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Coupon Barcode Basics

2,125 1,015 August 6, 2008 at 08:42 AM in Coupon (2)
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Last Edited by slayers750 March 10, 2010 at 08:01 PM
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THIS POST IS FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY. PLEASE DO NOT POST COMMENTS RELATING TO WAYS TO CIRCUMVENT THE NARRATIVE / TEXT ON THE COUPONS!!!


A WARNING FOR COUPON FRAUD WILL BE ISSUED TO ANY USER WHO USES THIS INFORMATION IN ANY THREAD TO CIRCUMVENT THE NARRATIVE / TEXT ON THE COUPONS!!!

SHOULD WE GET TOO MANY PEOPLE WHO IGNORE THE STATEMENT ABOVE, THE THREAD WILL BE DELETED FOR GOOD.

In the past two weeks there have been two instances where valid coupons are beeping and it's resulted in a TON of thread posts with complaints, questions, and stories from frustrated couponers. Just a little bit of knowledge about barcodes can equip you with a lot of ammunition when dealing with cashiers and managers (since most of them are clueless and you'd be teaching them).

I'll explain the coupon barcodes, then show you exactly why the Lifesavers and Pert coupons are beeping.

Coupons will beep if ANY PORTION of the barcode does not match the products in your cart.

A typical coupon barcode looks like this:
1-22222-333-44-5


1 - This portion of the code will be either a 5 or a 9. It deals with doubling. If your store doesn't double coupons, then this number has no purpose. If your store DOES double coupons, then any coupon coded with a 5 will double (up to your store's doubling limit) and any coupon coded with a 9 will not double.

22222 - This number is the manufacturer's code. This code is the reason why the Lifesavers and Pert were beeping, but I'll explain those situations below.

333
- This number is the family code. Most manufacturers break their products into families. If you see a three digit number with no zeros, the coupon is coded for a specific product. If there is one zero at the end, the coupon is coded for more than one *variety* product. If there are two zeros at the end, the coupon is coded for more than one *type or brand* of product. Here's an example of how it works:

25700 100 - any Ziploc or Saran Wrap item
25700 160 - any Ziploc item
25700 170 - any Saran Wrap item
25700 164 - Ziploc containers
25700 175 - Saran Wrap disposable Cutting Sheets

If the family code is 000, then the coupon will not beep with any product which falls under the preceeding 5-digit manufacturer's code.

Some products are not broken into any families and are coded as 992. A 992 coupon will do one of two things, depending on how your store has it's registers programmed. Either it will NEVER beep, even if you didn't buy the product, or it will ALWAYS beep and require cashier intervention. These coupons were severely abused by couponers who wanted to use coupons even though they didn't buy the product, so most major retailers have now programmed their registers to beep at every 992.


44 - This is the value code. It tells the register how much to take off. Regardless of what the wording on the coupon says, this code tells the register what you need to purchase and how much to take off. Yes, in many cases there are some VERY EXTREME differences between the wording on the coupon and what the barcode actually requires you to purchase (since there are only a limited number of value codes available). Here are the codes and, again, PLEASE NO DISCUSSIONS ON HOW TO CIRCUMVENT THE SYSTEM. The wording on the coupon is the manufacturer's intended use for it.

