This way, you will get 2 Chips and Queso for $5 or use two $1/1 Tostitos Tortilla Chips coupons from the 08-01-10 SS if you got them, to get all 3 items for $3. I find price matching easiest to do at the GS desk, and be sure to bring the complete Dollar General ad with you stating the dates of the sale.

*If you are new to Target’s Price Matching Policy- called the “Low Price Promise”, you can take a look at another post I did that discusses the policy more indepth HERE.

Big Lots has Clean & Clear Facial Care in .75 – 8 oz sizes and Eight O’Clock Coffee 12 oz advertised for $3. You can take the Big Lots ad into Target and Pricce Match these items. Theee’s a couple of coupons you will be able to use that will make both of these good deals:

Clean & Clear Facial Care $3
Use $2/1 Any Clean & Clear Product Printable Coupon HERE (must register)
= $1 after price match and coupon

Eight O’Clock Coffee 12 oz
-$1/1 Eight O’Clock Coffee PRINT
- .75/1; $1.50/2 Eight O’Clock Coffee, Any Bags – 04-25-10 SS
-$1/1; $2/2 Eight O’Clock Coffee, Any Bags – 04-25-10 SS
= $2 after price match and a $1/1 coupon

-Thanks Clippin’ with Carie

*When Price Matching, you must bring the complete ad with you. I also suggest checking out at Guest Services. If you are unfamiliar with price matching at Target you may want to take a look at my post HERE to read more about it.

Shark Steam Pocket Mop $99 (Price Match Wal-Mart Ad)
- $15.00 Gift Card Back
= $84 after Price Match & Gift Card.

-Thanks Racheal!

*Note- Be sure to bring the complete Wal-Mart ad, and you may want to check out at the CS desk. Also- a Price Match does not interfere with your eligibility for a Gift Card. You are STILL entitled to a Gift Card. If you have any trouble- I suggest calling corporate from the store. If you are unfamiliar with price matching at Target- take a look at this post HERE and it may offer some insight.

The current Albertson’s ad fron the Florida Region has Maxwell House on sale for $4.99 with a a limit of 2 at that price. It is for Original Roast Flavor Only, 34.5 oz. The Albie’s ad is valid until 4/27. So you could do the following deal if you have the coupons:

Buy 2 Maxwell House Original Roast ($4.99) = $9.98
Buy 1 Other Qualifying Flavor Maxwell House = $6.00
= $15.98 – $3.00 (use three $1/1 Maxwell House Coffee, Any 10.5 Oz. Or +  03-21-10 SS x5/31)
=$12.98 -$5 Target Gift Card Back wyb 3
=$7.98 for 3 or $2.66 each

If you are new to price matching at Target- you can take a look at my post HERE.

-Thanks  Frugal Coupon Living & Couponing to Disney!

Also- in the Big Lots ad- Biz 50 oz detergent is 2/$5 and there were Qs in this weekend’s 3-28-10 SS. (There were a variety of different Qs – it varied by region), but I think the least denomination was a $2/1 so you can score a nice deal between PM & Q. Big Lots also have Zatarain’s Rice Mixes advertised for $1 and there was a $1/2 Q in the 01-24-10 RP for some (also regional variations) to get them for .50 cents each after Q & PM.

-Thanks Cassidy!

*Having trouble finding the Leapfrog Qs?
Go HERE and sign in or create an account. Once signed in make sure you are on the Learning Path Tab and look toward the bottom right where it says Exclusive Learning Path Savings).

I just got my Albertson’s Florida Region ad that started today and it has a list of Kellogg’s Cereals that are advertised at 2/$4. I found the following inclusions on the Gift Card Deal at my store that match the advertised weights. So if you have an Albie’s in your area- bring in the ad to Target and Price Match. I am unsure if any other Albertson’s regions are taking part in this sale- so if you find it in an ad elsewhere in the country- please let me know. Keep in mind these inclusions and prices were found in my store and they may differ in your area. But there may not be signage in your store- so price check items to be sure they are prompting a Gift Card.

