Websites can help you learn, manage coupons

You may be asking, “What economic recovery?” If so, a lesson in coupon clipping — including newspaper and digital coupons — is in order. These sites help you find coupons and think frugally.

•Coupons.com Inc. helps businesses create and manage printable coupons and coupon codes for online shopping. For shoppers, there is page after page of coupons for consumer products such as coffee, over-the-counter medicines and paper products. Each includes on-screen buttons for recommending via Facebook, Twitter and email.

Couponing 101 is dedicated to coupons and bargain hunting. A post on “realistic couponing” attempts to bring some sanity to the idea of “extreme couponing” as depicted by full-time deal-chasers in the cable TV show by that name. Being realistic means spending less time and using this site to find weekly freebies and coupon “matchups” — connecting store sales with available coupons for maximum discounts. On the Web: is.gd/izTEvG.

If you want to get into extreme couponing, there’s TheKrazyCouponLady.com, whose founders appear on the TLC show. Their website includes a page of tips and several videos demonstrating the sport of couponing. One shows coupon lady Joanie Demer paying $9 for a cart of grocery store goods that started at $110. Another shows Demer’s fellow coupon lady Heather Wheeler explaining how to don rubber gloves to Dumpster-dive or to sift through paper at the local recycling center in search of coupons. “You can’t be shy about it,” Wheeler says. On the Web: is.gd/BK5Iup.

Mommysavers.com (Kimberly Danger) takes a measured approach to the science of couponing on her bargain-hunting site. She notes that generics and store brands are often cheaper than coupon items, so it’s best to know when alternatives are available. She suggests buying the small size with a coupon for the best price. And she lists websites that provide a lot of coupons, including Target Coupons and Cellfire.com. On the Web: is.gd/1GMOev.