Most by now have heard of extreme couponing and many of you have likely watched the television program about it as well. A few months back I decided to try this phenomenon.
Q: Can it save you money?
A: Definitely!
Q: Is it hard?
A: Yes and no.
Q: Is it worth it?
A: That is the real question. You have to decide for yourself.
I did some semi-extreme couponing for a few months to try it out. I did save money, but I did see where people could also spend way more than they planned or wanted to. A lot of people get sucked into using coupons for items they normally wouldn't have purchased just to have saved the money. I found personally that there were not many coupons available for the main products I purchase on a weekly basis. I was already a frugal shopper, so coupons did save me some money, but not a lot.
Another issue I found with extreme couponing is that if you want to be good at it you need to spend a lot of time keeping up with it. That means reading the regular websites, clipping coupons and tracking sales. I found a lot of my spare time was used up which I could have been using more productively and cost-effectively on something else.
Don't get me wrong,I was able to learn a lot about coupons in my limited time doing extreme couponing. I now know which sites provide coupons on products I purchase on a regular basis, despite the limited amount available. While I am nowhere near as successful as those depicted on the television shows, I am still saving money.
Also, don't believe everything you see on TV. Those successful extreme couponers you see are probably buying a ton of junk they really didn't need. Take a look at how healthy those products are as well. Most of the stuff they purchase are sugar filled junk.