A frugal mom who posts as @carleediy on TikTok got a jump on the holidays this year. “I started my Christmas shopping in September because everything is so expensive nowadays,” she says. In early October, she hit the clearance sections at two Walmart stores, and her secret weapon was a phone app that revealed prices lower than the ones printed on the tags.
Her kids are 4 and 6, which makes them fairly easy to shop for. They love Barbies, little toy animals and surprise toys. In her caption, she admits she knows she will not always be able to shop this way, so she is taking advantage of how young they are and how much they love anything new.
Store Number One
The first stop was a little slow. She found a Paw Patrol puzzle for $7 instead of $11. It is several puzzles in one, with a little case to store them, and it is earmarked for her daughter. She also grabbed cleaning supplies for her small carpet and upholstery cleaner, marked down to $5 from about $16. Her total at the first store came to $13.18.
Store Number Two and the Barcode Trick
The second Walmart was where things got good. She picked up an item for the pool marked $5. It was actually $2. How did she know ahead of time? “That’s why you have to get the Walmart app and scan the barcode,” she says. “It sometimes will be different than the actual price listed.”
She also found pool floats tagged at $5 each that scanned at $1. They will not be Christmas presents, she says, but they might go into Easter baskets next spring. “I couldn’t pass up a dollar for pool floats.”
A $5 Mickey Mouse toy went into her gift stash. She has a lot of friends with toddlers, and having small gifts on hand saves last minute runs to the store. A $4 item for her daughter will go under the tree.
The star of the day was a hamster ball toy. The tag said it was originally $45. She paid $10. She is not entirely sure what it does, she jokes, but she knows her kids. When the big holiday toy catalogs arrive, they circle one of everything because they just want new toys. The family does not buy new toys very often, so she thinks it will be a hit.
Her honest tally at the end? She did not find a huge pile of Christmas gifts, but she spent about $23 and walked out with quite a few little things.
@carleediy
How to Shop Clearance Like a Pro
This mom’s approach works for parents and grandparents alike. Here is how to put it to work for your own holiday list.
Use the store app to check prices. Walmart’s app lets shoppers scan a product’s barcode in the store to see the current price. Clearance stickers are not always updated as fast as the system, so the scanned price can be lower than the tag. If the app shows a lower price, it is a good idea to confirm it at a price check scanner or with an employee before you pay.
Visit more than one store. Clearance is store specific. As this shopper found, one location can be picked over while another a few miles away is full of markdowns.
Look in more than one aisle. Clearance items often end up on endcaps and back shelves in different departments, not just one marked section. Toys, seasonal goods and home items are all worth a look.
Shop off season. Pool floats in October and summer toys in the fall are classic examples. Items no one wants right now are often marked down the most.
Keep a gift stash. A bin in the closet with small toys and books makes birthday party invitations painless. Add a few gift bags and tissue paper and you are always ready.
Watch the calendar. Seasonal items are commonly marked down after each holiday passes. The days after Halloween, Christmas and Easter can be good times to stock up on decorations, wrapping paper and themed toys for next year.
Plan ahead for other holidays. Easter baskets, stocking stuffers and party favors can all come from clearance shopping months in advance.
Keep the Savings Real
A bargain is only a bargain if you would have bought it anyway. Make a short list for each child or grandchild before you shop and set a firm budget. Write down what you buy and who it is for, then store everything in one spot so nothing is forgotten or bought twice.
Check the box before you buy. Clearance items sometimes have damaged packaging or missing pieces, and return rules can be stricter for marked down goods. Keep your receipts in an envelope with your gift stash.
If you have little ones on your list, check that toys are labeled for the right age, especially anything with small parts for children under 3.
Starting early also spreads the cost over several months instead of landing on one December credit card bill. This mom’s trips cost about $23, and her kids will never know their gifts came from the clearance aisle.
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