Back in May, Walgreens updated their coupon policy to clarify the following:
- The number of manufacturer coupons, including Register Rewards®/Savings Rewards manufacturer coupons, shall not exceed the number of items in the transaction.
- Walgreens will not accept coupons that exceed the selling price of an item and no cash back is ever provided in exchange for any coupons.
The first part about the number of coupons exceeding the number of items was not new in practice, but it was the first time this was actually defined in policy.
Now, the second point has been causing some issues in-store recently, and I think it’s worth explaining this to fully understand what’s going on.
Walgreens has always considered Register Rewards to be manufacturer coupons. Their registers do not allow shoppers to have more manufacturer coupons than items. So, for example:
OLD WAY:
+ 
+ 
This was the solution:
+ + + 
With the recent register updates, ALL OF THIS HAS CHANGED. The “caramel trick” no longer works with ANY filler that’s priced less than the value of your Register Reward. Walgreens is not only not accepting a coupon that exceeds the selling price of an item — they’re not accepting Register Rewards that exceed the cost of an item either.
In short? You can’t use a $5 or $10 Register Reward on a .29 caramel, applying the remainder of the RR’s value to the other item(s) in your transaction. You will now have to find a “filler” item that equals or exceeds the cost of your Register Reward. It also has to be a non coupon item.
Now, my example Tide transaction will have to look something like…
+ + + 
This is going to change everything about shopping at Walgreens, because you must decide if it’s worth racking up high-value Register Rewards with offers like this one:
I’ve been hearing through the grapevine that Walgreens would love to retire Register Rewards in favor of Balance Rewards. Whether or not that’s true, this change in policy could likely be the proverbial nail in the coffin for RRs. I’m going to predict right now that people will cut down on doing these deals because Walgreens is deliberately making the RRs harder to spend… and as interest wanes in the program, Walgreens will announce they’re getting rid of RRs because “the majority of our guests are not taking advantage of these deals.”
letsshop says
Are you putting this post up,this has been the rule for a long time !Always count items/coupons make sure 1 per item unless its a store coupon .Its the new rules they have started this last week I don’t completely understand and probably a lot of other couponers too . And especially since I did a $3 RR on items less then that amount today.
dkbakken says
Even though Walgreens has some good deals, I’m always nervous when checking out–knowing how many “tricks” there are in their programs. It seldom fails that I think I have everything organized and thought out, but something inevitably goes wrong. This newest restriction has convinced me to stick to CVS, who seems to bend over backwards to make coupons work and avoid Walgreens unless there is a deal I can’t refuse.
letsshop says
Copied this from MUM ,who knows what may happen ,but we have to say something about all this other wise what will be next??
An idea from Kitty: ” Lets All Complain to Walgreens. Here is the Walgreens customer service number……….1-800-925-4733. I called them today, nicely explained how unhappy I was with the new RR wording and rules and how that will affect my not shopping at Walgreens in the future. If each one of us took 5 minutes to do this, maybe it would have some effect.
Bernard2003 says
One more reason not to shop there unless I have too.. UGH.
leaves says
I now know why my coupons didn’t work yesterday – I carefully planned to ck out twice & use several of my RR’s. My problem was buying 4 candy bars and using the Wags coupon 2/$1 – I had a Wags mfg from my last visit for $1 off 4 Nestle Crunch bars. I also bought a can of salmon. The register wouldn’t accept the $1 Wags Nestle mfg coupon. The clerk finally put through my $1.50 RR. My second transaction wasn’t good either – I bought 3 cans tuna, deodorant, & tampons. She took my $1 deodorant mfg coupon and 1 $3 RR. The clerk tried to tell me it was my RR’s causing the problems.The customer line behind me was building up, and the clerk was frustrated with me. I NEVER have problems at CVS – as others have stated, CVS is the place to shop with coupons.
theresa1740 says
So if I have no coupons but have multiple items that add up to the value of the RR I can not use it to buy them. This new policy is crazy. I am driving further to a CVS since I have found the Balance Rewards and RR frustrating. Now I am not sure they want my business. No coupons and can not use a example $10 unless I have a $10 item, but I may have $40 in items I am purchasing. So long Walgreens if this is the case.
SouthernReverie says
Walgreens paperless coupons quit working for me last week too! Checking out at Wags is becoming a real hassle, and my local Walgreen stores are actually coupon-friendly.
I like the Balance Rewards points because I can rack up 40,000 points fairly quickly with the once-a-month points booster coupon (which is, in effect, a 20% discount itself), and Wags gives me an extra $10 to spend when I use my 40,000 points. The problem I am encountering is that, in order to come up to a $50 OOP in a single transaction, many of the items I might wish to purchase using my points, are items that offer points, which you can’t earn if you are paying with points. Arrrggghhh!
You will all probably think I’m crazy when I say this, but, as irritating as these constant changes in coupon policy are, I love a good challenge! The way I look at it is that I have been couponing longer than most of the marketing people at Walgreens have been alive. If I can’t outsmart them, then I might as well hang it up. And I have no intention of hanging it up.
SSMark1 says
The Kiss item was $5.00, you only need to buy a $2.00 filler item.
To do the bare minimum, the $5 RR could be applied to the Tide amount & the $2 Tide coupon will be appiled to any other item $2 or more.
So last week, in order to use my RR that were expiring on 8/23, I ended up doing 3 more transactions. I bought Clearasil with a $1 off coupon & rebate & a pack of the “free” tampons with the $3.00 RR two times. I also had a Cremo rebate without a coupon, just a $4.00 RR, so I didn’t need a filler item. At least I will get most of my $ back from the rebates except for tax and the stamps, and I’m going to have a REALLY hard time buying anything with a RR of $3 or more in the future.
-Mark