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Love to save money at Target? I do too! The bullseye is the perfect stop if you need to get anything from groceries, clothes, shoes, media, and more! That’s also why every trip can be filled with temptation.
Here are my top 12 ways to save money at Target.
1. Clip manufacture’s coupons. Target accepts manufacturer’s coupons for both regularly priced and sale items.
2. Browse for store coupons. Did you know that Target has a section on their site dedicated to store coupons? Easily clip Target coupons and use them!
3. Stack manufacturer and store coupons for the same item. You’ll have the best luck if you hand over your manufacturer coupons, then your store coupons. Bonus if the item is also on sale! (Thanks Micki!)
4. Take advantage of Target’s price match policy. Target offers a price match guarantee. This means that if you have their competitor’s weekly ad with a lower price you can save a few dollars. It’s definitely worth keeping your eye on the sales flyers of Target’s competitors, like Walmart, Staples, CVS, and more.
5. Shop the end caps. Unlike grocery stores, you DO want to stop at the end of an aisle, known as an end cap. Many times, these areas have items on clearance or sale. At grocery stores, the items at the end caps can be pricey, but you wouldn’t know it as there’s no other similar items around to price compare.
6. Compare in store and online prices. Watch out for inflated prices on products. The price of an item online and in store is not always the same. Look for the best price! The same is true with discounts! Discounts are not always the same online and in store at Target.
7. Learn Target’s markdown schedule. The store has a markdown schedule, but your store’s may vary so befriend a store clerk and double check. Markdowns take place every two weeks and items will continue to be marked down every two weeks until sold or the discount reaches 75 percent. Shop the same day as a markdown to get the best selection of new markdowns.
Target’s Weekly Markdown Schedule
Monday — Infants, Kids Clothes and Electronics.
Tuesday — Women’s Clothes and Domestics.
Wednesday — Men’s Clothes, Garden, Toys, Health and Beauty
Thursday — Lingerie, Shoes, Housewares, Sporting Goods, Luggage
Friday — Cosmetics, Hardware, Auto, Home Improvement and Jewelry
8. Ask for a rain check. Target will issue rain checks on sold out items, except gift card promotions. Make sure to tear the rain check notice that employees place on the shelf by sold out items. You can receive your rain check at the customer service desk. Target rain checks expire 45 days after issue.
9. Get a refund when items go on sale. Don’t you just hate it when you buy an item and then it goes on sale? Keep your receipts and Target will refund you the difference for the week that it’s on sale. This won’t work for an item you bought a month prior to the sale, but it does if you bought an item from a few days to a week before the sale starts!
10. Bring your own bags and get money back! Many Targets give you $.05 back for every bag you bring in to use. That means that if you use five bags, you’ll end up getting $.25 back. Sounds like a teeny amount of money, but it really adds up! Check to see what your store’s policy is. The store I frequent has recently stopped giving bag credits because the city now has a ban on plastic bags. Meaning everyone must carry their bags or pay.
11. Apply for a Target REDcard. If you’re an avid Tar-jay shopper, a Target REDcard may be another way to save money. There are two types: a debit and a credit card. Both will save you 5 percent off purchases, guarantee free shipping for every online order, and Target will donate 1 percent of all REDcard purchases to education. The cards also give you 30 extra days to make returns. The debit card is linked to your checking account and the credit card has no annual fee. The APR for the credit card varies depending on your credit worthiness, so if you carry a balance the 5 percent discount may not be worth it.
12. Buy Target gift cards online at a discount, then use them to purchase whatever you need at the store. I like the selection and discounts at Plastic Jungle, which currently has discounted Target gift cards for 6.5% off. (Thanks, Nancy!)
What shopping secrets help you save money at Target?
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Welcome to Bargain Babe! I’m Mara, and I’m so glad you’re here. I am an obsessive bargain hunter and penny pincher, and I am determined to live a full life without EVER paying full price.
I was at Target in Glendale, CA yesterday and was told they will not offer disposable bags beginning April 1, so you will need to br8ing in your own and will not get the bag refund.
@Marisa Sucks, I know. The Target I frequent is in WeHo and they have banned plastic bags so no more refunds. Take advantage of this while it lasts!
@Marisa That seems harsh! Couldn’t they just charge for disposable bags – paper or plastic? What if someone forgets to bring their bags? How much will a customer have to pay to buy a reusable bag? This situation has the potential to irritate a lot of customers who feel forced into buying reusable bags at Target’s price.
@BB: It is the sign of the times. Santa Monica has had the NO disposable bag thing for at least a year now. If you go to the drug store or grocery store and don’t bring your own bags, they will charge 10 cents a bag…which is STEEP, since they cost the store less than 5 cents, so the stores make money on this thing. I noticed that Old Navy and the Department stores don’t seem to follow under this “law”, since they have never asked me if I want a bag, nor charged me for one, and I have had mixed results at the Barnes & Noble on 3rd Street, since they provided me with a bag the last couple of times I went, but didn’t used too, until the last couple of months.