You can use the following Q on any listed and I have provided other matchups I found below:
-$1.50/3 Kellog’s® Cereals 10 oz or larger ANY flavor MQ on Target Site PRINT

Rice Krispies 12 oz $2.50 
Cocoa Krispies 16.5 oz $3.04
Raisin Bran 20 oz $2.54
-$1.50/2 Kellogg’s Frosted Mini Wheats, All-Bran and or Raisin Bran 11.4 oz or larger PRINT
-$1/2 Kellogg’s All-Bran, Frosted Mini-Wheats and/or Raisin Bran cereals, 11.4oz or + 3-07-10 RP
Corn Pops 12.5 oz $2.54
-$1/2 Kellogg’s Fruit Loops, Corn Pops and/or Apple Jack cereals, 10oz + 03-07-10 RP
Apple Jacks 12.2 oz $2.99 
-$1/2 Kellogg’s Fruit Loops, Corn Pops and/or Apple Jack cereals, 10oz + 03-07-10 RP
Frosted Flakes 17 oz $2.50

If you have smooth sailing and your store has a good understanding and acceptance of the Low Price Promise it can be very beneficial. It saves a trip to multiple stores, therefore saving on gas. You can also price match a competitor who does not accept manufacturer’s coupons. And the other benefit is when there is an incentive involved like a Gift Card Offer.

For those new to Price Matching and having troubles doing so- I wanted to give a closer look at the Low Price Promise. While I cannot say this information will solve any of your troubles- it might help some of you understand why some refusals may have been valid on Target’s part and why others are not and just a result of their misinterpretation of certain points in the policy.

THE COMPETITOR’S AD
The competitor’s ad must be local and current and an original printed ad (no photocopies or showing them an on-line ad on your phone), and the product must be the identical item. Current competitor store catalogs can also be price matched. They will also honor a price match on a Target purchase made within 7 days of the competitor’s ad. So if you bought say a Monopoly Game at Target and paid $14.99 for it on Saturday, and the very next day Toys R Us had it in their new ad for $9.99, you would just bring in the Toys R Us ad with your receipt and they will refund you the difference.

IDENTICAL STORE ITEMS
Target stipulates that the item must be the “identical brand name, size, weight, quantity and model number”. Many stores require that a size, brand and name be indicated in the ad. Usually this is not a problem as most stores do indicate a size on their ad, however many ads also list “selected varieties” like this ad for Glad from Publix. Now, while Publix will beat the sale price of the Glad products on sale this week at Target ($6) and you should have no trouble price matching the 50 ct. Tall Kitchen Bags in the picture- the rest would be a ymmv.

USING COUPONS WHEN PRICE MATCHING
Their policy stipulates that Target Coupons are to be used BEFORE a price match is made. So let’s say for example KMart is selling Oreos for $2.00 and Target’s price is $2.50. And you want to price match and have a Target Store Coupon and a Manufacturer’s coupon you want to use. Instead of just price matching and accepting both your coupons- they will take that Target coupon first and if it makes Target’s price cheaper than KMarts price (which it will- now the Oreo’s become $1.50) they will not match the price. Honestly all the explaining they do will probably always only mean one thing- you can no longer use a Target Coupon when Price Matching. But manufacturer coupons are accepted on a price match.

EXCLUSIONS TO PRICE MATCHING
IMO most of the exclusions are easy enough to understand and it is clear that they are referencing their competitors.The following is a list of the ones that are pretty self-explanatory.

EASY ENOUGH 
No expired Ads
No On-line prices, including Target.com
Timed events (e.g., early bird, door busters)
Items advertised as limited time/limited supply/limited quantity
Prices advertised only as a percent off or $ off
Mobile coupons
Sales tax promotions
Damaged product or opened packaging
Clearance or closeout items
Mail in offers or instant rebates
Product services (warranties, assembly, etc.)
Going-out-of-business liquidations
Special financing
Used or previously owned items
Display merchandise
Pricing or typographical errors
Owned brands (i.e., Home, Merona, Circo, Market Pantry and Archer Farms)
Meaning you can’t match a competitor’s brand to a Target Store Brand- ie if Publix has Publix Oatmeal on sale for $1. you can’t price match and buy Archer Farms Oatmeal for $1. -Thanks Stephanie!  
Non-branded items (e.g. produce not marketed under a specific brand name)
Basically they mean you can’t bring in an ad offering something like a ”Head of Lettuce $1″
Target Portrait Studio, Optical, and Clinic offers 
You can’t bring in JC Penny’s ad for a free portrait or any competitor pharmacy offer

 But there are a few that seem to be vulnerable to misinterpretation by some stores:

PROMOTIONS OR PRODUCTS….
One of the exclusions in the policy says the following “Promotions or products advertised on another company’s web or mobile sites, even those advertising in-store prices.” This is why it is always good to have the low price promise printed and with you and know it. I have had several e-mails from people telling me that they did not get a gift card when trying to price match because they were told that Target does not price match on Promotions. I believe this line is where that is coming from. The word “promotion” is only mentioned on this page three times- once referencing tax promotions and both other times referencing on-line promotions. If you are unfamiliar with the policy or are new to Target shopping and told they “don’t Price Match Promotions”- you may just give up and walk out- but if you have the policy & know the policy- you can hand it to them and ask them to show you where it says that. If they point to this line- ask them to really read it again- clearly this exclusion is intended to mean on-line promotions and other companies promotions.

