This post was originally published in July 2010.  I have updated it and reposted it for the newbies who might have questions about the current sale and how it works. For the full Kroger Mega list, check out our Kroger Mega Sale post here. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  We're getting a LOT of emails and comments asking questions about the Mega Sale basics.  They can be confusing the first time or two, so let me go through them. 

• Check the ad and in-store for mega sale items.  Mega sale items will have a special yellow tag labeling them.  If they do not have the mega sale tag, do not assume they are part of the sale.  Ask the store.  But Kroger is generally very good about having them marked.
• There will be items in-store that will be a part of the sale that are not in the ad.  All part of the fun!  So keep your eyes peeled!
• This is a mix-and-match sale.  You do not need to buy 10 of any one item.  You can buy 3 of x, 4 of y and 3 of z!
• There WILL be cashiers who do not know why you did not get full credit.  Bbe ready for them to say 'You must get 10 of the same item' or 'You must get 10 of the same price range.'  Neither have EVER been true in the past, and it isn't true now.
• Mega sale items will show up on your receipt with a + next to the item.  This makes it easy to count later if you find you did not get a discount you were expecting.
• ALWAYS check your receipt before leaving--it will save you headaches later.
• Plan on these trips taking longer--they just do.  There's a LOT of math involved!  That doesn't mean its hard, it just means to take your time, have a pen and paper and calculator handy.  (I love my iPhone for this.)
• The $5 off is instantaneous--it comes off the same order.  No catalinas or gift cards to deal with.
• There are no limits to how many $5 rewards you can get in one transaction.
• Remember that they will NOT give you money back if your balance goes below $0!
• Now, for my favorite trick with these sales, and the reason why I'm excited about THIS one!  If you?re buying a Moneymaker, balance it with an item that either has an out of pocket cost, or one that you normally cannot get on discount.  The extra money will come off the total order.  Or you can pick up a Kroger gift card and include it in your total order--the extra money will pay for it.
• I suggest taking pen and paper with you, and writing down how many items you've put in your cart as you go.  Trying to keep track of the multiples of 10 can get really hard--especially if you have kids or other distractions with you!

 I will ask one thing, and I'll put it in bold to emphasize the importance of this request: 

PLEASE DO NOT CLEAR SHELVES!

 I know I mention getting 20 Oatmeals and 50 packages of toilet paper.  But you must understand that I don't get all of those at once.  These sales run for two weeks so there is no need to rush and get it all at once.  This is a key rule to stockpiling is to be gracious to the stores and other customers.  I have a good description of coupon etiquette (yes there is such a thing!) and the basic Couponer's Golden Rule in my Dealbreakers post.  If you haven't read it before, or haven't read it in a long time, now would be a good time.  We'll wait for ya!  Okay, now that you're familiar with the why of this, let me let you in on a little secret.  If you want large orders, Kroger will often let you special order them!  That's right, you can special order large quantities from the front desk.  You don't need to give them a reason, or ask any questions.  (Truly, the less you say the better off you are because you can confuse them with this and get a wrong answer when they don't understand you.  But special ordering is a part of their policy at most stores.  It will be at the manager?s discretion.)  Simply go to the front desk and tell them you want to special order X.  They will write down your order, tell you when to expect it (about 2-3 days) and send you on your way.  You do not pay till your order arrives.  At that point you come to the front desk, tell them you have a special order waiting, they will either bring it out or tell you where it is, and you go to the regular checkout with it.  Checkout proceeds as usual.  There are no issues with using coupons, as you checkout as usual.  Why is this so beneficial?  You get your products, Kroger gets your business, and the regular customers get their products off the shelves.  Shelves aren't cleared.  Its a beautiful thing! Now, just to be clear, 'Clearing Shelves' does not mean that there are 5 left and you take all 5.  Its being considerate and remembering that there are others who want the sale as well.  If we remember that sales come again, and that every week something else will be free or deeply discounted, we'll be okay.  There is NO need to panic and crash down because you only got 10 of the Quaker Chewy Granola bars.  There will be another sale soon.  If there's one thing I've learned in my nearly three years of doing this, its that there is ALWAYS ANOTHER SALE.  Sales this big only come around a few times a year but next week, there will be another sale.  May not be as good or as big as this one, but there will be another one.  So when considering how many to take off the shelf, remember that.  I limit myself to 10 of an item at a time unless the deal or coupon requires me to buy more.  (The buy 10 get 5 free Powerade coupon comes to mind.  Or the Meijer buy 10 get the 11th free sale.) I will add one more comment to this, from my own personal experience.  It's easy to get caught up in the excitement.  I have 45 boxes of General Mills cereal to prove this from the 2008 Mega sale.  (well, I had.  I've been eating through them.)  I didn't need 45 boxes.  At the time I didn't have the master shopping list, so I overestimated how much I would use.  Use the tools from the class to know how much you'll actually use.  If you've been to one of my classes or parties, you've heard this before.  But when you're new, it's easy to get really excited and spend 5 days a week in the store.  Especially at sales like this!  But remember your time is just as valuable as your money!  Get what you need, and leave the rest.  Another sale always comes around--this has gone on for decades and will continue to go on.  While you're at it, consider getting a few for the donation box.  If the granola bars are only costing you .33, you can get a few for under $1.  For under $5 at this sale you could get 3 to 4 times what your normal $5 donation would buy.  Food pantries are in desperate need right now, so consider expanding the beauty of this sale by helping them out and helping out your neighbors?you likely know someone who is using a food pantry right now or has in the recent past, whether you know it or not!