When you combine Walmart’s low prices with coupons and the right rebate apps, magic happens — and by that I mean the savings can be phenomenal! While Walmart might not offer standard store coupons, you can still learn to shop smarter to grab Walmart freebies, take advantage of grocery promos, and master Walmart clearance. And most of the techniques (like claiming Ibotta rebates at Walmart) can be done right from your phone.
We’ll start by going through my basic tips for couponing at Walmart, then launch into all the other ways to save at Walmart — coupons or not.
Download The Krazy Coupon Lady app or text HACKS to 57299 for the latest money-saving tips, Walmart coupon deals, and coupons.
Does Walmart take coupons?
According to Walmart's couponing policy, they do accept valid paper manufacturer coupons if you're shopping in store.
To use paper or printed manufacturer coupons in the store, the coupon will need to be scannable at the checkout register and include the words “Manufacturer Coupon” (typically printed at the top), an expiration date, and a scannable GS-1 barcode (included on most official coupons).
But if you're shopping on Walmart.com, know that they don't accept manufacturer coupons online. (This also means that you can't use coupons with Walmart pickup or delivery, either, since you're placing the order through Walmart.com.)
And as for competitor coupons or digital manufacturer coupons, Walmart will never accept those — period.
Walmart coupon limit
As for how many coupons you’re allowed to use at Walmart, they limit you to “one paper manufacturer coupon per item,” and you can use up to “4 identical coupons per household, per day (unless otherwise noted on coupon).”
I recommend that you always read the fine print on your coupon to check the limit.
KCL TIP: The last time Walmart adjusted their coupon policy was in September 2023, and those Walmart coupon policy changes caused quite a stir in the couponing world.
How to Coupon at Walmart
1. Combine sale prices with manufacturer coupons or rebate offers to get the best Walmart deals.
You don’t even have to play detective for this tip. With The Krazy Coupon Lady’s Walmart weekly ad matchup, we assemble the best Walmart deals of the week by matching up Walmart sale prices with manufacturer coupons, peelies, cash-back rebate offers, and every single other savings angle we can think of.
Throughout the week, you’ll also want to check our Walmart coupon deals page for the latest and greatest savings we’ve found.
2. Stack Ibotta rebates and Fetch offers to get moneymakers at Walmart.
One of our favorite ways to coupon at Walmart is to stack cash-back rebate offers from apps like Ibotta and Fetch to get freebies or even moneymakers.
For example, we’ve shared deals that gave you money back on Sir Kensington’s Sauce, Gatorade Water, and Tropicana juice at Walmart once you factored in various cash back rebate offers up for grabs. And when you use the Ibotta app at Walmart, you can link your Walmart account so that redemption happens automatically — without the need to scan your receipt.
KCL TIP: You can also clip Walmart Cash offers in the Walmart app instead of going through Ibotta (Walmart Cash offers are basically Ibotta offers in disguise). But keep in mind that you can’t claim Walmart Cash offers and Ibotta offers on the same transaction or receipt and expect to get credit for both. It's either one or the other.
3. Use coupons strategically to score free items at Walmart.
Even if you’re not a Walmart couponing expert yet, it’s totally possible to score free stuff at Walmart (we wrote a whole post about that!).
You can totally use manufacturer coupons on Walmart clearance items you find in-store, as long as the product matches the fine print that's listed on the coupon. And sometimes, we’ve found that Walmart hidden clearance deals are even cheaper than marked.
The trial-size section at Walmart is another great place to score free products if you’ve got a manufacturer coupon. Just be aware of the fine print on the coupon — it may exclude trial- or travel-size items. And we often see Aisle cash back deals that you can redeem at Walmart for a free product.
Related: See the latest Walmart clearance items you can shop online — no coupons necessary.
4. Know that you can use BOGO coupons at Walmart — but not if there's a percentage involved.
Walmart does accept BOGO (buy 1 get 1) manufacturer coupons, but there are a few rules you’ll want to remember:
Walmart won’t accept a BOGO coupon with a percentage off. That means you can’t use “BOGO 50% off” coupons. Basically, the second item has to be dollars off, cents off, or free.
Walmart won’t let you combine BOGO coupons. So you can’t use two BOGO coupons on two items and expect to get them both for free.
Walmart won’t let you use a coupon on the second item from a BOGO coupon to get an overage. They stopped paying overages with any types of coupons in September 2023.
5. Keep the Walmart coupon policy handy, since it comes down to the manager's discretion.
It’s kinda annoying, but Walmart managers get the final say on whether or not a coupon is accepted. This means that while one Walmart store may allow you to use 10 of the same coupon in the same transaction, another store may not.
