$1705.55

That's how much I saved in coupons in 2012.

I have posted about this before -- I have some pretty strict rules for how I calculate coupon savings.  I count Costco coupons, because I have to bring them; I count my Target Red Card because I have to choose to use it versus another payment; I don't count sales or BOGO specials or "instant coupons," because I didn't have to do anything to get those prices.  So, this total is just for stuff I was buying anyway, at places I would shop anyway.  (I do try to wait to align sales to coupons, so that my savings is greater, but this dollar amount is just a straight total and not a percentage.)

I'm pretty pleased with that total.  Considering that we don't buy stuff just for the sake of using a coupon, and throwing in the fact that for the last five months of the year we were here in Maine, where stores don't double coupons and don't typically align sales to coupons (so it's harder to save big), I think we did alright!  My goal every year is to try to hit the $100/month average, and we blew that out of the water.  (We also saved almost $500 more than we saved in 2011, and we had a significantly reduced income in 2012 compared to 2011 -- and thus, significantly reduced spending in 2012.  So it's a double bonus, really, to have done so well. I'm actually really happy!)

Now, on to 2013.  Savings so far: $45.63, with a week left in the month.  I sure won't get to the $100 mark this month! 

--Jen

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