Publix Shopping and Saving

I have highlighted items that I purchased this latest shopping trip to Publix in separate posts. My goal was to feature individual items rather than have a long post with tons of items. 

The total items were: 

• 4 cans Progresso soup
• 1 package of Publix coffee filters
• 1 RiceSelect rice
• 1 Fage yogurt
• 1 Quaker Multigrain Flakes
• 2 Sea Best
• 2 Green Giant Steamers

I spent $18.47 and saved $25.99. I also received $3 in rebates from SavingStar and ibotta. 

It pays to be a savvy shopper. Not only do I save money on shopping, I also earn gift cards and other benefits from the rebate apps. 

Couponing: Soup

I have found that a can of soup is a quick and easy lunch during the work week. I posted recently about Progresso soup sales, coupons, and rebates. The deal has come around again. 

Progresso soup retails for $2.31 and is on sale as a BOGO. 

Here is the breakdown: 

   $4.62 for 4 cans of soup

-  $1 digital coupon

= $3.62

-  $1 SavingStar rebate

= $2.62 or 66¢ each

Couponing: Coffee Filters

Coffee filters is one of those items that is an unsung hero. You can clean screens, deodorize rooms, garden, and lots of other uses for coffee filters. As a glasses wearer, coffee filters are great for cleaning lenses!

Publix has a digital coupon for a $1 off a package of Publix brand coffee filters. A package of 200 retails for $1.29. 

I feel silly buying them since my primary coffee maker is a Keurig. Check out all the things you can do with coffee filters here. 

Couponing: Quaker Multigrain Flakes

I have gotten into the habit of searching in the Publix app digital coupons using the word "free". There are free items periodically!

This time is a free box of Quaker Multigrain Flakes cereal. The 17 ounce box retails for $4.65 and Publix is offering it for free! That is a no brainer!

Couponing: Free Yogurt

It seems that most of my harrowing coupon stories take place at Publix. This is no exception. 

I went to Publix to purchase a series of items. One item is Fage yogurt. Publix had a digital coupon on their app for 1 free container. When I arrived at Publix, I was pleasantly surprised to see a blinkie for 55¢ off 1 container. 

Ibotta also had a 50¢ rebate. 

Here's the breakdown: 

$0 for 1 container

- 55¢ manufacturer coupon

= -55¢ 

- 50¢ ibotta rebate

= - $1.05 

No out of pocket on this one!

Couponing: Competitor Coupons for Beverages

In certain areas Publix considers Target a competitor. My local Publix accepts Target coupons. 

Before Halloween, there was a coupon in the Target ad for a free $5 gift card with a purchase of $15 of select beverages. That same week Publix had some of those beverages on sale: B2G2 12 packs. 

I stocked up on 12 pack cans that week. In order to make the $15 minimum, I had to buy 2 B2G2 deals for a total of 8 cartons of cans. 

While I was at Publix, I wanted to take advantage of the sale on Progresso Organic Soups. They were on sale as a BOGO. The Publix app also had a $1 off digital coupon on 1 can. SavingStar also had a $1 rebate on 1 can. It was $0.99 for 2 cans after coupons, sales, and rebates. 

The total shopping trip was $31.29 with a savings of $37.13 and $1 rebate. 

My goal is always to have the savings higher than the out of pocket. 

Free Cheerios

I've posted a lot about apps I use for budget shopping. There was a great deal on ibotta for a new Cheerios flavor: Chocolate Peanut Butter Cheerios. 

The deal is to purchase a family size box of Pumpkin Spice or Honey Nut Cheerios and get a free box of Chocolate Peanut Butter Cheerios on ibotta. Easy enough!

Once I was at Walmart, I noticed that some boxes had a coupon on the box for $1.05 off of 1 box. That was perfect since I was purchasing 2 boxes. Each box retailed for $3.64. 

In addition, SavingStar had a $1 rebate for 2 boxes of General Mills cereal. 

Here's the breakdown: 

    $7.28 for 2 boxes

-   $2.10 in manufacturer coupons

=  $5.18 out of pocket

-  $4 rebate from ibotta

= $1.18

-  $1 rebate from SavingStar

= 18¢ or 9¢ each

I learned to coupon a little over 2 years ago and I haven't looked back!

Couponing: Cream Cheese

I had the great fortune recently to get Arla cream cheese FREE at Publix. 

This time SavingStar has a rebate for free Arla cream cheese at Winn Dixie. The way this 100% rebate works is simple.

1. Buy the product specified and pay out of pocket
2. Redeem the rebate offer on the SavingStar app (same as all other rebates)
3. Receive a confirmation within a couple days with the entire amount added to your account. 

Catch Up Shopping Part 2

We're still catching up on life after the hurricane. This is Part 2 of the catch up shopping (see Part 1).

Restocking the fridge, freezer and pantry do not happen over night.

Publix had Old El Paso dinner kits on BOGO and their app also had $1 off 2 Old El Paso Products. SavingStar also had a $1 rebate. These are easy products to build dinners around and they're pretty tasty.

