There are many ways to organize your coupons. I currently use a plastic box with a snap on lid. I purchased the box at Staples with Staples Rewards of course. I used to used the coupon binder method and found that too difficult to keep up with so I switched to the box method.
This is how I organized my coupon box there really is no right or wrong way to do this. You can get as detailed as you like. Here is what I did.
I made dividers using some thin cardboard paper I had. These dividers are the main sections to break out the coupons into. Below is a list of the sections I created:
- Baby
- Frozen
- Cold
- Snacks
- Cereal
- Canned
- Food
- Hygiene
- Paper
- Cleaning
- Misc
- Medicines
- Store
For each main section I have envelopes labeled to further separate the coupons in each main section. I used envelopes that were free after Staples Rewards. Here a list of each main section with a listing of the individual envelopes that I made.
Baby: Diapers and Wipes, Medicines, Food, Lotions & Diaper Cream, and Miscellaneous
Frozen: Ice cream & desserts, bread, Breakfast Foods, Mexican Foods, Meat, Fruit - Vegetables - Potatoes, Meals, and Pizza
Cold Foods: lunch meats - hot dogs - bacon - Lunchables, Meat, Produce & Cold Salas Dressing, eggs - tofu, butter & whipped cream, cookies - rolls breads, pudding & yougurt, beverage, and Cheese/cream cheese/sour cream
Snacks: Cookies, Candy, Chips, Crackers, Fruit Snacks, nuts - popcorn - beef jerky, and granola bars - protein bars - Pop Tarts
Cereal: General Mills, Kellogg's, and Other
Canned: Tomato Products - Spaghetti Sauce, Meat, Vegetables - Olives - Beans - Fruit, and Soup - Chilli
Food: Pasta - Rice - Hamburger Helper - Potato Mixes, Condiments, Asian Foods, Bread & Tortillas, Breakfast, Mexican, Spices/Seasonings, Jelly - Peanut Butter, Salad Dressing - Salad Add Ins, Baking, and Beverages.
Hygiene: face/make up, feminine, lotion, soap - body wash - hand soap, Toothpaste, Toothbrushes - Floss, Mouthwash, Deodorant, Hair, and Shaving.
Paper Products: Cups/Plates/Ziploc bags/Trash Bags / Foil / Plastic Wrap, Paper Towels - Napkins, Tissue, and Toilet Paper
Cleaning: Laundry, Air Fresheners, Dish washing, Greenworks & Other Green Cleaners, Pest Control, Lysol Products, Scrubbing Bubbles, Windex, and Miscellaneous
Misc: Clothing, Batteries, Light bulbs, Water Pitchers, Dog Food, and Office Supplies
Medicines: Cold & Allergy, Fiber & Stomach Remedies, Pain Relievers, Misc, First Aid & Itch Remedies & Creams, Vitamins & Other Supplements, and Eye Care
Store: Target, Ralphs, CVS, Vons, Babies R Us, and Rite Aid
So once you have made a box you can cut coupons from your newspaper inserts or print from my coupon page or my coupon sources page and fill your coupon box.
Here is a list of a few helpful hints about cutting and organizing your coupons:
- You do not have to cut every single coupon from the newspaper inserts you get.
- You can cut only the coupons you know you will use.
- You can store your inserts by date (see pictures below for how I do this).
- You can search for a particular coupon by using my Coupon Database page.
- You can visit Coupon Cleanout website to see if all the coupons in your insert have expired. Expired coupons can be used by Military families for up to 6 months past the coupon's expiration date. This website has links to sites where you can find out about donating your expired coupons.
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| Write the date on each insert |
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| One Folder Per Date |
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| Inserts Stored by Date |
