Tips For Maximizing the Target Clearance!

I love a good deal! I mean, nothing makes me more happy when shopping when I can score a deal and save money, to buy extra Target things! Just kidding, kinda. But seriously, you can score some major deals if you pay attention and have an idea of what you’re looking for. There’s always a few things at Target I’m keeping my eyes on.

I like finding good deals on clothing and shoes for my kids, home decor and seasonal items too. Here’s a few tips to help you maximize the Target clearance racks and find yourself a good deal too.

Tip #1: Know what you’re looking for! 

Like I mentioned there’s always a few things I have my eye on. I’m one of those shoppers that goes to Target with an idea of what I’m getting and this will serve you well when wanting to find a good deal! If you’ve got your eye on a certain type of decor or bedding but you don’t want to pay full price, keep your eye on that item and every time you go in check and see if the item has been marked down.

Tip #2: Know the markdown schedule! 

It’s helpful to know what days of the week Target is going to clearance things out and mark them down in the stores. Here’s a quick schedule:

Monday- kids clothing, baby items, electronics, accessories and books.

Tuesday- women’s clothing, domestics, food, pets.

Wednesday– men’s clothing, toys, lawn and garden.

Thursday- shoes, housewares, sporting goods, decor, luggage.

Friday- jewelry, auto, cosmetics and hardware.

Holiday items will go 30%-50% off the day after said holiday, and 50% a week later, 70% the week after that generally speaking.

Tip #3: Know where to find clearance items!

It used to be that most clearance items were only found on the end caps in the store but nowadays Target is putting a lot of items on clearance all once it’s helpful to know where to look. Most items will be in their respective sections throughout the store all grouped together. For example, the women’s clothing clearance is generally in the back of the section altogether with big yellow signs above.

Shoes the same, but all together in one section of the shoe department.

Cosmetics, cleaning items, stationery, party stuff and candles can mostly still be found on end caps.

For decor, you’ll find some on the end caps, but check down the aisles as there are tons of decor items being put on clearance that won’t all fit on the end, it’s sprinkled throughout the entire decor section. Holiday items will generally all be in the section they were displayed in during that time. Christmas items can be tricky since they get moved around a lot by customers shopping through the store, so check back often.

Tip #4: Know what the numbers on the tag mean! 

There’s a lot of good info on those little yellow tags! Here’s how to decode them!

See those small numbers in the upper right-hand side? They will read one of the following 30, 50, 70. This stands for the markdown schedule. Anything 30% off has just been put on clearance, and will more than likely be marked down two more times before leaving the store. Again at 50% and then 70%. Seventy percent if FINAL clearance and won’t be marked down again after that.

So if you see a bunch of the same item all with a 30 in the corner they will be marked down again, so keep your eye on it. Unless of course it’s one of the last two in the store, in that case, scoop it up because it’ll more than likely be gone before you come back.

Tip #5: Check the ‘Cartwheel’ App!

Lastly, check the Cartwheel app for extra savings! Every now and then in the app, they have an extra coupon to apply toward clearance items. This often happens with clothing, so make sure you’ve got the app downloaded and check to see if there are some extra savings you can apply to checkout!

Do you love shopping the clearance too? Tell me in the comments below your most recent item you scored on clearance that you’re excited about?