Shopping at Walgreen’s and getting the best deal can be tricky for even the experienced couponer. Follow these tips to help ease the way.
Walgreen’s has their coupon acceptance policy online and it is always wise to print it and keep it in your binder when you shop there. Find it HERE.
The Basics:
- They allow (1) manufacture coupon (MFC) and store coupon(s) per item purchased, unless the coupon(s) state otherwise.
- They accept internet printed coupons.
- They DO NOT accept competitor’s store coupons and they DO NOT price match.
- They DO NOT accept more MFC then items purchased (read below for more information).
- Register Rewards are considered a MFC.
- Coupon(s) CANNOT be redeemed for more than the value of the item purchased. For example when making a purchase for an item for $2.99 a coupon reading $3.00 will be reduced to $2.99.
- When items are on a Buy 1 Get 1 free (B1G1) promotion, 2 coupons can be used, provided the discount doesn’t go below the items value.
Register Rewards (RR)
Register Rewards (RR) are savings offered in the form of a “catalina” received after you made your purchase. These coupons are used on your next purchase. The best way to save money when shopping at Walgreen’s is to roll your RR in multiple transactions.
Things you need to know:
- RR are considered MFC.
- You CAN NOT have more MFC then items purchased. So if you have a RR for $1.50 and a coupon for $1/1 you need to have 2 items to use both coupons. This second item is often referred to as a “filler”. Popular filler’s can be found in the weekly ad, using in-ad coupons (store coupons), in the clearance section, or just another item you may have on your shopping list that you don’t have a coupon for. Just note, make sure you plan your filler BEFORE you get to the counter, because you may end up buying a $0.69 candy bar to make your deal work.
- You will not get 2 RR printed for the same offer in 1 transaction. This means if you want to purchase 2 of the same items only 1 RR will print. It is better to do 2 different transactions and get 2 RR.
- If you are redeeming a RR for an offer you will not receive a 2nd RR for the same offer. This means if you want to purchase 2 items using RR you cannot roll them to the next offer and get the same RR printed. It is best to have 2 offers that you can roll into the other.
- You will get multiple RR in 1 transaction if they are for different products/from different offers.
An example of rolling RR in multiple transactions using the above ad insert.
Transaction 1: Buy Finish $3.49, use $0.75/1 MFC pay $2.74 and get $1.50 RR.
Transaction 2: Buy U by Kotex $3.99 use $1/1 MFC and $1.50 RR.
Buy filler item (pencil $0.39)
Pay $1.88 get $3.00 RR
So your total out of pocket cost (OOP) is $4.62, and you still have a $3 RR making it “like paying” $1.62 for Finish and Kotex.
If you wanted to repeat to get more product, you would need to add a filler to transaction 1 and use the RR, just making sure your total price is greater than the coupons. Just note, many Walgreen’s will limit the number of times you can do the transaction in 1 day, so you may have to visit multiple times to get multiple products.
Types of Coupons:
MFC: found in Sunday paper inserts, online, product labels, blinkies etc.
In-Ad Coupons: Found in the weekly Walgreen’s ad, considered a store coupon and can be used with a MFC, but does not count towards you item to coupon count like RR.
RR: Catalina coupons issued at check out for savings off your next purchase (considered a MFC).
IVC: Monthly savings book of in-store coupons found at the entrance in most Walgreen’s. These also can be used with MFC and do not count towards your item to coupon count.
A final thought:
Shopping at Walgreen’s can be fun, but also intimidating. More often than not the cashier will be willing to help you through the process. There may be times you will find you know their policy better than the cashier does. Be polite and considerate and if you feel that you are in the right, ask for a manager. ALWAYS carry their policy with you to avoid issues.
Most Walgreen’s have a strict policy against shelf clearing. If you know you want to purchase multiple items, please talk to the manager about placing a special order. They are almost always willing to help you out and will try to get the items in stock in time to “get the deal” and don’t forget about rain checks.
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