Tips From a Coupon Queen

We asked four bargain hunters to share their tips in the August issue of Kiplinger's Personal Finance.

We asked four bargain hunters to share their tips in the August issue of Kiplinger's Personal Finance. One of the people profiled says she saves about $40 a month by using coupons -- and triple that amount by leveraging coupons against store markdowns.

Sara Moothart, 31, of Baltimore, began "couponing�"as a way to stretch her graduate-student budget. Here are her top tips:

1. Plan your shopping list around sale items.

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2. Look for stores that double or triple a coupon's value.

3. If "buy one, get one free" means you pay half price for each item, use two coupons.

Moothart records her savings in a notebook and sets the money aside for travel or something special.

You can learn a lot from Moothart and other bargain hunters. See all of their deal-finding tips.

Cameron Huddleston
Former Online Editor, Kiplinger.com

Award-winning journalist, speaker, family finance expert, and author of Mom and Dad, We Need to Talk.

Cameron Huddleston wrote the daily "Kip Tips" column for Kiplinger.com. She joined Kiplinger in 2001 after graduating from American University with an MA in economic journalism.