Thanks to the internet, there are plenty of ways to drive down the price of groceries and other household essentials. Many of are used to ordering online with discount codes, and it's a great way to make savings.
But good, old fashioned in-store shopping has also been affected by the coupon craze. It's not hard to find online deals for offline grocery shopping, and you'll be surprised by how much you can save.
To help you locate coupons for the brands you need at stores near you, we've put together this quick guide to using grocery coupons in Canada – so you'll never pay full price at Safeway, Foodland or Atlantic. These coupons are your route to permanent offline food and drink savings.
Which online sites offer grocery coupons in Canada?
Firstly, it's important to get a handle on the types of coupons available and how to get hold of them. Broadly speaking, we'll be talking about coupon sites, which aggregate current deals from a range of retailers; Facebook codes, which can be found on the Facebook pages of retailers and brands; and the sites of retailers, which can carry exclusive deals.
Most of the deals we'll list can be found on company websites or coupon sites. But Facebook can't be discounted either, so to speak. If you visit company and brand Facebook pages, you'll regularly come across promotional coupons that aren't advertised elsewhere. So if you have favourite brands, stay in touch with them. They often come up with the goods.
Anyhow, let's dive into the world of grocery coupons to find some killer savings for Canadian shoppers.
Find coupons for your favourite Canadian products
Firstly, let's introduce some major grocery brands that regularly offer coupons to redeem in-store:
Pampers
If you need baby products for less (and let's face it, everything helps), check out the Pampers coupons at the P&G Everyday site run by the brand's parent company, Proctor and Gamble.
Huggies
Not to be outdone, Huggies compete toe-to-toe with Pampers and offers their own coupon deals, with significant money-off discounts available to print from their site.
Mr Clean
The cleaning products giant offers savings on its multi-surface cleaners and disinfectants via the P&G Everyday coupons site.
Crest
If you want to keep your smile sparkling, Crest toothpaste discounts are the answer and are regularly available on the company's website.
Herbal Essences
One of Canada's most popular shampoo brands, Herbal Essences is another options available at steep discounts via P&G Everyday.
Kellogg's
Start the day with a discount by buying your favorite Kellogg's cereal with one of the company's discount coupons.
Lays
Lays, the potato chip legends, offers exclusive discount coupons for people who sign up at their Facebook page or at the bottom of their website's front page.
Kraft
Kraft sells a wide range of popular brands, from Heinz canned goods to Tassimo coffee makers, and coupons for many of those products can be found via their Coupons Centre.
Maille
If you're a fan of French mustard or cornichon pickles, Maille coupons will be music to your ears.
Save money with coupons from leading Canadian stores
Alternatively, you could check out coupons from Canada's biggest grocery chains. Nearly all of them run coupon deals that can be printed out and presented to cashiers. So why not take advantage of them? Here are a few that we love to use:
Loblaws
Loblaws offer a wealth of coupons to clip at their online ordering store, with products as diverse as shampoo, toothpaste and cold and flu remedies all part of the mix. Just print them out and present them in-store to make big savings.
Metro
Metro unveils a new batch of discount coupons every Thursday for subscribers to their email newsletter, so it's well worth signing up if you haven't already.
Costco
The cash and carry giant is already pretty competitive on the cost front, but with Costco coupons, many products will become even cheaper. Savings vary depending on your province and can be found at the Costco website.
Walmart
From their George clothing line to baby products, Tim Hortons tea or Sabra humus, a wide range of different groceries should be available for less with Walmart in-store coupons.
Use specialist grocery coupon sites
Specialist coupon sites are becoming the best place to find grocery deals. These sites work in partnership with retailers, presenting the latest offers in easy-to-search formats.
All of them require some form of sign-up, which tends to take a few minutes and may require you to link your account to Facebook. Some also ask for your postal address, as a few coupons need to be mailed, although the vast majority can just be printed out as you clip them.
The coupons on offer vary from site to site, so it's a good idea to bookmark a few if you want the best deals. Here are out favourite specialist grocery coupon sites:
Save.ca
Save.ca listings are the place to track down coupons for popular retailers like Giant Tiger, as well as most of the stores run by Sobeys, such as Safeway and Foodland. Create an account, browse major grocery categories like food, beverages, household and pet care, then press "get coupons" when you're done.
Utilisource.ca
Also known as SmartSource, Utilisource specializes in grocery deals. They make it easy to switch between coupons in all of Canada's provinces and offer a drop-down menu packed with popular brands. As a bonus, when you clip coupons, you get a neat running total of how much you've saved.
Check out general coupon sites for grocery deals
Utilisource and Save.ca aren't the only coupon hubs around. There are also some general coupon aggregators that have a broad range of deals and are often overlooked by grocery buyers:
Groupon
Groupon may be most famous for offering affordable coupons for things like spa breaks and restaurants, but they also offer plenty of grocery coupons as well. Check out their "Grocery & Household" section for a good spread of deals. When you do, be aware that Groupon.ca predominantly features deals from Quebec, while Groupon.com covers the rest of Canada.
Buytopia
Buytopia sends daily email updates to their members that are filled with coupon deals. Ideally, these coupons are as relevant as possible to the interests of members, based on the preferences they specify during sign-up. Most of the time, they are pretty generous too, with 50% to 80% off many products.
WagJag
WagJag offers time-limited deals for all sorts of products (so customers need to check regularly to avoid missing out). They conveniently let customers pick the coupons they want to redeem and reserve items for pickup at local stores. Most deals feature bulk buys, making WagJag a great place to stock up on everything from chicken nuggets to wine.
The best places to order grocery deliveries or pick-ups in Canada
So far, we've talked about how to find print out coupons for products and stores, along with specialist coupon aggregators. But many retailers also let you save money when you order pick-ups or deliveries online. Here are some leading options:
Save on Foods
Save on Foods offers a convenient delivery service across western Canada, with a focus on BC and Alberta. Just create an account, select a slot, and you should be able to order fresh groceries across the western region.
Instacart
Instacart does your shopping for you from nearby retailers. When they do, they will bring to your attention any relevant coupons and add a few of their own. There are also sometimes discounts for Instacart Express, their one-year delivery pass, which usually costs $99 – so be sure to look out for them.
Loblaws Pickups
If you want to order from your local Loblaws, you can shop online to save time. When you do, all of their in-store promo deals should be available, along with savings from their PC Optimum rewards program. Plus, pick-ups can be scheduled on the move with the Loblaws app.
Walmart Canada
Walmart has entered the pick-up business in a big way, allowing customers to order essentials online before picking them up at a huge range of locations in every Canadian province.
Use coupons to make big grocery savings anywhere in Canada
Canada is a big place, so having your groceries delivered online still isn't cost effective for many retailers. However, even if you can't find affordable ways to arrange deliveries, the coupons for stores and brands detailed here should help you lower your grocery costs.
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