Grocery Coupon Organization Tips

There are many benefits to using coupons and once you start collecting coupons for groceries, you're going to be overwhelmed with them and you're going to need a coupon organization system to keep track of what you have. If your coupons aren't organized, you're going to have a hard time finding what you need when you need it. It's also going to take you longer to shop when you're in the grocery store. You also might miss out on a great price if you don't realize you have a coupon for an item that's on sale. Try these coupon organization tips.

In your coupon binder you will need:

• Trading card holder inserts

• Binder inserts for labeling sections

• A zippered pouch that fits in the binder

• Folders with rings to go in the binder

• A calculator

• Scissors

• A pen

Coupon Organization Categories - There are several ways to organize your coupons by category. You can organize them by how your favorite store is set up, so as you go down the aisles, you just go through your binder. If you frequent several stores, the more categories you have, the better. You also want subcategories.

For example, in your "frozen foods" category, you'll want to put all your frozen pizza coupons together, your ice cream coupons together, your frozen vegetable coupons, etc. Personal hygiene should have subcategories of toothpaste, deodorant, shampoo, etc.

Trading card holder inserts are the best for organizing coupons. Each insert will hold nine coupons. If the coupon is large or long, fold it in half so on one side you can see the product and if you flip your insert, you can see how much the coupon is for and the expiration date.

Organizing Electronic Coupons - You have two options to organizing your electronic coupons. After you print the sheet, you can slip it right into a folder. As you use each coupon, just draw a line through it with your pen. An easier way is to cut each product out and slip it into a trading cart insert so when you're going down the aisle you can see you have it. Just make sure you don't try to hand them to the cashier when you use them. Take it out and separate them so you can throw it away later.

Purpose For Your Zippered Pouch - In your zippered pouch, you should keep scissors, a pen and a calculator. This is also where you will put the coupons you are going to use at the cash register as you're going through the store. Once you pick up an item, put the coupon in the zippered pouch. When you get to the register, they're all there for you.

Purpose For Scissors, Pen and Calculator - You'll need the calculator so you can calculate either unit cost or how much each item is after using your coupons to make sure you're getting the best deal. Your pen is so you can cross off what's on your list as you go along or make other notes. While you're probably not going to use scissors in the store, you may need it if you need to cut out a coupon if you find one when you're not at home. Every Sunday (or whenever you clip), it's good to have all your supplies together in one place.

Store Flyer Organization - Keep your store flyers in your folder. They're great to refer to. Sometimes, the same item will be on sale at more than one store, so it's good to keep all your flyers together so you can see which store has the better deal on a specific item after you use your coupons and determine the store's doubling policy (if any).