00 "Beep" - Manual Input Required
01 Free Item - Will normally beep so cashier can input value
02 B4G1
03 $1.10
04 $1.35
05 $1.40
06 $1.60
07 B3 $1.50
08 B2 $3.00
09 B3 $2.00
10 $0.10
11 $1.85
12 $0.12
13 B4 $1.00
14 B1G1
15 $0.15
16 B2G1
18 $2.60
19 B3G1
20 $0.20
21 B2 $0.35
22 B2 $0.40
23 B2 $0.45
24 B2 $0.50
25 $0.25
26 $2.85
28 B2 $0.55
29 $0.29
30 $0.30
31 B2 $0.60
32 B2 $0.75
33 B2 $1.00
34 B2 $1.25
35 $0.35
36 B2 $1.50
37 B3 $0.25
38 B3 $0.30
39 $0.39
40 $0.40
41 B3 $0.50
42 B3 $1.00
43 B2 $1.10
44 B2 $1.35
45 $0.45
46 B2 $1.60
47 B2 $1.75
48 B2 $1.85
49 $0.49
50 $0.50
51 B2 $2.00
52 B3 $0.55
53 B2 $0.10
54 B2 $0.15
55 $0.55
56 B2 $0.20
57 B2 $0.25
58 B2 $0.30
59 $0.59
60 $0.60
61 $10.00
62 $9.50
63 $9.00
64 $8.50
65 $0.65
66 $8.00
67 $7.50
68 $7.00
69 $0.69
70 $0.70
71 $6.50
72 $6.00
73 $5.50
74 $5.00
75 $0.75
76 $1.00
77 $1.25
78 $1.50
79 $0.79
80 $0.80
81 $1.75
82 $2.00
83 $2.25
84 $2.50
85 $0.85
86 $2.75
87 $3.00
88 $3.25
89 $0.89
90 $0.90
91 $3.50
92 $3.75
93 $4.00
95 $0.95
96 $4.50
98 B2 $0.65
99 $0.99


5 Check digit...no real relevance to couponers.
Add a Comment Sorry, this thread is closed.

Community Wiki

Last Edited by slayers750 March 10, 2010 at 07:56 PM
THIS POST IS FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY. PLEASE DO NOT POST COMMENTS RELATING TO WAYS TO CIRCUMVENT THE NARRATIVE / TEXT ON THE COUPONS!!!

A WARNING FOR COUPON FRAUD WILL BE ISSUED TO ANY USER WHO USES THIS INFORMATION IN ANY THREAD TO CIRCUMVENT THE NARRATIVE / TEXT ON THE COUPONS!!!

SHOULD WE GET TOO MANY PEOPLE WHO IGNORE THE STATEMENT ABOVE, THE THREAD WILL BE DELETED FOR GOOD.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Some stores accept expired coupons. Check this thread to see if any stores near you have a policy to accept expired coupons:

https://slickdeals.net/forums/showthread.php?p=12410695#post12410695

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MistyQ
08-06-2008 at 05:39 PM.
08-06-2008 at 05:39 PM.
Quote from karab :
lol, I just repped bharatdotnet saying the exact same thing! great minds Wink....and rep to the op of the thread, thanks for typing the info up....it should be in the FAQs threads of each of the drugstores!
And a rep to a fellow "great mind"....hehehehe Wink LMAO
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stutts
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stutts
08-06-2008 at 05:58 PM.
08-06-2008 at 05:58 PM.
Nice post thanks for the info, appreciate the time and effort you put into it. Very clear and easy to understand.
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kristie
08-06-2008 at 06:14 PM.
08-06-2008 at 06:14 PM.
Quote from mahgobbi :
Now for the reasons why the LIFESAVERS and PERT coupons are beeping when they shouldn't...




PERT:

