CVS verse Walgreens

Walgreens verse CVS

Before I started couponing I thought Walgreens and CVS were over priced convenient stores. Once I learned how to coupon I realized you get really good deals. I started of my couponing experience at Walgreens but quickly fell in love in CVS. Both stores have their pros and cons obviously.

 

Walgreens

·Usually, there is a limit to how many items you can purchase with an in-ad coupon.  If I need to stock up on an item with a limit I would suggest you go back the next day or go to another store as the in-ad store coupons are available in store. Typically, in-ad coupons advertise a price and not certain amount of money off.

·In-ad coupons are considered store coupons, so this means you CAN combine them with a  manufacturer coupons.

·The IVC coupon booklet is a monthly coupon booklet that Walgreens releases each month that can be found near the front of the store. The coupons are usually valid for about a month, but pay attention to start/expiration dates!  These coupons usually have a limit. You can also use a manufacturer coupon with these coupons as well.

Walgreens Register Rewards (RR’s)

·RR's print out as coupons after your receipt when you purchase a certain item. Sometimes you need to purchase a certain number to get the RR's and there usually is a limit. You can then use your RR's in your next purchase. The RR's deals can be found in Walgreens weekly ad.

·You CAN use manufacturer's coupons in order to get a RR deal.  Also, if you need to spend a certain amount of money to get the RR deal, the amount required is the pre-manufacturer coupon total. 

·If your RR's do not print, it is either because you purchased the wrong items (could be as simple as the wrong sizes), you didn't buy enough items, or there is something wrong with the machine. 

·You CAN use RR's to buy another item that will earn you RR's as long as it's not the same deal.

·RR's are considered manufacturer's coupons so you can be limited on how many RR's you can use in your transaction. Basically, if you check out with 10 items, you can only have 10 coupons (the manufacture coupons that you clip from inserts, print from home, etc AND any RR's you want to use. In-ad coupons and coupons from the Walgreens IVC coupon booklet do NOT count towards the total.  Sometimes it's helpful to add a couple cheap items (aka "fillers") to your transaction if you want to use more RR's.

·You can't use more RR's than your total is worth. 

·There are a few items that you can NOT buy with Register Rewards.  RR's cannot be used toward the purchase of gift cards and pre-paid cards.  Prescriptions, tobacco products, alcoholic beverages, dairy products, lottery tickets, money orders/transfers, transportation passes, special event/entertainment tickets or passes, postage stamps, Prescription Savings Club memberships, and health care services, including immunizations are all off limits.

 

CVS

Use Your CVS Card for All Purchases!!! In order to get the sale prices in their ad, you must use your CVS card.  If you don't have a card, you can get one for FREE in the store.

 

What are Extra Care Bucks (EBCs)?

·ECB's print out at the end of your receipt when you purchase a certain item.  You can then use as many ECB's as you like in your next purchase. 

·ECB are basically money off your next purchase at CVS. These are free money: Don’t let them expire!

·Sometimes you need to purchase a certain number to get the ECB's and there usually is a limit. 

·The ECB deals can be found in CVS's weekly ad. 

·Sometimes you'll find some awesome deals with ECB's, but sometimes you can get an item for FREE or even MAKE MONEY just for buying that item.

·Remember that ECB's print out at the END OF YOUR RECEIPT so make sure you don't throw your receipt away!

 

A Few More Words on ECB's

·        If you have to spend a certain amount of money in order to get the ECB's, the total is calculated BEFORE you use manufacturer's coupons. 

·        You can NOT get back change when you use ECB's.   

·        ECB's typically expire 4 weeks from the date they are printed.

·        You will earn ECB's just by using your card.  A certain percentage of the total amount you've spent at CVS will be calculated and awarded to you each quarter of the year.  Those ECB's will be printed out on your receipt.

·        ECB's are linked to your CVS card and non-transferrable.  This means you NEED to use your CVS card in order to use your ECB's.  You cannot transfer ECB's to another card.

·        ECB's will not be replaced if lost. 

·        There is no limit to how many ECB's you can use in a single transaction!

·        If there is an ECB deal but they are out of stock, get a rain check! I LOVE CVS rain checks for a few reasons...mainly because they do NOT expire and because you will get any ECB's you should have been awarded! 

·        Every week, new items earn ECB. Look in your Sunday ad and you’ll see these advertised. CVS also runs monthly ECB deals

 

More Tips for Shopping at CVS

·         There is a "coupon center machine" at every store.  Usually they are located near the front of the store by the registers.  When you scan your CVS card at the machine, it will print out money saving STORE coupons that you can combine with your manufacturer coupons!

·         If you sign up for their emails, CVS will occasionally send store coupons to your email.  If you hand over this type of coupon FIRST BEFORE ANY OTHER COUPONS, the qualifying purchase would be your pre manufacturer coupon total!

·         You can use one manufacturer's coupon and one store coupon on one item.  Be sure to check the bottom of your receipt each time; sometimes it prints out random coupons there, too.

·         Realize that you can use a CVS coupon and a manufacturer’s coupon on the same item. This is called “stacking,” and is fine at most stores — do it at CVS; do it at Jewel; do it at Dominick's; do it at Target. At CVS, whenever you can stack coupons on an extra-buck earning item, you have a chance to get stuff for free — or, sometimes, even better than free.

·         If you continue to roll your ECB  by using them to buy more ECB-earning items — especially if you also use coupons — you end up paying very little out of pocket but continuing to get more items each visit.

