Costco: Yay or Nay?

[maxiesmom]

I've been thinking about buying a Costco membership, but I'm not sure if it is worth it. Do you really save that much money on stuff you use every day? Or do most people do better by checking ads and cutting coupons? Is a Costco membership a good investment?

 

[MommytoaSweetie]

For us, a lot of the worth is also in the quality of the products. Costco offers a lot of organic foods that are the same or cheaper than regular grocery stores' non-organic foods, their produce and meats are great quality, and they have great deals on many other products (electronics, books, DVDs, dishes, office supplies, cleaning supplies, medicines, baby products, etc). We still use coupons and you can certainly save on some things better at other stores, but I still find Costco an excellent deal. I think they also offer a refund of your membership if you find that it's not useful to you (you should check on that before taking my word for it ), so it might be worth getting for a little while to see how you would use the membership.

 

[victorandbellasmom]

I've had a costco membership since my college days (i'm in my 30's) and don't regret it for one minute. We're not saving thousands of dollars, but we do manage to break even and then some after membership fees. The great thing about costco is their customer service and prices. I'd recommend investing the $50 in membership, if for any reason within that year it's not what you thought it'd be saving you, you can always ask to get a refund your membership. Where we live, costco gas is usally 10-20 cents cheapers than 76 or shell, so that's more savings for us. For the most part, i shop at costco for grocery items, and the $1.50 hot dog and drinks. Every now and then we'll make a big ticket item purchase. I feel secure in knowing that costco has a great warranty plan for those spendy items.

 

[CapnJacksGirl]

I wouldn't give up my Costco membership for anything. We buy gas there exclusively and it is consistently cheaper than any other gas station by at least five cents a gallon, usually more. As for in-store, I buy all of my meat there, as well as juice for the kids, snack items, canned veggies, eggs, and milk (love the price, hate the container). I also buy the Kirkland brand diapers. I hesitated in buying them for a long time, thinking that the Huggies must be better, but they aren't and the price difference is definitely worth it. I pick up pajamas, shorts, and jeans for the boys there frequently and there's always a thing or two that is new and catches my eye. My only beef with my Costco is that they now don't carry Dr Pepper. They still have Diet Dr Pepper, but not regular. For a Dr Pepper fiend like me, that's heresy!

Bottom line, get the membership - you likely won't regret it!

 

[nanadeb]

We've been costco members for 10 years. Even though there are only 3 of us at ome now, we still save a significant amount of money using costco. We have the Executive Membership, which gives you a percentage back on your purchases at the end of the year. Our winds up refunding a bit more than the cost of our membership.
It works for us because we buy all of our prescriptions at Costco, and the co-pays count towards the rebate. A lot of basics like milk, eggs, and cheese are a lot cheaper. So are packaged, sliced deli meats.
We have a house, so we buy our garden and lawn care products there. Coctco frequently sends you coupon books, and we tend to stock up on things like Lysol wipes, OxyClean, and other things like that, then.
You also can't beat their humungo pumpkin pies for $5.99. Costco also makes the absolute best sheetcakes, too.
Books are always a stellar buy at Costco.
There are lots of things that are good deals, and some things I don't buy because I can get better sales (think paper towels, toilet paper, etc.)
If you really aren't sure, go to the customer service desk and ask for a day pass. You won't be able to buy things at the listed prices, but you can get a good idea of what the prices are. Also, the Costco pharmacy is open to all whether or not you have a Costco card. Their prices are extremely good. Check the website for prices under "pharmacy." While you are waiting for your prescription, check out the store!

 

[BigDopeyMom]

I love Costco!!!! Ditto what everyone else above has said!! I buy name brand jeans and summer capri type pants at a significant discount as well. And their cooked rotissiere chicken is delicious (as well as all their other food)!!

Go for it

 

[mom2faith]

You have to know your prices - there are a lot of things you can get for a lot less elsewhere.

For me, I am a scrapbooker and the photo developing alone is worth it for us.

We also like their books and movies.

Their food is hit or miss, again learn/know your prices.

Clothes, I am a plus so there is not much there for me. I think that is important in case you are a plus as well.

I say, try it for a year, keep track of how much you use it and go from there.

Amy

 

[crisi]

Go and take a look and see. There is an investment in the membership - but often also in the quantity - since much is sold in larger lots. A lot will depend on if what they carry is what you buy. But I do agree knowing prices helps - sometimes the prices aren't any better than the grocery store. And sometimes they are.

Here gas and alcohol are both really cheap. That, plus party trays for the two parties we host each year pretty much pay for the membership. Then I get things like the huge boxes of Kudos bars for the kids lunch.

 

[mikehn]

If you get a Costco membership, you will definitely save money on a variety of purchases but you will also fall into the 'trap' that many of us do. And that is impulse buying. So in the end, it may cost you more.

 

[Aimeedyan]

It is worth it for us, even just 2 people. Their house brand (Kirkland) is often superior to name brands and I prefer their quality. The prices on Kirkland stuff just can't be beat.

