You know that Coupon Sense is helping you save money, but did you also know that Coupon Sense is a great budgeting tool?  There are several features offered with your Coupon Sense subscription that can help you budget your money better.

My Savings

My Savings is an incredible tracking tool that shows how much you’ve spent and how much you’ve saved using coupons and sale prices.

• It is a great budgeting tool. Enter the information from your grocery receipts each week and get a detailed picture of your spending.
• The results may surprise you. Many people underestimate how much they spend on groceries, but My Savings helps you get a firm grip on your spending.
• Once you enter the information, the data is saved in your profile. Coupon Sense then aggregates that information to show your savings both in dollars and percentages for the week, month or year.

Here’s how to do it: When you get home from the store, go to the My Savings tab.  Click on “Add Savings” and enter the date, store, card savings, coupon savings, rebate savings and balance paid from your receipt.  Hit “save” and the amount you spent and saved will be automatically calculated.

If you are diligent in tracking your shopping visits in My Savings you will be able to see exactly how much you are spending on groceries.  Over time, this tool will help you  know how much money you should be budgeting each month for groceries.

The Shopping List

Have you ever been in the checkout line watching, waiting and maybe even cringing a little as you wait for the checker to hit the total button?  I have and it’s no fun.

The best benefit of building and customizing your Shopping List with Coupon Sense is that it enables you to stay within your budget. We don’t treat budget as a dirty word. Instead, we help you embrace it! With Coupon Sense, you’ll know how much money you intend to spend and how much you’ll save – before you even leave the house.

When you print your Shopping List, the amount you are going to spend at each store is automatically calculated for you.  You always want to look at those amounts before you cut your coupons.  If you’ve gone over your budget for the week, it’s really easy to go back to the Shopping List and take some things out, change quantities or decide to wait to buy something that will still be on sale later in the month.  Once you’ve made the changes, hit the button to print the Shopping List again and the changes are reflected in the new Shopping List.  Using the Coupon Sense Shopping List puts YOU in complete control of how much YOU are going to spend.  As long as you stick to your list at the store, there are no surprises at the checkout and you and your budget will be on track.