Can I use Coupons & Food Stamps together?

 

I get this question a LOT from families - they want to know if they can use coupons and then use Food Stamps (or EBT) as payment at the grocery store.

 

The short answer, Yes!   The mid-length answer, YES!  And might I add how smart of you for being a responsible steward of your assistance dollars and stretching them beyond their face value! 

 

Even though food stamps don't look like this anymore, they still provide the same assistance to families in need!

Think about the family who receives $200 monthly in food assistance.  By using coupons on dry goods, non perishables, and other coupon-yielding groceries, they will be able to use all of the surplus money to buy fresh produce (even organic!), eggs, milk, and meats that they may otherwise have had to pass up.  Here is a testimony from one of my first Savings Pro clients:

 

"So many people judge you when you go through the grocery checkout to pay with an EBT card and are purchasing "junk food".  The reality is I didn't want to be feeding my children so much processed food any more than these people wanted to see me buying it!  I felt like I had no choice.  As a widow of 3 children, I was working two jobs and just barely making ends meet, so the only money I had for groceries was my food stamp allowance - $235/month.  When I started couponing with you, I realized that I was going to be able to start feeding my boys real, wholesome food!  I was spending so little of my food stamps I was able to start buying more pasta, whole grains, and fresh produce.  Before everything was canned or packaged.  I also was amazed at how much money I saved on toiletries and paper goods while couponing - and that freed up more money for groceries as well!  My boys are healthy, strong, and happy with our new meals!  Thank you, Savings Pro!  Couponing changed our lives!"

 

I wanted to share that with you so that you could see how couponing impacts people's lives, and how one woman was able to start making the most out of her food stamps instead of just "making due".

 

 

Some things to keep in mind when you are couponing with food stamps!!

 

Even though food is non-taxed item, manufacturer coupons are a form of payment NOT A DISCOUNT- so essentially the manufacturer is paying that portion of your bill and you are always responsible for the tax on those items.  When you use a store coupon (when the store is not reimbursed by a manufacturer) that is a DISCOUNT, and you do not need to pay any tax. Make sense?

Here are a few examples: 

Total of Food: $10.00
Use $7.00 in manufacturer coupons
Pay $0.42 out of your pocket (tax on the coupons)
Put $3.00 on your EBT Card 

Total of Food: $10.00
Use $2.00 in store coupons
Put $8.00 on your EBT Card
(No tax is paid when you use STORE coupons)

Here’s where things get tricky. When you are buying food (covered by food stamps) and Non-food items like cleaning supplies (not covered by food stamps) and using coupons and food stamps and cash or a debit card to pay-  things may get confusing and you may find it beneficial to separate your transactions. Here is an example:

$50 in Food
$20 in Cleaning Supplies
-$20 in Food Coupons
-$15 in Cleaning Supplies Coupons
Total $70 - $35 = $35 remaining balance 

$15 would go on your EBT card
AND THEN you would still owe $20 plus tax  in cash for the cleaning supplies.

Why would you owe so much?  The store’s registers are generally not smart enough to tell the food and nonfood coupons apart, and so they all get applied to the “food”- which would seem okay, but then you are paying full price for the non food items out of your own pocket...
However, if you split up your transaction into Food and Non-food, here’s what it would look like:

Transaction 1: 

$50 in Food- $20 in Food Coupons
Put $30 on EBT Card, $0 out of your pocket

Transaction 2: 

$20 in Cleaning Supplies
-$15 in Cleaning Supplies Coupons
Pay $5.00 out of your pocket

I hope that helps break it down for you a little better.  Stores are used to people (especially couponers) separating their transactions to maximize savings - if your cashier gives you a hard time, ask to speak to a manager and carefully (and calmly) explain why you are separating your purchases.  If they still have a problem, contact corporate offices to inquire why, and until you receive a response try making two different shopping trips to avoid unnecessary confrontation.

Enjoy your shopping, and make those food stamps last!