KCL TIP: I recommend bookmarking the official Walmart coupon policy on your smartphone so you can reference it quickly if needed.
6. Don't fall for Walmart price tag myths.
We often hear a lot of Walmart price tag myths going around, like that prices ending in “1” means the item won’t get marked down again, or that clearance prices always end in “00.” But don’t believe those sweeping Walmart price tag myths.
One of the few true myths is that you can see the most recent price date change on the price tag, but since there’s no set markdown schedule, it’s not going to do you much good.
How To Save More at Walmart (Coupons or Not)
7. Get up to 43% off fresh items that are approaching their "best by" date.
Whenever you're shopping for bakery items, meat, or grab-and-go options like packaged salads, keep an eye out for the "Reduced" stickers that indicate manager's markdowns. In my experience, these markdowns can save you anywhere from 20% - 43%.
Associates have told me that these stickers are supposed to be applied to items the night before they reach their "Best If Used By" date. But if it's one day before the “best by” date (or even the day of) and you notice that the item hasn't been marked down yet, find a Walmart employee and have them mark it down for you. I recently did this on a six-count box of Bavarian-filled donuts and saved a quick $1.23, just because the donuts had a "Best By" date for that same day.
Here are a few other examples of markdowns I've found this way:
Donuts with Chocolate Flavored Icing, 6-Count, $2.42 (regularly $4.24) — 43% off
Marketside All-American Sub Sandwich, Half, $2.68 (regularly $4.47) — 40% off
Ribeye Steak, 2.36 pounds, $22.26 (regularly $35.33) — 37% off
5-inch Unicorn Cake, $3.77 (regularly $5.98) — 37% off
KCL TIP: According to a Walmart associate we spoke with, the amount of the "Best By" discount can vary depending on the department giving the discount and the total number of that same item that need to get marked down on any given day.
8. Look for Walmart clearance deals throughout the store (they're not limited to just one aisle).
The location of clearance items in any given Walmart is never the same. A good rule of thumb is to check the main aisles and the end caps for additional clearance finds. That’s typically where we find the best selection of items, before all the good stuff has been cleared out (like during Walmart toy clearance).
We recommend looking for fresh in-store clearance deals around the first week of every month and at the end of each season.
KCL TIP: Sometimes clearance prices are cheaper than marked, but you can use the Walmart price checker tool in their app to see what it’ll ring up for.
9. Know that Walmart clearance prices will never go back up — but Rollbacks can.
Once an item is marked as clearance at Walmart, it can still drop in price, but it’ll never go back to its original price.
Walmart Rollbacks, on the other hand, are temporary price reductions that’ll last anywhere from a few days to a few months before going back to the original price. Check the date each rollback began to get an idea of how long the price drop may stick around.
10. Claim a Walmart price match in store if you notice that Walmart.com has a better price.
Walmart does allow their in-store shoppers to price match, but only to the prices you see on Walmart.com. If Walmart.com’s online and in-store items are identical, you can ask the cashier to do a price match at checkout. Depending on the item, you might have to get manager approval.
They won’t match competitor prices, though, so you’ll want to check our price matchups for Amazon vs. Walmart and Walmart vs. Target to know where to shop.
11. Pay for a Walmart+ membership to get free shipping and free same-day grocery delivery.
It might sound like we’re overhyping this, but we’ve done the math. It’s worth paying for Walmart+ ($98 a year or $12.95 a month) if you place at least two Walmart grocery delivery orders per month where your order total is at least $35. That’s because you’d save $7.95 - $9.95 in delivery fees per order with a Plus membership (though, you do need to tip your delivery driver).
Walmart Plus membership also gets you free two-day shipping with no minimums, access to the exclusive Walmart+ Week sale, and the ability to use the Scan & Go feature in the Walmart app.
KCL TIP: If you only order groceries from Walmart occasionally, I recommend opting for Walmart pickup instead of their delivery service. Pickup is free for orders of at least $35, and there’s no expectation to tip the employees.
12. Check for Walmart promo codes to get $10 off grocery delivery.
Walmart wants to get you hooked on their convenient grocery delivery services, so we share Walmart promo codes that will save you money on your next grocery pickup or delivery order.
For example, we frequently see promo codes good for $10 off an order of $50 or more. We even find promo codes that current Walmart+ subscribers can use.
13. Pick up $4 generic prescriptions from Walmart pharmacy — no insurance needed.
Next time you need to, ask your doctor to send your prescription to your local Walmart Pharmacy, and verify that you’re able to get a generic version. You can then check Walmart’s $4 generic list to see if your prescription is included.
If it’s on the list, you’ll pay $4 for a 30-day supply, or $10 for a 90-day supply. We found that Walmart Pharmacy prices were often cheaper than other major drug chains.
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