What are Catalinas? And why does everyone get so excited about them?
Catalinas are a great way to save even more on your total grocery bill. On any given day, a good portion of the emails I receive pertain to Catalinas. There is so much to know about Catalina deals — how they work, why they work, and why most of them aren’t advertised. I cover Catalinas in great detail in Super-Couponing 2, and if you’re crazy for Catalinas, I’d strongly encourage you to attend a session of Super-2 if you can.
But here’s a primer on Catalina basics:
The term “Catalina” refers not to the delicious red salad dressing but to those checkout coupons that print from the small machine near the cash register at the end of a shopping transaction.
Why are they called Catalinas? The company that makes the machines and offers the deals is called Catalina. The coupons themselves are actually called checkout coupons, but almost all couponers and couponing websites refer to the paper coupons themselves as “Catalinas,” so I do too.
How do they work? At any given time, there are dozens of Catalina promotions running at various stores. By purchasing an item, or a certain number of items, the register triggers the machine to print a coupon good for money off your next order, or a coupon for a product the machine feels you may be interested in buying based on past purchases. Some Catalina deals are based on purchasing an individual item, and others are based on quantities of a variety of items.
How do you know when a Catalina is going to print?
Some stores, like Walgreens, regularly advertise almost all of their Catalina promotions in the weekly flyer. That’s why I teach that these are the best deals for new couponers to learn the ropes of Catalinas with. First, when you know exactly what should print, you can plan your shopping trip a little easier — and if for some reason the Catalina doesn’t print, you have the flyer in hand to show the store and can usually encourage the store to either try to reprint the Catalina or make additional arrangements to compensate you for the Catalina you missed.
Why wouldn’t a Catalina print?
There are many reasons why a Catalina won’t print. The first ones are hardware related. The machine could be out of paper or ink. The machine could be turned off (look for the green light on the front of the machine, or ask a cashier to make sure the machine is on.) The machine could also temporarily lose its uplink to the satellite connection, which transmits your purchase history to Catalina and triggers the Catalina to print.
You could have also purchased the wrong item. Catalina deals are typically highly specific to varieties, sizes and types of products. One flavor of salad dressing could trigger the Catalina (no pun intended!) while another may not. And if you’re doing a multiple-item Catalina deal which requires you to purchase 6 participating items, purchasing even one wrong size or variety will ruin your entire order.
Worse, sometimes some varieties of items don’t get scanned into the Catalina system, and even when it’s supposed to generate a Catalina, it won’t — because that item’s UPC is not attached to the Catalina in their system due to some oversight. That frustrates everyone, but there’s truly nothing you can do about it. And it has happened. A few months ago, we saw a Mitchum deodorant deal in which each Mitchum purchased triggered a Catalina… except “Mountain Breeze.” Why? Mountain Breeze’s UPC wasn’t entered into the system, so purchasing it didn’t trigger the Catalina, even though “All Mitchum deodorant” was supposed to work.
How do you know about Catalina deals when they aren’t advertised?
This is the big question :) And that’s why Catalinas are a game unto themselves. There are typically 3 ways to find out about unadvertised Catalina deals.
1) In-store tags or cues. Many stores will have small shelf tags next to the price tag (square and white) that indicate the item has a Catalina deal attached to it. Jewel’s Spotlight magazine (available on the racks in the front of the store) often has Catalina promotion info inside as well.
2) On Catalinas themselves. This is one of the biggest reasons I say NOT to throw those Catalinas away! Whenever you get a Catalina, read the wording closely. They often contain information about upcoming Catalina deals, telling you either the dates a deal is coming up, or a web address to go to, which contains more information about the upcoming deal.
