This week I am giving you two scenarios for CVS. The first includes three transactions and assumes you are a beginner with no Extra Care Bucks to start out with. The second is my personal plan for CVS this week. I have $14 in Extra Care Bucks to use and I thought I’d show you what you can do when you are rolling money from the previous week into the next. My goal each week is to have at least $10 ECBs to work with. This allows me to take advantage of more deals in less trips!
This post includes specific items you can purchase and coupons that you can use to maximize your dollar AND your Extra Care Bucks at CVS. Please know that you do not have to follow these transactions if you do not want to. The goal of this post is to help you get an idea on how to roll your Extra Care Bucks from one scenario to the next. Please also know that these transactions do not take into account tax. Every state taxes differently so you may need to budget a little extra to cover tax.
If you are new to shopping at CVS, go HERE to read Intro to CVS.
To see this week’s CVS Weekly Ad go HERE.
Beginner Scenario:
Transaction #1
Buy two Glide Clinical Protection Floss, $3.49 each (you will receive $5 ECB for purchasing the limit of 2)
Minus two $1/1 Oral-B Floss 4/3/2011 P&G Insert (exp 4/30/2011)
(If you have remaining ECBs from last week use them here to save even more!)
Total Spent: $4.98 (If you do not use ECBs)
Receive: $5 ECB
Transaction #2
Buy two Right Guard Bodywash, $3.88 each (you will receive $3 ECB)
Buy one Oral B Toothbrush, $2.99 (you will receive $.99 ECB)
Buy one Cadbury Egg, $.50
Minus one $2/1 Oral-B Pulsar, CrossAction, Advantage or ANY 2 Indicator or Cavity Defense Toothbrushes 4/3/2011 PG Insert (exp 4/30/2011)
Minus one B1G1 Right Guard Products 3/13/2011 RP Insert (exp 4/10/2011)
Minus $5 ECB from Transaction #1
Total Spent: $.37
Receive: $3 ECB, $.99 ECB
Transaction #3
Buy two G.U.M. Flossers, $2 (you will receive $4 ECB for purchasing two)
Minus $.99 ECB & $3 ECB from Transaction #2
Total Spent: NOTHING
Receive: $4 ECB
Total Remaining ECBs to apply towards next week’s ad: $4 ECBs
Total Out of Pocket for all 3 transactions: $5.35 + applicable taxes for approximately $22.00 in products. AND – if you used ECBs from last week, you will have spent much less out of pocket on Transaction #1.
**Also – Don’t forget that your ECBs will expire in a few weeks and if you let them expire, you are basically throwing away money. If you are concerned you will let them expire, I would put your ECBs towards paper products like toilet paper, paper towels, diapers, etc which are hard to get dirt cheap!
My Plan:
Transaction #1
Buy one Complete Multipurpose Solution, $8.99 (will get $8.99 ECB)
Buy two G.U.M. Flossers, $2 each (will get $4 ECB for purchasing the limit of 2)
Buy one Glide Clinical Protection Floss, $3.49 (will get $2.50 ECB)
Minus one $1/1 Complete Multi-Purpose Solution 12 oz or larger 4/3/2011 SS Insert (exp 5/9/2011)
Minus one $1/1 Oral-B Floss 4/3/2011 P&G Insert (exp 4/30/2011)
Minus $14 ECB from last week
Total Spent: $.48
Receive: $8.99 ECB, $4 ECB, $2.50 ECB
Transaction #2
Buy two Right Guard Bodywash, $3.88 each (get $3 ECB)
Buy one Gold Bond Bodywash, $5.88 (get $3 ECB)
Buy one Glide Clinical Protection Floss, $3.49 (will get $2.50 ECB)
Minus one B1G1 Right Guard Products 3/13/2011 RP Insert (exp 4/10/2011)
Minus one $2/1 Gold Bond Bodywash 3/6/2011 SS Insert (exp 6/30/2011)
Minus one $1/1 Oral-B Floss 4/3/2011 P&G Insert (exp 4/30/2011)
Minus $8.99 ECB from Transaction #1
Total Spent: $1.26
Receive: $3 ECB, $3 ECB, $2.50 ECB
Transaction #3
Buy 12 Herbal Essence hair care, 2/$5.49 (will receive $10 ECB for spending $30 on P&G products)
Minus six B1G1 Herbal Essences or Aussie Product 3/13/2011 SS Insert (exp 4/30/2011)
Minus $3 ECB, $3 ECB, $2.50 ECB from Transaction #2
Minus $4 ECB & $2.50 ECB from Transaction #1
Total Spent: $1.47
Receive: $10 ECB
My Remaining ECBs to apply towards next week’s ad: $10 ECBs
My Total Out of Pocket for all 3 transactions: $3.21 + applicable taxes for approximately $66.00 in products.
Thanks for coming to Addicted to Saving! Here’s a little bit about me so you can know who’s behind all these posts!
My name is Liza and I began my money-saving journey in the Spring of 2009 as a way to stretch a limited household income. I had lost my job and my hubby was self-employed. I launched Addicted to Saving in November of 2009 and it has grown by leaps and bounds. Since then, my hubby and I have struggled with the ups and downs of two failed adoptions and are now LOVING being parents to our little man Asher who we brought home from Ethiopia in August of 2013. I feel incredibly blessed to be able to help you save money. My goal is that you will have FUN and become empowered to save more and more money each week..
If a coupon expires 4/2 how can you use it in a transaction on 4/3? (irishspring)
Miranda, My goodness. I can’t! And I can’t believe I missed that! Will have to revise my plan. Thanks so much for pointing that out. Definitely can’t use expired coupons at CVS! I guess I can’t believe it could actually be APRIL already! Hard to believe we are approaching the end of a school year! I will update this post without that coupon. Thanks again! Sorry about that. – Kelly
Can’t you combine the Herbal Essence $1/2(4/3P&G) or the $1/1 in the P&G 110 savings book with those BOGOs??
Amanda, I think you can! You just made my deal even sweeter! Thanks 🙂 – Kelly
so for the herbal essences, if i get 12 and use 6 BOGO coupons how many $1/2 coupons would I use- 3 or 6?
Does the bogo herbal essence coupon state “Limit of 4 like coupons in same shopping trip”??
I want to order some(my insert didn’t have them). But I don’t want to waste my money if I can’t use them all at once.
Yes there is a limit of 4 like coupons in same trip.
CVS does a running tab on all sales with ECB’s while the sale is still good you would have to make several trip but when you hit the $30.00 mark your ECB will print so coupons that you buy would be wasted.
Sorry, NOT be wasted
Hi Lisa, do you know… i get 12 of the Herbal Esseneces and use 6 BOGO coupons how many $1/2 coupons would I use- 3 or 6?
You can use 3. It has equal the origional purches not BOGO 3×2=6
CVS has zephrhills water on sale 3.00 and my store on tampa rd took my 1.00 coupon = 2.00 for 24 bottles!!
Amanda,
How & where do u go to order the RP inserts. My local paper never has them but they seem to have good coupons.
– Jodie S
I have so much to learn!!!! :}
hang in there and always ask questions! we are here to help you! CVS is the easier store compared to walgreens in my humble opinion…
Does CVS give rain checks on items that earn ECB? I’ve stopped at 3 stores and can’t get the floss…argh!
Hi Colleen – Yes!! CVS gives rain checks AND the rain checks have no expiration date on them! 🙂 Just make sure that when you go to use your raincheck(s) that the cashier manually prints out your ECBs. They won’t print out automatically. I’ve found that often the cashier will forget to print the ECBs unless I remind them. Great question!