Walmart Has Quietly Changed 3 Popular Idaho Store Policies

Idahoans love saving money. It's why grocery store chains like WinCo started here. It's why you see so many Dollar Tree stores throughout the Treasure Valley, and successful outlets like Uptown Cheapskate have become commonplace. Walk into a Goodwill or Idaho Youth Ranch store on a Saturday. You will see how important getting low prices is, especially in a state where home prices have grown by 118% over the past five years, and the cost of gas is among the highest in the country. No wonder so many people have turned to coupons and shopping at discount stores like Walmart to save money.

Some shoppers have taken couponing to an entirely new level. Do you remember the show "Extreme Couponing" on TLC? It ran for four seasons from 2011 to 2012. It highlighted how some people have gamed the system to bring their grocery costs to next to nothing or even being paid at the register when they checked out. Of course, this requires a lot of research and hoarding. How Stuff Works says that to be successful at extreme couponing, you need to spend hours each week reading, researching, and clipping coupons, you need to buy in bulk, throw away any brand loyalty that you might have, go wherever the sales are, and only buy the things you will use.

Walmart has traditionally had one of the most coupon-friendly policies, but according to the Krazy Coupon Lady, things have changed. Walmart has quietly changed its coupon policies to deter extreme couponers so that you can no longer put extra money in your pocket at the end of your shopping trip.

There are new ways to save money. Some policies in Idaho and online retailers are very friendly if you know how to play the game and keep your emotions out of your shopping. Using apps like Honey or CapitalOne Shopping are great ways to save money and get cash back. Pay attention to every store's rewards program. Most people know about Kohl's Cash, but Old Navy, Gap, and Athleta have similar programs. If you are a sports fan and buy a lot of sports memorabilia or sports apparel, make sure you are taking advantage of the Fanatics FanCash program. If you shop at Albertsons or Fred Meyer, take advantage of their online coupon system that gives you savings beyond what's on sale, and make sure you know about their gift card policy. If you buy a gift card to Albertsons, you get up to 7x rewards points that can be used on discounts on gas or groceries. You can simply use the gift card every time you buy groceries. You were going to spend that money there anyway.

Even though many stores have changed their policies, there are still plenty of ways to save money if you do your research.