Sams membership expiring, debating Costco - give me your thoughts

[disneysteve]

You'll need a membership if you want to buy OTC drugs at COSTCO.

I need to find out what the policy is for non-Rx products that you have to get from the pharmacy, like things containing pseudoephedrine. We have bought Claritin-D there at a good price. It would be nice if we could still do that after our membership expires.

We made our last trip to Costco yesterday. Our membership ends this month. We stocked up on their paper towels and vitamin water and bought a couple of boxes of Claritin-D.

 

[Dancind]

Kirkland brands yes, love the Rose' wine. The one in Portland OR has local Sangria cider that's sooo good. I digress. The best thing is, lots of locations. When we drive through UT with our trailer there are several right off the freeway where we can stop for cheaper gas and nice bathrooms. Worth it.

Not happy with how they will get you hooked on something and then discontinue it though! Boom Chicka Pop Sweet & Salty Two for one deal for a while, and now it's gone!

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I prefer Costco.

I watched a documentary several years ago about how they go about selecting what items they will sell for Christmas. I don't know if Sam's Club is the same way but man oh man do they really care about the quality and price for their customers. I remember they were working with a vendor on a teddy bear backpack and they were going over how the straps should probably be adjusted a bit and the material could be a little softer. The product I'm sure as is would have been fine but for Costco they wanted it to be better. The process alone was amazing how many several hundreds of items they went through in order to reduce down the amount they wanted.

The gas is usually a very good deal (though a Murphy gas station opened up by our house and has been very well priced since it opened), the chicken pouches we love, my mom likes the fruit, the clothing is well priced and good quality, easy return policy, etc.

 

[disneysteve]

Kirkland brands yes, love the Rose' wine.

Our Costco does not sell alcohol. That's another thing we like better with BJ's.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Our Costco does not sell alcohol. That's another thing we like better with BJ's.

Ours can't sell due to state law. The ones on the other side of the state line do and their selection is quite decent.

 

[disneysteve]

Ours can't sell due to state law. The ones on the other side of the state line do and their selection is quite decent.

I'm sure state law is part of it. It isn't that Costco couldn't sell alcohol but there are limits on how many licenses once company or individual can have. So if Costco already maxed out their allotment elsewhere in the state, then they wouldn't be able to sell alcohol at any new stores that they build.

 

[georgina]

I prefer Costco because they pay their employees better and provide health insurance. I don't have a Sams membership, and I don't shop at Walmart either.

I wish Costco sold alcohol here!

 

[Lewisc]

Disneysteve--- you have to be a member for otc drugs. Do you have a friend, co-worker or relative who's a member?

Sometimes it's cheaper to buy generic Sudafed from the pharmacy counter and purchase Kirkland Zyrtec or Kirkland Claritin vs purchasing D version. I'm too lazy to look up generic names.

Liquor rules vary by state. NY only allows a corporation to own one store. Store brands aren't allowed. Liquor has a minimum price. Many stores sell hard liquor at minimum price. Wines vary.

edited to add: Some people have a friend who is willing to list them as an additional member. COSTCO let you add a second person for each person you pay for. No requirement the person has to be a spouse or family member. Only makes sense if you see any reason to shop at COSTCO.

pharmacy. You can get a doctors script for many OTC drugs. Probably won't be covered by your insurance but it may allow you to use a HSA account. Since it's processed as a prescription you probably don't have to be a member. The price will probably be different then OTC packaging. Years ago I did it for generic priolsac. The cost for 90 days was about the same as the OTC. Probably not worth the savings. Just get what you want at BJs.

 

[gopack]

Costco has the best holiday wrapping paper! Great price and very high quality.

 

[Callie]

I have both. We recently just got the Sam's Club one from Groupon. They sell a ton of the same stuff, but Costco is closer to me, cleaner, nicer staff etc. They also seem to have higher quality fresh items. Sam's club has more candy selection and freezer items.

 

[Shanti]

Sams or Costco? and why do you prefer one over the other?

my buying habits in this order - vitamins/OTC allergy meds / paper goods/ pet food / seasonal & gift cards /big ticket on occasion mattress/tv/etc /discounted gas (but none are close enough for weekly fillup)

We just don't buy the large quantity of food since the kids moved out.....but when we have parties, the large quantity packaging is helpful.

Sam's dropped their travel area, but I understand Costco still has theirs... anyone have good/bad experiences using it?

I transfer my Disney cruises to Costco, & make a tidy profit off of that. But if it weren't for the cruise credits, I wouldn't bother.

