Some of you may be hestitant to grab the great deals at Walgreens because you don’t shop there enough to use the Register Rewards that help you technically get your deals for free or money-makers. (Or you have enough toothbrushes, toothpaste, air fresheners and shampoo to give one to your entire town!)

Well, here’s great news for you: Register Rewards can be used at other stores that accept Competitor’s coupons! (Check your store’s policy to see if they will take them.) This also works with store Catalinas!

Why would they take them? Most Register Rewards/Catalinas will say “Manufacturer’s Coupon” on the top. This means that the stores can mail them into the specified manufacturers and get their money back.

I’ve found out that my CVS, Jewel and Dominick’s will take these. (I haven’t checked with Target/Wal-Mart yet.) So I figure out which store has the best overall deals and use them there. This week, it’s Jewel! I can run the Huggies deal at Walgreens, get the Register Rewards and then go and buy up some super discounted items at Jewel! In the end, I’ll still get a great price on diapers, I can still mail my receipts into Caregiver’s Marketplace AND I get groceries for next to nothing out-of-pocket. (I’ve got enough stockpile in most of my household items right now.)

This is how I keep my grocery AND household costs down. Just make sure two things: Do those Register Rewards/Catalinas say Manufacturer’s Coupon on the top and will your stores accept them?

Also, make sure you are really using them to their best potential—basically you need to figure out what will give you the most groceries/household items that you REALLY need for the smallest out-of-pocket cost. It’s great to get a lot of “freebies,” but if you don’t really need them and are paying more for groceries, it’s not a deal. Free isn’t always free. 🙂 (And remember…you still have to pay tax on “freebies.”)

Hope this helps! I’ll be putting up more Couponing Basics as time permits!

(Confused by “Coupon Lingo?” Click here for the explanations.)

Note: I do still pick up freebies often so I can donate to charities or help out my family members. I just have to make sure I am providing for my family first. In the end, you’ll figure how to “run the deals” so that you can do both!