3) On couponing websites. This is where the “risk” element comes in. There isn’t one large, good resource about Catalinas – rather many diverse couponing sites that watch the deals. I would link them here but they’re fairly difficult to navigate for beginners — they use a lot of acronyms and couponing lingo, and because of their steep learning curve, they aren’t terribly friendly or receptive to questions for beginners either. (If you think the acronyms SS, P&G, RP and KL are confusing, you would not be happy with trying to translate some of these..!) Some of these deals may be completely unadvertised for Jewel, but may be advertised at a different state’s stores, like Albertsons, Acme, Supervalu or other stores in the same chain. When that’s the case, you kind of have to try them on “faith” to see if they’ll also work at Jewel — and if they don’t, you have no recourse to go to customer service and ask for a refund, because they were never advertised to begin with.
And then… if they’re working at Jewel, I might try and see if they’re working at Meijer too. Or Dominick’s. Or Kmart. Or any other stores that have Catalina machines. Grocery stores sometimes share some of the same Catalina deals. But many times they don’t. It really becomes a game of “does this work?”
What do I do when a Catalina doesn’t print?
This, again, is the reason I encourage new couponers to stick to advertised Catalina deals. People tend to get very upset when they don’t get a Catalina they’re expecting — and then instead of dealing with it at the store, they email ME and ask me to fix it for them :) I have no pull with the store. I just report what I know is working in my local store. Beyond that, there is ALWAYS an element of risk to a Catalina deal. If it’s unadvertised, going to the service counter and asking for reimbursement will never work. The stores almost never have information about the Catalina deals that are running at any given time.
Your best course of action is either to chalk it up to experience, or return the items that you bought expecting the Catalina, and let it go. Or, you can try again with a different size/flavor/variety of the item in the deal. But again, this is why Catalina deals are beautiful when they work… and frustrating when they don’t. Without an advertisement, there are no guarantees.
That’s why I try to post the best and easiest Catalina deals here for you guys (doing the hard work myself.) But there’s always risk involved. To do some of these higher-value Catalina deals, you need to understand that you are taking a chance on saving big. If you aren’t willing to lose from time to time, don’t get in the game. But if you’re buying items at a good price that you wanted anyway, saving more money is an even nicer bonus.
horan10544 says
Does anyone knows what triggers the $5.00 off you next shopping trip coupon at Meijer. I never see anything at Meijer to tell me what items will trigger catalina coupons.
dancingwolves says
Do you know what triggered this $5 Register Rewards from Walgreens. It has a 1/15/09 and all the other ones that I did this week for $5 were from Bayer (Alkaseltzer) and St. Ives with exdates within the next two weeks? Thanks.
crosson says
Thank you for taking the time to share your knowledge!
I went to Jewel tonight, 11/5/8, to make 3 purchases of $30 to get $15 in Cats. I had also purchased 10 boxes of Lucky Charms, to get codes to enter a sweepstakes to win a WII. Nothing printed out, not even the offer for an oil change that always prints out. I asked the cashier if her machine was working, and she said it was. (It really wasn’t, but no point in wasting my time to explain it to her.) So, I went to the service desk and told them the problem. It was taken care of so easily. The woman at the customer service desk took me to the employee station by the self serve lanes. She just scanned everything and pushed some buttons to register payment, and my codes and $5 CATS printed out. I don’t know what she did to make the drawer balance after that, but I really don’t need to know.
stretchingabuck says
I’m foggy as to which price I should use to calculate if my purchases have reached a threshold dollar amount for a catalina to print at Jewel/Osco. Here is what I understand:
Osco: it’s always Preferred Price. Correct?
Jewel: if a price scan shows only 2 prices (regular/shelf and preferred), it’s the regular/shelf price. If a scan shows 3 prices (regular, sale, and preferred), it’s the sale price you need to use to make your threshold. Correct?
What about the ad (in current sale flier) that says, “Save $5 [and shows a preferred card] on your next shopping trip when you use your Preferred Card to purchase $20 worth of these participating Procter and Gamble products in this blue section.”? Because this catalina notice specifically says you must use your Preferred Card, I assume you use the Preferred Card price to calculate if your purchases reach the threshold amount in order for a catalina to print. Correct? Thanks for clearing the fog!
stretchingabuck says
Do you have to redeem a Catalina at the same store where you received it? Ones I have received will say, “redeem at [store name]” but do not say, “redeemable only at [store name].” In addition, “manufacturer’s coupon” is printed on the Catalina. (As a side note, I’m attending a Super-Couponing II class in a week, but am trying to get a handle on Catalinas beforehand.)
