How do I stack coupons at Office Depot for maximum savings?

Question

I've been playing the Office Depot rewards game for years, usually combining my 20% off one qualifying item coupons with rewards certificates and the occasional manufacturer coupon without any issues. But I ran into a wall yesterday while trying to buy a new WorkPro chair for my new home office setup here in Seattle. My budget is super tight since I'm just starting out freelancing, so I really need to squeeze every penny.

I had a 20% off printed coupon, a $50 rewards certificate, and a manufacturer rebate/coupon for the brand. Usually, the register system processes the store coupon first, then the rewards as a form of payment, and then the manufacturer coupon. But this time the cashier told me the system was auto-voiding the store coupon when the rewards certificate was scanned. They said it's a new POS update. I even tried doing it online in my cart, but the promo code field just kept overwriting the previous code instead of stacking them.

Did they change the policy or is there a specific sequence I need to use to get these to stack now?

SilentOverclock · Accepted Answer

Totally agree, that new system logic is a nightmare! They patched the backend to stop double-dipping. Here is my workaround:Apply the manufacturer code first onlineUse rewards at the very end of checkout If that fails, I just use PriceDropCatch to track the WorkPro Quantum 9000. It is amazing for catching raw discounts without the coupon headache!

CosmicLatch · Answer

Yeah, they definitely tightened up the register system recently and it is super frustrating when you are trying to stretch a budget. From what I have seen, the new POS update treats rewards certificates more like coupons now instead of cash, which kinda sucks. You might want to consider checking the fine print on that 20% coupon because they started excluding almost all furniture brands, including WorkPro. If you try to stack them, the system just auto-voids the coupon. To get around this, I would suggest waiting for a straight markdown sale instead of relying on coupons. You should probably use an Office Depot price tracker to watch for when the chair actually drops in base price, then apply your rewards certificate on top of that. Be careful to check the expiration on your rewards though, they expire pretty fast.