Walmart Shopping Secrets to Save You Even More Money

Walmart often beats out Amazon for low prices, but there are ways you can save even more when shopping at Walmart. These are 11 secrets to shop smarter at Walmart.

I don’t know about you guys, but lately, I’ve been finding myself venturing further away from Amazon for some of my basic quick shopping. They became a lot less reliable during COVID-19, and then I just started hearing some things about how they treat their employees, how they dodge taxes and just some overall shady stuff. Listen, they are convenient as heck and I likely won’t drop them just on a few media stories without researching it more. But, overall I’ve just found myself turning to local shops whenever I can, and Walmart and Target for purchases I can’t get there. (Not to mention, with a little research I’ve uncovered that Walmart often beats out Amazon for prices).

That being said, I wanted to share some Walmart shopping secrets I’ve discovered that help me save money every time I shop at Walmart and help me shop smarter.

Walmart clearance markdowns occur on the first 5 days of the month

You can almost never expect to see a mid-month markdown. Typically, clearance items continue to get marked down the first five days of every month until they are sold, however, sometimes months are skipped.

Clearance prices aren’t the same at every store

Corporate Walmart will tell locations to markdown items, but the store managers can discount them even more. This means that the markdown price isn’t the same at every store and some stores have prices lower than others. We’re going to talk about how to spot those in secret 7.

Get free Walmart gift card simply by buying groceries at your local grocery store

Let’s play out a scenario. After you go to the grocery store and you get your receipt, what do you usually do with it? Personally, I used to crumble it into a little ball and shove it in the bottom of the grocery bag or my purse to never be seen again.

Well, no more my friends because these things are now basically CASH MONEY thanks to an app called Fetch Rewards. The app partners with tons of brands that give you points.  I literally just takes seconds: you can scan a receipt, redeem points, and spend a reward on things like Walmart gift card (or other spots like Target, Starbucks, Best Buy, etc.)

For a limited time use BFCOFFEE to get 3000 points when you scan your first receipt!

Walmart Rollback Vs. Clearance

This secret is maybe more of a clarification than a secret but that’s that Walmart’s Rollback markdowns are temporary price reductions. Rollback prices last about 4-10 weeks and then go back up to the original price. Clearance, on the other hand, never goes back up in price. 

Rollback prices aren’t ALWASY the best deal

Just because something is rolled-back don’t assume it’s the best deal around.  Don’t get me wrong, I find that they are over 80% of the time, but it’s still worth a quick price check online.

Get Easier Returns at Walmart

A few years back Walmart made it MUCH easier for you to return your items – which Thank goodness because I hate returns.

You can now return items you purchased through Walmart.com (as well as some in-store purchases) using the Mobile Express Returns on the Walmart app. It allows you to start the return from your phone, then when you get to the store you just have to have them scan your QR code and you’re good to go.

Walmart hidden clearance

So, this secret builds off secret 2, that while corporate tells Walmart stores to lower a price, the store manager ultimately can choose how low to go. This means clearance prices vary all over. And, it’s a little known secret that sometimes the price of the item gets lowered in the computers, but the sticker of an item hasn’t been updated to reflect the lowest price.

So, in order to use this secret you need to be in a specific store, have the Walmart app on your phone, and set your location on your Walmart app to show the store you’re in. Again, this varies store to store so you gotta set the store you’re in. Then, you can use the barcode reader to quickly scan the price of an item, and see if the price is actually set lower. Definitely check out the video posted in this blog post to see this in action – I found a Graco car seat for $100 off!

Now, if you’re wondering, OK great I found a hidden clearance item now how do I get the price? Well, there’s no secret needed there. The price is lower in that store’s system, so when you get to the cash register, the price will ring up at the low price. 

Always Price Check Against Walmart.com vs. In-Store

I always suggest checking the online price of an item up against an in-store item before you purchase, particularly on bigger ticket items over $30. Because Walmart.com price matches and in-store you cannot, often Walmart.come has to lower the price to compete with other online retailers.

And, on the flipside, sometimes the in store price is better due to Rollback or Clearance. Long story short, it’s worth the 15 seconds it takes to confirm you are getting the lower price.

See Everything on Clearance With One Search

If you’re shopping Walmart.com you can quickly see everything on clearance at a glance by simply searching “clearance” in the search bar. Then you can use the filtering option at the top to scroll through the different departments.

Not Everything On Walmart.com is Sold By Walmart

If you’ve ever been a little confused by Walmart.com you’re not alone. There seems to be SO MUCH PRODUCT. And, that’s because not everything on Walmart.com is sold by Walmart. Walmart has something called Marketplace Sellers. It makes millions of more products available at Walmart.com. Walmart offers the financial security and payment processing, but the marketplace seller manages the shipping, customer service, and returns.  

Now, to spot if you’re buying something from Walmart or not, you can simply see the seller right on the browse page. It will clearly say “Sold by…” if not sold by Walmart.

Now, it’s not to say buying from a marketplace seller is bad, it’s just good to know especially on a bigger purchase. If you need support or a return, it’s going to go through that marketplace seller and not Walmart.

Get Free Shipping

Amazon isn’t the only one who offers free 2-day shipping. Walmart.com also offers free shipping and you don’t even have to have a special membership. TONS of items on Walmart.com are available for 2-day shipping OR NextDay delivery program for free as long as you’re spending $35 or more. 

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I'm Kallie!

Nothing happens around here before coffee, so pour a cup and join me. Here you’ll find life hacks, budgeting, simple DIYs, and honest motherhood.
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Hey there, I’m

Nothing happens around here before coffee, so pour a cup and join me. Here you’ll find life hacks, budgeting, simple DIYs, and honest motherhood.
New here?