Do you find you save money on groceries shopping at sams club or costco??

[mom2my3kids]

Been trying to get our grocery bill under control, been shopping twice a month..We usually do a big shop at Sams club and then the rest at either walmart, Kroger or aldi...Would love to keep it at 400 a month but still spend around 500 to 550 after small trips here and there..

 

[funkymom]

I honestly can't say how much we spend a month as I haven't tracked that in a while, but I know my prices and I do feel I save on my staples when shopping at Costco.

We buy milk, eggs, cheese, bread, lettuce, English cucumbers, bananas, and some seasonal fruits. There are also some household products like trash bags, paper plates etc that I find are a better deal and I don't mind having them in bulk.

Knowing the best price on the things you buy the most is key to saving money.

 

[tvguy]

I gave up on Sams Club and Costco. I can make one stop at Super Walmart. The key is planning your menu around what is around sale.

 

[hsmamato2]

haven't shopped there in a while, but NO I didn't save anything. I can save more going to my local Aldi/PriceRite or shopping sales at the ordinary grocery stores locally -I have never seen the benefit of shopping at a place where you pay extra to buy more.

 

[Fab4@disney]

I am a fellow Hoosier and find myself shopping at all the places you mentioned. I feel Sam's Club is worth it for certain things, but you have to know your prices and really think things thru which is time consuming. I also buy things on sale weekly from Kroger and Meijer and visit Aldi's about every 2weeks.

I don't know what I spend per month on my family of 4 but it always seems to be too much!

 

[RN01]

The only reason we have a sam's membership is to get chlorine tablets for our pool. The savings from that pays for our membership. That being said there are only a few things that I actually save buying them at Sam's and that's syrup, vinager( I use for all my cleaning) dishwasher detergent, pizza sauce, nuts and toilet paper. Everything else is over priced.

 

[dpswift]

I used to shop at BJs(like Costco or Sams) weekly and found that I was getting to much junk and spending WAY to much. Now I only go once every three to four weeks and buy a months supply of pork, steaks,roasts and sausage. Everything else I have been buying on sale at Target or the grocery store. I am saving money and have less waste. I also used to buy the boxes of small bags of Smartfood popcorn for snacks when the kids were in elementary school.

 

[mckelvey72]

I feel you can save money as long as you are disciplined. I go in there to get toilet paper and come out spending 200.00. So I stopped going. Or i go on my lunch hour with a list...get in and get out. If I have time to mosey around I end up spending WAY too much money.

And also, if you buy food there, you have to determine if you are good about actually eating it. Right now i have a thing of strawberries in the fridge that are not eaten and going bad....have to throw them away. Not sure why no one at it but that is money down the drain.

 

[StephMK]

I don't think I save money by shopping Costco but the quality, quantity, and convenience are nice. We usually go once a month and get the big packs of meat to split up into smaller packs. I like their eggs, milk, and frozen organic veggies. We buy other things to try or items that we use a lot. As a family of 5 with older kids, we definitely don't have trouble using things up!

 

[disneybound2010]

I've started doing what I call quarterly shopping. Aside from the every day staples, like milk and fresh produce, I usually hit the Sharp Shopper that we have here as well as Aldi's. I can get the majority of my canned, frozen, and baking/cooking groceries from these two places that will last for at least 3 months(for next to nothing). I use Sam's Club for all of my meats. I buy up the meats in bulk and proceed to separate and freeze them for individual meals. I hear people talk about spending an average of $350/month on groceries. If I do it correctly, I can spend about $600 on one big trip between the 2-3 stores and make it last for 3-4 months. That breaks it down to around $200/month for groceries. So yes, for me, Sam's does save us big on money

 

[LJSquishy]

I think we probably save a small amount shopping at Costco (meaning our savings at least pays for our membership, plus some).

There are surprisingly a lot of bad deals at Costco, so you have to be a smart shopper and know your prices.