Most Pert products are coded with 83484 as the manufacturer's code. At least one variety that I know of (Pert Plus 2 in 1 Shampoo Plus DEEP Conditioner) is coded with 37000 (the generic Proctor and Gamble code). I think this was an error in coding the product, but I can't be sure. The Pert coupons are all coded for 83484 products, so they will beep if you try to purchase a 37000 product, even though it's a LEGITIMATE use of the coupon. Again, you can avoid beeps by either not purchasing the 37000 products, or you can just explain to the cashier why it is beeping.
I bought Pert at on store with code 83484 no beeps. Bought Pert at another store and coupon beeped. Compared the Pert to the one bought previously and they were identical in codes. Both were the Pert Happy Medium 2 in 1.
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slimisgood
08-06-2008 at 07:27 PM.
08-06-2008 at 07:27 PM.
This thread should be a must read for this forum.
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Last edited by slimisgood August 6, 2008 at 07:31 PM.
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Original Poster
mahgobbi
08-06-2008 at 08:13 PM.
08-06-2008 at 08:13 PM.
Quote from kristie :
I bought Pert at on store with code 83484 no beeps. Bought Pert at another store and coupon beeped. Compared the Pert to the one bought previously and they were identical in codes. Both were the Pert Happy Medium 2 in 1.
There's no reason I can possibly think of that the second one could have beeped unless (1) you gave the cashier more Pert coupons than bottles of Pert in your order, or (2) you used more manufacturer's coupons (for ALL items) than items in your order and the Pert was one of the last ones to scan. The reason this could cause a beep is because many registers are programmed to beep if a customer tries to use more manufacturer's coupons than the total number of items purchased (store coupons don't count in this scenario).
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xiomyflor23
08-06-2008 at 08:22 PM.
08-06-2008 at 08:22 PM.
Thank you for such an informative post.It's because of people like you that take time to post and help out the Slickdeal community newbies like myself have learned so much!! Thanks again!
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lpaigee
08-06-2008 at 08:36 PM.
08-06-2008 at 08:36 PM.
Quote from slimisgood :
This thread should be a must read for this forum.
I absolutely agree. I wish that I had this info a long time ago. I appreciate having it now, though!
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Mommy2Mig&Bre
08-06-2008 at 09:42 PM.
08-06-2008 at 09:42 PM.
nod Great post ! I do agree with a previous poster about the Pert. I matched the family codes because of the beeping, and the coupons STILL beeped! I have no idea why.This was at CVS and Walmart. I ended up just telling the cashier I had no idea why they beeped, and showing her that the codes did match. This happened on the $2 and the $3 pert coupons. (obviously the 1 time the $3 coupon should have beeped for the price to be adjusted, but it would say 'item not found' or somthing like that)Confused
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Tennessee1
08-07-2008 at 01:50 AM.
08-07-2008 at 01:50 AM.
Quote from mahgobbi :
In many states, expired coupons are accepted for a certain period of time by state law.

Is there a list somewhere of the states in which expired coupons are accepted by state law after expiration?
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kgerv
08-07-2008 at 04:26 AM.
08-07-2008 at 04:26 AM.
Quote from kgerv :
When I click on that link, all I get is a blank page -- is anyone else having this problem?

thanks..............
http://www.decodingcoupons.com/

Is anyone else getting a blank page? thanks...............
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karab
08-07-2008 at 04:29 AM.
08-07-2008 at 04:29 AM.
Quote from kgerv :
http://www.decodingcoupons.com/

Is anyone else getting a blank page? thanks...............
it comes up fine for me, I don't know what could be wrong Confused
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mahgobbi
08-07-2008 at 05:23 AM.
08-07-2008 at 05:23 AM.
Quote from Tennessee1 :
Is there a list somewhere of the states in which expired coupons are accepted by state law after expiration?
Ok, I'm going to have to stand corrected on this one. I seemed to recall from years ago a forum buddy from Illinois who posted that expired coupons were accepted by state law there and some other states. Well I just spent about 5-10 minutes google searching and it came up empty. I'm guessing that it's either never been the case or it's a thing of the past. I found a list of specific stores which accept them though...maybe it'll help somebody.

BTW, your screenname leads me to believe you live in TN. If you're in Middle TN, definitely a no-go for you, because that's where I live and I've asked just about every store in the area if their policy is to accept them. laugh out loud
Quote :
California

(Note: Ralph's used to take expireds but most do not anymore. Check with your local Ralph's to see if they still do.)
CA, Mission Valley, Food For Less accepts expireds but does not double.
CA, Manteca, Pak'n Save at 1187 S. Main St.
CA, Bakersfield, Foods Co.

Colorado

CO, Arvada, Cub Foods at 80th & Sheridan theoretically takes coupons expired up to 6 months, depending on the checker. One time the checker tried to tell me they don't take expired coupons at all, so she asked the customer service manager and she said they only take coupons expired up to a few months (2 or 3 months, I guess.) But all the other times I've given coupons expired up to 6 months with no problem.
CO, Aurora, Cub Foods (not sure of address) takes coupons expired up to 3 months according to a man on the phone who knew what he was talking about.

