Sams membership expiring, debating Costco - give me your thoughts

[dgthree]

An addition to my previous post... regarding Costco meats.

I'm one person, so many of the items are just too much for me. One exception is the chicken breast, which comes in vacuum sealed pouches that can be separated and frozen. I have also found Butterball ground turkey in similar packaging.

One year for a family party, we bought a beef tenderloin. It was the best beef I ever tasted.

 

[slpeters]

We love Costco and have had a membership for years. We've gone to the free look thing at Sam's Club a few times and just didn't enjoy the shopping experience--compared to Costco it just seemed sort of dingy. It might just be this part of the country. In my area I think there's a bit of a stigma associated with Walmart and I think brands sometimes tend to live up or down to the expectations placed on them. I feel like Costco is perhaps aiming at a more well-heeled demographic. At any rate the few times we've gone to Sam's Club to check it out we barely bought anything and were just glad to leave at the end.

 

[nicolita3]

My closest Sam's Club closed abruptly in January of 2017. I liked that they had a better variety of gift cards and candy bars in the store

Regarding the candy bars, if you have a Costco business center near you they have aisles and aisles of candy. You don't need a business membership card either.

 

[jujubiee4]

Have both. Picked up Sam's Club card when groupon had special. For a YEAR i never used it. Always shopped Costco.
Now it is reversed. For this simple reason I can't stand crowds. Its been months since i have gotten gas at Costco
since Sams is the same price and fewer people. The #1 reason though is self checkout. Mine has about 6 self check out
lanes and i literally go in and out. Combine that with it opening at 730am I can get gas and go shopping and be home in
an hour to fix breakfast.

Also i get my Discounted Disney gift cards there especially when Amex has offers and Discover 5x bonus catagory.

I want to cancel Costco but my husband loves it so we will keep it. I havent been there in 4 or 5 months. I will add though
they give great rates for rental cars! Also Holiday time hard to beat Costco they have alot
of deals for gifts and your entertaining needs.

 

[SteveH]

Walmart. Target.

Sorry I just have to totally disagree when it comes to quality cuts of meat, you will not find those at either Walmart or Target. But you do pay for quality, but if you don't care about what cuts of meat you buy then the others are just fine.

 

[tvguy]

Sorry I just have to totally disagree when it comes to quality cuts of meat, you will not find those at either Walmart or Target. But you do pay for quality, but if you don't care about what cuts of meat you buy then the others are just fine.

I never said anything about the quality of the meat, just that you could get it there.
We do not buy meat at either Walmart or Target. We buy that and most produce at the local chain. Walmart Neighborhood market is where the bulk of or shopping is done. Normally we never shop for groceries at Target.

And even the big steakhouses don't use Prime beef, they use Choice. Depending on the source, only 2 or 3% of all beef sales are Prime grade. 97-98% is a lower grade.

 

[hsmamato2]

I have all three at different times for different reasons( free deal) I pay for costco....Sams and Bj's I use the free deals. I find stuff to use them all for, but Costco is the only one I'd pay for,the car rental deals always more than paid for membership fees(2nd driver included,a big deal for us) I don;t know about this next year...I like Costco products MUCH better - tend to buy organic whole foods and they excel at this stuff..... Sams is ok.... I like the gift card options there and at Bj's. Whatever, I don't value the memberships too highly since I can pretty much get the same food anywhere for about the same cost.

 

[disneysteve]

I'm one person, so many of the items are just too much for me.

I don't know how Sam's is but one thing we've noticed between Costco and BJ's is that BJ's tends to sell fairly normal size packages of products but packaged with 2 or 3 packages together while Costco tends to sell one really large package of the item. That's one reason we don't like Costco. There are only 3 of us, and only 1 or 2 of us may be using a particular product, so a giant jar or can doesn't work for us. Either that or we just don't have space on the shelf or in the fridge for the humongous package.

 

[Twilghtsprkle]

I had Sam's last year. Never bought too much. This year I got Costco and I spend a lot more there. Do much of my grocery shopping there. A lot more organic so i've managed to move much of my Whole Foods spending there. And if something is in their monthly flyer, it's usually a really great deal.

 

[larissawbb]

We don’t have a local Costco. Our local BJ’s has a ton of organic food at non organic prices. We get the bulk of our food there now. We only have to grab a few things at Target every now and then. Sams does have some good gift card deals around the holidays.

 

[disneysteve]

This year I got Costco and I spend a lot more there. Do much of my grocery shopping there.

Our local BJ’s has a ton of organic food at non organic prices. We get the bulk of our food there now.

