Walgreens 101: How to Shop at Walgreens
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Walgreens can be an overwhelming place to shop with coupons, but once you understand how to do so correctly, you’ll have a hard time staying away from this store!
Before attempting any deals at Walgreens, you must be a member of the Balance Rewards Program. You must have a Balance Rewards account to receive any Walgreens sale prices or Balance Rewards Points. If you have not yet signed up for the program, do so in a Walgreens store or sign up online. Every time you check out, be sure to swipe your card or enter the phone number that is attached to your Balance Rewards account.
Walgreens In-Ad Coupons
Walgreens store coupons are found in the weekly Walgreens ad released every Sunday. You can find this ad in the Sunday paper or near the front of your local Walgreens store. Any coupon found in the Walgreens weekly ad may be used in addition to a manufacturer coupon on the purchase of a single item. This is called “stacking” and is specifically allowed by the Walgreens Coupon Policy, which reads:
When purchasing a single item, Walgreens accepts one manufacturer coupon and applicable Walgreens coupon(s) for the purchase of a single item. . .
Walgreens in-ad coupons nearly always state a limit on the number of products you may purchase using the coupon. If a Walgreens in-ad coupon entitles you to purchase iced tea at the discounted price of two for $1.00 and states, “Limit 4?, you may purchase up to four iced teas at the price of $0.50 each. If you wish to purchase more than the limit states on the coupon, break your items into two separate transactions. Your store has the right to limit the number of items you purchase, so please remember to consult your local management. Please be courteous to other shoppers eager to get the same great deal!
When stacking a Walgreens coupon with a manufacturer coupon at Walgreens, it is important to remember to hand the cashier your manufacturer coupons first, followed by store coupons. Truthfully, it really only matters when you’re shopping with Buy One, Get One coupons, but I like to stay in the habit of doing it this way so I never forget.
Halls Cough Drops $1.39, regular price
In-Ad Coupon: Halls Cough Drops $0.99 each, limit 4
B1G1 Free Halls Cough Drops manufacturer coupon
If you hand the in-ad coupon first, here’s how the transaction will go:
Buy 2 Halls Cough Drops $1.39
The in-ad coupon makes them $0.99 each (savings $0.80)
Then use BOGO Free manufacturer coupon (savings $0.99)
Final Price: $0.49 each, when you buy 2
If you use the manufacturer coupon first, it will go like this:
Buy 2 Halls Cough Drops $1.39
Use BOGO Free Manufacturer coupon (subtracts $1.39)
Then use in-ad coupon (savings $0.80)
Final Price: $0.29 each, when you buy 2
When you present the manufacturer coupon first, the full retail price of the “free” item will be subtracted from your total. If you present the in-ad coupon first, the products will be discounted first and your BOGO coupon will deduct only the lesser price from your total. So, it’s manufacturer coupons first, in-ad coupons second and then Register Rewards last.
Register Rewards
Walgreens has a promotional checkout-coupon program much like the Catalina “Your Bucks” programs you may be familiar with from your local grocery store. At Walgreens, these rewards are called Register Rewards. A Register Reward (sometimes abbreviated as RR) is a long, receipt-like coupon that prints after you make a qualifying purchase. Flip through your Walgreens ad and look for products which state that you will “receive register reward” with purchase. After purchasing the advertised item, you will receive a Register Reward to use on your next purchase. It is basically a coupon that prints at checkout and it is good on almost anything in the store on a future shopping trip. It’s important to reiterate that the savings you receive will not be on the product you’re buying but on a future purchase.
Colgate Sensitive Pro-Relief 360 Toothpaste, 4 oz $4.99
Buy 1, Receive $3.00 Register Reward, Limit 1
Use $1.00/1 – Colgate Sensitive Pro-Relief Toothpaste – (colgate.com)
Pay $3.99, Receive $3.00 Register Reward
Final Price: $0.99
Register Rewards are typically good for “$X off your next in store purchase”. They usually expire two weeks from the date they printed.
Rolling Register Rewards
- Register Rewards have a limit: You can earn one Register Reward per offer per transaction. If toothpaste is producing a $3.00 Register Reward, and you want to buy two of them, you’ll must separate your order into two transactions. If you purchase both toothpastes in one shopping order, you will only receive one $3.00 Register Reward. If you purchase one toothpaste, receive a $3.00 Register Reward, then purchase a second toothpaste in a second transaction and receive another $3.00 Register Reward. Please remember that stores have the right to limit the quantity of promotional items which you purchase. Some stores may also limit the number of transactions you can do in one day. Be respectful and abide by all policies.
- Register Rewards do not “roll”. If you follow our instructions and separate your two toothpastes from the above example into two transactions, do not use the $3.00 Register Reward produced from the purchase of toothpaste #1 to offset your payment of toothpaste #2. If you do, you will not receive a second $3.00 Register Reward for the purchase of toothpaste #2.
- In other words, when you hope to earn a Register Reward in any given transaction, don’t use a Register Reward as payment that was earned from the same product or brand as the Register Reward you hope to earn.
- To maximize Register Reward savings, you have two options.
Use $1.00/1 manufacturer coupon
Pay: $3.99, Receive $3.00 Register Reward
Pay: 1.99, Receive $3.00 Register Reward
lather, rinse, repeat. . .
