Whether you like it or not, let’s be honest: Walmart has some of the best prices out there. And when you have the lowest prices with coupons and a good app, the magic just happens. At this point, I think it’s safe to say that buying at Walmart makes the savings no less than phenomenal.
In fact, in some cases, you can even MAKE money with coupons at Walmart. I really can’t think of a greater deal. However, you need to know what to do to access these perks. But don’t worry, we got you covered! Here are 16 hacks you should know about when shopping there:
The register beeps when you have overage
One of the best things about Walmart is that they’re very careful with overage. If your coupon’s value is more than the product cost, Walmart will make sure to pay you the overage over to pay for any other item in your transaction.
Stack rebate app offers if you want to save moreĀ
A few weeks ago, My Walmart rolled back the price for some avocados to $0.47 each. Out of coincidence, both Ibotta and Checkout 51 made rebate offers for $0.25 back on avocados. I got one, redeemed both app offers, and guess what? I made $0.03!
Here are the best rebate apps you should get TODAY:
- Ibotta
- Checkout 51
- MobiSave
- Shopmium
Walmart takes printable Internet manufacturer coupons
Coupons that have quality-printed bar codes and fine print will become your favorites! These coupons will make your life so much better because they won’t cause you any errors at the register.
Walmart ALSO takes competitor store coupons (!!!)
What? You’re stuck with many competitor coupons? Don’t worry, as you can bring them to Walmart! Only make sure that the coupon has a very specific price, just like Walgreen coupons have, where a state soup is on sale for $0.89, or a Target coupon, that gives you $1 off peanut butter.
Walmart will take any of them. BOGO store coupons are also good, just make sure that there’s a specific price mentioned, such as “Get one for $4, Get a Second Free”.
Use only one manufacturer coupon per item
Do you have by any chance 3 of the same product? You can easily use 3 manufacturer coupons. In order to comply with the policy, coupons must have written on them “Manufacturer Coupon” across the top, an expiration date, and an easy-to-scan barcode.
Walmart offers an extensive trial size section for items that are priced around $1. When a manufacturer coupon’s fine print doesn’t have trial/travel size items, you can actually get free products! If the value of your coupon is bigger than the price of an item, you’ll get an overage.
Meat and even produce can also be price matched if there’s a specific unit price
When it comes to price matching meat and produce, then it’s about pound price per pound price. Walmart won’t take competitor deals such as “Save 50% off your entire purchase”, or “Free gift with purchase”. You need to show the exact individual unit price when you match produce and meat.
Gather competitor store coupons with manufacturer coupons
Walmart accepts one manufacturer coupon per item, but when it comes to stacking a competitor’s store coupon with a manufacturer coupon, you can save a lot!
The Savings Catcher app will show you the best price out there
Because there’s Walmart’s Savings Catcher app, you don’t have to worry about missing better deals anywhere else. All you need to do is upload your receipt immediately after every Walmart transaction (and no more than 7 receipts per week), and Savings Catcher will instantly check that you paid the best price out there on every product you bought. You can save as much as $600 per year!
Don’t worry, be nice to everyone and learn by heart the coupon policy
Try to keep it cool in front of the cashier, in case he or she doesn’t know as much as you do when it comes to coupon stacking. Their performance is carefully watched, especially on how quickly they process transactions. When time-consuming problems appear, it’s not frustrating only for you, but also for them.
Having a coupon policy in your phone can come in handy, as well as keeping track of a product’s price when you want to use a BOGO coupon (because cashiers have to manually check an item’s price with BOGO coupons).
Coupon acceptance is at the manager’s discretion, which is unfortunate
The thing with Walmart’s corporate coupon policy is that it clearly says “store managers are the ones that have the final decision in taking care of our customers”, which is a bit annoying. This basically means that a Walmart store might let you use 10 of the same coupon in the same purchase, and another might decide not to. In the end, it solely depends on the store manager’s decision. It’s worth mentioning that the system prompts supervisor verification for:
- 4 or more coupons for every transaction
- a coupon of $5 and over
- $50+ in coupons in one transaction
- coupons totaling a percentage (%) of the total sale
If a manufacturer coupon has another store name on it, you can still use it at Walmart
The only thing that matters is that the coupon (including Catalinas) has “Manufacturer coupon” written on it. If it does, you can use it in any place where manufacturer coupons are accepted, such as Walmart. With Catalina coupons, you only have to make sure there’s a valid remit address for the manufacturer printed, but also a bar code and a specified amount of money for an item.
The best time to shop there is between 7-11 AM
That’s because between 7-11 AM is when the store managers make sure everything is well stocked before the daytime rush begins.
Never shop on the first three days of the month
Because Walmart is the biggest retailer in the country, you should expect the biggest number of food stamp holders to buy stuff from there, especially in the first three days of every month, because that’s when food stamp distribution begins.
If there’s an item out of stock, you can request a rain check at customer service
You don’t have to worry if the item you wanted for so long is now out of stock! Go to customer service and complete a rain check form. Walmart will instantly call you when the item is back.
Use the Amazon app to check prices
Downloading the Amazon app is probably the best decision you could take. It’s one of the easiest ways to make sure you’re buying stuff at the best price. Plus, you can use it to price match at stores such as Walmart and Target.
For some items, you can get a credit that drops in price after you buy them
Make sure you keep the receipt at least a week after buying something. Why? Because at Walmart, they offer you the chance to get a price adjustment at customer service (if you still have the receipt) within the first 7 days of purchase.
What’s your experience at Walmart? If there are any other tips you might know, make sure you share them with The Money Place community! Also, if you found this article even a bit useful, then you’ll definitely want to try: 13 Grocery Stores With Huge Senior Discounts
