I find it hard to believe that everyone isn’t using coupons in today’s economy. People seem to crowd the stores on Black Friday in search of great deals. I, like lots of other crazy people, have joined them for the last three years and even sat all night in a store, usually one of the first in line to buy a product. So why do people go crazy on Black Friday? Well, one good reason is they can’t pass up a deal and I don’t blame them. I love to get stuff for free, but for my wife and I it’s a daily occurrence. We often joke that, Black Friday sales aren’t as good as some of the regular weekly sales. I save roughly 60% on my grocery bill. But I wait in line to save 30-40% on some electronic gadget.

This year I decided to talk to people that were waiting in line with me. All of them were absolutely floored when I started talking about coupons and how I could get stuff for free. It’s rather amazing, I thought, that most people don’t use coupons!!! Coupons allow me to save more by percentage than most black Friday sales. It’s pretty incredible actually. So why aren’t people using coupons? The simple fact is most feel it is simply too hard, takes too much time, or simply isn’t worth it. What a sad truth.

Let’s address some of the objections to couponing. Many say it’s too hard or complicated. Well if you really think that coupons are too hard, you must have an incredibly difficult job!! My job at times can be hard, but coupons are pretty straight forward. Once you figure out the rules, and how to use them, coupons are simply money in your pocket. I won’t lie and say everything about couponing is easy! You’ve got to make some tough decisions!! This is one of the biggest decisions with coupons - the time factor. If you’re not willing to spend the time, I suggest you shop at Wal-mart or Sam’s!! I don’t look at the time factor; I look at the saving factor. The question is it worth it, ties into the time factor.

An average coupon shopper will spend around 4-7 hours clipping, sorting, searching and shopping each week. I save around $60-$70 on a given week off my original grocery bill. Before coupons, I normally spent $120 a week. Now I’m spending $60, but if I did not use coupons, the products I’m purchasing now would be valued at $200 a week. Coupons allow me to buy more for a lot less! My savings are quite substantial, around $60-$140. If you do the math, it’s $8.50 an hour on the low end or as much as $35 an hour!! Some weeks are great some aren’t, but the hours I spent are valuable and productive hours!! My time isn’t wasted; it’s spent saving, which in the long run will allow me to become financially secure for years to come!!

For my family, Black Friday, isn’t just every Friday, it’s everyday!! Happy Couponing!

This Article was written by MrCoupon for WeUseCoupons.com. Do not reproduce.

i totally agree. i never used coupons before, becuase i didn't think i had the time. then i became a stay at home mom, and realized we really needed to cut the budget. my paycheck while i was working was saved so we never used it. but i realized those little things i liked, well i had to find another way to pay them.

I started couponing in july, and really in august got hard core at it. and i look at it as my other job. i play a game with how much can i save this week compared to last week. People are shocked when i show them what i buy for under $10.

the hardest part to me, is the time that it takes to learn everything. but once you learn it, you realize how easy it is. I try teaching people, but they don't want to learn. my family tells me, well if you get it, we will just get it from you. HAHA....i sell it to them. if they don't want the deals to get it free, they are paying me to get it for them.

I agree. I like to see how much I can save from week to week.My stock pile has grown so big
I gave stuff away for the Holidays. My DH and I cleaned the freezers on Sunday and decided
I did not have to shop in the month of January except for bread and milk. That extra money will go to pay down debt.

Unless there is a really big sale and everything is free.

I tell people that I have an addiction, and it is couponing, and saving money. I figured if I am going to be addicted to anything, this is a good one. There are times I won't even go shopping for a week or two, if there aren't any good deals at all.

Amen Mr. Coupon!!!!

Great post! Thank you.

I used coupons years ago and had gotten out the habit, mostly because we moved to an area where we have a Super WalMart and no other major stores. (We do have Houchen's for groceries & a Rite Aid). Kroger is about an hour away for me as is CVS - in the other direction!

Anyway, I'm getting back into it and since I get very few ads I appreciate all the help with which store has a good buy on what. I do a good job on Rite Aid's Freebates - always get them. I've tracked what I've saved this year with Rite Aid (362.66 just rebates). I'm anxious to see what I can do in 2009 with coupons included.

Sorry for length & thanks for all you do.

I originally thought about getting a part time job to help my family pay off our outstanding debt more quickly. My wife didn't like the idea of me being gone for 60+ hours per week, so I never got one. I discovered couponing thanks to Mr. Coupon's appearance on the local news, and decided to try it. First time out was awesome and it felt good to save so much money. Next time was even better. It was then that I decided to get my own binder and start getting serious.

I now put as much time into the couponing as I would have for a weekend part-time job. And the money I save our family is 3-4 times more than I would have made in a part-time job at Lowes or Wal-Mart. So stay home with your family instead of getting a second job. They will appreciate you being around more and you can teach them the joys of couponing that they can use in the future.

My extended family laughs at me for doing the coupons, so do some of the people I encountered in the store, including the clerks. After getting my overloaded cart full of stuff and paying for it, I waited for a lady to put her 10-15 items through. She paid more than I did and I got 2 weeks worth of groceries. I just smiled at her, then walked to my car. It was sweet!

Coupons rock!

I agree and thanks Mr. Coupon for this article. Everyday I go shopping is Black Friday to our house. I bought that $13 crock pot today at Wal-Mart and looked at the savings. Did you know that it was only marked down $2! I'm glad I didn't rush for that!

Thank you for the GREAT article and I agree!!!

Lisa