A coupon policy is a guide on how to use coupons at a specific store.
The policy might explain:
- Whether they accept coupons printed from websites,
- If you can use both a store coupon and a manufacturer coupon on the same item
- Whether they will double coupons.
We have links to coupon policies for the largest grocery and drug stores in the US: one page for grocery store coupon policy (and weekly ads), one for drug store coupon policy. Also, we have contacted several stores without posted coupon policies for guidelines on coupon use; that feedback is posted as “notes” links on these two pages.
A public coupon policy is to your benefit. If you know the rules, you can work within them, and maximize your savings. You can print out a copy of the policy in case a cashier or manager ever questions your coupons.
It can be more risky to use coupons at stores without public coupon policies. For example, let’s say you have a coupon for $1.00 off Ronzoni pasta that you printed from a website. You put the pasta into your cart, get into line, and then the checker tells you “sorry we don’t take internet coupons”. At that point your only choice is to buy it at the higher price (grrr…) or refuse the item (no pasta!). If you shop at a store without a coupon policy, consider contacting the management and let them know that their customers would like one.