CVS is great mostly because of their Extra Bucks rewards program (called ECBs). You have to sign up for a CVS card, which is of course easy.
Here is the basics on how it works:
- Each week CVS runs promotions on certain products and if you buy that product, an Extra Buck coupon will print on the bottom of your receipt - so do not throw away your receipt without first cutting it off!!! Sometimes you will get multiple ECBs as well as CVS coupons (which can be combined with manufacturer coupons!). These typically expire in one month but it can change to make sure to check.
- Then when making your next purchase - use your ECB coupon to buy another product that also gives you Extra Bucks back - this is called "rolling" your Extra Bucks. This way you make the initial investment to get the first ECB, but from then on just use the ECBs to pay for the product instead of money! This will only work if you discipline yourself to only buy products that give you ECBs back. If you are tempted by any of the other sales or promotions, don't use your Extra Bucks to buy those!
This is what an Extra Bucks reward (ECB) looks like:
So here is an example.
Last week the CVS flyer (you can view it here, make sure to change to your zipcode) showed contact solution for the price of $8.99 but with $8.99 in ECB after purchase. So had you purchased this contact solution and paid $8.99 out of your pocket, on your receipt you would have printed at the bottom an ECB coupon with a value of $8.99.
Last week the CVS flyer (you can view it here, make sure to change to your zipcode) showed contact solution for the price of $8.99 but with $8.99 in ECB after purchase. So had you purchased this contact solution and paid $8.99 out of your pocket, on your receipt you would have printed at the bottom an ECB coupon with a value of $8.99.
You could then go back this week and purchase items that will give you around $8.99 back in Extra Bucks, then use your $8.99 Extra Buck and any coupons plus a little out of pocket to pay for your product. So let's say this week razors are on sale for $9.00 with a $4 Extra Buck promotion and the flyer says the limit is 2. Let's also say you had 2 coupons for $3 off a razor purchase.
So the razors would cost:
- $18 price for 2 razors
- Minus 2 copies of a $3 coupon = $6
- Minus your $8.99 Extra Buck coupon from last week
- Pay $3.01 plus tax for 2 razors
- Get back $8 in new Extra Bucks to use on your next purchase.
So for the 2 weeks combined:
- Pay $12.00 + tax out of your pocket
- Get $26.99 worth of product
- Have $8 in ECBs to use on your next shopping trip
If you keep buying product this way, week after week, and work to keep your out of pocket spending to a minimum (I usually try to stay under $5 a week), you will end up with a LOT of product in your "stash" for hardly any money actually spent by you. And if you hang on to coupons and use your Extra Bucks, you can often get things for FREE (they won't give you money back, but you can use that "credit" to get something else also for free).
Here is a picture of my savings from just 2011:
Yes, last year I saved over $1,000 by doing this! And now that I am not working, my stash of products I got cheap or free sure is coming in handy.
I am not shopping at CVS right now since we just moved and I am about to go on a 5 week long vacation, but once I return I will start posting my CVS deals so you can do what I do! There are other tips to earn ECBs even faster, I will share that with you later as well.
Until then, the blog Saving Cents With Sense has more info here and she posts weekly CVS deals, including hyperlinks to online printable coupons. She lives in Phoenix so those of you in Tucson can also follow her Frys, Safeway and Albertsons coupon match-ups too!
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