There has been some confusion about Walmart’s coupon policy, especially when it comes to their policy on taking Internet Coupons (the ones that you print out on your own printer). Hopefully, I can help to clear things up a little bit.
The manager at my local Walmart recently decided to tell his employees that they were no longer taking internet coupons! As soon as I heard this, I went to Walmart’s corporate website to re-read their coupon policy to see if their coupon policy had changed. It hadn’t. So I called Walmart Customer Service (corporate, not my local customer service) and let them know what was going on and filed a complaint. Customer Service assured me that they did take internet coupons as long as they scanned (they weren’t allowed to key in the numbers) and met the guidelines that were on their website (see below).
The next day I got a call from one of the managers at my local Walmart saying that they were sorry that I was told they were no longer taking internet coupons. She reassured me that they DO take internet coupons and that she would make sure all of the employees were aware of that! Victory! 
I HIGHLY recommend printing out and taking a copy of Walmart’s Coupon Policy with you when you shop at Walmart. Here is their coupon policy from the previous link:
Wal-Mart accepts the following types of coupons (see guidelines below):-Manufacturer coupons (Cents Off)
-Free merchandise (or manufacturer’s Buy-One-Get-One-Free) coupons
-Store coupons
-Pharmacy (Advertising and Promotional) coupons
-Internet coupons
-Soft drink container caps
-The following are guidelines and limits:-Wal-Mart only accepts coupons for merchandise we sell and only when presented at the time of purchase.
-Coupons should have an expiration date and be presented within the valid dates. Wal-Mart will not accept expired coupons.
-Internet coupons should be legible and say “Manufacturer Coupon.” There should be a valid remit address for the manufacturer and a scannable bar code.
-Only one coupon per item is permitted.
-Use of 40 or more coupons per transaction will require approval by Customer Service Manager.
Here are a few other tips about using coupons at Walmart:
My best Walmart coupon experiences are when I use the “self checkout” lane. I can scan my own coupons and don’t have to worry about the cashier giving me a dirty look!
If one of your internet printable coupons won’t scan, try holding your finger over the longer barcode and just scan the shorter barcode on the coupon.
You can call corporate customer service while you are in the store if you have an issue that needs to be resolved immediately. Their number is: 1-800-925-6278
What have you found to be the best strategy for couponing at Walmart? Leave a comment and let us know!
I’ve had the exact same problem more than once and that is why I no longer shop at Wal-Mart. In these economic times I am being more selective about where I shop. I value low prices as much as everyone else, but I also value how I am treated as a customer. I’ve been mistreated by way too many Wal-Mart employees so I have chosen to shop where I (and my coupons) are wanted.
@debbielynne, I was told about a year ago that Wal-Mart no longer accepts internet coupons and actually had them thrown back in face. I hate Wal-Mart, too!
I do not know why but many of the cashiers at my local Walmart are also hostile to coupon users. One of them even told me that I can use only ONE coupon in ONE transaction… I still shop at Walmart, but I try to profile cashiers. I normally have a pleasant coupon experience with a young male cashier with I-could-not-care-less attitude.
I love your site, but I hate to go to Walmart. I think they dont understand coupon policy at all. Not just the csm but the managers dont either. I had one tell me yesterday that if i buy 1 or 10 products i could only use 1 coupon so i told him to make them seperate transactions and he decided to let me use all 10 coupons.
I won a free Tidy Cats Breeze System last year and went to Walmart to use my coupon. The coupon value was $29.99, but Walmart and Target were selling it for $32.99. I decided to go ahead and get it and used the self-checkout. The cashier said I couldn’t use the coupon. I said I’d pay the difference. She said that wasn’t possible. So I asked for a manager. Someone (I don’t think it was the manager) came over and said the same thing – I could only use a $29.99 “free” coupon on an item that was $29.99. I asked how I was supposed to do that if they sell it for $32.99. I also repeated that I wanted to pay the difference. She said no. I asked for another manager. I waited 15 minutes, but no one came, so I left. I told them if they didn’t want my money, I’d take my business elsewhere. I contacted Walmart corporate through the Website and had a call the next day from the area manager who apologized over and over and said that was totally wrong and she’d talk to the employees and make sure they are properly trained. I ended up spotting the Breeze at another Walmart for $29.99 so I got it there. I have contacted Walmart corporate 2-3 times about issues in their stores and they always respond promptly. Too bad they can’t get the cashiers properly educated!
