We might still be in the heart of winter, but that doesn’t mean you have to pay full price for winter clothing!

Many stores are starting their winter clothing clearance sales, which means now is a great time to replace a worn-out pair of gloves or to buy the kids new winter coats for next year.

At my local Target and Walmart stores, I’ve seen anywhere from 50 to 75 percent off retail prices on items like sweaters, winter coats, snow pants, hats, gloves, scarves, and slippers.

Similar deals abound online.  Stores like Lands End, JCPenney, Kohls and Sears will have steep discounts on winter clothing over the next few weeks.

Do a full winter clothing inventory to determine what you have and what you’ll need for next season before you shop.

You should also consider these additional factors when buying ahead:

• Do your kids need any special items of clothing? (i.e black dress pants or skirts, white dress shirts, red or green sweaters for school, hockey skates, etc.) Now is a great time to stock up for next year.

• Will you need new sleepwear? Pick up warm winter pajamas for next year while they’re on sale now.  Deeply discounted slippers can make attractive gifts next holiday season.  Don’t forget warm fuzzy robes and blankets, too!

• What colors are your current winter outerwear?  Before you head to the winter clothing clearance sales, consider the savings of sticking to a color scheme for your winter gear. For example, I try to make sure all of my boys’ outerwear shares a common popular basic color like navy, back or gray.  Kids don’t always outgrow their hats or mittens from one year to the next. So, if you purchase a jacket for next year following your color scheme, you won’t have to worry about buying all new hats and mittens. It also makes it easy for older siblings to pass down snow pants to younger ones.  A single color scheme assures  you have a whole collection of hats and mittens that will match their coats in case something goes missing.

• Do you need a swim suit?  It’s really hard to think about bikinis when it’s 20 below zero outside, but the fact is that many retailers have big sales on swimsuits right now (The best deals are online as retailers make room for this year’s designs).  It’s a great time to replace your old suit or pick up an extra set of swim trunks.

You can save even more by searching our database for online coupon codes and signing up for your favorite store’s e-mail list. The prices will get better over the next few weeks, but the selection will disappear, so shop early and often for the best values.

Note:  This post contains affiliate links that help support this site at no additional cost to you. Please read our full disclosure policy for more details. Thanks!