We may earn money or products from the companies mentioned in this post.

Online retailers are becoming aware of the increasing number of customers who are on the lookout for deals and discounts while shopping. Some of them can very well misuse this fact and trick the customers to actually spend more than they need to by just giving them the incentive of getting discounts by using coupon codes.

Here are a couple of such ‘tricks’ or rather spending ‘traps’ to watch out for when using coupon codes (also click here for more tips on coupon usage):

• Retailers might offer you with crazy deals on items making them almost free or actually free. However, when you actually pay a little more attention, you will realize that the accessories which might be needed to make these items fully functional come with a hefty price. Therefore, in the long run, you end up paying more for that particular ‘free’ product.

• Control your nerves when you feel like using your coupons for the same item which might be going on sale repeatedly. This will lead to a massive surplus of items if the demand for it is just not present. For instance, 50 bottles of ketchup stuffed into your kitchen cabinets will not really save you much if you end up throwing them away after a while.

• Watch out for coupons codes offered by online retailers (click here for a list of all our retailers’s coupons) after an increase in the actual prices of the products. If for example, there is a 25% coupon available and you feel like the prices of the items have been roughly increased by 30%, then steer away immediately. This is just a temptation into spending more for items which could have been bought for a cheaper price.

• Deals which put a certain limit on your total purchase might force you to buy extra things. Therefore, make sure you actually need these items before spending the extra money on them.

• Some coupons have a very tiny print somewhere in the corners to let you know that there is actually an expiry date. Therefore, you might miss it completely or it will not stick in your mind till it is too late. Especially if you bought the coupon it can lead to waste of money. Hence be vigilant about these dates.

In brief, avoid splurging into useless spending. Always look at the bigger picture while shopping. Once you have understood these traps then start shopping away with proper coupon deals and actually saving tons of money!