Walgreens / CVS 101


WALGREENS 101

Walgreen’s takes some getting used to and is very different than it’s competitor CVS when it comes to using coupons and Register Rewards. I will try to make this as easy and simple as possible so that you can save some serious money at Walgreen’s.


First the Facts


  • Walgreen’s ads run Sunday through Saturday
  • Accepts coupons at face value (no doubling)
  • Allows stacking of store coupon with a manufacturer coupon
  • Offers rainchecks unless stated otherwise in ad (rare but can happen on certain offers)
  • Register Reward are considered manufacturer coupons
  • Cannot use Register Reward for an offer to get same offer again. Must be used for other offer or it will not print.


Weekly In-Ad Coupons


They are usually in every weekly ad and look like the above coupon. You can use a manufacturer coupon with an in-ad coupon, this is referred to as stacking coupons. So if water was regularly $3.99 the in-ad coupon would make it $3.49. If you had say $1 off coupon for the water you could stack the coupon with the in-ad coupon making it $2.49 out of pocket.


Monthly Instant Value Coupons


The Instant Value Coupons are store coupons as well and are commonly referred to as IVC coupons. They come out once a month and are usually found near the front of store at the bottom of the weekly ad rack. If you don’t see any ask the cashier for one. These cannot be stacked with the weekly in-ad coupons but can be stacked with a manufacturer coupon.


Register Rewards




Register Rewards are considering the same as a manufacturer coupon and are commonly referred to as RR or RR’s. All Register Rewards are a limit of one, meaning you can’t get two of the same offer in the same transaction. The rule for using them is that you have to make sure than you have the same amount of items as you do coupons. So if you have a buying that water mentioned above you better snag another cheap filler item for each item over the amount of coupons.


Earning Register Rewards


Much like CVS you get a Register Reward when you purchase a particular item that generates a Register Reward after purchase. Here is an example below taken from a weekly ad.

You can buy Keri lotion 6.8oz for $4.99 and get a $4 Register Reward. Now add coupons to the mix and save even more! See example below…


Keri Lotion 6.8oz $4.99
Use $2/1 Keri lotion (7/17 SS)
Pay $2.99 (after using coupon)
Get $4 in RR (per offer in weekly ad)
FREE plus overage after coupon and RR!

Rolling Your Register Rewards

This is the term for when you take the Register Reward you’ve earned and apply them towards your next shopping trip. I will do an example ...

Transaction #1: Do the above Keri Lotion Deal
Keri Lotion 6.8oz $4.99
Use $2/1 Keri Lotion (7/17 SS)
Pay $2.99, Get $4 in RR
FREE plus overage after coupon and RR!

Transaction #2:
Buy the following items:
Carmex Skin Care Cream 4oz or Lotion 5.5oz $4.99 (MONTHLY RR DEAL)
Total = $4.99 (no coupon available)
Now use the $4 Register Reward from transaction #1 = $0.99

You will get a $4 Register Reward from the Carmex Skin Care to use towards next purchase.

Just remember with Register Rewards you are NOT able to use a Register Reward you got for Carmex Skin Care to get another Carmex Skin Care. It has to be for a completely different offer otherwise your RR will not print out.

Coupon Rules
  • When purchasing a single item, Walgreens accepts one manufacturer coupon and applicable Walgreens coupon(s) for the purchase of a single item, unless prohibited by either coupon offer. (Commonly referred to as stacking coupons.)
  • The coupon amount must be reduced if it exceeds the value of the item after other discounts or coupons are applied. (For example, a $5.00 coupon for a $4.99 item will result in a $4.99 coupon value).
  • When items are featured in a Buy One, Get One Free promotion, up to two coupons can be used against the items being purchased, as long as the net price does not go below zero for the items being purchased.
  • Walgreens accepts valid internet/print at home coupons.
  • The number of manufacturer coupons, including Register Rewards manufacturer coupons, may not exceed the number of items in the transaction.
Read Walgreen’s Official Coupon Policy for further info.

Presenting Coupons at Register

I’ve been asked many times if there is a specific order in which to present the various coupons at Walgreen’s so I’ll explain how I present them if that helps you out.
  1. Give all manufacturer coupons first.
  2. Give all IVC coupons.
  3. Give all in-ad coupons.
  4. Give all Register Rewards.
Then you will pay balance if any plus any tax your state may require. Most stores do not allow for overages so plan wisely.



CVS 101

Although I blog about CVS all the time, I realized that I have never actually written a post about how shopping at CVS works.

CVS is my favorite drugstore, since it usually offers some of the best deals and it has the easiest coupon policy of the 3 drugstores (CVS, Walgreens, and Rite Aid).

How Does CVS Work?

  • Sign up for an Extra Care Card – It’s free to sign up, and basically just involves filling out a form with some personal information about yourself such as name and address. You will get an Extra Care Card that you will need to give to the cashier so they can scan it every time you check-out at CVS. All the sale prices and Extra Care Bucks (ECB’s) require you to use your Extra Care Card. You are only allowed to have one Extra Care Card per household.

  • When you purchase advertised items, you can earn Extra Care Bucks (ECB’s) that can be used toward your next purchase. Each week, I post the ECB deals for the week, as well as any coupons that can be used for your purchase to lower the out of pocket (OOP) even further. So, when I do my coupon matchups, I’ll list it like this:

Secret Deodorant $2.89 (limit 1)
Get $2.89 ECB’s
Total after ECB’s: FREE

This means that the Secret deodorant costs $2.89 and you will receive $2.89 in ECB’s when you make your purchase. In this case, you can earn the $2.89 in ECB’s for the deororant only 1 time. So, I would pay $2.89 in cash, and then $2.89 in ECB’s would print out on my receipt to be used on my next purchase.

  • The goal is to “roll” your ECB’s, so you pay as little out of pocket as possible.

How to Use Coupons at CVS

There are 4 different types of coupons that you can use at CVS:

  1. $/$$ purchase CVS coupon – for example, Get $5 off a $15 purchase
  2. CVS coupon – usually prints on the bottom of your receipt after a purchase or from the price scanner machine when you scan your Extra Care Card
  3. Manufacturer’s coupon – coupons that are reimbursed by the manufacturer (will state on the coupon) that can be found in the Sunday paper, on tearpads throughout the store, etc.
  4. ECB’s – ECB’s are like a coupon for money off your purchase

  • If you have a $/$$ coupon, you need to purchase the required amount of items (before coupons) and hand the cashier this coupon first before any other coupons reduce your purchase amount.

  • You can stack CVS and manufacturer’s coupons for the same item (meaning you can use both coupons on 1 item). One of the coupons is paid for by CVS and the other coupon is paid for by the manufacturer.

  • Give your ECB’s to the cashier last. You cannot use your ECB’s to pay sales tax on your purchase, so before I hand over my ECB’s, I’ll ask the cashier for my subtotal and try to match my ECB’s as closely as possible to that amount without going over.
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