We don't find BJ's or Costco to have a good enough selection to do our regular weekly shopping. We go there for specific items that they sell at a good price. I'm probably heading to Costco today as our membership expires this month. I want to stock up on paper towels and store brand vitamin water. Those are really about the 2 main things we found that we like there. Once we aren't members anymore, if we need to get them, I'll try to find a friend with a membership to go over with me.

 

[secretpantssam]

I have a Costco membership and I really like it. I like their food and prices and I've read a lot of things about how well they treat their employees so I like supporting a business like that as well.

 

[tinkerone]

Does Sams offer a one day pass? What would the cost be?

 

[pblack]

We don't find BJ's or Costco to have a good enough selection to do our regular weekly shopping. We go there for specific items that they sell at a good price. I'm probably heading to Costco today as our membership expires this month. I want to stock up on paper towels and store brand vitamin water. Those are really about the 2 main things we found that we like there. Once we aren't members anymore, if we need to get them, I'll try to find a friend with a membership to go over with me.

If they can't go with you, you could see if they'll buy a you a costco gift card. You can use a costco gift card without having to have a membership. At least that's what i've heard.

 

[HCinKC]

I had Costco years ago. Now I split a Sam's membership with a good friend. It's already a cheaper membership, and the complimentary household makes it a fantastic deal. We originally signed up with the Groupon, but that is a first time deal, not renewal. Still, for $22.50, we definitely get our return on gas and groceries. However, they get plenty of my money on active wear. LOL. My friend also has Costco. I go with her from time to time, but I have no interest in a membership of my own. One store is plenty.

It really comes down to the products you buy. For the groceries and household items we use, it's six of one, half dozen of the other. I tend to prefer Sam's for clothes though I'm ultimately a member for grocery/household items. People also mentioned the Costco return policy. I am pretty sure they changed that fairly recently. They no longer accept indefinite returns, no questions asked. I also know someone who had a bit of a time canceling a membership they hadn't had for very long. If you can't get them to let you look around without flashing a card, it might be wiser to find someone to tag along with rather than buy a membership withe the thought of possibly canceling. Sam's no longer requires you to show membership to enter, so assessing them shouldn't be a problem.

 

[DawnAurora]

It boils down to what kind of business model you want to support. Costco and Sam's are very different, not only in quality, but in how they view and treat their employees and in how they view their role as corporate stewards of commerce.

 

[hearts8701]

Just so you know a membership is not required to use Costco pharmacy just tell them at the door your going to the pharmacy and you will be allowed to walk in
I had both Costco and Sams club I let the Costco go when I discovered I didn’t need it for the pharmacy

 

[brooke789]

We had Costco, then both and then just dropped to Sam's. The Sam's location is much more convenient and also I like their earlier hours. Our Costcos don't open until 10am and at that point there is already a ton of people outside ready to head in. We did like the 'special merchandise' at Costco when we had it but not worth the inconvenience. When we actually decided to drop Costco we made a list of items we could "only" get at Costco and decided if they were worth it or not. For us: Sam's produce and especially bag salad is way better. Their sliced lunch meats have more variety and more nitrite free options. For Children's Zyrtec (store brand) the kids like the Sam's version better than the sticky Costco one.
That's all that pops in my head now but basically after making a list we decided Costco was not worth the inconvenience and the items 'only' available there were few.

 

[TnTWalter]

I have both sams and costco and go to costco 2x per month and sam's maybe 4 per year . that membership is free [company] or i would cancel. it's just a nicer store in our area too. and their refund policy is amazing.

 

[Lewisc]

You don't need a membership, most states by law, to purchase prescription drugs. Some states have the same policy for adult beverages. You'll need a membership if you want to buy OTC drugs at COSTCO.

COSTCO travel is selective. They generally only offer packages where they can offer value. Unless something has changed resort fee is included (waived) at Swan Dolphin. Not only are car rental prices extremely competitive but an additional driver is included. Cruise prices are probably better then 80% of online TAs. They have some group cruise bookings with a lot of included extras. Look hard enough and you may find an at home TA willing to rebate almost all of his commission. COSTCO has exception deals on Adventures in Disney.

COSTCO Kirkland products off high quality. COSTCO only offers a Kirkland product if the quality is equal to name brand products at at least a 20% discount.OTC medicines offer huge savings over name brand.

Everything I've read suggests Sams doesn't offer significant savings over Walmart.

COSTCO return policy is legendary. Meats, particularly Prime, offer value. Fresh Alaskan salmon at $9.99/ lb.

They key is how close is your nearest COSTCO. Is it close enough to shop for eggs, milk etc. Close enough for gas?