down regular prices and note any sale prices.  Most grocery items run on about a 12 week cycle.  Writing down the prices is a very important step, as seen with the Aquafina example.  You want to save every last penny possible, and to do this, you need to first know what the items cost.  Grocery stores rely on people seeing a flashy sign on an endcap & assuming the item is on sale.  Soon we'll dive into steps 2 & 3, and I'll explain a little more about the endcap trap.