Confused by your Target receipt? I don't blame you. Target has some of the most convoluted receipts I've ever seen. I'll walk you through a myriad of scenarios below.
NO COUPONS
We bought one bag of peanut butter M&Ms for $0.54. The receipt showed:
111111111......PB M MS.........FB....0.54
The "B" means that it should be taxed at the lower food rate. Not all states have sales tax or multiple sales tax categories. The 9-digit number at the beginning of the line is the Target-assigned product number. This is not printed on your package anywhere.
We bought one bottle of Huggies shampoo. The receipt showed:
111111111......HUGGIES..........T....2.84
The "T" means it is taxable at the general sales tax rate.
We bought 0.87 pounds of red bell peppers on sale for $2.99 per pound. The receipt showed:
111111111......RED BELL........FB....2.60
...............0.87 LBS @ 2.99/LB
We bought two identical bags of Archer Farms coffee for $0.99 each. The receipt showed:
111111111......AF COFFEE.......FB....1.98
...............2 @ 0.99
MANUFACTURER'S COUPONS
Sometimes the register is smart enough to know exactly what product your coupon is for, but sometimes it isn't. If it knows what product your manufacturer's coupon is for, then it will list that coupon directly under the item. If it doesn't recognize the item, it will list the coupon at the bottom of the receipt.
We bought a container of Huggies wipes for $2.29 and used a $0.75/1 manufacturer's coupon. The receipt showed:
111111111......HUGGIES..........T....2.29
222222222222...MFR COUPON............0.75-
The 12-digit number in front of the coupon is the same as the number under the first barcode on the coupon.
TARGET COUPONS OFF SINGLE ITEMS
As with manufacturer's coupons, sometimes the Target register knows to what item to hook the coupon and sometimes it doesn't.
We bought a bag of Archer Farms coffee for $0.99 and used a $1/1 Target coupon. The receipt showed:
111111111......AF COFFEE.......FB....0.99
<more items>
11111111.......TARGET COUPON.........1.00-
The register did not associate the coupon with the coffee so the Target coupon was listed at the bottom of the receipt. The 8-digit number in front of the Target coupon is the third and fourth blocks of numbers under the coupon barcode.
We bought a package of Archer Farms snack mix for $0.99 and used a $0.75/1 Target coupon. The receipt showed:
111111111......AF SNACK MIX....FB....0.24
...............Coupon $0.75 off 0.99
In this case, the register recognized that the coupon should be attached to this specific product so the Target coupon value was automatically deducted from our sale price ($0.99 - $0.75 = $0.24). If we were to later return this item, our refund would be $0.24 because Target only collected $0.24 in payment from us.
We bought a package of broccoli for $0.99 and used a $1/1 Target coupon. The receipt showed:
111111111......BROCCOLI........FB....0.00
...............Coupon $0.99 off 0.99
In this case the register was not only smart enough to associate the coupon to the specific item, but also smart enough to adjust the value of the coupon down to $0.99 since the coupon was for more than the cost of the item.
TARGET COUPONS OFF MULTIPLE ITEMS
This is where it starts to get complicated. Target does "packages" whenever you were required to buy more than one item to meet the terms of a Target coupon or promotion.
We bought two identical containers of Huggies wipes for $2.29 each and used a $3/2 Target coupon. The receipt showed:
---------------SPECIAL COUPON---------------
111111111......HUGGIES...............4.58
...............2 @ 2.29
...............Refund Value $0.79 Each..T
.................................---------
...............PACKAGE SUBTOTAL......4.58
...............TARGET COUPON.........3.00-
.................................=========
...............PACKAGE TOTAL.........1.58
--------------------------------------------
The "package subtotal" is the sum of the sale prices. The "package total" is the sale price minus Target coupons. In other words, that's how much Target received for this transaction. If we wanted to return just one of the containers, we would get the "refund value" of $0.79 back. That is the sale price ($2.29) minus half of the $3/2 Target coupon ($1.50). If we returned the entire "package" (i.e. both containers of wipes) we would get the "package total" value of $1.58. The "T" next to the "refund value" again means that the items are taxed at the general rate.
