Title basically sums it all up. I'm curious as to whether it is worth it to go out of my way to buy food from a fast food restaurant for which I have a coupon. I'm talking about the coupons that you get from the receipt. I currently use the coupons at fast food places I frequent, but I'm wondering how worth it is it for places I don't frequent. Should I not use the coupon or try to take advantage of it?
You don't have to go out of your way to use it, unless perhaps it was about to expire soon. I would just keep it on hand, so you have it ready in case you wind up there in the near future. I don't go to McDonald's very often, for example. But about once a month, I have a 2 hour drive to go take care of some things, so I will stop in the McDonald's at the rest stop along the way. That's why I usually leave all those coupons in my car whenever I get them. They come in handy. You should check to see how much you are really saving though. Some of them aren't even worth it at all. One of the most ridiculous ones I got was from Steak & Shake. They sent me a bunch of coupons for $3.99 combo meals. I figured that was a good deal since combos these days are usually around $6.50 or more. Then when I got there I read the fine print and noticed these "combo" meals on the coupons didn't include a drink. To make matters even worse, they already have a selection of $4 combo meals on their regular menu (also without a drink). So this "coupon" was literally only saving me one cent - *one cent*.
