Are your frugal habits making you poorer?

The blog makes sense. Using coupons only works if you're buying things you would buy anyway or if you've been dying to try something. They don't work if they convince you to buy products you don't really need or want. The same goes for sale items. Just because an item is on sale doesn't mean you want to buy dozens of them, if you won't ever use them. My husband used to drive all over the are looking for the cheapest gas. I finally convinced him that driving all over and using up gas to find gas at one or two cents cheaper was not economically wise.

That is one thing I never fully understood about people. I used to work at a grocery store and people would come in all the time and fistfuls of coupons, or have something and left their coupon at home and tell me that they were only buying these things because they had coupons. My view on coupons...if it's something you already buy often, yeah, use those coupons. But don't buy something solely based on if you have a coupon or not. Sure, you could save 50 cents on it, but you could also save the 5.00 by not buying it at all. Store brand items are usually cheaper than brand name items and that's what I stick to, not always...there are still certain items that I want the brand name for. Even if it's the same thing...but those are few. I have seen however, every now and then the brand name actually be cheaper than the store brand. I just pay careful attention to the prices and the sizes. I'll pay an extra 30 cents for something when it comes in a slightly bigger size.

i very seldom use coupons because the store brand of the item is usually much cheaper than the brand name item even with using the coupon! unless its a real good deal, i hardly use them.

I do use coupons, but only if it's for stuff I already use, or something I've already been wanting to try out. I learned that lesson from my mother, who learned it the hard way. I do some quick math every time I go shopping, figuring out the "per ounce" cost. Then, I get the one that's cheaper per ounce (if I have the money and the need). Buying in bulk isn't always cheaper, though. Sometimes the 2 small boxes/cans are cheaper for more ounces than the 1 big box/can. It doesn't matter to me if it's store brand or not. There can be some great savings in coupons, too. Keep clipping, but don't buy anything you don't already!

I gave up on coupons too as so often I had not really saved anything and sometimes I bought something that was actually higher than my usual brand so where was the savings in that? also I hate all the fuss of clipping and organizing and then remembering to take the things with you. also I found that sometimes buying the large economy size did not save while two of the ordinary size were actually cheaper. live and learn.

The article has a few really good points. I tend to not use coupons unless I need the item in the first place, and that seems to be the main point of the article. It does no good to get the coupon to spend more on stuff you are not going to use just because you can get it one sale. Thanks for the article, its always nice to have a reminder on how to save so it stay in the forefront of my mind.

My frugal habits are not costing me more. There are some things that I just can't have the generic brand of, so the coupons help me out. My hubby calls me the coupon queen, but I don't see it that way. It's just me trying to save us money. With the price of gas where it's at, there's just no point in shopping at different stores to get the best price, because you usually spend more money in gas than what the difference is. That's what people really need to remember these days.

I always check the price of the store brand before I use a cupon for the name brand for just that reason. There are some products that I prefer the name brand and am willing to pay a bit more for, but usually I end up getting the generic on because it's cheaper.

I've caught myself doing the same thing. I'm more careful now about which coupons I use. I also only buy meat when it is on sale. Why buy full price? And I buy the bulk packages and split up to several smaller packages in the freezer.

I've never used coupons until recently. I agree that coupons should be used carefully, because they can actually cause us to spend more than necessary. I do my homework before heading out to shop. I look for the store with the best deals for the things I need. I don't go to different stores anymore for different bargains. The best way to save, I think, is still to shop less often. I only use coupons where they're doubled, because most of the time the store brands are still cheaper. I also print my coupons from a site that pays me to do so. Otherwise, I won't even bother.

i know that they have to post the unit cost know and that helps me decide greatly when grocery shopping. i only shop at ralphs because they double coupons, i signed up on their website for ecoupons which are automatically added to my ralphs card and linked to my nephews upromise account. i dont buy someting jsut because i have a coupon, but if my coupon/sale price beats the store brand, then i buy with the coupon. i think some people are just silly and know aware of how to work the coupons/sales.. just because it is on sale DOESN'T MEAN U NEED IT!

I've never used coupons too much because I can usually buy the store brand cheaper than the name brand with the coupon. I think people tend to buy things just because they have a coupon - when they probably wouldn't buy the product otherwise.

Since there are not many good coupons in the newspaper anymore I print most of mine off the internet. I find out what is one sale that week and then start hunting the coupons online. I don't use the coupon unless it is free or almost free and it is on stuff we need. I got lots of things free on last weeks grocery trip. I love FREE!

I didn't read the article you provided the link for. But, if you are shopping smart, coupons are NOT going to waste money. Oftentimes I get far better deals by buying name brands when they are on sales with coupons. The key is that you have to know your prices. And I don't buy things I don't need just because I have a coupon. I only buy what I need, when it is on sale, with coupons. For example, I once got 2 huge refill bottles of Windex. they were on sale BOGO (Buy one, get one free) and I used two coupons for $1 off each. So, I ended up getting the 2 huge bottles for less than $1, and far less than buying a much smaller bottle of windex or generic window cleaner. It's all about knowing your pricess and stocking up so you never have to pay full price for non-perishables.

it is very funny how sometimes we spend more money when we try to save money when we are being ignorant... instead of saving money, we are being cheated by the stores and they ripped us off... that's why i always make sure that i check the price first before i fall into the trap of sale, discounts or using the coupon... take care and have a nice day...

My mom is frugal and because of this she has been in a similar situation. She often buys things on sale regardless of our need for that particular product. I try not to do the same thing.

I used to always clip coupons, but I didn't ever buy anything just because I had a coupon, and I always checked the store brand against the name brand price with coupon and would go with the cheaper of the two. I have also gotten to where I buy some things online, however, I look at the price plus shipping, and compare that to the in-store price plus gas to go get it. I do this more on my scrapbooking stuff because the nearest craft store is 40 miles away. But I have to also take into account that I can combine other shopping errands in with that mileage. There are always things that seem cheaper at first glance but when you do the math it actually isn't.

I have only a small choice of shops nearby, and realised early on that driving to a larger store on a regular basis was going to cost me more in fuel than I'd save on my shopping. I've also taken on board that the vouchers I receive through my supermarket loyalty card don't always prove worthwhile. They recently had what looked like a very good offer on toilet paper, but it still worked out more costly than the brand I buy normally.

Sometimes I bought goods with coupon that I dont even wanted or used just because its cheap or on sale with coupon. Like when they had a sale of buy two bottle syrup and get the third bottle free. I just bought them thinking i was saving some money and I actually did not need the syrups cause I am not a syrup person. But the big discount just draw me in.

No my frugal habits are making us richer. I only use coupons if I use the stuff the coupon is for. My being frugal we are able to have more family treats with the money I save on the shopping bills.