400 Kirkland Benadryl is less than $4.
40 pound bag of Kirkland dog food (FAR superior to most name brands) is $22.
Kirkland dog bed is $20 (for a nice big dog bed)
Contacts were $45 for a years worth of disposables
I bought a large carton of baby bella mushrooms yesterday for $4. I would pay that for 1/3 the size at Kroger.

Now, that said - you can spend money like crazy in there. I go with a list and look past everything else. Yesterday I went in and bought mushrooms and Benadryl - that was IT. I was so proud of myself

 

[KigerKat]

It's just DH and I, so Costco doesn't really do too much in the grocery department. We use it more to stock up on things like tp, paper towels, detergent, dishwashing soap...stuff that won't go bad that we will eventually use.

We did just purchase a memory foam mattress there that was a heck of a deal compared to the mattress stores. I think we saved about $400-$500!!

I can't say we buy big ticket items there all the time, but that savings on the mattress alone was well worth it for me!

Maybe go in with a friend and split the cost of a membership!!

 

[KigerKat]

I was also going to add that they have one of the most liberal return policies I have ever seen. If for any reason you are dissatisfied with something, they will take it back. No questions asked!!

 

[NaplesRI]

Well I am one who voted against. If we want to go to Costco, we could go with someone else who belongs, and simply pay them back for our purchases.

But- we actually went for the first time last week with family who belong- and didnt see anything that was worth a membership. Unless of course you consider the fudge they were giving free samples of- that was soooo good.

First, there are only 2 of us and portions are too large.
Second, they don't carry all brands
Third, the temptations are many, and willpower is lacking.

I think you do as well watching sales and buying only what you need. You need to shop there often to make it worth your membership.
Or, if you were going to buy a big ticket electronics item, it would be worth checking out their prices.

Overall, for us, it simply isn't worth the membership cost.

 

[madge]

party trays for the two parties we host each year pretty much pay for the membership.

we had a graduation open house in May. The membership paid for itself with that.... really, just in the cake we saved quite a bit of $$. To get anything close to the same size & quality would have been way more than $15.

I'd love to find someone to split the membership with when it's time to renew. I'm sure I save $25/year. I'm not positive that I'd save $50 ... Costco is an hour away.

 

[pooh98378]

It's just DH and I, so Costco doesn't really do too much in the grocery department. We use it more to stock up on things like tp, paper towels, detergent, dishwashing soap...stuff that won't go bad that we will eventually use.

DH's parents bought us a membership to Sam's and we do basically the same thing. It is just the two of us and we live in an apartment, so we have found that the bulk groceries are just too large for us - we don't have enough room to store them and it's hard for us to eat everything before it goes bad (or, in the case of canned food, it takes up all the room in our pantry before we can eat it). The membership is more beneficial for the tp, paper towels, etc., but I'm not sure we would break even on it if we would've paid to join. It might be more beneficial if you have kids.

 

[tnd]

I love Costco. We save so much money on gas alone that it is well worth the membership cost alone. It's generally about 10 cents cheaper than other stations in our area. We also buy a lot of meat there, cheaper than our grocery store and better quality. They also have nice produce at reasonable prices, assuming you can consume it before it goes bad.

I also buy some clothing items, DVDs, books and other one-off things like that there. It's awesome for things like that, but the temptation to impulse buy is huge.

 

[Handbag Lady]

I love Costco. I do shop around so I don't accidentally pay extra for something but here is what I do buy regularly:

Pantene Conditioner: $7.89 for 40 oz. At Ralph's it is usually about the same price for 25 oz. Same with shampoo, but I can use any shampoo so I buy the cheaper stuff.

Laundry Detergent: This is why I have the membership. One bucket lasts us a year. *It's just two of us.* It is something like $9-12 a bucket. (Sometimes I get lucky and get the coupon.

Water: For our WDW trips, Costco takes care of our bottled water order and ships to our WDW resort room.

The cakes: Pretty good and very large for the price. I like the taste of their frosting.

Gas: If I have time, I wait and save a lot on gasoline. My Costco usually has a really long line at the pumps, so I don't use this as often as I should. I figure the stress (I freak out trying to pump as fast as I can and I always feel like someone in the car behind me is watching me and timing me!) isn't worth the 8 cents per gallon.


Recently, I bought the Canon 790 IS from Costco. Most places had it for $199.99. I got it for $179.99 and they sent me a free 2 gb card to go with it.

 

[thistle922]

You have to know your prices - there are a lot of things you can get for a lot less elsewhere.

For me, I am a scrapbooker and the photo developing alone is worth it for us.

I'll second that! The photo printing alone is the reason I keep my membership.

The discounts on gas and car rentals are also great, too.

 

[SeeDisney]

Well, I'm in the minority and voted no cuz we have access to the military commissary and it's cheaper.

If we didn't have the commissary, I'd definately would join the membership for Costco.

 

[Lib E]

If you get a Costco membership, you will definitely save money on a variety of purchases but you will also fall into the 'trap' that many of us do. And that is impulse buying. So in the end, it may cost you more.

Yep. I love Costco, but it costs me a lot more than it saves me to shop there. We've collected more beach towels and lawn chairs that one family should have.