I have wanted to type this up for a while but never got around to doing it! Paul and I each made a transaction, these are the items that I purchased.
Our Kroger was having a mega event, that means that for every 10 items I purchased that were included in the event I got an automatic $5 off my total.
8 Kettle Chips
10 Glacier Water
1 Lettuce
10 Planters Peanut
10 Fruit Leather
10 Kraft Easy Mac
10 Sobe Juice
10 Nesquick Chocolate Milk
10 Bar S Franks
4 Kelloggs Cereal
1 Sea Pak Shrimp
10 Chex Mix
8 Balance Bars
4 Butterfingers
6 Hunts Tomato’s
6 Rotel Tomato’s
1 Zone Bar
1 Ntro Bread
1 Ltr. Sierra Mist
1 Yoplait Yogurt
1 Kroger Sourcream
1 Kroger milk
1/2 Gallon Milk
.49 lb. Bananas
10 New York Garlic Toast
1 Cantaloupe
1 Kelloggs Corn Pops
1 Kelloggs Fruit Loops
10 Krustez Cookie Mix
3 Dixie Plates
3 Dixie Napkins
10 Kens Salad Dressing
3 French’s Mustard (because that is all we needed :))
2 Pace Salsa
2 Ziploc Bags
3 Kleenex
2 Ovaltine
9 Colgate Toothpaste
1 Franks Wing Sauce
6 Wiskas Cat Treats
5 Campbells Soup
1 Hidden Valley Salad Dressing Kit
5 Reach Toothbrushes
2 Dove Deodorant
1 Blisteex
1 Breath Right Strip
1 Gillette Deodorant
1 Maalox
1 Oxi Clean Stain Remover
10 Philly Cream Cheese
10 Kraft Cheese
Total: $5.97
Tax: $4.43
I had $75 that came right off the top from the Mega Event.
MFG Coupon Savings $273.79
Bonus Coupon Savings ( double and triple coupons) $5.15
Kroger Plus Savings $251.25
Total Savings: 98%
A few fun facts:
- I only knew 4 days over a weekend what store I was shopping at before we filmed.
- We didn’t pre-order anything.
- We shopped at our normal store.
- All the kids came but the baby.
- I got lost in the parking lot walking out to the car… I was tired!
- I forgot my wallet in the car, I actually had no money on me! If you watch me in the show, I am looking around for Paul and I tell him “I hope you have some money!” I wasn’t joking!
Part comedian, part Dad, part athlete. He will boss around your children while they play ball.
Just as angelic as she looks, this girl could easily raise a Village by herself, and all the children would grow up to be President.
Self proclaimed, she would be a webkinz dog. Because, "they're cute, and puppies are too. And they're sweet and they always get along with other puppies."
This mini-Martha Stewart can handle ANY craft you send her way. She isn't all bows and rainbows, she's got karate kid moves!
Not "Pick-Me-Up" like caffeine, she wants you to pick her up! AND NOW!
Anything that can be destroyed WILL be destroyed!
Practically Perfect in Every Way for now! Nicknamed "The Panda" she is rolly polly and lives by the motto, "the little one, is KING!"
The resident Labradoodle, Miller got his name because Mom won and got to name the baby! Need something chewed up? He'll take care of it. Especially if it's expensive..
Thanks for posting this!
But only 3 mustards?! 😉
AWESOME! Thank you for sharing this.
I have a question. My nearest Kroger is 40 miles away. How do I know when they are going to do a mega sale? Is it advertised in the ad?
it is always advertised in their ads or you can get a heads up almost a week in advance by following mylitter.com. The megas usually last 2 weeks so even if you don’t find out until later you should still have plenty of time to shop it!
Nice to see your breakdown ~ since the new season premiered, I think you and Paul were the most “normal” people that have been featured 🙂
I agree!! I was glad to see that you do not clear the shelves or buy more than 10 of an item, and double check the current coupon policys before shopping.
That’s awesome, but my Kroger no longer doubles coupons, and has never tripled coupons. Seems to be the case with alot of Krogers now.
It is refreshing to see a more balanced shopping trip. I’m sure your trip could have seemed even more impressive if you stocked up on 10 times that amount, but happy to see a shopper that does not clear shelves and buy things just because they are on sale or free!
I finally caught the episode you all were in. You were darling! I loved seeing your family in action after spending the last year or so following your blog.
“Because that is all we needed” Ha, point taken! 🙂
LOVED your episode. I think it is funny you got lost finding your car and that you left your purse in the car. Something I would totally do. My first big haul I was so excited I locked my keys in the car and my husband had to come rescue me!
I still don’t quite understand how you’re savings are so large. I am only seeing around 30% to 40% savings. Is this normal when you first start or am I doing something wrong? I have the CVS & Walgreens shopping down pat but am having trouble with the grocery part and thats where I need the savings is on the food. Can you give a few examples of an item above on how the transaction worked? Your site is so helpful and so is your husbands! We all appreciate the work and dedication that you put into your sites! They’re amazing! Thanks!!