·         CVS very often runs ECB deals on staples — toothpaste, shampoo — that also tend to have associated coupons. Once you get started on the rolling game,  you do not need to ever pay real money for these types of items again.

 

If you need more information on Walgreens or CVS Check Out

I Heart Wags 

I Heart CVS 

Wild for Wags 

Wild for CVS

Information was gathered from several sources including Mashup Mom and South Suburban Saving

Getting Started Shopping at Walgreens & FAQ

 

If you are new to shopping at Walgreens you’ll want to familiarize yourself with their Register Rewards program and the Balance Rewards. Walgreens has a new Balance Rewards program as of September 2012. You can sign up for the card in store. You will need the card to get sale prices at Walgreens.

 

Some purchases give you the chance to earn points which can be redeemed once you earn 5,000 points, which is the equal to $5. When making a purchase you can choose to either redeem earned Points or continue saving Points to use on a future purchases. The more you allow points to accumulate the more points will be worth. Every 1,000 points equal a dollar expect when you earn 18,000 it equals $20 and 30,000 equals $35 and 40,000 equals $50. Redemption Dollars may not be used for the purchase of the following: dairy; liquor; tobacco; stamps; phone/pre-paid/gift cards; money order/transfers; transportation passes; charitable donations; prescriptions; pseudoephedrine or ephedrine products; immunizations, health tests or other healthcare items or services; Prescription Savings Club membership fee; Take Care Clinic services.

WALGREENS BALANCE REWARDS TIPS

·         If you signed up on-line you can still attach your account to an actual card in the store.

·         If you pay with points you still will get your Register Rewards

·         If you pay with points for a transaction where you should earn more points you will not.

·         Manufacturer’s coupons do not interfere with any points earned.

·         Points earned show up on your receipt, making it easy to keep track!

·         If the points don’t show up, call Walgreens customer service & they’ll be credited.

 

The Register Reward Program

The Register Rewards Program can be a great way to get items FREE or inexpensively at Walgreens.

 

Register Rewards (RR) are similar to Catalina coupons, they print out of the Catalina machine after you have purchased certain qualifying products. They are manufacturers coupons intended to be used only at Walgreens (even though I have heard of other stores accepting them).

 

How do I get a Register Reward?

There are RR deals that vary weekly, others that only last for a few days (like a 4 day sale) and still other deals last all month long.

 

How long are Register Rewards valid?

Generally they are good for 2 weeks from the date they are issued. Occasionally I have received a RR that was good for only 1 week. That is why you’ll want to learn how to best “roll” your register rewards.

What does “rolling” mean?

Rolling is using RR you received from buying one item or group of items, to purchase other items that give RR.

Can I use a RR I received from one item to buy another of the same item?

You can but then another RR will not print.

How do I know the RR is from buying a specific item just by looking at it?

Each RR will tell you what manufacturer it’s from.

How many RR can I use in one transaction?

You can’t use more coupons in a transaction at Wags then you have items. RR are considered coupons. So if I’m buying 5 items I can only use 5 coupons or RR combined. Wags Qs don’t count towards that total.

What are fillers?

Fillers are inexpensive items that you buy so you can use more RR..

Can I use a RR and a Wags Q on one item?

Yes, you can. You can stack a manufacturer coupon or a Register Reward and a Wags Q on the same item.

Is there an order in which I should hand in my RR?

I have found that the most important thing is to hand in your Wags Qs after your MQs. So MQs are always first, then RR, then Wags Qs. I have also handed in my MQ, then Wags Qs and then RR and that will work too. What you NEVER want to do is hand in your Wags Qs first!

Obtained from  Wild for Wags

What to do when Register Rewards don’t print?

1) The Catalina Machine was not working. This is the most frequent reason Register Reward do not print. The machine could be down, unplugged, out of ink, rebooting, out of paper, have a paper jam and the list goes on. TIP Ask the cashier if her Catalina machine is working. TIP Look to see that the little green light is on. If it’s red, or if it’s blinking or there is no light at all, that’s a bad sign. Pick another register if possible.

2) The item you bought was not included in the deal. Sometimes it can be a difference in size, variety, package, flavor, etc. You have to be very careful to buy exactly what is included. TIP Look for the Red Register Reward Signs under the items in your store. Each included item should have a sign underneath. TIP Check out Wild for Wags

3). You did not purchase the right number of items or you didn’t hit the purchase amount needed to trigger the Register Reward. Sometimes an item will ring up for less than what is on the sign. Even a penny less can throw off the best planned scenario. TIP Watch the register closely while they are ringing you up to make sure everything is ringing up as it should. If something rings up for less than planned either throw in another item to get you over the $ amount or have them void the transaction.  You can then regroup, change your scenario and try again.

4) You paid with a Register Reward you received for buying the same item, or from the same company for the same amount. So if you get a $3 RR to buy the same item again the RR won’t print. Or if you use that $3 RR from P&G to buy another item that generates a $3 RR from P&G, even though it’s a different item like Tide, that RR won’t print! TIP If you are told that your RR didn’t print because you used a coupon, point out that the ads often promote “Coupons in Most Sunday Papers” for items that offer Register Rewards. TIP  If your Register Reward doesn’t print have them re-ring the order with no coupons. TIP Sometimes there is no rhyme or reason as to why the Register Reward didn’t print. So if you can’t figure out what happened, it’s ok. Return the items or call the Catalina Company 1-888-8COUPON There’s always a chance to try again tomorrow.

Obtained from  Wild for Wags