I’m often asked what my opinion of The Grocery Game program is, and frankly, I haven’t used it personally in about seven years. There are so many free resources for this information these days that I’m left wondering if there is a real value proposition in paying $10 or more ($10 for the first store and $5 for each additional store) every two months for access to coupon match-ups.
But maybe there’s something I’m missing since it’s been so long, so I’m putting the question out to all of my wonderful readers.
Do you use The Grocery Game currently? Do you feel it’s a valuable resource in addition to blogs?
Or did you stop using The Grocery Game when you started reading blogs? Do you feel that you can get all of the information you need for free?
Of course there’s no right or wrong answer, but I’m really looking forward to hearing your opinions, and I know there are many of you out there wondering this same thing.
Diane C
Used it a few years back. Now use pinchingyourpennies.com forums. I live in Utah so the shopping list and coupons suggestions are wonderful and absolutely free.
Amy
I stopped using it because I like to shop on Wednesday or Thursday (right when the new sales start at my store), but GG doesn’t update until the weekend. I was having to wait until Saturday or Sunday to do my shopping and I don’t like to shop then.
Teresa
I use the grocery game. It’s worth the couple of bucks a week for the convenience of having the printable list in grocery store order. While I do surf the blogs and coupon sites, I don’t always have the time to do a lot of research on the matchups working full time from home with a 3 year old! The grocery game makes it so much easier to save. Unless a comparable free site (and if there are any…please let me know!) comes along, I’ll continue using them.
Julie Curry
I had a few people rave about the GG and encourage me to sign up for it! I was hesitant because the whole point is to SAVE money, not spend extra. So I thought…I will to find what I can find on my own before I will pay someone to do it! I found THIS website which has seriously changed my life! If you don’t have it, you have a link to it! I link coupons, other blogs, and get great advice and lots of cheapies and freebies of great name-brand stuff! You have changed my way of thinking, and all you ask is that I just keep READING! :)
Kristin T.
I did the trial run for my blog so I could learn more about it and it’s value; I found that most, if not all, of the information could be found on various blogs by visiting Be Centsable’s Grocery Gathering. Especially if you live in a rural area like me, the service isn’t worth paying for. For someone who lives in an urban area with lots of larger grocery stores, the service might help but I couldn’t justify paying so much for it.
Mandy
I also used GG before I started reading the blogs. I find enough deals via the blogs that I don’t feel like I need to spend $10 every 2 months. I would use it if it was FREE, though!!! :)
Samina
I’ve never used it. I’d never even heard about it until I started reading your blog & a couple of other savings blogs. I’ve been satisfied with the info I’ve found on the blogs I read, so I’m not interested in spending money for GG.
Ann
I thought GG was a great way to start “learning the ropes” of matching sales and coupons. I used it for several months until I got the hang of using other websites and blogs that are free – and I usually find more deals this way than just using Grocery Game.
Melody James
I have never heard of the Grocery Game, but it sounds very much like what I used to use here in Michigan called SavingsAngel. I paid $19.95 a month for the service and it matched me up w/ all the local grocery and drug stores in my area. It was a LIFESAVER when I first started couponing back in February, but now that I’ve found all these blogs (for free!) and I’ve learned all the tricks of the trade I no longer use it for feel it’s necessary to waste $19.95 a month so I cancelled my subscription in June. I’ve been saving as much or more ever since!
Amber
Kathy Arma — Yes, this is a blog :) I have just started following these things myself and I mainly use this one dealseekingmom.com, and southernsavers…..if you look at this lists of deals that dealseekingmom.com posts for different stores, she tells you which blog she got her information from and you can go to those sites (also blogs) to get more complete lists for different stores.
