There are many potential resources for coupons out there; you just need to know where to look! The top few ways are well known to us all, but a few might be a resource for you.

1. Sunday coupon inserts - obviously, the main source for most people to gather coupons. Contact the largest newspaper in your area that regularly has coupon in the Sunday paper and ask if they have a special Sunday only delivery deal, and if they have a "Double inserts" deal - I get the Washington Post delivered on Sundays only and in that bag, I get 2x the inserts I would normally get. I had to ask special for this; it wasn't an advertised perk. I pay .50 more for my Sunday paper delivery over single copy newstand price for a single insert edition. Ask around! Also, Family Dollar stores sell the Sunday paper in many areas for $1 after Sunday. Check your local store. You can find WUC's coupon schedule and a preview of many upcoming inserts here: **Preview Inserts** - WeUseCoupons.com

2. The Internet - Printables or Internet Printables ( IPs ) are fast becoming the marketer's option of choice for distributing coupons quickly and cheaply. Unfortunately, many chains have strict IP policies. Make sure you check you chain's policy carefully before printing out a lot of IPs. Also, find out if your stores will accept IPs in black and white instead of color. This will significantly decrease your expenditure on ink for your printer! WUC's . You will find a long list of current links in WUC's Coupon Clearing House here: Printables - WeUseCoupons.com

3. Coupon Clipping Services - Sometimes, you might need a quantity of a specific coupon but not an entire insert's worth. Here is where clipping services come in handy. You purchase the exact coupon you desire - generally paying between .05 - .15 per coupon with a small S&H fee. You'll get exactly what you need without having to buy lots of papers. However, some hot coupons are limited to a quantity of 10 - so you might need to purchase from more than one clipper to get a bulk quantity. Be advised, really hot coupons are first come, first serve! For legal purposes, you are not purchasing the coupon outright, you are paying for the clipping and shipping of that coupon only. Check out the link at the top of this page marked "Coupon Resources" for a list of Clipping Services on the Internet.

4. Trading / Coupon Trains: Here at WUC we have a very active trading community! After you've made 50 posts in any area, you qualify to offer up for trade or sale coupons you have. You can enter into a trade at anytime, however.
Trains are a set group of people who agree to send an envelope of coupons to others in their group. Each train has its own rules; read the rules carefully before you apply. The WUC train forum is here: http://www.weusecoupons.com/upload/coupon-trains/ and Bev's excellent detailed explanation of trains is here: http://www.weusecoupons.com/upload/r...tml#post429893

5: Tearpads, Blinkies, and Booklets: These three sources of coupons are found in your local grocery store, and you have to be eagle eyed to find them! Tearpads are exactly that - pads of coupons where you tear off a few for your own use. Blinkies are coupons that come from small black SmartSource or Red Plum machines that are attached to grocery shelves. They normally have a red light on them to attract your attention - hence the term "Blinkie" - They are a great way to involve your kids with your couponing! I reward my son for finding new tearpads and blinkies for me while we shop...2 sets of eyes are better than one!

6. Catalinas: Catalinas ( or Cats ) are small strips of receipt like paper that print at the register and often advertise new products or are rewards for shopping. They are named for the Catalina Company, which manufactures the machines which print them. They typically look like this:


Make sure to have a place in your coupon file or binder specifically for Catalinas. They can be just like cash!

7. Magazines: WUC members are awesome for alerting other members to coupons found in monthly magazines here: Magazine - WeUseCoupons.com. The #1 magazine for coupons in the US is All You, which is produced and distributed by WalMart. Make sure you get yourself a subscription - it's invaluable! Other good magazines to check are women's magazines ( Good Housekeeping, Redbook, Better Homes & Gardens ) .

Here are a few less well known option for coupons!

8. Dumpster Diving at local paper recycling centers and garbage collection: MrCoupon has already written an excellent article all about this here: Dumpster Diving for Coupons in 10 Easy Steps I put my zip code into this website here: Earth911.com - Find Recycling Centers and Learn How To Recycle and found out there are several large paper recycling dropoff points near me!

9. Ask Co-workers, relatives, and friends: Seems pretty intuitive, huh? However - many of us go it alone. Reach out to co-workers, relatives, and friends and ask them to give you coupons they find. It works for me - my co-workers are pleased as punch to give me their findings - especially because I bring in lots of freebies I get like condiments and candy!

10. Sign up for advisory / consumer research panels : There are many companies out there online that want your opinion and involvement. WUC has an active forum for these companies: The Survey Says... - WeUseCoupons.com with VocalPoint being among one of the most well known. Companies will also send select individuals who sign up for it special boxes to host a house party to promote a specific product. Often, these boxes have coupons for free product. You'll also find an area for house parties in the Survey Says area.

11. Get to know your local Smart Source Rep: This one is a little trickier - you'll have to be in the right place at the right time to meet him/her. SmartSource reps are required to service those blinkie machines and provide promotional materials before Noon each day - so if you are shopping in the morning and you see someone pushing around a cart of blinkie machines, stop them and compliment the machines and how much you like blinkies, etc. Last time I did this, I received about 100 Kellogg's $1 / 1 coupons!

12. Library / Workplace / Church swap box: Setting up a box for people who have coupons to leave them and encouraging them to take what they need is a great opportunity to build couponing fellowship with your co-workers, neighbors, and church members. Always ask permission of supervisors / library staff / etc so that your box isn't removed and is sanctioned. Seed it often with coupons you can't use and you are sure to get people involved.

Thanks for the informative article!

thankss!!!! this is sooo helpful!!

a deaf SAHM to 3 boys.

I blog at My 2 Crazy Curls.

I have yet to meet a SS rep but would love too.

Great article thanks a bunch.

I've only been lucky enough that one time - but they were dressed in regular street clothes, not a Giant uniform of purple shirts - and they were clearly doing something with blinkie machines. That was the tip off.

Great Article!!!

Thanks! This is a great article. I used to see the blinikie machines all the time before I started using coupons. In the past 2 years I haven't seen any. I thought they were extinct.

Excellent article!! I loved all the information shared but really loved #8. Thank You for a great resource.

What we learn to do,we learn by doing. -Arisototle-