We bought two containers of Huggies wipes for $2.39 and used a $3/2 Target coupon and a $0.75/1 coupon for each. The receipt showed:
---------------SPECIAL COUPON---------------
111111111......HUGGIES...............2.39
111111111111...MFR COUPON............0.75-
...............Refund Value $0.89..T
111111111......HUGGIES...............2.39
111111111111...MFR COUPON............0.75-
...............Refund Value $0.89..T
.................................---------
...............PACKAGE SUBTOTAL......4.78
...............TARGET COUPON.........3.00-
.................................=========
...............PACKAGE TOTAL.........1.78
--------------------------------------------
If we wanted to return just one of the containers, we would get the "refund value" of $0.89 back. That is the sale price ($2.39) minus half of the $3/2 Target coupon ($1.50). If we returned the entire "package" (i.e. both containers of wipes) we would get the "package total" value of $1.78.
The "refund value" is how much Target received for the sale. We did not pay $0.89 out of pocket in real money for each container of wipes, however. We actually paid only $0.14 which is the $0.89 refund value minus the $0.75 manufacturer's coupon. The manufacturer's coupons will be reflected in the subtotal at the bottom of the receipt.
GIFT CARD PROMOTIONS
Take a moment to give your brain a break because this is where it starts to get REALLY complicated.
We bought a Glade candle for $9.78. This candle was part of a promotion where you would get a $5 gift card for buying the item. The receipt showed:
---------------SPECIAL PROMOTION------------
111111111......GLADE.................9.78
...............Refund Value $4.78..T
111111111......GIFT CARDS............5.00
...............111-111-111-111-111
...............NEW BAL:..5.00
.................................---------
...............PACKAGE SUBTOTAL.....14.78
...............GIFTCARD FREE.........5.00-
.................................=========
...............PACKAGE TOTAL.........9.78
ALL ITEMS MUST BE RETURNED FOR FULL REFUND
--------------------------------------------
The "package total" ($9.78) is what we handed over in payment. From Target's perspective, we gave them $9.78 payment, and they gave us $5 back in the form of a gift card so they only got $4.78 on the sale. That means if we wanted to return just the candle without the gift card, we would only get the "refund value" ($9.78 - $5 = $4.78) back. If we were to return the candle and the unused gift card, we would get back the "package total" ($9.78).
We purchased the same candle as above, but used a $4/1 manufacturer's coupon. The receipt showed:
---------------SPECIAL PROMOTION------------
111111111......GLADE.................9.78
111111111111...MFR COUPON............4.00-
...............Refund Value $4.78..T
111111111......GIFT CARDS............5.00
...............111-111-111-111-111
...............NEW BAL:..5.00
.................................---------
...............PACKAGE SUBTOTAL.....14.78
...............GIFTCARD FREE.........5.00-
.................................=========
...............PACKAGE TOTAL.........9.78
ALL ITEMS MUST BE RETURNED FOR FULL REFUND
--------------------------------------------
Again the manufacturer's coupon does not affect the package total or refund value. The discount is reflected in the subtotal at the bottom of the receipt.
THE BOTTOM OF THE RECEIPT
In my county in Georgia, we have items that are taxed at a food rate (3%) and items that are taxed at a higher, general rate (7%). The tax is levied on the post-Target coupon, pre-manufacturer's coupon price.
The bottom of my receipt might look like this:
SUBTOTAL 2.55
T = GA TAX. 7.0000% on 10.35 0.72
B = GA TAX. 3.0000% on 6.05 0.18
TOTAL 3.45
The "subtotal" is the total price of all my items minus all coupons. The line that starts with "T" is for tax at the general rate. I had $10.35 of merchandise that was taxable at this rate. That is $10.35 after Target coupons, but before manufacturer's coupons. 7% of $10.35 is $0.72. The line that starts with "B" is for tax at the food rate. I had $6.05 of merchandise that was taxable at this rate. That is $6.05 after Target coupons, but before manufacturer's coupons. 3% of $6.05 is $0.18. The "total" is the total due to Target in the form of cash, credit card, gift card, etc.
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