How to Organize your Coupons for Optimal Savings

So, you have made the decision to start your couponing journey. Your first task? Organize your coupons!

I can promise you one thing. Your organization will be one of the most important factors in your success in couponing.

The faster you organize your coupons, the better your success will be in the world of money-saving. Without organization, you’ll find yourself in a state of demise over the coupon you need but have lost.

The good news is that there are several efficient ways to organize that will make you feel like a pro! Finding what works best for you may take some trial and error, but it’s worth it in the long run.

I took roughly 3-4 weeks for me to decide the method that was most effective for me. In the end, I wound up meshing two methods in order to better fit my lifestyle.

Organize your Coupons using a Rubbermaid Tote

I have witnessed numerous coupon enthusiasts hit the store with their totes in hand. I personally however, never attempted this method of organization outside of my home.

Instead, I found that clipping coupons, and storing them directly into my tote until I could get them further organized worked much better for me. This kept them all in one place, and for the most part, kept my kiddos and pets out of them.

Pro’s:

A tote makes it quick and easy to “organize” by throwing all of your clipped coupons in once you’re done extracting them from the Sunday paper.

Also, as long as you keep the lid on when organizing, you prevent the major spillage and mass destruction caused by your helpful toddler that comes with some of the other methods of organization.

These totes can often be picked up for just a couple of bucks, making it easy on your wallet to get started with.

Con’s:

As far as organization goes, this method is probably going to drive you crazy long term.

While your coupons are all in the same place, there is no rhyme or reason for how they are thrown together, making it difficult for you to locate exactly what you are looking for.

Also, carrying around a small tote is not exactly practical for everyone due to the bulky nature of totes. (Not to mention the frustration of picking its contents up off the floor when your toddler throws it out of “his seat”.)

Organize your Coupons using your Wallet

Why not just throw all of your coupons directly into your wallet? That seems easy and convenient right?

I can tell you that I for one, am currently utilizing this method as I am out and about and just getting back into my stockpiling habit. However, it is definitely not for everyone.

Pro’s:

Quick, simple, and less tedious than some of the other methods, throwing your coupons into a wallet and running out the door makes your life easy enough.

Also, this makes your coupons quickly accessible when you reach the register. Using your own wallet to throw your coupons into also keeps you from having to purchase any kind of new container or organizer to start your journey.

There you save money, which was kinda the point, right?

Con’s:

While this method is quick and easy, it leaves you rummaging through a ton of coupons at the store. Dropping papers left and right all over the aisle, spilling the entire wallet on the floor.

Trust me, I have done it more than once or twice. It is frustrating and winds up costing you time as you are trying to collect your wits before you finish your trip and oftentimes, I wonder if it is worth it for the convenience.

Organize your Coupons with a Coupon Accordion Organizer

Remember that little accordion file that your grandma used to carry to the grocery store with her coupons sorted into it?

Guess what? They are making a comeback and now you can have one too!

For real though, these little files have a time and place and are not necessarily the worst option for the novice couponer. I have owned more than one and they have treated me nicely for the most part.

Pro’s:

Since it is 2017 after all, there are much cuter versions of your grandmother’s file to organize yourself into nowadays. Most of them are relatively cheap and take minimal work to set up before you are ready to rock.

Also, they are fairly quick to sort your coupons into. Plus, they have different compartments for different types of products to help you organize.

Coupon organizers are also easier for you to carry when you are out and about, as the majority of them are not big and bulky. Helpful, no?

Con’s:

While your coupons are sorted into different compartments, there is still a level of disorganization to this method. Within each compartment, you still have to take all of your coupons out to see what you have. This could take more time than some moms have in the grocery store.

While you are digging through your organizer, you will also find that half of your contents are expired. If you are anything like me, once that coupon is filed away, your forget about it until you need it. Then, you pull it out excited to use it, just to find it expired.  This results in you being upset because your perfect deal is now ruined. Now everyone is grumpy.

Also, your helpful toddler should not be encouraged to hold your accordion file. That is, unless you want to play a new rendition of the 52-card pickup. Everything will quickly come falling out of your organizer if it is not secured shut, just fyi. (Not speaking from experience or anything.)

Organize your Coupons with a Coupon Binder

This is by far my FAVORITE method! I cannot tell you how much I enjoy the benefits of having a well organized coupon binder. All it takes is a three-ring binder, and some baseball card slips to get started.

Sure you can add in some generic dividers and a pencil pouch to further optimize your efficiency, but that is up to how far you want to take your realm of organization.

Pro’s:

All of your coupons are there staring you in the face as you flip through the pages of your binder. This makes it so much easier to see what you have!

Also, you can organize it to your own liking to be as efficient as you would like. For me, I would organize each page by product type. That way, when I was in the store, I could easily match coupons to sale items with minimal time. Doing so made finding what I was looking for so much faster and easier!

This method also allowed me to quickly weed out the expired coupons once a week because I was able to quickly determine the expiration dates through the baseball card slips.

Con’s:

Honestly, this is probably one of the more expensive routes to go when organizing your coupons. This is namely because, once you start, there are many ways to customize your binder to organize it to suit your liking.

This results in additional purchases on organizational materials. My own personal binder probably ended up costing me close to $30 by the time I was done buying everything. (Bonus points if you use coupons to buy your binder supplies!)

The other big downside of this amazing method? It is most certainly the most time consuming to organize each week. First you have to spend your time cutting the coupons. Then you have to locate the page they should be on before folding them to the perfect square to ensure that they fit into your binder.

While the time was worth it to me and I am working back to this method, it may not be worth it to everyone.

What Method are you using to Organize your Coupons?

While I am sure that there are other methods out there to organize your coupons for shopping, these are the methods that I have personally used that have worked for me at different stages in my couponing career. Best of luck in finding the best method that works for you!