Social Media User Shares Hacks to Get Free Coupons at CVS, Calls it a 'Treasure Hunt'

With over 60% of Americans struggling to pay for necessities like groceries, as per NASDAQ, it is no secret that people are constantly looking for buying hacks to bring down their cost of living. From people getting food by redeeming coupons to splitting one meal into two, the internet is filled with tips and tricks that can help the Average American get by in times of financial adversity.  In one such instance, a savvy shopper took to TikTok to share a way he calls "Treasure Hunt" by which he was able to get coupons in the country's biggest pharmacy chain, CVS. Gabe Escobar known on the platform as @gabesco, started his video which has received more than 2.2 million views, by showing a checkout counter that mentions that a customer can get $3.50 in coupons if they find an expired product. "I have literally nothing better to do," he says, before proceeding to walk down the aisle of the pharmacy.

"I feel like the refrigerated food section is a good place to start," he adds.

After checking the protein packs and the packs of eggs, he moved on to search the milk products, where he was able to strike gold. "You see that? March 19," he says, showing the expiration date on the carton of milk to the camera. "And it's the 20th, so," he adds.

After finding success, Escobar was motivated to look for more. He soon finds another carton that had expired the day before.

"I've been here like five minutes, and that's already $7," he brags.

Escobar then heads to the checkout section, saying that he will try to cash in the two that he has already gotten. The footage then shows him enquiring if he could get a coupon for the two milk cartons, with the overlay text, "idk why I was so nervous."

"I found two expired milk and I saw this [message] so I was wondering how that works or if I could get a coupon," he tells the employee while recording the conversation showing his face only. After the brief conversation, he goes on to show the two coupons he got against the two expired products, "Bam $7!" he says. 

"This coupon is redeemable for a future purchase at any CVS/Pharmacy location," the coupons state. "Not valid on lottery, gift cards, money orders, prescriptions, or milk. Coupons are nontransferable and cannot be resold. Other restrictions may apply." The coupon also mentions the validity which is only a month.

People in the comment section were excited to find out about the little trick to get free money, "IT IS PER ITEM?" g_p1121 gasped, while pointers came from a former CVS employee, @Raegarific wrote," [Look for] Nuts, beef jerky- especially if they have the epic jerky in the weird flavors like bison."

Meanwhile, @tyramrs.s took a moment to appreciate the genius of CVS, "CVS is brilliant almost free labor !! Plus increasing sales with coupons !! 😭they wrote. @theblackofficeschairu858, on the other hand, gave some insight as to how the program was actually initiated, "I used to work at a CVS and when they were implementing that program. I found out that if someone finds something expired the person was supposed to update the refrigerators in the store," the comment read. 

Follow @gabesco for more such content, on TikTok.