Price Points and tracking savings

Several people have asked me how much I pay for different items or what the max I will pay

Of course a lot of it depends on my stock and whether I really need it

Razors (the good ones) -- I never pay more than $1.00 and the majority of the time these are FREE. I have even been lucky enough to score a few money makers on these

Toothbrushes -- NEVER EVER pay for a toothbrush -- you can get high quality toothbrushes monthly for FREE

Sanitary Napkins and tampons -- the most I have been paying for these are $1.00 for a package.
Again most of the times these are FREE (and I try to really stock up at these times -- if the store has enough stock)
I have even had a few moneymakers on these as well

Shampoo and conditioner -- For the most part you can score FREE shampoo and conditioner. I have grown fond of the John Frieda since couponing (had never gotten past the price prior to that), but will pay up to $.50 a bottle for this -- and I stock up at the $.33

Dog Food -- I have been getting a lot of dog food for free (well not technically free since I purchase extra coupons -- the most I pay for my coupons though is .08 each so for a bag of dog food that is a good deal. Dakota and Skye are loving it :o)

Body Wash -- You should never have to buy body wash. They are always running deals on this and you stock up while it is on sale and you will not have to pay regular price. I don't even buy bar soaps anymore -- just body wash. I have also been refilling my bathroom soap dispensers with body wash instead of purchasing soft soap

Deodorant -- never pay $$ for deodorant. Unless you have to have a particular brand you can always score Free deodorant somewhere

Toothpaste -- Most of the time you can get this FREE. I would say if I was totally out $.25 is the max I would pay for a tube of toothpaste.


This is just a few of the deals to be had. There are lots more, but I don't know where to start and stop :o)

For the most part what you have to pay on one item, another item that you get overage on will counteract the balance. I keep a spreadsheet for the main stores that I shop - and it really helps to keep track of things and make sure I am staying on budget. I keep these for Publix, Winn Dixie, Walgreens, and CVS

I will post an example of a 2 month spending pattern at the bottom of this post (ok -- it would not copy and paste correctly so I will just post the figures)

Walgreens 7-12-10 - 9-1-10
value of merchandise = $1,126.96
coupon total = $579.58
tax = $30.91
total cost = $578.29
rr used = $228.00
gc used =$0.00
total oop = $350.29
rr earned = $179.00
rebate earned = $545.26 (this includes items that I have lots of stock of and sold online)
cost = -$194.97

So for a 2 month spending I have made a profit of $194.97

Note --- this does not count the RR earned -- since I count this in the register rewards used when I spend them I do not want to count them twice.

1 more note -- the above profit figure includes a loss of $46.00 in register rewards that I ended up losing because with the double shows I was too busy to shop :o)

It also includes a purchase of $30.00 for RR that I made on ebay (cost $30.00 for $40.00 worth of RR)

Hope this helps a little!!