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Thread: Tracking Your Savings

  1. #1
    LoveToSave wimbly11's Avatar
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    Do you track your savings? I've tried in the past but never really stick to it but I would really like to get a picture of what kind of return I'm getting using coupons, apps, price matching etc.

    We are about to have a huge change in our financial situation with me going on mat leave and DH being laid off. We're both looking at having our salaries cut in half so couponing, etc, is going to become even more important to my family and I would love to be able to have numbers to associate with my effort...because we all know it does take quite a bit of effort!

    What do you use to track? Does anyone have a great spreadsheet or anything that they would be willing to share?
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    Canadian Guru macw1960's Avatar
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    I only track coupons, GC's, MIR's, free cheques such as CO51, SCOP's and point savings (in money when I use it) all in one total. Too much work to do all the other stuff. I keep it in a book.
    Last edited by macw1960; Wed, May 24th, 2017 at 05:57 PM.
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    I kept track of every little coupon I used for the first 2 years in a excel spreadsheet ($10,000 worth of those little pieces of paper!) but it became too much work, esp since I gave away 80% of my stuff. Now using coupons has just become second nature but I only buy what I can use. People generally don't appreciate all the time, effort and strategy that goes into getting stuff for free/cheap. I must also add that couponing has changed dramatically and it's not possible to do what we could a couple of years ago. I say just have fun with it. When you do your shopping that day, say I used $x.xx in coupons, $x.xx at CO51, $x.xx in pc points etc.

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    -I track coupon use have for many years (pencil and in a book)plus caddle and checout51 ,plus p.c and shoppers redemption etc -love to see what I save each year as this has been a hobby of mine for 30 some odd years I started couponing when my daughter was born and many a times my hubby was laid off so it helped

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    LoveToSave wimbly11's Avatar
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    I have a sheet I was using but I think it's too complex. I like the idea of just writing the total amount of coupons etc
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    I don't keep an exact record of my couponing savings, but I have three books that have some of my past shops that help give me an idea of how much I've saved. In a really good couponing month (good sales, offers, coupons, cash back and points), it is very possible for me to net close to $600 in savings, so $7,200/year on the higher end of savings.

    However, I do keep track of some of my savings through an app for my transit usage, Carrot rewards and gym membership to make sure I get full use of it (For example, last year from Sept to Dec, I paid for my transit pass for school in my tuition; $202.22 for 8 months, and used $1,303 worth of transit if I had paid for every trip I took on the bus) And since getting Carrot a month or two back, I've already "Made" $694.00 (Counting it as If I had to spend on my Scene Visa I use to have to get the same equivalent in points that I've earned through the app)
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    You have got these savings techniques down to a science! That is a "savings degree" in itself!!!

    Quote Originally Posted by johnb56789 View Post
    I don't keep an exact record of my couponing savings, but I have three books that have some of my past shops that help give me an idea of how much I've saved. In a really good couponing month (good sales, offers, coupons, cash back and points), it is very possible for me to net close to $600 in savings, so $7,200/year on the higher end of savings.

    However, I do keep track of some of my savings through an app for my transit usage, Carrot rewards and gym membership to make sure I get full use of it (For example, last year from Sept to Dec, I paid for my transit pass for school in my tuition; $202.22 for 8 months, and used $1,303 worth of transit if I had paid for every trip I took on the bus) And since getting Carrot a month or two back, I've already "Made" $694.00 (Counting it as If I had to spend on my Scene Visa I use to have to get the same equivalent in points that I've earned through the app)

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    I think you should just track spending.
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    Quote Originally Posted by Poirot View Post
    I think you should just track spending.
    I would tend to agree. While it may be interesting to see how much you save with coupons etc., the most important thing is to have a budget and to track to it. Coupons help in that regard but it is more important to track your spending rather than coupon savings.
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    Quote Originally Posted by GoodBoy View Post
    I would tend to agree. While it may be interesting to see how much you save with coupons etc., the most important thing is to have a budget and to track to it. Coupons help in that regard but it is more important to track your spending rather than coupon savings.
    Totally agreed! Wanted to say that yesterday but didn't want to sound like a downer. All these posts saying I bought this and that and saved this. I see they are "shopping" everyday and buying stuff that is not a need etc. Some of us just have different views on money/saving/needs/wants.

  11. #11
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    Quote Originally Posted by Frugalbigmama View Post
    Totally agreed! Wanted to say that yesterday but didn't want to sound like a downer. All these posts saying I bought this and that and saved this. I see they are "shopping" everyday and buying stuff that is not a need etc. Some of us just have different views on money/saving/needs/wants.
    You would not have been a downer, just a different opinion I personally am all for saving and do it as often as I can (don't we all!)... I just try to remember a budget and stick within it .. that is all ... of course with the occasional splurge for fun!
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    Quote Originally Posted by GoodBoy View Post
    You would not have been a downer, just a different opinion I personally am all for saving and do it as often as I can (don't we all!)... I just try to remember a budget and stick within it .. that is all ... of course with the occasional splurge for fun!
    I splurge all the time because I have a budget Some people have the wrong idea about what a budget is. They feel "poor" with it. For me, I feel rich because I am in control and know where/what all of my money is doing

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    Contradiction in progress sweet sparrow's Avatar
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    I have an Excel spreadsheet. Back in the days of bank books, I used to pencil in what each transaction was. Now, within each cell, I break out the expenses individually. On another line, I track coupon savings. For example, I used $7 in coupons today but will only record $3 as being useful. $4 was saved on an FPC of chocolate milk, but I'm not counting it because we never usually buy it.

    I still track expenses, but savings less often. On my deathbed, I'm sure I won't care if I saved $244.54 or $326.42 last month. I know that coupons and apps, etc. save money and that's good enough. Tracking that I found $0.10 at the drugstore today is completely overshadowed by the sleep debt I've taken on after children.

    I write down money when I use it, so I never tell myself that I save in PC or SDM points in the purchase transaction. If I cashed in my points, then I'd record them then.
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    LoveToSave wimbly11's Avatar
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    Great points everybody! I do want to see what benefit I'm getting from my coupon work, so I think the spreadsheet I have now needs to be simplified. I think that it requires too much effort and that's probably why I never end up filling it out half the time!
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