My local Walmart also, has issues with internet printables. I too carry the policy with me, but normally find its cheaper for me not to shop there. I will still shop if I know its priced cheaper at Walmart, but dread it when I know I will be using internet printable coupon.
Tiffany
I never had a problem at Walmart with coupons until last week.
First the cashier said, they no longer accept smart source coupons or any
coupons that does not have the price printed in the center of the coupon and
must have three different scan lines. Plus the cashiers was very nasty making comments that I printed up fake coupons. I told her smart source are not fake,
talked to two more so-called managers and got no place. I e-mailed Walmart, SmartSource, the company the coupons were from, local fox news. After a week
I received a call from the local Walmart saying that they do accept SmartSource coupons, and coupons that do not have the price printed in the center.
We will see what happens tomorrow when I go back. I think I will use the self check outs. The only reason I use Walmart is that the stores in our area do not double coupons, so if you need a deal, you almost have to shop Walmart. But its getting to the point that I hate the chain and will be willing to pay more.
@george battaglia,
Actually yes there are some smartsource fake coupons floating around on the internet. Walmart does except internet smartsource but there are particular ones they know are fakes. In example Coca-Cola released a statement to all supermarkets including Walmart there are NO Free coca-cola internet coupons through smartsource. These are fake. They DO have free soda coupons through smartsource in the paper Only. There are other products as well done this way. There are ways to tell if its a fake and the cashiers are trained to look for it.
I love Walmart but i’m starting to dislike some of the cashiers and managers. 3 times in the past week i’ve had to call corporate about price matching, and coupons. The csm told me that every time i come in i cause problems, i was shocked she said that. It was over a manufacturer coupon that had a walmart logo. so i reported it and the manager said they except it. and he also fixed my price match he was real kind but i hope the csm and cashiers start be nice as well
I was told just last week that they no longer take printable coupons because they are fake and never get paid for them. I haven’t been back since I have been too busy but now that the holidays are over I’ll be there fighting for my 25 cents.
I always have problems with my local Walmart and long a go I decided not to shop there. Is always the same CSM who denies my coupons without reading them. Is such a bad attitude towards coupon and specially me. I returned to shop there just for some items that ended up being free after coupon. First time I didn’t have problems, the second time I did and I called corporate. They returned my call and apologized, I went and shopped again without problems. This last time I went they made such a big deal and 4 “managers” (they all said there were the Manager) denied my coupon under argument that they are not obligated to take internet coupons. I asked to see their policy and denied that too. The problem? the cashier is so afraid to loose her job she asked for authorization even BEFORE scanning the coupon . At the end I asked to speak with the STORE MANAGER, he came upset, talked to the cashier and when I tried to talked to him he just said, “I will check the coupons and then I will decide”. I waited and he said that ” as long as the coupon was paid back it was fine with him”. I tried to explain that this is a current problem with his store, that I had been waiting more than an hour and is always the same people who makes this harder. His answer? “YOU CAN GO AND SHOP SOMEWHERE ELSE”, I couldn’t believe that this guy the store manager would say such a thing, Where is the “Customer Satisfaction” policy Walmart talks about? I told him “really? that is you solution? that is how you treat your customers? , “Yes, you can go and shop to another Walmart, a Target, etc you don’t have to come here”.
AMAZING!
I called corporate and guess what? they sent the report to the wrong Walmart. I will be sending a letter to their district manager, corporate and the news, I am tired of being treated like this over coupons. If they don’t like coupons then they should go and work in a different place where they don’t accept coupons.
