How To Coupon: Walmart

After a recent conversation with my Whole Foods buddy, about price matching at Walmart, I thought it might be a good time to give you the basics on couponing at that big box chain. (Disclaimer - I don't shop Walmart very often, but I do know the general policies.)

By now, you're probably quite familiar with Walmart's price match guarantee. The commercials are everywhere....."Match it!" "Match it!" "Match it!" They're enough to make me want to avoid the store, out of objection to the pure obnoxiousness.

To be honest, I've never attempted to price match, but the basic idea is that Walmart will give you a lower price on an item, if it is advertised by a competitor. For example, you might find toothpaste at Walmart for $1.75, but Walgreens is advertising the same product for $1.50. Walmart will adjust the price down to $1.50, to lure you away from Walgreens and any money you would have saved by shopping there. The ad match commercials say you don't need to bring the ad to the store, but I would suggest doing so anyway. My Whole Foods friend said he brings in the ad with the item and price circled or highlighted. This way, the price match can not be disputed.

A few other things to note -

Walmart allows one manufacturer coupon per item. They do not double, like Kroger, and they do not have store coupons to stack (manufacturer coupon + store coupon) like Target.

Walmart DOES allow something called overage. If the value of your items is less than the value of your coupons, Walmart will actually give you money back. For example, I had coupons for $1.00 off Cascade dish washer tablets (look for these next Sunday in the Procter & Gamble insert) The price of the small pack was $0.97, which meant an overage of $0.03 per pack. I used this extra money to pay for other items, but I've heard that you can actually be handed money to pay you for the overage.

In the few times I've shopped Walmart with coupons, I haven't run into problems. I've heard stories, though, of people having trouble with cashiers questioning their coupons. You might want to print a copy of the store's coupon policy and bring it with you, just in case.


I wanted to end this post by saying something witty....instead, I leave you with this link, because it's often said, a picture is worth a thousand words. Enjoy.