The items I buy regularly at Costco are:

Toilet Paper/Paper Towels
Clorox Wipes
Tide Laundry Detergent (out of convenience)
Half & Half
Organic Butter
Chicken Breasts (out of convenience)
English Muffins
Outdoor Rolls (for hot dogs & french dips)
Tortillas
Feta Cheese
Organic Spring Mix Lettuce
Organic Baby Carrots
Bananas (out of convenience, if I need a lot)
Organic Frozen Green Beans
Greek Yogurt
Craisins
Organic Tortilla Chips
Kettle Chips
Mocha Frappe Mix (OMG, Yummy!!!)
Izze soda (on coupon only)
Strawberries (only occasionally...I prefer organic)

I don't buy Milk at Costco because it doesn't list where it is from. The organic milk I buy is from locally humanely treated animals. I don't think the animals Costco sources from are humanely treated (as far as I know). Same with eggs. But, for those that don't care either way, I think the milk & eggs are a good price.
Occasionally we will see a household item we need. We always check prices before purchasing...usually Costco is a better deal. We also take into consideration their amazing return policy which is worth something to us. I hate returning items unless I have a big reason but I have returned a few things to Costco before and I get my money back with virtually no questions asked. I love Costco!

 

[lurkernj]

we definitely save on dairy products. We also do fairly well on produce and bread items. They also eat Cliff bars and protein bars during sports seasons, and those are cheaper than supermarket.

A lot of things are definitely overpriced, so you do need to know your prices.

 

[gunka]

I think we probably save a small amount shopping at Costco (meaning our savings at least pays for our membership, plus some).

There are surprisingly a lot of bad deals at Costco, so you have to be a smart shopper and know your prices.

The items I buy regularly at Costco are:

Toilet Paper/Paper Towels
Clorox Wipes
Tide Laundry Detergent (out of convenience)
Half & Half
Organic Butter
Chicken Breasts (out of convenience)
English Muffins
Outdoor Rolls (for hot dogs & french dips)
Tortillas
Feta Cheese
Organic Spring Mix Lettuce
Organic Baby Carrots
Bananas (out of convenience, if I need a lot)
Organic Frozen Green Beans
Greek Yogurt
Craisins
Organic Tortilla Chips
Kettle Chips
Mocha Frappe Mix (OMG, Yummy!!!)
Izze soda (on coupon only)
Strawberries (only occasionally...I prefer organic)

I don't buy Milk at Costco because it doesn't list where it is from. The organic milk I buy is from locally humanely treated animals. I don't think the animals Costco sources from are humanely treated (as far as I know). Same with eggs. But, for those that don't care either way, I think the milk & eggs are a good price.
Occasionally we will see a household item we need. We always check prices before purchasing...usually Costco is a better deal. We also take into consideration their amazing return policy which is worth something to us. I hate returning items unless I have a big reason but I have returned a few things to Costco before and I get my money back with virtually no questions asked. I love Costco!

What are the bad deals? I have often wondered if we really save money at Costco. Like a pp said, it's almost about the convenience and quality, but I would like to avoid getting ripped off unless I like their specific product.

 

[figment3258]

You have to know ur prices before going to a club ( we have bj's)
I do find that I save money and I use their coupons plus other coupons which they said we could use both. I have a baby so diapers are mich cheaper and that pays for the membership. I buy rice there which works out to a dollar a box and for instance this week I bought trash bags had a coupon, the I had a coupon for a free glad bags if I bought the trash bags then I had a free teriyaki sauce if I bought the storage bags so it worked out really well for me.

 

[JoiseyMom]

For most of my stuff I do. I am there at least once a week for staples, eggs, lettuce. I get some of my meat there, gound beef (organic), turkey burgers, tp, and other items.

I have also saved at over 50% on clothes for me also!

 

[okeydokey]

We absolutely do. We buy basics at SAMs, milk, butter, eggs, coffee, granola bars, cheese, meats, produce. We save way more than the cost of membership each year.

 

[Disneylover99]

I find shopping at Costco generally more expensive for groceries.

I shop at Fresh Co. (in Ontario). They price match the other major grocery store competitors. So once a week, I go through all the grocery fliers and circle the cheapest products that I need and buy them all at one store. You can't beat that!