As far as the Grocery Game….I did check it out. I did not sign up for the free 4 week trial but to me it didn’t seem like the cost was worth it, especially since things are really tight for me and my family right now. I usually only have about $30 or less to spend on grocery’s a week so I look for the best deals that get me the best prices for cheap and get what I need to get. So I search the different blogs for the best deals, which works for me.
kyleigh
NO!!!! Coupon mom does the same exact thing, and it is FREE!!!! cutouthunger.org
Emily
I used to use the grocery game, but haven’t for nearly a year. I think it was crucial for me in the early stages of learning to use coupons – it took a lot of the time out of the process and taught me the basics. However, I never liked the fact that I had to wait until Sunday afternoon to shop – it is much better for my family if we can do the grocery shopping on Saturday. And honestly, once I got the hang of it I think I can do just as good a job myself (from reading blogs, having a good sense of pricing, and paying attention to my own stockpile) without paying for it.
denyse
did it for the free trial. I, too, do my weekly grocery shopping on Sunday, it didn’t give the info I needed until the middle of the week. Not worth the money for me, I get all the help I need from blogs!!
Cyndi
I have recently started it again. It does help for somethings. My frustration is that they post the list on Sundays when my stores change out on Wednesday – then I have to cram my coupon hunting and shopping into Sunday-Tuesday. Not convenient for me. Also, I am in a small town and a lot of times I don’t get the coupons they refer to or my local stores don’t have those particular products on sale. I may keep it around for another cycle and see if I really use it.
Kim
I used to play the Coupon Game. And I loved how it simplified my life. Then I decided to stop already. I figured I could muddle through effectively enough.
Then, after following blogs and links and adding more blogs, I discovered the Utah Deal Diva https://www.utahdealdiva.com/ and she lead me to Grocery Smarts https://grocerysmarts.com/utah/lists/splashg84cjw.php which has all the same information that the Grocery Game used to give me, but more stores and for FREE! Bonus!
Tara Kuczykowski
Thanks, everyone! I’m loving all the input so far.
Just wanted to say that, no, I’m not looking to start my own grocery game. The Grocery Grab is about all I can handle at this time, and I really like being able to feature other blogs that do a fabulous job with the store match-ups.
And someone asked if I was planning to start charging for my site. That’s a resounding NO!!! I started this site as a free resource to teach people how to save money and stretch their budgets, and I have absolutely no intentions of ever charging for this information.
Sheri
I have used GG for about a year and a half and I still will continue to use it. I find that they post deals there that I don’t find on blogs, AND they give rock bottom times on when to buy. Sometimes a blog will say to buy a certain item as it’s a good deal, but GG will say it’s not.
chelsea
Well, I just joined to see what all of the fuss was about and I have to say, I am not impressed.
For me, it only shows me what’s on sale. I don’t see anything I can get free and it doesn’t show me printable coupons. I can get sale flyers by email. As someone else mentioned, you can get sales and coupon matchups from couponmom.com as well as through the blogs.
I wouldn’t recommend the resources on the grocerygame.com to my visitors at Free Mania, but it sounds like it’s useful for some people.
Rachel @ Surviving The Stores
The Grocery Game was really helpful when I first started couponing. But now that I do my own coupon matchups, or go to other blogs that do matchups for my area, I find that I don’t need it any more.
When I was using GG, they didn’t post all of the printable coupons (I don’t know if they have changed that) and those are a HUGE part of my savings.
Ashley
I have been doing the Grocery Game for about 5 months. I am beginning to be frustrated by it, so I am not sure how much longer I will do it. The only grocery store here other than Target and Walmart is HEB so that is why I signed up (I can’t find weekly deals on blogs like I can for the other stores). Problems: The list is long and time consuming to go thru, I also have noticed that sometimes the items it claims are on sale aren’t always at my particular store, printables aren’t mentioned, and I have Sunday-Tuesday to shop before the ad changes. If I could find a good blog for HEB deals, then I would stop. Suggestions anyone?
Sandra
I joined a long time ago and quit when the trial was over. It only showed me the sales, nothing spactacular! No Coupon Deals, or anything you read about on this blog or any other blog.
I’d rather get my info for free! :)
Beachy Mum
I use the Grocery Game…but it’s been on and off.
It *was* by far the best means of gathering this information, but there are so, so many sources now (including this excellent blog) that I may not renew when my current subscription expires.
