Tips for doing the Walgreens Huggies deal

Maybe you saw the Money Saving Mom post about the Walgreens Huggies deal. I've been working on a post about how to make your way through the coupon maze successfully (at least semi! =) But I thought I would take a minute here to give you the DL on this deal.

It's advertised as Huggies for as low as $1. 64, which sounds AWESOME. But before you run out in giddy excitement and it turns into disappointment, here's how they come up with that number:

Buy 1 package of Huggies Diapers at $8.99

Use 15% off coupon (will deduct $1.35)
- this is only be emailed to Friends and Family Members

Use $2/1 coupon here

Use $1/1 Walgreens coupon (found in the Walgreens Childrens Activity Book)
- costs $0.99 to buy

Spend $4.64 out of pocket, Get $3 Register Reward (RR) back (the diapers for $1.64 is only in theory once you subtract the $3 RR you earned)

So you are really spending $4. 64, not $1.64 (pre tax) and only if you have all of those other coupons. And not counting the filler items you have to purchase to use all those coupons.

Your RR is good only for two weeks and then it expires.

But if you have some other things out there that you need, it will help. You just have to shop in multiple transactions. You CAN use your $3 RR towards another pckg. but you will NOT get another $3 RR for that purchase because it is the same manufacturers coupon and they cancel each other out.* Only 1 RR prints out per qualifying item per transaction**, so if you are planning to buy multiple packages because it's such a good deal, half the deal is the RR, so you want to make sure that you purchase them all seperately so that you get your RR for each one. This coupon/RR game means usually at least 4-5 receipts per trip if you play it right...

MOST IMPORTANTLY: the number of coupons you are using CANNOT outnumber the items you are purchasing. So while this scenario looks fabulous, in reality, there's a 3:1 coupon:item ratio, which means you need to find 2 'fillers'. You can throw two pieces of $0.50 candy or gum or whatever and you'll be fine, just don't expect to only buy diapers.

But even if you don't get the friends and family discount, even if you don't have the activity book coupon, this still can be a good deal! Let me share with you what I did this week to make it simple for myself. Thankfully I did have some Huggies coupons fresh from the mail and from a good sharer, so that made it pretty sweet, but I will show you how to do it without even a single manufacturers coupon and still pull off a good deal!

Here's how: Another item that WG's currently has on sale is Dove Men's body wash.
It is on sale for $5.99. But then you get $6 RR for purchasing it, so it's essentially "free". So you buy your $5.99 bodywash. The cashier hands you the $6 RR and you keep it out because next you are buying your package of diapers for $8.99. Once your diaper pckg. is rung up, you hand back your $ 6RR and now your total is $2.99 pre tax. And the cashier hands you your $3 RR. That's a good deal. But you just spent $5.99 on body wash, and you want to even things out, so you take out your second bottle of body wash. This time you use your $3RR and your total (pt) is $2.99 AND you get a $6 RR for it. So then you buy your next pkg. of diapers @ $8.99, use your $6 RR and pay $2.99. So far you've spent $14.96 (gotten 2 pkgs and 2 body washes, and still have $3 RR to use!) And repeat this process for as many times as you have the patience and clear conscience! So even without any coupons, once you have that $6 RR, you're getting diapers for under $3 pt (our tax rate is such a kill joy!)


If you do have a Huggies coupon, remember that you MUST buy another item to be able to use both!

Another thing to keep in mind is that people are crazy, and the managers tend to grumpy. Since there is the F&F deal tomorrow, I'm expecting it to be pretty busy and the hot deals like the body wash and diapers to sell out quickly. But I think I'm still going to venture out. Savings like this are worth it, But I'm not going to say it's easy. Besides all the mental work, things I struggle with are getting worked up that I might "miss out", or being frustrated when the things I am counting on to make it all work aren't available (like the body wash being sold out). Neither of those are fruits of the Spirit! =)

I hope this is at least somewhat helpful! I tried to think of the things that I had to learn the hard way and wished someone had explained to me. They always make it sound so amazing, but then it still rings up for more money than you expect...you have to keep rolling your RR over on other items to make it worthwhile!

TIPS: use the cosmetic counter for checking out! Doing multiple transactions takes up time, and it's no fun having a line build up behind you. Everyone prefers/benefits if you check out in cosmetics.

* Don't use your RR on sale items from the same manufacturer. Both Huggies and Kotex will give you $3 RR this week, but if you use your $3 RR on the Kotex (@ 2/$6 w/ $3 RR) you won't get the Kotex RR because Kotex and Huggies are both Kimberly-Clark items. ** BUT you CAN buy the huggies and kotex together in the same transaction and get both 3 RR.

Any Questions? =)

When I went out earlier this week, over the course of two trips I purchased 5 pkgs. Huggies, 5 Dove body washes, 2 Kotex (and was bummed b/c one of the extra coupons I had "didn't work...it's never easy!) and for fillers 3 books covers @ $0.50 ea. (although I realized later that I got charged .75 for one of them. grrr....) one little match box car for Joshy for $0.79, and an amazing little pair of sunglasses for LoLo that just happened to be in the clearance section for $0.89!

Do I need all this body wash and the other fillers? Not necessarily or immediately. But am I wasting money? As long as I keep it a good deal, then no! I have a shelf downstairs for all the "extras" and I use them as gift-fillers, gift packages to college students and military men, to help my siblings and parents, and in the past I've even been able to send several "shipments" of goods down with people to Haiti, so I don't feel like it's a waste. (I have a fried with crazy mad coupon skills who sells whatever she doesn't use at her garage sale and averages $600 in sales. Isn't that amazing?!)

Let's break it down:

$36.96 spent; $75. 61 saved; $6 RR earned for next purchases
(all in a "mere" 10 receipts)

Even if I spent that total just on 5 pckgs diapers, it's still only $7.39 ea. but instead I got all the other things along with them too! (This is just one deal scenario- there are lots of ways to do it, and I'm not the best at it, but this was really straightforward and the most cost effective for me)


But $37 is still hard to swallow if you're going in there thinking you're only going to spend $1.64 per Huggies package.

The coupon game isn't for everyone, and it's not always profitable. I am not completely sold on it. But this is a good week for moms using disposable diapers to try it out if you are interested! I don't want you to think it's as easy or amazing as the pros make it sound, because that can be really disappointing and frustrating, I have been there so many times! But at the same time, if I can do it, anyone can!

Good luck!