Save Money: Best Web Sites for Freebies, Rebates and Coupons

Broke? Need to free up some money? Liquidate what you don't need - then shop smarter. Remember, you're in business for yourself every time you make a purchase.

Step 1: Start with what you have.
Simply put: sell anything you can - either on Craigslist or eBay. Do it right away. Liquidate everything you can and clean out your home of the clutter that's weighing you down and holding you back. Don't forget holding a garage sale - but make sure you get the word out everywhere you can to gain the most traffic.

Step 2: Next, get what you can for free.
I don't recommend signing up for every free sample, trial offer, pamphlet and calendar you can get for free - that would defeat the purpose of step 1. I do, however, send for the things I know I'll need. My favorite (and most reliable) websites for freebies and freebie info are the following:

Start Sampling Home Page - be sure to follow the sample page's link to the offering company's site to get extra points from Start Sampling.
www.startsampling.com

WalMart's Free Sample Page
walmart.triaddigital.com/Free-Samples.aspx

Freebies at About.com. I wish this site were updated more often - but there is still wonderful general information about freebies to be found.
freebies.about.com/

FreeLanceByU's Freebies and so much more! This is the "Queen-mother" of freebie/discount sites. I literally check it every single day.
www.freelancebyu.com/

FreelanceByU's Forum - sign up for the forum ASAP for the best and more recent freebies and opportunities here:
www.freelancebyu.com/forum.htm

FreebieFix Newsletter - You not only get wonderful freebie links in your inbox, but great recipes too! sign up here for freebies delivered to your mailbox:
www.freebiefix.com/

Style for Free - a mixed bag here, but a fun site nonetheless.
www.styleforfree.com/

Step 3 - Getting Through the Coupon Sites
(Note, most of the "print your own coupons" sites will require you to install their software on your Windows box. To my knowledge, Linux boxes are not yet supported. Mac users may also have limited options. Never, ever pay for membership.)

http://www.couponsurfer.com
http://www.coupons.com
www.coolsavings.com
www.valpak.com
http://www.customcoupon.com
http://www.fatwallet.com
http://www.wow-coupons.com
www.hotcoupons.com
http://coupons.smartsource.com
http://www.couponmom.com/

Online Coupon Codes - always look for free shipping offers on these sites (not to mention rebates which I'll discuss next.)

http://www.4officecoupons.com/
http://www.mrrebates.com
http://www.keycode.com
http://www.myinsiderdeals.com (Note: this site will email ads to your inbox if you subscribe, so be prepared.)
http://www.dealcatcher.com
http://www.lockergnome.com/coupons/
http://www.couponsandeals.com

Rebate Sites

I can't emphasize this enough - never pay for a newsletter, site membership or other fee for rebate or coupon sites. These rebates are offered free. First read this article about taking the "bait" out of rebate offers:
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/alerts/rebatealrt.htm

Top sites for rebate info:
Mr Rebates: www.mrrebates.com
Free After Rebate: http://www.freeafterrebate.com
My Insider Deals: http://www.myinsiderdeals.com
The Rebate Place: http://www.rebateplace.com
Tech Bargains Rebates: http://techbargains.com/rebates.cfm
Rebates HQ: www.rebateshq.com/
eBates.com (another one that sends a lot of email ads):http://www.ebates.com
Energy Star Appliance rebates: http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?fuseaction=rebate.rebate_locator
Staples Rebates: www.stapleseasyrebates.com/
Lowes Rebates: http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=pg&p=rebate_center.html
Best Buy Rebates: www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?type=page&id=cat12112
CostCo rebates: http://www.costco.com/Service/FeaturePageLeftNav.aspx?ProductNo=10045069
Slick Deals Rebates: http://forums.slickdeals.net/f8-rebates.html
Advance Auto Parts Rebates: advanceautoparts.rebatestatus.com/
Walgreens Rebates/Easy Saver Catalog: http://www.walgreens.com/store/rebateclub.jsp

Hot Tip #1:

To get the very best deal possible, follow these simple steps every single time you shop:
1. Compare prices online to see who has the best price (don't forget to factor in shipping.)
2. Search for coupon codes on the above sites or just on Google. Usually can get free shipping or some such.
3. Look for a rebate site that offers a percentage back on your purchase.

The easiest way to do this is to use MrRebates.com or similar site which wraps comparison shopping, coupons codes and rebates into one portal. It is best to choose one site and stick with it (when it comes to rebate portals like Fat Wallet and Mr Rebates), as they usually have a minimum earning before they pay out.

Hot Tip #2:

I don't usually plug one vendor or site to the exclusion of others but I really have to say Walgreens has some of the best deals available with their SuperSaver booklets every month. You not only get coupons in the monthly booklet (and in every week's circular) but you also get a list of the rebates - many of which are "free after rebate". Plus, if you have your rebates put onto a Walgreens gift card, you get an additional 10% added on. So if you got all of the "Free after rebate" offers and your additional 10%, you'd actually be making a bit of money just getting something for free! How cool is that? (See above link under "Rebates" for more information. CVS and other drug chains are starting to pick up this trend so check with your local stores to see what they offer.