I'm a bigger cheapskate than my editor. She's always asking for ways to save on her grocery bill, but she won't take me up on Aldi. I've heard all of the arguments against it (limited selection, long waits at checkout, inconsistent quality of produce, no customer service), and I agree that shopping there can be off-putting. But the savings! Aldi's prices beat the competition by 20 to 40 percent, every day.

For those who want to save money at other grocery stores, keep an eye out for BOGOs. Buy-one-get-one-free offers are one of the most popular sales, especially in this economy, said representatives from Cub, Rainbow and Lunds/Byerly's, which all have periodic BOGO sales.

Lunds/Byerly's latest BOGO sale is in progress and runs through May 27. Unlike Cub or Rainbow, its BOGO sales run for two weeks, not one. Lunds typically has BOGO sales three or four times per year, said spokesman Aaron Sorenson. Cub's next BOGO sale will be happening "very soon," spokeswoman LeeAnn Jorgenson said. Its sales start on Sundays and run through Saturdays, as do Rainbow's. Cub offers BOGO savings about once a month. Rainbow did not respond to requests for comment on the approximate timing of its next BOGO sale.

When I asked two supermarket analysts what they think about BOGOs, they were underwhelmed. David Livingston, a grocery store analyst based in Waukesha, Wis., said, "I find that BOGO products are often something I don't want to have two of."

I tend to agree with that, although stockpiling is a good strategy in this economy, if it's an item you'll use. Livingston doubts that BOGOs are loss leaders (unprofitable items used to get shoppers in the store in hopes they'll buy other stuff), but supermarkets probably get a big discount on the items featured, he said.

How do BOGO items get chosen? The BOGO sales are probably started by retailers going to 20 manufacturers, asking Kraft, Conagra and Nestle, for example, to promote a couple of their products at a discounted price, said Phil Lempert, a supermarket analyst based in California (www. supermarketguru.com).

Lempert thinks BOGO sales are a fairly good bargain, but not as good as the deals he's seen at supermarkets such as Save-a-Lot, which, like Cub Foods, is owned by Supervalu. Their "feed a family of four for $5" packages are a fantastic deal, said Lempert. (Wisconsin and Iowa have Save-a-Lot stores.)

Livingston and Lempert think consumers would save more money by going to stores such as Aldi or Wal-Mart Supercenters, which offer items at low cost, without coupons. "Aldi and Wal-Mart make fools out of their competitors by selling products at a lower price compared to supermarkets that offer coupons," Livingston said. (Wal-Mart accepts coupons; Aldi does not.)

But for customers who refuse to shop at Aldi or Wal-Mart (and I've heard plenty from those readers lately) or don't have one nearby, BOGOs can offer good deals. If an item is a national brand, the savings can be even better by using a coupon.

Don't have that coupon handy? Try one of the general sites such as coupons.com, coolsavings.com, www.retailmenot.com or www. redplum.com. Or try the manufacturers' sites, including General Mills/Betty Crocker (www.bettycrocker.com) for Betty Crocker, Bisquick, Cheerios, Chex, Häagen-Dazs, Pillsbury, Progresso, Green Giant and Yoplait, and Procter & Gamble (www.pg.com; click on Everyday Solutions to register for a free monthly newsletter) for brands such as Cascade, Charmin, Clairol, Crest, Duracell, Fixodent, Gillette, Ivory, Mr. Clean, Old Spice, Pampers, Swiffer and Tide. Colgate-Palmolive (www.colgate.com) offers coupons on Ajax, Murphy's Oil soap and Speed Stick.

It's also a good idea to check the websites of your favorite stores for Web-only coupons. Www.lundsandbyerlys.com features the weekly sale items and a Web-only coupon for a free or heavily discounted item with a purchase of $10 to $25. Cub includes some offers that can be found in the store or at www.cub.com, such as last week's Garden Center coupon. Recently, students could register for a chance to win a $1,000 scholarship online only.

John Ewoldt • 612-673-7633 or jewoldt@startribune.com. If you spot a deal, share it at www.startribune.com/blogs/dealspotter.

BUY ONE

GET ONE