Update: I think I can answer my own question now that I’ve dug around this site and learned from experience. Jewel, Walgreens, and Dominicks will all accept catalina coupons that were printed at another store as long as it says, “manufacturer’s coupon” on it. (I’m not sure what Target, WalMart, K-Mart would do with this.) Jewel had denied my catalina from Walgreens once but after contacting the corporate office, they did finally accept it. Please correct me if I’m wrong!
One more note: Joseph’s Marketplace (in Crystal Lake) at first denied my manufaturer’s coupon catalina but I spoke with the owner (at least that’s what the service desk employee said he was) and he thanked me for educating him on this. He told the employee that if my coupon scanned OK, which it did, to accept it. One more store that will accept them…yea!
mom of 4 says
Ok, I’ve been pretty successful at Wags with cats, I know you can’t roll those RRs on the same deals and if I want to pay with a RR & coupons I have to make sure I have same number of items (3 items= 2 mfc & 1 RR). But I know things work differently at Jewel. There you can roll the cats. My question is: At Jewel can I pay with more cats than I have total number of items? (3 items, use 2 mfc & 2cats) Thanks for all the help everyone gives!!
abigayle21 says
I have some Cats for Wags that won’t scan when I try to redeem them (hehe, I used the couponing lingo:). It seems that the ink in the printer might have been low because the bar code is on there, but its discolored.
Is this something I should call the Cat # about or go back to the Wags I got them from?
Thanks
J.R. says
You mentioned in another thread that cats don’t work after 11pm, and that you shouldn’t try to do these deals late at night, but I didn’t see that little tidbit here.
cpnsrus says
What is the best way for the cashier to enter them instead of “grocery”? Thank you!
Munsterhusfrau says
I am a black belt in training (only at Couponing a month), and to double check my math I will go to the self check out on my first run during a cat offer. I try to get a mix of all the products I am interested in and will run them prior to scanning my jewel card. When I hit the magic number I scan my card, and wait for the cat. I then hang onto the receipt as a cheat-sheet to plan my next sortie. I may be under or over an item, but if I plan my first trip with a buddy or at a slow time, not a problem. I am sure I will abandon this strategy eventually, but right now I have done it over a dozen times and haven’t been burned (and learned alot!). I just make sure I am purchasing qualified items. I am waiting for the day they start using facial recognition technology like the casinos (“‘Mam-your preferred card has been revoked”)-If you are going to have a vice this is better than most.
stretchingabuck says
With Jewel’s new (Aug. 2009) “Big Relief Price Cut” prices, you use this one (and not shelf- or sale-price) to calculate getting to a catalina threshold, correct? Just wanted to double check. Thanks!
luciatess says
If a cashier enters a catalina as grocery, can you ask them to change that and enter it as a manufacturer or is it too late? Do they give you a hard time if you do ask them?
stretchingabuck says
I know it’s been posted before, but I can’t find it now. Can someone please share Catalina’s phone number? Thanks!
Bernard2003 says
I posted elsewhere, but got no reply, so I’ll try again…
I see that you can use Jewel cat at Wags and visa versa… what about using them at other stores?
example – I currently have a catQ for $3 off any dove clinicals deodorant (no size specified!! love that!) Jewel does not seem to carry a travel/trial size of this item, but walmart DOES. And wal-mart’s price for this travel sized item is 2.49, giving me .51 cents overage (if I can use the Q there)
since this cat says MFR Q across the top and includes a redemption address and policy notice of repaying 8 cent above the Q value, would it then qualify as a MFR Q I could use at wal-mart?
I understand that a cat along the lines of $5 oyno would obviously NOT be good at WM, but this type of cat Q has me confused.
