How to Play the "Drugstore Game"

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We all know that coupons are FREE MONEY that the manufacturer's give us. Add the specials programs from the different pharmacies and, once you get the hang of things, you will NEVER pay for personal care items again! 

 
I know -- people think pharmacies are expensive and simply convenient...but there is a lot more to it. They are great places to get personal care items, paper products, health and beauty items and household cleaners! All you do is stack their rewards programs along with their store coupons and the manufacturer's coupons.

 
Honest, it isn't as complicated as it sounds, LOL!

What store rewards programs am I talking about?
  • CVS has their Extra Care Card
  • Walgreen's has their Register Rewards
Both are free to participate in and each have their own Pros and Cons. Let's start with the basics for both programs:
 
Basically you are shopping at the store with their coupons and the manufacturer's coupons and, after you pay, you get "Monopoly Money" back that is good for the next purchase at their store.

Here is an example:
  1. This week Walgreen's has the Triaminic Cold, Cough, Fever or Allergy for $5 (2 for $10).
  2. Buy two and use two of the the $3/1 manufacturer coupon from the 1/4 SS
  3. Pay $4.00 (plus tax) out of pocket and, get $5 in their Register Rewards (Monoploy Money) to use on your next visit.
  4. You spent $4 to get $5 back AND have the two medicines for FREE. (We call this a Money Maker).
An ad match up for you might look like this:

Triaminic Cold, Cough, Fever or Allergy $5 (2 for $10)
-use 2 of the $3/1 from the 1/4 SS
Get a $5 RR WYB2
Final Price: possible Money Maker!
The next time you shop you have that $5 to use as payment instead of pulling actual cash out of your wallet. You get to "roll" that deal into another one! Now both sets of rewards have expiration dates. Walgreen's usually has a 14 day limit and CVS gives you twice that...you need to use them, before you loose them.
What is the big difference?
  • CVS has limits as to how many times you can participate in a deal - your card is used for tracking that while Walgreen's has no such control set in place - you can get several of the same deals.
  • CVS has extra perks for you if you register your card with cvs.com (you'll get emails with money saving coupons), scan your card at an in-store kiosk.
  • Walgreen's won’t let you go under $0 so you need to make sure that you have things to bump your total up if you need to. We call those "filler items".
  • Walgreen's considers the Register Rewards as Manufacturer's coupons -- so you have to be careful when "rolling" your deals as you can't have more Manufacturer's coupons than items that you are buying.
Every Saturday, I post "What's Free at Walgreen's This Week" or "What's FREE at CVS This Week" that shows the hottest combination of items and coupons for you. There are a LOT of offers each week at each place, but keep in mind that all items in their weekly ads are FOR sale, they aren't always ON sale. You do not want to spend a lot of money to get back just a small amount of "Monopoly Money".
The trick to this, when you are new at it, is to start slow. I suggest getting 1-2 items at a time, and gradually growing your plan. It is OK to take two things to the register and have them run up separately.
=)
What is the best part of all of this?
If you can get personal care items FREE -- you can bless others with virtually no money out of your pocket! Families can no longer use "food stamps" to buy personal care items (shampoo, toothpaste, feminine hygeine, diapers, etc) and many food pantries and churches are now stocking these items.
It is SO EASY to pick up that 2-3 extra FREE items each week and toss into a brown paper bag. When the bag is full -- drop it off! Can you just imagine what this country would be like if everyone donated just ONE item a week? No one would ever be left out.
=)
Blessings -
Dannelle

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