If you receive a Register Reward generated by the purchase of product X, you cannot use it to buy a second product X if you want another Register Reward to print. The best way to get around this is to find two different products that trigger a similar value Register Reward and alternate buying those items in separate transactions. Pay for product Y using the Register Reward from product X, then use the Register Reward from product Y to pay for your second product X and so on. (Now go ahead, reread this paragraph a few times until it clicks!)
Roll week-to-week. I like to use as little brain power as possible, so I prefer to roll my Register Rewards from week to week. This means that during my very first shopping trip to Walgreens as a “coupon virgin,” I paid quite a bit out of my pocket, probably about $30.00. But I walked out with a wallet full of $24.00 in Register Rewards, which I saved for the next week. Then, during Week Two, I used all my Register Rewards from Week One and didn’t have to worry about any conflicts.
Balance Rewards Points
Each week, Walgreens offers Balance Rewards Points with qualifying purchases. Check the weekly ad and the sale tags in the stores to find products that are generating Balance Rewards Points.
To Earn Points
Purchase qualifying products and earn Points! It’s a simple as that! Be sure to scan your card or enter your phone number at checkout to earn Points.
You can earn multiple Points in a single transaction. Certain items, such as soda or bottled water, do have a limit listed in the ad. Other than that, there is not a limit on how many times you can receive Points from the same promotion.
Manufacturer coupons and Register Rewards do not interfere with any Points earned. In other words, you will still earn Points when using manufacturer coupons and Register Rewards. The monthly Walgreens Savings Book coupons are the exception to this rule. They do count against your total. If you are doing a “Spend X amount of dollars, Receive X amount of Points” promotion, you need to meet the specified total before manufacturer coupons but after the monthly Walgreens coupons.
Your Balance Rewards card does not keep track of purchases. If you need to spend a certain dollar amount to receive Points, you need to reach that dollar amount in a single transaction.
At the end of your transaction, the Balance Rewards Points you earned will show up on your receipt right away! If they don’t, call Walgreens Customer Service, and they will credit the Points to your account.
To Redeem Points
Once you reach at least 1,000 Points on your card, you can redeem them. 1,000 Points equal a $1.00 reward. 40,000 Points equal a $50.00 reward. It is advantageous to save your Points so you get more bang for your buck!
(1) 1,000 Points = $1.00
(2) 2,000 Points = $2.00
(3) 3,000 Points = $3.00
(4) 5,000 Points = $5.00
(5) 10,000 Points = $10.00
(6) 18,000 Points = $20.00
(7) 30,000 Points = $35.00
(8) 40,000 Points = $50.00
To redeem Points, follow the prompts on the debit card pad or ask your cashier.
If you are using your Balance Rewards Points reward dollars as payment in a transaction, you cannot earn additional Points. In other words, Points cannot be earned when you are paying with Points. However, you still can earn Register Rewards even if you pay with Points.
As long as you shop at Walgreens and use your card at least once every six months, your Points will not expire for three years.
You cannot redeem or earn Points on purchases of: dairy, stamps, prescriptions, alcohol, tobacco, phone cards, lottery tickets, charitable donations, transportation passes, or money orders.
To read more, access the full Balance Rewards Terms and Conditions or read Walgreens’ Balance Rewards Q&A.
Summary
- You will not earn Points in a transaction in which you redeem Points.
- You will earn Points in a transaction in which you use Register Rewards as payment.
- You will earn Register Rewards in a transaction in which you redeem Points.
Monthly Savings Book
Another great way to save at Walgreens is by using the monthly coupon booklet found near the front of the store by the weekly ads. You don’t need to clip these. If you are buying two of the same item and there is a coupon for it, simply show it to the cashier and she will scan it once. If you bought two items, it will apply the coupon two times. These are store coupons and can be used in conjunction with manufacturer coupons to maximize savings.
Paperless Digital Coupons
Visit Walgreens.com from your computer or from the Walgreens app to find digital coupons. If you are not logged in, you will need to sign in with your username and password. Click on the “Clip” button on each desired coupon to add it to your account. Up to 100 coupons can be clipped to your account at one time. After clipping, buy the products that correspond with the coupons. Be sure you have scanned your Balance Rewards card or input your phone number at checkout. The coupon will automatically deduct from your total. Each paperless coupon can only be redeemed one time.
Coupon-to-Product Ratio
The cash register at Walgreens will not allow the cashier to accept more manufacturer coupons than total products purchased. Register Rewards used as payment are considered manufacturer coupons. If you are purchasing five items and using five manufacturer coupons and a Register Reward, the cash register will make an angry beep and reject the sixth coupon. The cashier will not be able to override this action, so you, as the consumer need to know how to troubleshoot the problem! A Register Reward is recognized by the computer system as a manufacturer coupon. Each manufacturer coupon contains a barcode, and the register matches each manufacturer coupon with one of the products in the shopping order. When the cashier attempts to scan the sixth coupon in the above example, the register cannot find a correlating product and rejects the coupon.
To solve this dilemma, you may purchase what we call a “filler” item. A filler item is any inexpensive product in the store that you add to your purchase so the register will accept that extra sixth coupon. This might be a small candy caramel ($0.39) or pencil ($0.05) near the register or, my personal favorite, an extra copy of the Sunday paper. It doesn’t matter what the product is or even what it costs. You just need to ensure that you have at least as many items as manufacturer coupons and Register Rewards used to pay. Here’s the equation: total number of Register Rewards + total number of manufacturer coupons cannot exceed total number of products purchased. Got it?
Right now, couponing at Walgreens may seem about as easy as doing long division, but I promise it isn’t as bad as you think!