With coupons, sales, and rebate apps, here was my second attempt to restock. 

Without a ton of coupons, I still managed to take advantage of sales. I saved about the same as I spent. 

Catch Up Shopping

After losing power for almost a week, my fridge was cleared out. We didn't do a lot of shopping for perishables prior to the hurricane so we did well and did not lose much. 

It was still enough that we had a lot of shopping to catch up on to have a working household again. 

Publix had a ton of freebies on their app. 

Publix Premium Pancake mix, Arla cream cheese, and Good Culture cottage cheese were all FREE!!!

Publix had a coupon for $1 off General Mills cereals. SavingStar also had a $1 rebate or the same! Publix also had a BOGO sale. I paid $1.50 out of pocket for 2 boxes of Cheerios and got another $1 back in a rebate. 

Couponing: Liberte Yogurt

We love yogurt in our house! We use it in smoothies, baking, and eat it plain. 

This yogurt deal was FREE!!!

The deal is on Liberté yogurt where 2 yogurts are free. 

There was not a sale on the yogurt. In fact, the price is $1.79 per container at Publix. 

The Publix app showed 2 digital coupons: 1 free container and 30¢ off 1 container. 

There was also a BOGO Publix coupon.

In addition, SavingStar had a 30¢ rebate on 1 container. 

Here's the breakdown: 

  $3.58 retail for 2 containers

- $1.79 1 free container on the Publix app (digital coupon)

= $1.79

-  30¢ off 1 container on the Publix app (digital coupon)

= $1.49

-  $1.79 BOGO Publix coupon

=  - 30¢ Out of Pocket 

    - 30¢ SavingStar rebate

=  - 60¢

Couponing: Sea Cuisine

We eat a lot of fish at our house. Most of the time we use fresh ingredients and cook the fish how we want. Other times it is easier to have a meal starter on hand. 

Sea Cuisine is a good option for fish marinated. All that is left is to cook it. 

The Publix app had a digital coupon for $3 off a box of Sea Cuisine. 

Publix also had Sea Cuisine on sale for $6.99. 

Here is the breakdown:

   $6.99 on sale
-  $3 digital coupon
= $3.99 out of pocket

Couponing: Cereal

We're not big cereal eaters but on occasion it is nice to have some in the house. 

I posted awhile ago about how I got 12 boxes of cereal for free and gave them to a family I know. It was a blessing to them and they ended up sharing it with others (see more here). 

Publix has BOGO on family size General Mills cereal. I grabbed 2 family size boxes of Honey Nut Cheerios for $4.99 per box.

The Publix app has a $1 off digital coupon off of 2 General Mills cereal boxes. 

SavingStar has a $1 rebate for the purchase of 2 boxes of General Mills cereal. 

Here is the breakdown: 

   $4.99 for 2 boxes

-  $1 digital coupon

= $3.99 out of pocket 

-  $1 SavingStar rebate

= $ 2.99 total which is like getting each box for $1.50 (a $3.49 savings!)

Starbucks Dash

I am not a frequent visitor of Starbucks. I go in waves and then disappear for awhile. 

The last dash I did was several months ago (read more here). 

This dash required 2 purchases for 25 bonus stars or 3 purchases for 75 bonus stars. 

Here's the hack: when buying multiple items, order 1 at a time on the Starbucks app. Each order counts as one purchase. 

As a result of this dash, I had enough stars for a free item. I opted for the Double Smoked Bacon, Cheddar and Egg sandwich. 

Is it my imagination or are free things more delicious? 

Couponing: Flushable Wipes

Time for a delicate topic: potty wipes. Cottonelle flushable wipes were a good buy at Target especially with their Cartwheel app.

The retail price is $2.42 per package at Target.  

The Cartwheel app had a $1 off manufacturer coupon. 

In addition, ibotta had a 50¢ rebate on 1 package. 

Here is the breakdown: 

     $2.42 retail price

-    $1 manufacturer coupon

=   $1.42 out of pocket

-    $0.50 rebate from ibotta

=   $0.92 

That's a $1.50 savings!!!

Couponing: Right Guard Deodorant

Right Guard Xtreme is the bargain this time. 

The price for 1 stick of this deodorant at Publix is $3.48. 

Publix had a digital coupon on their app for $4.99 off the price of 2. 

There was also a rebate on SavingStar worth $4.99 if 2 deodorants were purchased. 

Here is the breakdown: 

    $6.96 for 2 deodorants

-   $4.99 Publix digital coupon

=  $1.97 Out of Pocket for 2 deodorants (like paying 99¢ each)

-   $4.99 SavingStar rebate

= -$3.02 

That's what we call a money maker!

Couponing: Mayonnaise

Hellmann's Organic Mayonnaise is the deal this time thanks to the Target Cartwheel app!

Regularly priced at $3.99 for this small jar of organic mayo, the app had a manufacturer coupon and a store discount. 

First the 15% discount was applied. 

Next, the $1 off coupon was applied.

The final price was $2.39 which is a $1.60 savings. Every little bit counts!