Joe the Coupon Guy breaks down BOGO or buy one get one offers

CLEVELAND - When you're holiday shopping, you'll see lots of BOGO, or buy-one-get-one offers.

Usually the word "free" comes after BOGO, but this year, many of the BOGO offers are for a discount off the second item. So, are these really good deals?

Joe Daugirdas, also known as Joe the Coupon Guy , thinks they're not that great. If you get 50 percent off the second item, Daugirdas said you're really getting 25 percent off each item. He won't buy unless it's a minimum of 50 percent savings.

If you haven't done your shopping, you can save money on Free Shipping Day. It's typically held on a Friday, but this year with an early Thanksgiving and more holiday shopping days, Free Shipping Day is on Monday, Dec. 17. On this day, thousands of retailers join together to offer free shipping on items.

If you want free shipping year round, consider Amazon Prime. There are yearly and monthly memberships to get free shipping on qualifying purchases.

Daugirdas also said to consider Shoprunner , a membership club offering free two-day shipping. Plus, you get free shipping on returns, which you do not get with Prime. The fee is $79. The catch - you have to shop a participating store to get the free shipping.