Illinois

IL, Westchester - Dominick's Finer Foods at Wolf and 31st St., does accept expired coupons with any date.
IL Rockford - Cub store accepts expired coupons up to 6 months
IL, McHenry - Dominicks on Richmond Road. I asked a checker about a year ago, and was told they take expired c/o and she wasn't aware of any limitations.
IL, McHenry - Jewel/Osco in on Elm Street. I called this store a couple of years ago and spoke with the store manager who told me they accept expired c/o up to three months old. But I have found that the checkers don't even look at the expiration date and have frequently used expired c/o 1 year old.
IL, Bedford Park - Cub Foods at 72nd and Cicero Ave. Accept expired c/o up to 1yr.
IL, Buffalo Grove-Jewel and Dominicks all locations-no limit on how old
IL, Arlington Hgts-Jewel, Dominicks and Cub Foods. Accepts expired for 6mo.
IL, Waukegan--Cub Foods on Lewis Ave accepts expired coupons up to 6 months.
IL, River Grove--Dominick's store in Thatcher Woods Mall accepts expired. No date limit known.
IL, Lansing--Dominick's. There are no limits to using expired's.
IL: Cary--Jewel(HWY14), accepts expired, any date
IL: Oaklawn. The Jewel store at 87th & Ridgeland accepts expired coupons, no date limit.
IL: Bridgeview. The Cub Foods at 103rd and Harlem accepts expired coupons up to 6 months old.
IL: Waukegan Jewel Osco, Green Bay Road. Takes coupons up to 6 months expired.
IL, New Lenox, Jewel Foods, Route 30 Takes expired - all dates.
IL, Joliet, Cub Foods, Larkin & 1 block south of Jefferson Takes expired - all dates.
IL, Joliet, Cub Foods, Larkin & Route 30 Takes expired up to 6 months.
IL, Tinley Park, Super K-Mart, 163rd & Harlem Takes expired up to 3 months.
IL, Tinley Park, Cub Foods, 159th & Harlem Takes expired - all dates.
IL, Tinley Park, Jewel Foods, 171st & Harlem Takes expired - all dates.
IL, Frankfort, Jewel Foods, Route 30 & LaGrange Takes expired - all dates.
IL, Lake Zurich, Jewel,
IL, Mundelein, Jewel
IL, Mundelein and Lake Zurich, Dominicks
IL, Dekalb, Jewel/Osco, Sycamore Road. No limit on the date.
IL, Matteson, Dominicks' will take expired coupons up to 6 months after expiration date.
IL, Danville, Jewel-Osco at Fairchild and Gilbert takes expired coupons-any date.
IL, South Holland, Jewel-Osco, Rt 6 & Cottage Grove Ave, no expiration limits.
IL, Woodridge Jewel Food Stores 2317 Janes up to one year
IL, Bolingbrook, Jewel Food Stores Rte 53 up to one year
IL, Woodridge, Dominicks Food Stores 63rd St. up to one year
IL, Downers Grove Domincks Food Stores 7241 Lemont Rd up to one year
IL, Naperville, Domincks Food Stores 300 S. Naper up to one year
IL, Naperville any Jewel or Jewel-Osco
IL, Woodridge Norene Jenkins 3388 83rd St. up to one year
IL, Orland Park, Dominicks - 159th & LaGrange - takes expired up to 1year
IL, Orland Park, Dominicks - 151st & LaGrange - takes expired all dates
IL, Orland Park, Jewel/Osco - 159th & 94th Avenue - takes all expired
IL, Joliet, Dominicks - on Jefferson - takes expired up to 1 year
IL, Crystal Lake Dominicks on Rt 14 accepts all expireds
IL, Crystal Lake Jewel on Rt 14 accepts all expireds
IL, Crytal Lake Cub Foods on Rt 14 accepts all expireds.
IL, Algonquin Dominicks on Randall Rd, Cub Foods on Randall Rd, and Jewel on Randall Rd all accept expired coupons


Indiana
IN, Dyer, Jewel-Osco, Rt 30 & Hart (or Sheffield), no expiration limits.
IN, Munster, Jewel-Osco, Ridge Rd & Calumet Ave, 1 year expiration limit.
IN, Schererville, Dominick's, Crossroads Shopping Center - US 30 & US 41. No limit after expiration date
IN, Merrillville, Eagle 57th and Harrison takes all expired coupons and doubles coupons,too.