The *primary reason* I would leave is the very poor coverage in Florida. Florida is a very large state in terms of population density, and there is only one person who creates the Florida ‘list’ for my grocery stores…she is in Tampa (west coast) and I live on the east coast. At least 30% of the time, the deals DO NOT match up, because the coupon inserts/deals are different.
When I have written to customer service, the message is forwarded on to the Florida rep (the source of the problem) and I receive the same static reply (over and over and over…)….which seems to be what others have experienced.
Beachy Mum
Oh, sorry….one more thing….
The other BIG complaint with Grocery Game is the list timing.
There are two major grocery stores in Florida…Publix, then Winn-Dixie.
W-D’s sale starts on Wednesday + Publix’s weekly sale starts on Thursday. The Grocery Game ‘list’ for these stores isn’t available until Sunday..sometimes as late as mid-day!
That leaves two days to shop at W-D, and three at Publix…less than a week to benefit from the sales. Therefore, I pay full price for my subscription for a service that is available less than 50% of the time.
Stefanie
I started couponing after a group of friends introduced me to the benefits. They all use the Grocery Game, but I could not justify spending money to save money. I even hate paying for newspapers just to get coupons. So I looked around to find something similar but that was FREE. I discovered Coupon Mom and have been using it for about a year. The site is updated every Sunday and even includes printable coupon match-ups now. I also use various blogs to discover hidden deals and match-up scenarios to further stretch my dollar.
Julie
I have been using it since May of this year. I have to admit I’m thinking of dropping my drugstore and one of my grocery stores. I’ve become addicted to Michelle’s blog at Wicked Cool Deals (and found yours from hers :) ) and have been using hers for the drug stores I didn’t have a list on (and then linking from hers over to yours on some things).
I just feel overwhelmed by matching sale to coupon at my grocery store and then there are unadvertised deals, too. Of course, I do find my own deals sometimes – love clearance stuff!
I feel that the Grocery Game list for my grocery store is comprehensive and takes some of the burden off me. I think that’s worth $10 – I figure I save WAY more than that using the list. I have not checked out any free blogs yet for my local grocery store so perhaps once I’ve done that I’ll change my mind? I think probably not, though – I’m use to it now and it’s just so darn easy to use!
jennifer
I used The Grocery Game a long time ago and now think that their are too many sites that are free. I think $8.00 a store is crazy, and there are no coupons. I am spending way less for a lot more by following google reader and sites like couponers wanted.
Donna Braswell
I’ve looked at GG, but always felt that it wasn’t worth the money for something I can do easily myself. I love your blog Tara and many of the others that you link to. I consider myself a Bargain Diva (have been couponing over 15 years) but I continue to benefit from the efforts of others in finding a deal. Keep up the good work!
nida
I started doing the coupon-ing thing about June of this year, and i started with coupon mom, found deal seeking mom, and stumbled upon hotcouponworld, and between these three, i dont need to pay any one for the deal matchups. And if you look at my house and stored ‘goodies’ you would know im not missing out on ANYTHING lol!
Cheryl in AL
I looked at the website several times before I started really couponing. I could not justify $60 annually. Now that I have really gotten into it I find the information online very easily. I have had very good luck with Hot Coupon World’s forums (divided by store) and Deal Seeking Mom for my drug store shopping.
Melissa
I have only been couponing about 5 months. So I still consider myself a newbie. I was already a couple of months in with couponing, getting my deals and matchups from various blogs/websites, before I ever heard of The Grocery Game. I signed up for the 4 week free trial to see what it was about & if it would prove beneficial to me. It definitely made the matchups easier since every every grocery and drug store in my region was listed in one place and all I had to do was select the items and print my list. However, the information comes too late. Store sales that began on Friday were usually available on Sunday and store sales that began on Sunday not until Tuesday. This leaves you less days to take advantage of the sales & some of those really great bargains are gone by the time you get to the store with your list. Therefore, I canceled before the actual subscription kicked in. Thanks to sites like yours and many others, I have managed to save $$, build a stockpile, and take advantage of the great deals without having to pay a subscription fee. Thanks for all your hard work!!