 

[DVC Doc]

Just to echo another posters comment, if you have any possibility of booking an Adventures by Disney, you want a Costco membership! Costco gives you a rebate of around 8% in the form of a cash card, plus another 2% if you’re an Executive Member. For my China trip which cost over $16K this is a huge cost savings. You can even get another 3% if you have the Costco Visa. The best part is, when you call Costco Travel to book ABD, they transfer you directly to Disney to handle the booking!

 

[JenzyHP]

Costco is great and they treat their employees awesome. I won't shop at any Walmart brand store. It is very obvious that they don't treat them well.

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

We have Costco, Sam's & BJ's. The amount of money I save a BJ's using coupons more than pays for memberships at all 3. All 3 in the Cleveland area are 12 miles apart one right after another on the highway. I like Costco because of their generous return policy. But hate shopping there on the weekend because of how crowded it is so shop early on the weekends.

 

[CyndiLouWho]

I dropped my memberships when Walmart finally came to our area. No lines, no membership fees, almost identical cost on the items I buy.

Not around here. Walmart is all new levels of heck. Did online order/in store pickup at Walmart today. One line for all customer service, returns, money orders and online pickup. Followed instructions in my email, which said to push the button at the online order desk. Did that and got yelled at by the one customer service person. One line. For everything. Go to the end. Waited over 20 minutes. Always big lines at Costco but they move much faster, there are also multiple lines open. Employees at Costco are always very polite and helpful, rarely so at Walmart. I avoid Walmart as much as possible.

 

[tvguy]

Not around here. Walmart is all new levels of heck. Did online order/in store pickup at Walmart today. One line for all customer service, returns, money orders and online pickup. Followed instructions in my email, which said to push the button at the online order desk. Did that and got yelled at by the one customer service person. One line. For everything. Go to the end. Waited over 20 minutes. Always big lines at Costco but they move much faster, there are also multiple lines open. Employees at Costco are always very polite and helpful, rarely so at Walmart. I avoid Walmart as much as possible.

I've never done online order/in store pickup. I always have it sent to my house. But yes, those customer service lines do seem long at Walmart, never been in one. Check stands, no problem.
Just walking past the front of Costco (it is next to Walmart) and looking in the doors, all the check stand lines are insane. Well, except for holidays, which Costco seems to be closed for a lot of. Nice for their employees for sure.

 

[CyndiLouWho]

I've never done online order/in store pickup. I always have it sent to my house. But yes, those customer service lines do seem long at Walmart, never been in one. Check stands, no problem.
Just walking past the front of Costco (it is next to Walmart) and looking in the doors, all the check stand lines are insane. Well, except for holidays, which Costco seems to be closed for a lot of. Nice for their employees for sure.

I didnt have it shipped because I hate paying shipping charges. Probably a mistake but Walmart is only a few blocks away.
Lines at Costco can be long, but they move fast. Lines at Walmart are long, but move slowly. Always some mistakes, declined cards or someone paying cash, counting out singles.

 

[tvguy]

I didnt have it shipped because I hate paying shipping charges. Probably a mistake but Walmart is only a few blocks away.
Lines at Costco can be long, but they move fast. Lines at Walmart are long, but move slowly. Always some mistakes, declined cards or someone paying cash, counting out singles.

LOL. Our Neighborhood market has more self checks now that open check stands. I can't recall the last time I had more than one person ahead of me in line, but I do my grocery shopping on Sunday morning.
Only thing I can say about people paying cash as Walmart is, I have never seen soo many people pay with $100 bills, no singles, except in change.

 

[bellangie]

We used to be members of both. One membership was paid by husbands employer. I know I liked getting baked goods and meat more at Costco and other household items were better deals at Sams. I guess location and what you buy more would maybe help decide.

 

[arminnie]

I have both. I shop at Sam’s when at our Arkansas home. As Walmart/Sam’s is headquartered in Arkansas there are no Costco stores here. I have a membership via my sister’s business so I don’t pay for it.

When in New Orleans I shop at Costco as it is closer. Plus Costco jeans come in a short length, but Sam’s jeans do not so they are always too long.

Costco has a fantastic liquor department- after all this is New Orleans. We stock up both homes from Costco. My DH and I are not big drinkers, but we like to keep a well stocked bar for company. The Costco pricing is amazing.

I am disabled and need to use a shopping ECV. Sam’s always has at least 15-20 available. Costco has TWO and they are NEVER available.

I just adjust to whichever city I am in.