Tip of the Day Tuesday: The Walmart Question

A question that I get asked a lot by readers is what I like to call “The Walmart Question.”  It goes something like this ~ “Do you shop at Walmart?” or “Isn’t it cheaper to shop at Walmart?”

I’ll be honest – in the past, I have not done much shopping at Walmart.  To be honest, I would maybe go once or twice a year.  Lately, though, I’ve been going almost every week. 

Here are some times when you should shop at Walmart:

*When you want one or two hot sale items from multiple ads – I’ve hit a time of year where things are crazy at work and I’m finding that I just don’t have the time (or energy) to go out and shop to hit all of the deals like I used to, especially when I’m usually trying to do it all on a Saturday morning.  It isn’t time (or cost when you factor in gas) effective to drive around to a bunch of different stores to get one or two things when you can take your ads in and price match and get them all at Walmart. 

*If your grocery stores don’t double or triple coupons or in my case if the face value of a coupon is $.55 or more (since my grocery stores only double or triple up to $.50).  Walmart’s everyday price is typically lower than grocery store prices and even if the item is on sale, you can price match, so if I can’t double or triple the coupon at my grocery store, Walmart is usually a better deal.  An example of this is Sara Lee bread.  The everyday price for the Sara Lee Soft & Smooth Whole Grains White bread, which I love, is $1.72 at Walmart.  Typically, even on sale, the lowest I can find it at a regular grocery store is $2.  Using my $.55 Sara Lee coupons, I pay only $1.17 out of pocket!

*If you need an item or items and you don’t have coupons – again the everyday price at Walmart is probably cheaper than it would be at the grocery store

I know that Target price matches, too, and Target is actually much closer to my house than Walmart, but having to hassle with checking at a register and then taking my items and receipt to the customer service desk isn’t worth it to me right now.

If you are a Walmart shopper or are planning to start shopping at Walmart, here are a few things that you may want to print and keep on hand:

Walmart Price Match Policy

Store managers make the final decision in always taking care of our customers, but we do have guidelines for matching our competition.

•We do honor “Preferred Shopping Card” advertised prices. Must be like items, be advertised and require a competitor’s shopping card, for the discount to apply.

•We do not honor advertisements that require a purchase in order to receive the advertised price or free product.

•We do not honor “Buy One / Get One Free” advertisements.

•We do not honor double or triple coupons or percent off advertisements.

•We do not honor other retailers’ “Misprinted” advertised prices.

•We do not honor Internet Pricing.

•We do not honor competitor advertisements from outside of the store’s or Club’s local trade territory.
 
Walmart Coupon Policy
 
Walmart accepts the following types of coupons (see guidelines below):

•Manufacturer coupons (Cents Off)

•Free merchandise (or manufacturer’s Buy-One-Get-One-Free) coupons

•Store coupons

•Pharmacy (Advertising and Promotional) coupons

•Internet coupons

•Soft drink container caps

The following are guidelines and limits:
•Walmart only accepts coupons for merchandise we sell and only when presented at the time of purchase.

•Coupons should have an expiration date and be presented within the valid dates. Walmart will not accept expired coupons.

•Internet coupons should be legible and say “Manufacturer Coupon.” There should be a valid remit address for the manufacturer and a scannable bar code.

•Only one coupon per item is permitted.

•Use of 40 or more coupons per transaction will require approval by Customer Service Manager.