Save the MOST bucks from YOUR Commissary shopping trip

This doesn't apply to a ton of my typical readers, but it is something that I have been working on learning and wanted to share with the rest of you.  If you do stumble upon this from a shared link of pinterest pin, please share with me the tips that you have found to work the best!

Rules for Shopping at the Commissary:



Use the Commissary website!
  When you enter in your location, it will bring up all of the things that are on sale. This is a great way to start making your meal plans for the week. If you base your main meals off of the sale prices then you can save a lot. When I start off my meal planning for the week, I look through all of the sales and figure out what the most common sales are. After I get an idea, then I start writing down the main dish along with anything I want to eat with it. I normally only plan supper, so I also throw in a few breakfast items along with some easy lunch meals for when we are on the go.
 
 Always check the Wal-Mart sales (or PriceMatcherz.com) 
     The Commissary isn't always cheaper. I have found that there are some sales that are slightly cheaper when you go to walmart to price match. When I am planning my trip, I use an excel sheet to list everything I need for the weeks meals. Then I got through PriceMatcherz.com and other sales ads for the week and see if there are any really good sales on them. I also check Coupons.com (see next tip) and figure out what I have coupons for. I put this is a separate column. I print this out and take this shopping with me.
   While shopping, if I find something that is cheaper on sale at Wal-Mart, I save this trip for another night. There are a lot of things that I found that were cheaper on sale than I could have got them at the Commissary.

Coupons
   I know that many of you have seen the Extreme Couponing, but I am not even hinting that I do that much with it. I will say that I typically go through Coupons.com and the Wednesday paper. Occasionally, when walking around the store, I will look at the Military Coupons only and grab those for the next grocery trip if I don't need that item that day. Today while I was grocery shopping, I saved 11 dollars off the total by using 14 or 15 coupons, most of which I had picked up in the store.
     Not only can you use websites like Coupons.com and Militarywivessaving.com to find some great savings, using Ibotta and Checkout 51 apps on your smart phone are also a great way to make a little cash. There are times where you can work it out that you have a paper coupon and a dollar rebate on one of the apps, which makes the product you are buying almost free.

Great Value Products
 Now, this takes a little more dedication, but if you take a stroll around Wal-Mart with a notebook, write down the items off brand and the prices there. The Commissary doesn't have off brand items and sometimes those can even be cheaper at Wal-Mart than even the cheapest brand there. It may be worth the extra few dollars to check it out. This is something that I haven't done yet, but there are a couple items that I have noticed were cheaper at Wal-Mart just from walking by it.
   Look for the cheap items. Mac and Cheese, Spaghettio's, Ramen and other "college kids" foods put a whole different perspective on cheap college food. Some of the staples or boxed meals can be pretty cheap when it comes to buying a lot for a long period of time. Creating a stockpile from the Commissary would be very easy to do with some of the convenience meals.

Now, the next few tips aren't going to save you any money, but they will save you a huge headache and a lot of Tylenol.

Carefully Pick Days of Shopping
   If at all possible, avoid going anytime after 9 on the weekends. Weekends can be a little hectic and can lead to crowded aisles. If you must go on a Saturday, be there when your commissary is opening so you can do some of your shopping by yourself.
   Definitely avoid 1st and the 15th, but even a few days after that if you can help it. The Commissary is the very last place I would want to be on pay days. They are crazy because everyone just got their money and can now get groceries for the next week.

Tip the Baggers
   I found this out from another blogger. I didn't know this at all. I wish I could go back and find the guys from the last times that I was there, but I can't so now I am going to spread the word to make sure that other people know as well! Baggers work for either next to nothing expect their tips, or only work for their tips depending on the commissary. Since I found this out, I have started seeing a jar or container where you can tip the bagger as you are walking out. Typically at the end of the checkout belt. I usually throw in a single or two. It doesn't have to be a lot, but anything can help.

Click2Go
  I know only three of the bases currently offer it as a trial run, but if your base does over it, it may be well worth your time. You order all of your groceries online from the commissary website, then set a time when you want to go pick them up. You can pay online, so when you are ready, you can just drive over and pick them up. No shopping cart, no other people, no impulse buys.  It gives you time to check out the prices and see the lowest costs without being pressured to get out of the way in a busy aisle or hurry up because someone else is watching your kids.

I am still new to the Commissary shopping. Even though I have been in the military for 2 years, I haven't been near one for the entire time. Now that I am only 20 minutes away, I am taking full advantage of the savings that it is giving me. Please, if you do shop on base, feel free to add in other tips. Thank you to those who have helped me and I hope to help others along the way.