This is a type of discrimination against people who does coupons and I will not stand it.
I don’t understand what the problem is, I live in Redding CA and the other day I used 47.00 dollars worth of coupons in one visit, I had no problems with my cashier and I probably didn’t make the people behind me happy, but I have found if i write the price of the item on the coupon they like it and it makes it go so much faster. Coupons are a lot of work and well worth it, Wal-Mart will need to understand this or lose more customers
I have had tons of problems with the coupons. One week I was told you can only use one coupon per item per visit. I used the coupons I could and made her take all the rest off my bill. The next week they were told you could use as many coupons as you wanted because they had so many people complaining. This store needs to get its act in order. I have never checked out at a self check out without a problem with coupons not scanning. Its got to be a royal pain to shop at Walmart with coupons. Most of the people that work there have no idea what they are doing. If they dont shape up I will be going anywhere but Walmart.
there are smartsource counterfeit coupons. And it is the discretion of the person working if your coupons are legit. You can look up counterfeit coupons and see why people being “cheap” is giving the stores an issue with targeting customers.
I had the same problem yesterday the lady said the wont take smartsource coupon or any other b/c they are copy, counterfeit , . They want the ones that comes in the news paper or from the Co. What i think its b/c the customer is saving money & they have to wait for the company to refund them. smartsource gives pretty good deal $1 off on procuct or buy 1 get 1 free. But 2morrow i will call mw & complain.
I just got off the phone with Walmart’s Coporate office customer service department. I was told that Walmart does have a universal coupon policy in place, but each individual store can decide whether or not they want to take internet coupons. So frustrating!
I use coupons at Walmart all the time… Internet and regular….I have certain rules to make my life easier. I have a binder full of coupons and feed my family of 7 on about $80 per week.
1. Try to put all coupon items at the end of checkout if doing alot of shopping. This helps so the cashier recently saw the item in question and doesn’t go digging through bags to verify that you actually bought it. The same goes it you are matching ad’s which can save you big also. This is also huge for B1G1 or Free Coupons because they have to enter the price into the system.
2. More than 40 coupons or $50 worth will require CSM validation.
3. If cashier is having problems scanning barcode. Gently recommend the scanner gun…it works way better than the other. They can also type in the barcode number if need be.
4. Coupons with two barcodes require one to be covered. Some of the long coupons I will pre-fold/crease for the cashier.
5. Be patient – Shopping with coupons is not an in and out thing. Do not expect that. But if you save $100 and spend 4 hours clipping, shopping and checking out that’s $25 an hour and I’m okay with that.
6. And finally be poliet to the people behind you and the cashier… and for gods sake if they have 1 item let them go ahead of you. Cashier’s can make it horrible if you are rude or even indifferent to them. You catch more flies with honey than vinger. Even if they are one of those rude cashiers (we have all had them) do not give the attitude back it will only make it worse. I personaly avoid 2 certain cashiers at a local grocery store because of their attitudes….I have their names and the stores they work at written in my coupon binder (lol kinda like a black list) and make sure I go in different lines.
I too have had trouble with Walmart and price matching and coupons. The most recent experience was the Kraft Cheese $5/5
deal. I had taken my Target ad to Walmart to price match cheese for $1.80 per pkg. After I did the price match transaction at the checkout I handed the cashier my coupon. She scanned it and then I looked at the total. The coupon had only scanned for the difference in Walmarts regular price for cheese and the Target price match difference. I told the cashier to give me back my coupon and CANCEL THE WHOLE TRANSACTION. I have Walmart!
@Pam,
Oops! That should have said : I HATE WALMART!!!”
What area are you reporting out of? I am in Michigan and I have found that from state to state the deals are different. Thanks
They are different. I am in the north Texas area, and while the prices are different from place to place, the coupons are generally the same so you can get a good ballpark of the deals at least.