If your manufacturer coupons are adjusting down at Dollar General — especially when you’re using a $5 off $25 Saturday coupon — you’re not imagining it. The system's changed, and it can affect how to coupon at Dollar General because now they're applying the discount to each dollar , not to each item. But once you understand what’s happening, you can still make it work (and feel confident with your Saturday shopping haul if your store has switched over to the new system).
Let’s walk through exactly what’s going on, with info from our deal hunters at The Krazy Coupon Lady. And if you don't want to fiddle with the math, head over to our Dollar General deals page, where we'll break it all down for you.
Under the new system, the $5 off $25 coupon will take off a tiny discount on each item before manufacturer coupons are applied.
That Dollar General $5 off $25 store coupon you use on Saturdays is still acting as a store discount. But now, instead of taking off $5 in one chunk, the discount is spread out across all the items in your transaction, which can make high-value manufacturer coupons worth a little bit less.
This means manufacturer coupons get adjusted down if the new discounted item price is less than the value of the coupon.
Basically, each item is getting a small portion of the $5 discount. That discount lowers the price of each item before manufacturer coupons apply. So if a manufacturer coupon is worth more than the item’s new price, the coupon adjusts down to match it.
Dollar General doesn’t allow coupon overage, so you won’t get extra off from high-value coupons anymore.
Real Shopping Scenario: How Coupons Adjust Down at Dollar General
This is where it gets a little math-y, but don’t let that scare you. Let's review a recent example of a Dollar General haul where we had a coupon adjust down.
Sample Dollar General Saturday Haul
Step-by-Step Breakdown of the Math:
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Add up the total cost of all your items before coupons (in the example above, it's $26.75, after the automatic $5 Persil discount).
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Subtract any Dollar General store coupons if you have them (Dollar General app coupons aren't usually store coupons), but not the $5 off $25 yet. This is your pre-manufacturer coupon subtotal. There aren't any in our sample haul, so it's still $26.75.
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Divide $5 by that subtotal. Round the result up. Example: $5 ÷ $26.75 = $0.19
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Multiply that number by each item’s original price to find the portion of the $5 discount it’s getting.
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Example ( for the Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal ): $0.19 × $2 = $0.38
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Subtract that discount from the item’s original price.
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Example: $2 - $0.38 = $1.62 (This is the new price.)
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Go back to your subtotal from Step 2 and subtract $5.
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Apply your manufacturer coupons:
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If the coupon is equal to or less than the item’s new price, it applies normally.
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If it’s more than the new price, the coupon adjusts down to match the item’s cost.
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Example: You have a $2 coupon for an item that now costs $1.82 — the coupon adjusts down to $1.82.
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Your new total is your out-of-pocket cost. If you have any rebates or DG Cash Back offers, subtract those too.
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Note: DG Cash Back adjusts down too if it’s more than the item’s new price.
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Following the steps we covered above, the $2 Glade coupon adjusts down to $1.82.
Don't want to do any math? That's okay — let KCL do it for you.
If you don't really want to worry about the math, that's totally okay. Just check out our Dollar General Deals Page on The Krazy Coupon Lady app and/or website, where our shopping experts have done all the math for you.
Save (or pin) this cheat sheet for later:
Expect some rounding issues, but know that you're still saving the full $5 with the coupon.
Sometimes the discounts per item don’t seem to total $5 exactly. That’s normal.
You’re rounding up when you divide in Step 3, so the math gets a little fuzzy. But rest assured, Dollar General is taking off the full $5. It’s just getting split up in a way that’s not clear on your receipt.
That’s why we subtract the $5 from the subtotal instead of trying to add up all the tiny discounts.
You don't need to worry about adjusted coupons if you're buying an item that costs quite a bit more than the value of your coupon.
Here’s the good news: You only need to mess with this math if you’re using a high-value manufacturer coupon on a low-cost item. If there’s a big enough gap between the item’s new price and the coupon’s value, you don’t need to worry about the math.
Example: A $4 item with a $1 coupon? The coupon's value won't be adjusted. The item’s price doesn't drop below $1 due to the coupon or the $5 off $25 coupon, so the value of the manufacturer coupon doesn’t get touched.
Once you get used to spotting these situations, you’ll be able to skip the math entirely, most of the time.
Final Tips: How to Keep Saving, Even With the Changes
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Always double-check your items' prices before applying high-value coupons.
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Use your $5 off $25 coupon on bigger purchases (where the discount won’t mess up your coupon values).
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Stack rebates or DG Cash Back to save even more — just remember they adjust too.
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Remember, the more you do this, the easier it'll get.
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