@Bargain Babe, Target has no choice in the matter since Glendale has a new ordinance banning plastic bags.
From the ordinance: “Beginning July 1, 2013 plastic carryout bags will no longer be available at farmer’s markets, larger grocers and food marts with gross annual sales of $2,000,000 or more and stores of at least 10,000 square feet of retail space that have a licensed pharmacy. Shoppers are encouraged to bring reusable bags, or they will be charged ten (10) cents for each recyclable paper carryout bag, with some exceptions. On January 1, 2014 the smaller grocers, food markets, liquor stores, convenience stores, drug stores, pharmacies and vendors at City sponsored events, City facilities or City property must be in compliance. ”
It sounds like you can purchase paper bags if you forget your reusable bags, but I’ve never seen paper bags at Target before, so I’m not sure if they’ll have them available or not.
Is that pursuant to a city ordinance? I believe Pasadena has a similar ban.
@Marie Many cities in California are doing this — I believe San Fran and Santa Monica have also banned plastic bags so stores that used to give cash back when you BYOB no longer do. Many charge if you ask for a bag.
I have lots of reusable bags, and have long been in the habit of carrying many of them with me in the trunk of my car. Many are machine wash and dry, so I don’t worry about food contamination, etc. Certain bags are used for dry goods only. Rather than complain about the restrictions, I became proactive instead, and haven’t regretted that choice at all. Makes my life so much simpler.
I forget to put them in my trunk. After buying groceries (which usually Hubs takes care of), we stash the bags in the hallway closet. How do you remember to bring them back to the car?
Hang them on the front door as soon as you’re done unbagging.
@Lysa So simple. So easy. Why didn’t I think of that? Duh!
I was just about to ask if you’re in West Hollywood! Hey, Neighbor. We can start going to the City Target that opens in Beverly Connection… Unless that’s WeHo too.
Trader Joe’s is charging $0.10 for paper bags…
@Lysa There’s a City Target in Downtown, L.A. but I’ve noticed that items are more expensive compared to their regular stores. Anyone else noticed this? The new City Target at the Beverly Connection is in WeHo.
Did you mention that you can “stack” a manufacture’s coupon with a Target coupon on the same item (use 2 coupons)? And I can’t say enough about the Target debit card–it’s like you are getting paid for your loyality. You do need a check from your checking account to start a debit card—many people can’t take advantage of this because they no longer carry their checkbook or only do online banking and no longer have printed checks—-this is especially true for men. And if you sign up for the Target credit card you can make a payment on your Target credit card right at the register, so if you were going to use cash—then use your card, get the 5% discount, and on the next transaction–make a payment with the cash you were going to spend anyways. I think you covered everything else I could think of.
@Micki Yazmin didn’t explicitly mention that Target allows coupon stacking (when you redeem a manufacturer and store coupon for the same item), but she covered coupons in No. 1 and No. 2 in her post above. I’ll add a note so that’s crystal clear.
As for your checkout strategy, you really know how to maximize the savings! Just to clarify, you suggest:
Paying with Target credit card to get 5% off your purchase
Use cash in your wallet to pay off Target credit card balance
So the 5% off shows up at the register – you don’t have to wait for it to show up as a credit on your statement?
If I had a Target near me, I probably would sign up! It’s amazing that they make so much money in late fees, interest, and off repeat customers to be able to offer 5% back on all purchases!
The 5% discount is taken as soon as you swipe your card. (I think you asked that as a question)
As an example, let’s say your total is $50.00
you swipe your redcard, your total changes to $47.50.
if your redcard was a debit card, $47.50 shows up as a debit target transaction on your bank statement.
if you used the credit card, your Target Visa statement shows a $47.50 purchase.
hand that credit card back to the cashier and make a payment of $47.50 on your card. Actually you can make either a cash payment, or write a check, or use your bank card but it has to be a debit transaction (enter your pin number) not a credit transaction (when you sign your name) with the bankcard.
I am pretty sure Target is not doing the 10% additional off with a 1000 points—- that ended with the new 5% discount.
The pharmacy rewards are still in effect, I am not sure how much you need to spend at the pharmacy to get the addtional 5% paper pharmacy rewards but that particular day you would save 10% the entire day—make sure you get the paper pharmacy rewards card back after you shop at the store, it is still good online or a second trip back until midnight.
I forgot to mention the 5%discount is good on everything but Target and Visa giftcards.
This means all other giftcards Target sells like Burger King, Olive Garden, Starbucks, iTunes, traxphone, ect count in the 5% discount. These other giftcards are usually sold in the electronic dept.
