Smart Spending

Affluent Consumers Clip Coupons. Poor People? Not So Much

By Brad Tuttle | @bradrtuttle | September 4, 2009 | +

Some 1.6 billion coupons were redeemed in the U.S. in the first half of 2009. That’s up 23 percent compared to last year. Who is turning all those coupons in to save on purchases? Odds are it’s a suburbanite who is fairly well off.

The Nielsen Company just released some new research about who uses coupons, and how consumers use them. The findings include:

* More affluent consumers ($70k+) are considered super heavy coupon2 users (39 percent compared to 35 percent for total U.S. households) and coupon enthusiasts (42 percent compared to 35 percent for total U.S. households.)

* Other serious coupon users include those from large households, those households with female heads age 54 and younger, as well as consumers living in affluent suburban3 and comfortable country4 spreads.

* Those likely to be low or non-coupon users: low-income, 1-member households, male-only head of households, African-Americans and Hispanic consumers, residents in rural and struggling urban areas.

So the people who could benefit most by using coupons (poor people) are very unlikely to actually use coupons. Why? If you’re interested, there are plenty of comments—some informed, some less so—about the topic at Consumerist and Consuming Interest.

Certainly, I agree with the theory that using coupons well is not easy. To do it right and take advantage of the potential savings, you need time, patience, and organization. You need to sift through papers and websites and go to multiple stores. This can be difficult for anybody, let alone a family that’s just scraping by.

On the other hand, the stats from Nielsen show that a significant chunk of people who earn decent money are big-time coupon users. If you can use them and you don’t, you’re basically throwing money away unnecessarily.

For advice on how to use coupons wisely, check out a Q&A with the Consumer Queen. Also interesting: The rise of coupons you don’t clip out of newspapers. You show them on your cell phone instead.

Related Topics: Consumer Queen, food, Melissa Garcia, Nielsen Company, recession porn, Borrowing, Smart Spending
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  • http://becomingjapanese.wordpress.com becomingjapanese

    Coupons are worthwhile for saving on brand name items. You don’t see coupons for generic or store brand products, which if you have a lower income you are more likely to buy.

    Let’s look at the math:
    Brand name cereal regular price: $4.00
    On sale price, with coupon: around $3.00

    Store brand cereal regular price: $2.50 or less

    Now granted, this isn’t every case, but it’s most commonly true. If you have the higher income that you can afford to buy name brand items at the regular price, and then use coupons for savings, that’s smart economics, which is why those people tend to have money.

    But at the same time, you can save more by buying store brands on sale than you can with coupons on name brand items.

  • greenlasagna

    The way to save big bucks on coupons is to know your stores’ policies on coupons, and use coupons with sale items. For instance, at Publix, you can use two manufacturer’s coupons with a buy one get one free purchase. Say it’s cereal, 2/$4 with two .75 coupons. That’s $2-.75 or 1.25 each for a $4 box of cereal. You aren’t even going to find generic cereal at that price.

  • jeninky

    Your observation that middle and upper income persons use coupons is right on target, but I disagree on the comments that clipping takes a lot of time and that store brand sales net the biggest savings.
    Yes, coupons are for name brands, but if you watch, sales at the stores often coincide with coupons that are out.

    Example: Brand name cereal is on sale at Walgreens for 2/4.00. You print a coupon off http://www.mypoints.com (which also earns you free points toward a gift card when you redeem it) for 1.00 off 2 boxes. Your name brand cereal just became 1.50 a box. Cheaper than generic.

    Or, look at Hamburger Helper at Kroger. It’s 10.00 for 10 on sale then you use the .75 off three boxes coupon making them.75 each if you only bought 3 (you don’t have to buy 10 to get them for 1.00 ea).

    I print almost all coupons off the web, the rest come in the junk mail that has the restaurant coupons in there. I keep them in a binder clip in my purse which is on me at all times. I dont’ pay for the newspaper, I check all the grocery ads online (Walgreens, Kroger, Food Giant, SuperValu, etc.). You can do it in an hour or two a week on Sunday and Wed. We also have a coupon exchange I can stop by at the county Extension Center.
    FrugalinPaducah : )

  • mljones319

    My experience has been that a lot of the store brands are less expensive then name brands even after coupons. Of course with things like toiletries, laundry and dish soaps, cleaning supplies coupons are the best way to go.

  • lokhupbafa

    Who would have thought households with women heads, or large income families with a woman who probably doesn’t have full time employment vs single men —

    Women use coupons, most men don’t. Is that really that hard? Most coupon items are aimed at women as well.

    ***
    The biggest coupons we use are sold by our kids school as a fund raisers, mostly full of two for one dinner coupons for local restaurants – if you don’t have a kid in a better school with a PTA that does aggressive coupons books – you never get a chance at these items. These books are the only place you will find coupons for some smaller local stores (kids clothing, non-chain stores)

  • slou117

    Does this include online coupons from sites like Savings.com as well? If so, then it’s understandable that there are more affluent users. Low income people are less likely to own computers.

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    http://www.CouponMama.org or Facebook Coupon Mama

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