MEMBERSHIP CLUBS OR LOYALTY CARDS
Membership club or loyalty programs (e.g. prices that require a club or loyalty card). Unfortunately this leaves out a large portion of grocery and other stores. Sams, BJs, Costco etc are definitely out but many non-membership fee required stores like CVS, Winn Dixie etc, also have some kind of card that is required to get the price in their ad. If you have to hand over a card to get what is listed in an ad – then price matching is out.

COUPON REQUIRED OR GIFTCARD OFFERS
Coupon-required or giftcard offers. Okay so this line in the policy seems to be the biggest thorn in everyone’s side. The first part of this line is easy and many of you have seen ads like this one to the right for Walgreen’s. The price is being advertised as 2/$4 but in small lettering underneath it says “after instant coupon in store”. Target will not honor a price listed like this in a competitor’s ad that requires a coupon found in a competitor’s store. 

The second part of that exclusion line refers to Gift Card Offers from their competitors. In other words- you cannot bring a Best Buy ad like the one shown above into Target and expect them to sell you the product shown here and give you a $10 Target Gift Card instead. They will likely honor the price in the ad- but they will not honor the Gift Card Offer. Many stores refuse their own Target gift card offers on a price match citing this line. This makes a mess for you to straighten out- if you get a refusal from the store you will have to take it up with corporate. Even doing so may be tricky. You will have to get someone knowledgeable at corporate who understands this to contact your store and explain that the “Low Price Promise” references competitors’ Gift Card Deals, not their own.

COMPETITOR’S FREE PRODUCT ETC…
Competitor’s free product, buy one, get one, bundled offers, or special purchases. “Bundled Offers” is another one of the exlusions referenced often for refusing to price match. A few weeks back when K-Mart was offering 12-ct PopTarts for 2/$4, many of you said you were turned down and told it was a “bundled offer”. To me, that is just silly. The above ad from Best Buy is an example of a “bundled offer”. Target will not price match products bundled together and offered at a discounted price in a competitor’s ad. When price matching a competitor’s ad that has something advertised like Glade Candles 2/$4 or a similar sale- then the only thing you may be required to do is purchase it in multiples of 2 or whatever the specified amount is. Even though most stores don’t make you buy 2 of something to get the price.

A FINAL FEW WORDS
While this post cannot solve the problems some of you have when Price Matching- I do hope that in some small way it has helped you to understand where some of the refusals to price match are stemming from. I get e-mails all the time from frustrated shoppers, and while I can definitely sympathize- my hands are tied. It is up to you to try and solve the issues you have with your store or corporate and there are no guarantees it will be resolved. Only you can decide if it is worth the time and trouble.

Anyway- the size given in the Wags ad is 12 – 15 oz.and the 3 cereals shown are Raisin Bran, Rice Krispies and Frosted Flakes and the ad reads “Select Kellogg’s Cereal” and Limit 4. It has been my experience that things need to be exact for me to price match. Whenever I see the word “Select” I know my store will only let me price match what is pictured and in the right size. They will allso hold me to any limits set in a competitor’s ad. So IMO and in my experience it is a yes only on the Rice Krispies for a price match.  But you each know your own store better than I do and will have to adjust your scenarios accordingly- but here’s a quick example:

Buy 4 Rice Krispies 12 oz Box $1.99 (price match Wags Ad) = $7.96
-$1.50/3 Kellog’s® Cereals 10 oz or larger ANY flavor MQ PRINT
= $6.46 – $5 GC = $1.46 for all 4 boxes or .37 cents a box

NOTE: You are still entitled to a gift card when you price match. I know some people have had trouble with this- but as long as you are purchasing the correct items that prompt a gift card- you should still receive it. I suggest checking out at the CS desk when price matching, and bring the complete ad with you. If you have any trouble and are refused a Gift Card when you price match- I would call corporate. I still can’t guarantee you will get it solved but hope that you do.

-Thanks to Katie, Krazy Coupon Lady & Hip2Save