I would also like to know where the 98% came from. I shopped that mega sale but only saved my usual 50-60%. Thanks!
At first I was only saving 50% or so on trips I did myself, mostly because I bought things like milk, fruits and stuff I didn’t have coupons for, or I miscalculated something, or it wasn’t on sale as much as I thought, or I left out a coupon. One time they didn’t scan my club card, so I missed that discount.
The days when we loved Kroger….
I honestly think that was one of the last times I was in. I have not been since March 13th.
Amazing! I live in Spring. Which Kroger do you shop at?
Gosling and Research
I live in between that Kroger and the Alden Bridge Kroger – lucky me. I don’t go there anymore, either since they stopped doubling/tripling. BOO!
Thats my fave too!
Seriously…one of the MOST AMAZING things I have EVER seen!!
I also live in the Houston area and have not gone back to Kroger after they stopped doubling/tripling. Can I ask where you get your high value coupons from? In my grocery trips, I just am not getting the great savings like you are…..
Thanks.
I got lucky and had some from a sampling event they had at Walmart, I had a bunch of $1 off on the Nesquick and had coupons for the boxes of fruit leather that made them completely free, at $4 a box! I had just grabbed them in Jan and not used them. Also I had the $1 reach, and some Kroger free coupons from a event in November that I had in my binder. Trust me, I used EVERY good coupon I had for that trip! I was loooking under my desk for coupons that might have slipped under!
I loved seeing u all on tv and I totally agree that you were all normal compared to the others. I had to get my husband to watch it w me and he was amazed!
Haha! love the mustard comment 🙂 I have a question though, correct me if I’m wrong, but it seemed on the show like you had a ton of digital coupons come off once they scanned your card. Were you able to somehow get more than one of the same digital coupon on your card?
I used no digital coupons at all! I really dont like them much.
Ah, must have been the show’s editing then that made it look that way. I don’t like them anymore either now that they stopped combining with paper coupons. Half the time they don’t work right. I’m in the Houston area and I’ve noticed there are less people in Kroger. I don’t see as many fellow couponers, but I still go for some things.
Thanks for posting this as I have been wondering what your breakdown was since watching your episode. Honestly,I agree with the other person that said you two were probably the most normal people on the show so far. You were respectful,didn’t clear the shelves to show off to the viewers and you weren’t rude! Thanks for being an inspiration. I am a momma of 4. I read your posts everyday,you have saved my family so much money and so has your husband! Thank you for taking time out of your day,every day,to do this site 🙂
I guess I’m one of the lucky ones, our Kroger here in Indiana still doubles coupons with no limits. I haven’t had any problems with coupons anywhere except for Walmart. Their coupon policy is right on the corporate website for all to see but the stores don’t seem to have a clue what it is! and what makes it worse is the cashiers can be so rude sometimes.
i had the exact experience. i READ them the policy.. and they said that every walmart was different. i even had an assistant manager come over.. gave them a copy of the policy and she still gave me a hard time.
So awesome! You did such a great job on the show! You’re an inspiration!
FAB-U-LOUS I say clapping my Australian hands together. Being new to the US and to using coupons, you are an inspiration!!
I am glad that your Kroger still doubles and triples. Here in Wabash, IN, our store only accepts two like coupons and only doubles up to fifty cents. It was a sad day when they changed from unlimited coupons. They also used to have triple fifty cent and double dollar days every now and then. We never see that anymore.
Thanks for all your help to make our dollars and coupons go farther.
Mt Kroger ( king soopers ) has the Mega sale as well– Quess I have been BLOWING it–as I thought you could only get 1 of the $5 discounts for the 10 items purchased..is that no limit to the $5 as long as you buy the correct 10 items for the discount?? Iused it for the pedigree dog food last month along with $1 Q’s so got my dog food free. good job
Thanks for posting this. It was interesting to see how little of your savings came from double or triple coupons. I hear all the time that those of us in the Pacific Northwest can’t do as good as people on Extreme Couponing because we don’t have stores that regularly offer double/triple coupons. Even without those savings, you would still saved 97%. Loved your episode.
I am glad you told us your list. I watched you on the show and was excited to see someone in my neck of the woods (SouthEast Texas) on the show. I heard that Krogers in Houston quit doubling/tripling coupons. Is that right? I also like that you only bought what you “Needed”, not shelf clearing. There is something wrong with doing that unless you plan to donate to charity or something. Some of the people on EC show seem like hoarders and obsessive compulsive with their coupons. That was my impression. I’m glad I found it, because I am now saving money!!!
I was thinking the same thing about hoarding and OCD, I thought it will go on sale again and how can they just clear the shelves and no one else can get in on the deal also. I like that you shopped for what your family was actually going to eat.
I also started using coupons because of watching the show and am glad I found it, but I could never see myself overbuying just because I can.
