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Thread: Time Spent Couponing/Price Matching, etc.

  1. #1
    CaLoonie
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    As I am a newbie at this I find that I spend quite a bit of time per day, looking for coupons, researching prices, price matching, shopping,etc. Just wondered how much time do most people spend in a day/week at this?

    Looking forward to reading the replies.
    This thread is currently associated with: N/A
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  2. #2
    Canadian Guru
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    I don't spend as much time on it now as I did before. And I feel I save more money now.

    I don't get caught up in buying things just because they are on sale/have a coupon. Less is more now.

    I try not to buy processed crap for my family. (and that seems to be what the coupons are for) My savings come from price matching fresh good food. Planning our meals from the sale items. Stocking up when stuff is at my "stock up price". And planning ahead! This is big for me. I always look ahead for what is coming up and what we may need.

  3. #3
    Smart Canuck Arjon's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by akajw View Post
    As I am a newbie at this I find that I spend quite a bit of time per day, looking for coupons, researching prices, price matching, shopping,etc. Just wondered how much time do most people spend in a day/week at this?
    You'll probably find that hunting for deals takes less time as you get used to doing it. Either that or you'll spend as much time or more because you decide it's worth doing so.

    It's a big game. You can choose to play anywhere from casually to very seriously; just understand that you have to choose your personal balance point for savings vs. time / effort. Reading SC will help, but the more savings you want to squeeze out, the more you have to work at it.

    For instance, some deals are store-specific and can't be price-matched. So if you want to do an Air Miles deal that's being offered at Metro, you have to go to a Metro. This which means you have to decide whether it's worth doing so, which is pretty subjective depending on what the deal is, how many of the deal items you intend to buy, how much you can save, how far out of the way your neatest store is, etc.

    Personally, I average a few hours a week. But since I can do it in small chunks when it's convenient for me and when I have nothing more important to do, how much time I spend may not be directly comparable to your situation.

  4. #4
    University Couponer
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    I'd say in my case, a lot more time than I use to about 4 or so years ago...

    Before I use to shop only for my family and worked around what we needed, Now, I try to still help them, while shopping for myself away at university AND I shop for the food bank (So whatever is healthy/needed and I can get cheap, free or moneymaker). So it's almost at times like I have three different shopping lists to contend with.

    I would say time wise, for actual shopping it is about 3 to 5 hours per week at very most. But preparing for shopping trips, it could be up to 15 hours a week along with my schooling.

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    Mastermind Shwa Girl's Avatar
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    OP, do you use this thread each week

    https://forum.smartcanucks.ca/423436...er-4-a-canada/
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  6. #6
    Mastermind cath007's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Shwa Girl View Post
    OP, do you use this thread each week

    https://forum.smartcanucks.ca/423436...er-4-a-canada/
    But sadly the QC deals are no longer posted
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    The goal is to live day by day not to much thinking hahaha !!!!
    I love to save money!!! Frugal life hahaah !!!

  7. #7
    Mastermind cath007's Avatar
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    I am back to couponning so I dont have coupons but I spend 1 hour each week to do my grocery shopping list especially for price matching.I found that I save more money on healthy food by price matching .But I still use fpcs when they are posted (like kellogs cereals)
    macw1960 likes this.
    The goal is to live day by day not to much thinking hahaha !!!!
    I love to save money!!! Frugal life hahaah !!!

  8. #8
    Canadian Guru macw1960's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Shwa Girl View Post
    OP, do you use this thread each week

    https://forum.smartcanucks.ca/423436...er-4-a-canada/
    Super thread, I use it every week.
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    No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever forgotten...Aesop

  9. #9
    Junior Canuck EvilTofu's Avatar
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    The trick is to let the deal come to you, let other people do the work.

    I subscribe to 3 grocery haul videos on Youtube from women who live in my city. (I recommend Coupon Star if you live in the GTA) Every Friday, I watch these few-minute videos and take note of what I want to buy. I also visit Ilovesavings and only look at grocery deal in my area.

    Use a RSS reader like Feedly, so the SC blog posts come to you in which you only need to scan the title. Only click to the post when you are interested.

    If you are always actively seeking deals and savings, you'd end up using so much time that you might as well get a second job.
    Last edited by EvilTofu; Tue, Oct 3rd, 2017 at 09:17 AM.
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  10. #10
    Smart Canuck Arjon's Avatar
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    One thing you may want to keep in mind is giving back. There's a lot of information out there every week, and while it's impossible for most people to give back as much as we get, you have to decide for yourself if you'll give back what / when you can or not.

    Note that finding and posting deals isn't the only way to give back. In my case, since I very seldom start looking for deals for as much as a day or two after the sneak peeks start appearing, I basically never spot deals before someone else has already posted them. So, I focus more on trying to provide food for thought. usually by sharing how I regard various aspects of saving.
    macw1960 likes this.

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