Shoppers / coupon-clippers?

[AZhitman]

Anyone here use Coupons.com?

I'm not the shopper in the house, but it seems like the newspaper coupons and the ones in the 'junk mailers' are usually for overpriced brand name stuff. In other words, if you buy generic / store brand, the price is lower than if you had used a coupon.

Looking through that site, though, I like the idea of the printable coupons (or ones that you can pull up on your smart phone at the register).

[Kompresshun]

Kristen uses it, along with about a billion other apps. If we go somewhere to shop or eat, she likely has a coupon on hand for it. She just keeps them in a pouch in her purse so she has them on hand. Then she has a couple of apps that they can just scan your cell phone.

We're both pretty serious about our coupons yo. Mine are usually just Advance Auto Parts, Lowe's, and Harbor Freight though

[nissangirl74]

I've used it for years. Certain stores will let you double coupons or even bump them up to a dollar. Feeding a family of five is hard. Feeding a family of five paying full price is insane.

[darylzero]

I do pretty much all my shopping online so I'm always looking to find a coupon code before I buy.
I ususally use http://www.retailmenot.com/
I also look at these sites to see if there are any good deals,
http://bensbargains.net/
http://dealspl.us/
http://www.spoofee.com/
http://www.techbargains.com/
http://www.xpbargains.com/
http://www.dealcatcher.com/
http://www.gotapex.com/
http://www.techdealdigger.com/

[Rogue One]

2014 Online Coupon Service Comparisons

I had this installed briefly, then removed it for the very reasons cited below.

If it wants a brand new Active-X control to be installed, the decision is to pass. I think that nobody should be asking anyone to install an Active-X control to print a coupon. I started couponpriter.exe sandboxed and got as far as the EULA where it states the keys will not be removed if you uninstall the coupon printer. I have no idea what their keys do. At this point I terminated the .exe with process explorer and cleared the sandbox. I wouldn't install this.

That being said, I've printed lots of coupons from sites without having to install any Active-X or other add-on crap, and would not do so at sites that require me to install stuff on my PC just to print a coupon.

It may well be tracking far more than you think, or expect.

In fact, there are several issues with TrustE's certification on this matter, and raises questions about the validity of their endorsements in general.

There is an excellent article by Ben Edelman regarding that "little download", that I highly recommend reading, very informative analysis. »www.benedelman.org/news/031808-1.html

Some of his issues are:

quote:•The Coupons.com "promo" promises that "The CouponPrinter does not gather or ask for any personal information about ... your computer." Yet my testing indicates that Coupons.com gathers detailed computer-specific information about each computer on which it is installed.

•Coupons.com's privacy policy similarly promises that "The Coupons, Inc. software ... only collect information about what coupons have been printed and redeemed from your computer" -- again, directly at odds with my observation that Coupons.com collects far more information.

•Coupons.com's license agreement discloses this information collection only by admitting that the "software uses anonymous, assigned numbers and/or anonymous information about your computer or device." But the numbers at issue are not anonymous: These numbers identify a specific individual user based on the user's unique and unvarying Windows CD key, motherboard serial number, and hard drive serial number. TRUSTe rule 1.qq defines such information to be pseudonymous ("information that may correspond to a person [such as] machine ID"), while rule 1.i defines anonymous information to exclude all pseudonymous information. Coupons.com thus errs in characterizing these numbers as "anonymous." Moreover, Coupons.com errs in disclosing this data collection practice only in its license agreement; because this practice speaks to user privacy, it belongs in Coupons.com's privacy policy.

Ben also addresses Coupons.com's DMCA litigation against John Stottlemire »www.tenbucks.net/

[Jesda]

I'd say 90% of what I buy is generic. The only time I notice a difference in quality is with ketchup but they're getting closer all the time.

I've become a big fan of Aldi. As long as you avoid the canned soups and some of the breakfast cereals, it's as good as or better than Kraft/Nabisco/etc, and usually 30-50% cheaper.



I don't use coupons.

[MinisterofDOOM]

Here's my take on coupons.

My time is worth money. My personal time goes for a particular premium. Coupons save in tiny increments. There is no way on Hell or Earth or anywhere else that spending time clipping coupons could EVER save me enough money to compensate for the time it cost me. I have exactly fifty seven trillion better things to be doing with any given second of my day than screwing around with coupons.

[nissangirl74]

I have exactly fifty seven trillion better things to be doing with any given second of my day than screwing around with coupons.

It's different when you are single. When you have a lot of mouths to feed, you make the time.

[frapjap]

I used to cut them ALL of the time, but now its only part time. My mother use to have us go through a bunch of newspapers on Sunday and "liberate" the coupons from them so we'd have more.

However, the only reason I've become part time for coupons is because now you have to "buy 3 and get 50 cents" and silly things like that. I dont need 3 of whatever it is and the .50 savings is negated by having to buy 3 of the item. However, coupons apply professionally for me- they're often used to promote new products that I probably wouldnt have noticed otherwise.

As for everything else- Lindsey uses Ebates like crazy and a couple of other sites. Works wonders, shes outstanding at scouring for deals.

[Bubba1]

I have exactly fifty seven trillion better things to be doing with any given second of my day than screwing around with coupons.

It's different when you are single. When you have a lot of mouths to feed, you make the time.

exactly. It also helps having room to store non-perishables when you buy them. We clip coupons, but not obsessively, but we keep a close eye when things we use go on sale at the markets we shop and will buy several of the items we use. We also look for places that double coupons, or offer incentives like cents off gallons of gas. For example, Giant Foods offers $.10 off per gallon for every $100 you spend. With our son home this summer, our grocery bills doubled. So it;s nice to get a few tanks of gas at half price to help offset that extra cost. It all adds up.

[PapaSmurf2k3]

Here's my take on coupons.

My time is worth money. My personal time goes for a particular premium. Coupons save in tiny increments. There is no way on Hell or Earth or anywhere else that spending time clipping coupons could EVER save me enough money to compensate for the time it cost me. I have exactly fifty seven trillion better things to be doing with any given second of my day than screwing around with coupons.

Pretty much my take on them too, along with what Ray said.

Now, if I'm buying a computer or something online (high dollar), you better believe I'll do a quick google search for "xxxxxxx coupon code" to save 20% or get free shipping or something.