Thanks for sharing this. My friends and family were wondering how it could be done. It’s nice for them to see what was actually bought. They seem to think it was all junk food or stuff they don’t nee.
I would like to know where you purchased your shelving unit for the canned goods or was it specially made. I want to get at least 1 of these as I do stock up on canned items. I also think you should do a seminar teaching us locals how to shop like you. I used to get an absolute high off of seeing how much I could save with coupons and ad sales matching, but now that Kroger’s doesn’t double or triple coupons, I don’t look forward to shopping as it is back to being too expensive.
the shelving units are “Shelf reliance”
Good job. The most important thing I learned from you so far is to never clear the shelves. There have been many times that I could have, and honestly wanted to. After seeing other people on the show do it, I’m glad I didn’t. They appeared so greedy. I wouldn’t want to feel that way about myself. Thanks for choosing the right.
Thats how I feel, I have been on the other end so many times and hate seeing the shelves cleared.
LOVE that you posted this Tiffany! Now THIS is a real practical extreme couponing shopping trip 🙂
Thanks Jasmine!
Hey Tiffany, im curious on your year-to-date total kroger card savings? I’m so inspired by your tecniques, but unfortunatly over in Canada here we’re not as lucky to have sunday paper coupons or as great of deals at the grocery stores, so i try and research as much as possible when i go shopping in Detroit as im in a border-city in Windsor, Ontario 🙂
It wont be good because I am not shopping there anymore! You guys need a money saving blog for people in Canada! You should start one!
We have a womanfreebies.ca, the Canadian version of your womanfreebies.com, both very useful, but nothing compaired to the dedication you put into finding these great deals! thank you!
Ashley Danielle,
If you are ever on Interstate 75 in Ohio. Get off at exit 193. Turn east about a half a mile down is a Kroger that doubles to .99 cents after June 12. Then about another 3/4 of a mile down U.S. 20 is a Giant Eagle that doubles to .99 cents 3 weeks a month. The first full week of the month from Thursday to Wednesday they will double to a dollar.
Reading your fun facts – you only knew 4 days in advance what store you would shop at??? That part blows my mind because what if they wanted you to shop at a store without a Mega Event? Or at HEB or Walmart instead?
And with that little notice, obviously you only used the coupons you had on hand instead of ordering from a clipping service. Very impressive to save so much with so little time to plan. But curious, why was Paul’s total *so high* at $37? I thought he bought the exact same things.
Paul bought steak!
Thats right, I used what I had, and borrowed a few coupons from my friends Susan and Suzanne. I wanted to shop at kroger because of the mega event, but it takes so long to get store approval that we didnt know if it would be randalls or Kroger until the last minute! Don’t think I didn’t have a trip to Randalls planned as well!
Does the Kroger that you shop at limit the number of like coupons that you can use in one transaction? Also, how has no more double/triples affected how you shop?
I agree that I was glad to see you aren’t the kind of people who wipe the shelves clean. Nothing burned me up more than seeing one woman on another episode clear the mustard shelf of 62 bottles, leaving nothing for anyone else. With 7 kids, it is no wonder you shop the way you do and I admire what you accomplished! I’m not a coupon noob but am beginning to step up my game. Thanks so much for all the work you put into this site to teach the rest of us!
what walmart here in houston/spring/woodlands do you recommend? i asked on paul’s blog (i know it may come off as stalkerish) but i haven’t received a reply. i had a HORRIBLE experience at the walmart on west rd. and 45 n.. and i was ready, with my coupon policy in hand and they were still making up their own rules. i’ve since done smaller transactions at 2 other walmarts but they’ve been just as awful. i’ve left messages for managers and called corporate. are all walmarts like this? i really hope not.. i’m willing to drive into less “ghetto” areas of town as long as the checkout process is smoother. i dread checking out.. it seems that no matter how prepared and patient i am, the cashiers treat me like i’m doing something illegal. i live by the toll road and beltway 8.
We like both the Sawdust and the 242 location. I hate to see you drive all the way up this far. It might have to be a mission for you to get them to follow their own coupon policy!
thank you! i’m going to drive up north for my big transactions.. but i’ve been thinking that the west rd. walmart cashiers are just going to have to get used to me hanging around (for my smaller purchases) and are going to have to learn their policy. i can’t drive that far away all the time and either way, they can’t treat me or other couponers this way.
OMG I shop at the same Kroger! HOW DID YOU DO IT??? I can’t get above 49%! I think the computers say NO MORE DISCOUNT over that! LOL
I’m in Ohio and spoiled because our Kroger doubles to a dollar….at least until June 12. Then they are going to double to .99 cents. After they quit doing the double dollars. I’m saving my dollar coupons for the double dollars that Giant Eagle has the first week of the month. For June its June 2-9. Kroger here has tried to get rid of doubles b4 but ended up bringing them back when the store that doubles to a buck lost about 60 percent of their business.