 

[NokOnHarts]

We save on SOME things, not on all things. Many people enter Costco thinking everything is a great deal simply because it is in bulk. I don't hesitate to get out my calculator on my cell and divide the quantity by the price - if I can get it cheaper at my grocery store on sale, I don't buy it. The main thing I have found that helps to lower a budget is to limit your trips! When my DH and I were first married I couldn't figure out why we were spending $500 a month on food and it was just 2 of us! We are now a family of 4 (both kids are young though) and our budget is $375 for the month. Sometimes I am under that, other times I'm at around $400. In order to keep in budget, I only shop once a week at my grocery store and only do Costco twice a month. I have a budget when I go in and only buy what I need now, not everything I might need in the next 6 months.

I plan meals each week around things that are already in our house, what is on sale at the store, and we do at least one leftover meal each week, if not more. That way I am only cooking 3-4 meals per week, not a new meal each night. Using what I already have in the house really helps. That way I am only buying a few things to pull a meal together, not every ingredient on the recipe. I rarely ever buy full price items and of course use coupons when they are available.

Don't let yourself take random trips, use what you already have and buy only what's on sale, when possible.

Costco can be a great resource if you use it wisely. Take the time to price out your local stores and compare, that way you know when it's a good deal and when it's not.

Hope that helps!

 

[alh921]

We save money on a number of things we buy at Costco. Like any store, though, we also can spend money we normally wouldn't spend. It depends. For example, I will often scope out the clothes they sell. I have gotten great deals on some brands like Levis and Under Armour, and I may not have bothered spending the money on that stuff if it wasn't there conveniently in front of me.

Where I live, I find that Costco is a money saver on a lot of things. I buy milk, eggs, romaine lettuce, blackberries, fresh peppers, avocados, oranges/clementines, whipping cream, yogurt, cheese slices, etc. I also buy chicken breasts/thighs, ground turkey, and salmon (both fresh and frozen). For fresh produce, Costco is as cheap or better than our Walmart and grocery store sale prices. For fruits and veggies, Asian supermarkets are better, but also less convenient for us commute-wise. For meats and fish, Costco has decent every-day prices -- not quite as good as the best sale prices at grocery stores, but much better than regular grocery store prices (and often better than standard grocery store sale prices). Also it's nice that Costco's prices are consistent, so I don't have to run all over store to store to catch sales .. plus they package stuff convenient for storing (the ground chicken is in 4 separate blister packages I can cut apart and store in the freezer).

We also save money on other items.. like bulk packs of canned beans, honey (my fiance drinks a lot of tea), rice, snacks (granola bars, beef jerky, pistachios, pita chips, hummus), OTC medication, contact solution, shampoo and conditioner (sulfate-free and gluten-free!), etc. When they have sales/coupons, we have gotten great deals on Disney Blu-Rays, light bulbs, motor oil, toilet paper, and disinfecting cleaning wipes. We bought a box of plastic wrap and aluminum foil sheets when we moved into our house almost 3 years ago, and we still haven't used up either of them. I also get gas at Costco, which is generally between 10 and 20 cents cheaper than other decent gas stations on my route home.

I am pretty sure I have paid for the cost of my membership in gas and motor oil savings alone. I share a membership with my dad and he gets the AMEX rewards, and the rewards that he earns through the membership covers the cost of the membership renewal. Just something to think about -- sometimes you can pay for your membership in savings on certain things they have good deals on that you would need, anyway.

 

[alh921]

] I have a budget when I go in and only buy what I need now, not everything I might need in the next 6 months.

...

Costco can be a great resource if you use it wisely. Take the time to price out your local stores and compare, that way you know when it's a good deal and when it's not.

I agree with this. I save a lot at Costco, but the savings are generally realized over longer periods of time. It takes us a while to eat through the stuff we freeze and non-perishables, and with other items that aren't food related, the savings can't be weighed against grocery stores. It is incredibly easy to walk into bulk stores and spend several hundred dollars in one trip. It can be sticker shock for a single visit, especially when that trip consists of stuff I would usually buy in separate visits at a supermarket, Walmart/Target, Home Depot, Advance Auto, the mall, etc. It's definitely good to go in with a plan.

It's also a good idea to have an idea of what is cheaper at grocery stores. I find that most chips and cereal are cheaper at the local grocery stores and are often reliably on sale. Ice cream is also better at grocery stores for variety and logistics of getting it home without meltage. Some things are also hard to store in our freezer. We tend not to buy a lot of the bulk frozen foods at Costco, and I buy frozen veggies from the local grocery store because they are often on sale, too.