Iowa
IA, Dubuque, Eagles Country Market
IA, Clinton Jewel/osco, 1307 N. 2nd St., Clinton, IA 52732
IA, Clinton, Eagles, 1015 13th AVe N, Clinton, IA

Kansas
KS, Salina, Dillon's Superstore up to two weeks
KS, Salina, Dillon's Sunset Plaza, up to two weeks


Minnesota
MN: Minneapolis- St. Paul area. Cub Foods chain. Accepts expired coupons up to 6 months past the expiration date.
MN: Apple Valley, Cub Foods 15350 Cedar Avenue. All coupons up to six months past expiration
MN: Eagan, Cub Foods, 1940 CLiff Lake Rd. All coupons up to 6 months past expiration
MN: Rainbow Foods take expireds up to 3 months past expiration.

Nevada
NV, Las Vegas, Lucky's, corner of Rampart and Sahara takes all expired coupons.
NV, Las Vegas, Luckys at Tropicanna and Jones also takes all manufacturer's expired coupons.
NV, Pahrump Lucky's store at Hwy. 160 & Basin Up to one year old.
NV, Lucky's, corner of Rampart and Sahara takes all expired coupons.
NV, Las Vegas, Luckys at Tropicanna and Jones also takes all manufacturer's expired coupons.
NV, Pahrump Lucky's store at Hwy. 160 & Basin Up to one year old.


Ohio
Ohio, Ashtabula: Finast 4876 N Ridge Rd. Accepts expired c/o. Cashiers were told not to look at exp. dates. Finast 4876 N Ridge Rd. Accepts expired c/o. Cashiers were told not to look at exp. dates.

Oregon

OR, Salem. The Albertsons Store on Lancaster accepts expired coupons, and they also accept any other stores coupons. I have also used expired coupons in the Safeway on Lancaster in Salem also.

Pennsylvania

PA, Nazareth, The Eckerds at the Laneco plaza by the Nazareth Speedway accepts ALL exp. mfr. coupons.


Wisconsin

WI, LaCrosse--Cub Foods, on Sunday takes expired coupons up to 90 days!
WI, Green Bay--Cub Foods, was told they will accept expired c/o's not older than 6 months.
WI, Green Bay. Cub Foods on East Mason Street. As far as I know there is not limit to how long they can be expired. I have used some recently from 1995 and had no problem.
WI, Kenosha. Jewel/Osco on Green Bay & Hwy 50 takes expires up to a year old.
WI, Madison. Cub Foods, on Nakoosa Tr & Highways 30 & US 51, also West Towne Store, take expireds up to 6 months.
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Last edited by mahgobbi August 7, 2008 at 05:26 AM.
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rc1000
08-07-2008 at 07:50 PM.
08-07-2008 at 07:50 PM.
I often find that different stores accept coupons differently. Even stores in the same chain. For example, if I buy an item for .99, one store will allow my $1 coupon and another won't.
Each store's POS system is programmed differently and that would affect the varying coupon acceptance.


Quote from mahgobbi :
There's no reason I can possibly think of that the second one could have beeped unless (1) you gave the cashier more Pert coupons than bottles of Pert in your order, or (2) you used more manufacturer's coupons (for ALL items) than items in your order and the Pert was one of the last ones to scan. The reason this could cause a beep is because many registers are programmed to beep if a customer tries to use more manufacturer's coupons than the total number of items purchased (store coupons don't count in this scenario).
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rc1000
08-07-2008 at 07:53 PM.
08-07-2008 at 07:53 PM.
I know most talk has to do with drug stores, but Bed, Bath and Beyond has apolicy to accept its expired coupons. I can confirm NY, NJ and PA.

Quote from mahgobbi :
Ok, I'm going to have to stand corrected on this one. I seemed to recall from years ago a forum buddy from Illinois who posted that expired coupons were accepted by state law there and some other states. Well I just spent about 5-10 minutes google searching and it came up empty. I'm guessing that it's either never been the case or it's a thing of the past. I found a list of specific stores which accept them though...maybe it'll help somebody.

BTW, your screenname leads me to believe you live in TN. If you're in Middle TN, definitely a no-go for you, because that's where I live and I've asked just about every store in the area if their policy is to accept them. laugh out loud
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harperjn
08-08-2008 at 09:06 AM.
08-08-2008 at 09:06 AM.
Quote from mahgobbi :
I found a list of specific stores which accept them though...maybe it'll help somebody.
I appreciate the list, but it may be rather old. There is a store on there that changed it's name (and is now out of business) in 1996.
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