Thanks!
moxiemom says
can i use a $3 off of $30 or more and a $4 off $40 on the same transaction of $40 to get $7 off $40?
calculating the regular price, not the preferred, unless there are 3 prices, then i use the middle price.
but!! what if the sale says with preferred card? reg price or preferred price?
thanks- this is my first week. love it.
MissMegLea says
So I’m new to this and had no idea what a Catalina was till I read this article…but the best cat deal I’ve found is on baby formula. At Jewel, using your preferred card, if you buy a 12.8 ounce can of Similac Neosure powdered formula (specifically made for preemies, which my kids are), you’ll get a cat for buy 1 get 1 free on Enfamil Enfacare Lipil (also made for preemies.)! Considering the enfamil is $15 to begin with, I love that I can get a free can! Also, the coupon says it’s only good “up to $13.87” and the formula is $14.99…but i RARELY have a checkout person read the fine print and charge me the $1.12 for the “free” can :) Happened yesterday and my husband was rather amused that we got it for free instead of $1.12!
noel1262 says
Hi Jill,
I have had 2 orders messed up recently because they entered cats as grocery! I asked if they could put them in using the code. The one entered the code on a $10 cat and it showed 1.50. Which numbers should they use? There are numbers above and below…? Can you let me know which numbers I should be giving them? I think the YB are running the inkers low!
ek says
On the recent Windex deal, there were $2 catalinas that were printed for every two that you bought. When I tried using more than one of those catalinas in one transaction, the cashier said it wasn’t allowed and only allowed me to use one. Is that normal? I know I used more than one with a different cashier to buy more Windex a few days prior…. but this particular cashier wouldn’t let me. Is that normal policy? I’m new at supercouponing and trying to figure out the ins and outs. Waiting for a class to come closer to me. Thanks!
CopperCarla says
I’m throwing myself into couponing, and getting my kids involved. I work full-time, so they get to help plan meals, and any coupon savings they come up with that we use they get to put in their spending account for our family trip to Hawai’i next year.
The night before last, I stopped at Jewel and took advantage of the free bread and $2 produce coupons I got for registering my Jewel card. Saw on the in-store flyer’s back page that if you purchased $30 in various products listed, you would get a $15 iTunes card. So… yesterday at lunch I did some research, and figured out what I could get coupons for from the inserts I had saved and online coupons.
Ended up buying a total of $58.69 before savings… preferred card savings took off $12.22, MFG coupons took off another 3.54, and I used $5.00 in store coupons. (Got another loaf of free bread and some produce again).
So… for $37.93 out of pocket, I received items worth $73.69… giving me a 51% savings return. Much of what I bought were paper products that are easily stored, so while I didn’t *need* them at this time, we will at some point, so its not wasted.
I’m happy. Not bad for a first-time out and planning for that big catalina option.
galiper says
Does anybody know if I can use my Walgreens RRewards (Catalina/manufacturers) at CVS? Any luck?
SaraW946 says
Does anyone know whether Walmart will accept Walgreen Catalinas (for dollars off), or indeed Catalinas printed by any competitor of theirs?
noellek says
I have several catalina coupons from Jewel. They are as follows: Free bakery bread with any $5 purchase, $3.00 off your purchase of $30, and $2 off dairy products when you spend $20. I also have a coupon to save $5 off produce if I purchase $10 of fresh tilapia. Can I spend $30 and use all three catalinas plus my coupon? The do say “one coupon per customer per transaction”. That only means one identical catalina, right? Help!
Julie L says
I purchased the four Raisin Bran cereals listed for the catalina at Dominicks and it did not print. I asked at the Dominicks service desk and the manager went to the aisle and checked the tag and said there was no Catalina. However this week there is. Is there a number to call Catalina or email to send and they will send a coupon in the mail?
mderuz says
Hi there. I am wondering if I have to split my purchases if I want to lets say get 3 Sierra Mist 2 ltr bottles and get the $1.00 cat back but I really want to get 6 Sierra Mist 2 ltr bottles… If I purchase 6 in one transaction will a $2.00 cat come out? Or do I need to do 2 separate transactions and get 2 $1.00 cat’s?