Oh, and yes—if you use a Target giftcard, that amount does not get the 5% discount. Only the amount still owed after the giftcard balance will be discounted. I have never tried to pay a Target credit card balance with a giftcard–not sure if you can—don’t remember seeing that as an option but I am not sure???? I love my debit card too much to think about the credit card.
Oh, forgot to add, you can get up to $40.00 cash back—-just like your bankcard. So if you are in an unfamiliar town and all the bank ATM would be charging you a fee to use their ATM, go to any Target, buy a pack of gum, and get up to your $40.00 fee free.
@Micki Once you earn 1,000 points you also get a 10% discount. I did forget to mention that the credit card can be used at other places, unlike the debit card.
Buying a discounted Target giftcard from one of the websites that offers them (Giftcardrescue.com, Cardpool.com, etc) can save a little money. They are generally offered at a 3% discount which isn’t much, but with the 5% for using a Target REDcard, the total savings is 8%.
And hurray for all the cities and stores that have stopped providing free disposable bags! It didn’t take me long to train myself to remember to take my bags.
@Nancy Good tip! I’ll add this money-saving strategy to Yazmin’s post. One thing I don’t understand, however, is if you are paying with a gift card, you won’t get the 5% off because you won’t be using your Target credit card, no?
@BB You must use the debit or credit card to get the 5% off and other benefits.
Right. So I don’t see any way to “stack” the discounted gift card with the Target 5% off credit card. Do you?
@BB Maybe, Nancy pays with the discounted gift card and puts the rest on her REDcard. Nancy, can you confirm how you get 8% off?
You can use your Red Card then after you check out go to customer service and pay your balance.It takes some patience, but saving money is the Target here.
For some weird reasons, I can never print out the Target coupons… Even after I got a new laptop. Called their customer service but was told they don’t have a technical support team to answer my question and help me print out target coupons. Bummer…
But I’m bringing my own bags, and carry the Red card to get the maximum discount I can. I should take advantage of the $0.05 while it’s still in effect here in MA.
@Claire, I had the same problem. Check to see that Java is installed on your new computer. When you download their coupon printer, it operates on Java.
Thank you Lysa. I will check that out. Since there was a talk about java (or something like that name) being dangerous I might have taken it out. But even when I had my old laptop without playing with the Java thing, it didn’t print… Were you able to print them out after having Java?
Yep!
Target credit cards have terrible terms, but they sometimes mail really good coupons to card holders. Be really careful to pay the bill on time to make sure your 5% discount isn’t cancelled by the hike in interest if you pay late. Walk straight over to the service desk and pay the same day to be sure.
Target will not accept coupons for free items. Period. Even if the manufacturer mailed them out.
Price matching is a real hassle. You have to pay for price matched items at guest services, and they will only match the price if you have the competitors entire ad, the date of the ad is valid is visible, and it is the exact brand, and size.
Many Target cashiers have an attitude about “coupon queens” and will go out of their way to be unhelpful. They somehow have been taught that it is wrong to get freebies and great deals, even though they know the store is reimbursed for manufacturers coupons. Many of their cashiers will only scan one coupon if they are printed from web sites, whether they say there is a limit or not.
From the tone of your post, I am glad you don’t work in my store….
Walk straight over to the service desk to pay your bill????? Are you sure you are a Target cashier? I would never direct a guest to pay there when I can easily and happily do it at my own register. Besides guest service has enough to do. My store (and I believe company policy) does accept coupons for free items as long as the coupon has the shiny silver stamp. We do not accept printed website coupons for free items since they are easily copied. Price matching does have it’s rules but they are fair—one of the things guest service handles. And once again, it must be your store that has the “attitude” about coupon queens. Cashiers following company policy know a limit of 4 of the same coupon can be accepted. The people I work with want guests to return, have a good shopping experience, and tell others what a nice store we have. It’s all about fun, fast, and friendly.
@Micki and @tArg3T c@$h1er It sounds like there is a big range in the customer service shoppers receive at Target! I certainly know this to be true with many other stores. If you shop at one store often enough, you learn who is flexible and courteous, and who is not.
Retailers owe it to their shoppers to have very clear coupon policies. It reduces the chance that shoppers will have positive and negative experiences (in their mind) if they have a consistent shopping experience.
Worse case scenario, ask to speak to a manager to sort things out, and remain polite throughout the transaction.
The first Target stores in Canada will be opening this month! I hope these tips will work for Target Canada as well! I’m not that interested in Walmart anymore to be interested, you always spend more than you intended to buy.
@Chadene I have no idea if US Target policies will be replicated in Canada. Your best bet is to check the Target Canada website thorough – store policies are often buried in the links at the very, very bottom of a site. You could also call to get help finding the policy or go to customer service. Make sure to get a PRINTED copy of the coupon policy and store policies so that you have proof at checkout.
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