5 Tips for Saving on Back to School Supplies

With four kids in the house I know the pain of shopping for back to school supplies, clothes, shoe’s…the works. It is not cheap, and there is no way around having to pay for the supplies you need. However, I have a few awesome tips that could save you hundreds.

1. Make a list: As soon as you can get your  hands on a back to school supply list for each of your kids grades, start writing up a general MASTER list of total supplies needed. This way when you are out shopping or looking for deals you don’t miss out on the total number of pencils, scissors, crayons, etc you need.
2. Search your home: Go through your kids current art supplies and last years school supplies (my kids always bring home a bag FULL of left over supplies) and check off any items off your list that can be used for the upcoming school year. You can do this same thing with clothes. Go through you kids clothes sort through what can be passed down to the next child. Or if you are like me, check for clothes you may have purchased during an awesome sale months back that can now be pulled out for school clothes. 🙂
3. Sell and shop at consignment stores:  Once you have sorted through your kids clothing, you may discover you have several items that are in excellent condition but are at no use for you or your other kids right now. I recommend taking those clothes to a consignment store and trading them in for either cash or credit to buy “new” clothes.
4. Shop the sales: Starting in July you will start seeing all sorts of “back to school” sales. Many times they are with limits. So make sure you are prepared to make a few trips to the store that week or bring a family member along with you so that you can get the number of items you need. Keep in mind that all of the office stores (Staples, Office Max, Office Depot) will have rock bottom deals each week. For instance, all three stores often times have a 1¢ section, as well as a 25¢ and so on. PLUS don’t forget that the office stores also will price match each other’s ads for exact products.
5. Use coupons: Coupons like sales are seasonal. So starting in July we will begin seeing coupons in the Sunday Coupon Inserts and online as printable coupons. In order to keep track of what coupons come out and how to use them the very best way possible. I HIGHLY recommend following a deal blog (TheBudgetBandit.com) that will inform you when and how to use those coupons! Don’t want to miss out on those deals go HERE and sign up for email notifications 🙂

Bonus Tip: Shop on TAX FREE Day! Go HERE to see when your state is offering no taxes on back to school supplies!