No More Stacking!
All good things must come to an end. So goes the ability to stack digital coupons with manufacturer's coupons. In the past, you could buy an item and redeem a coupon you had loaded to your Kroger Plus Card (at http://www.cellfire.com/, http://www.shortcuts.com/ or http://www.kroger.com/) along with a hard copy in the store. The policy has now changed. When you checkout, your digital coupons will be automatically deducted (as usual), however the register will not accept additional coupons for the same items. Note the following:
Don't Load Them Until Needed
Previously, I'd advised folks to load all they might use to prevent multiple visits to the websites listed above. Now I would say don't bother loading them all. Unlike coupons you have clipped, you cannot choose whether or not to use a digital coupon. If higher value IP, manufacturer's or store coupon becomes available, you won't be able to use it b/c any loaded digital coupons will be deducted first.
Digital Doesn't Double
Although it may appear a digital coupon is as valuable as a paper one, Kroger doubles the latter. A $.50/2 coupon is worth $1. A $.50/2 digital Q is only worth $.50. On my last trip to Kroger I snagged multiple bags of Chex Mix. At $1.25 - $.50/2 Q (doubled) - $.50/2 digital Q, two bags would have been $.50 each using Kroger's previous coupon policy. With the new policy, these cost $1 each because once the digital coupon had been used, I could no longer use the manufacturer's coupon. I ended up paying twice what I would have paid in the past. I would have saved an additional $.50 had I been able to use the paper coupon instead of the digital one.
Changes in Future Kroger Ad Posts
Because the current ad ends in two days, I will not be making corrections. Please mentally note this coupon policy change as you make out your Kroger shopping list for the next couple of days. In the future, as I type lists for Kroger, I will state "OR", rather than "AND" when I list digital coupons.
Happy Shopping!
