Sam's vs Costco

[tvguy]

I agree snarlingcoyete. It is all about how you treat others - customers and employees. That's why I pick Costco.

Interesting conversation. This is exactly why I prefer Walmart. Like I posted, Walmart employees seem to be the happy ones in the locations I shop in.
Granted, Walmart is big on profit sharing as opposed to cash up front. But I suspect career Walmart employees are better off than Costco workers.

 

[cjnix29]

Last year, when our Costco membership was to expire, I had some deal through DH's work on a Sam's Club membership. So I decided not to renew Costco, and join Sam's. Initially, I thought their prices were better on some of the staples I buy. Until I figured out that the products were smaller than the ones I bought at Costco. I also realized that some of the things that I always bought at Costco, they didn't carry at Sam's. Plus, I just didn't like shopping there. Costco is a meandering kind of store for me. Sam's...get in and out. I just don't like it. That being said, I do think Sam's has a better selection of videos and books than Costco. But that is definitely not worth me having both memberships. So...I ended up with them both for a year, and then didn't renew the Sam's Club. But I think it is about personal preference. I do like the Kirkland brand products way better than Sam's Club brand. Much higher quality.

 

[Anne34]

I have a free membership at Costco through my work, which I use a couple of times a year. I did get our cell phones there, and occasionally meats, seafood and specialty grocery items (usually stuff I don't need that just looks enticing.) And they sometimes have exceptional wines for a good price. I hate their milk packaging - I know they are a space saving design but my kids end up spilling it all over. Also, my daughter's a competitive swimmer and they usually have Speedo suits for less than $20 each which is a great deal. I don't like that they don't take credit cards and I don't need an Amex. I pay my bills off every month, but there's something about me that just likes having that float time that credit cards offer (as well as the rewards I get back.)

I still pay for a Sam's Club membership on top of it; I've actually had it for almost 20 years. I shop there several times a month, usually for staple items. I can't count the number of cakes we've bought there (while not over the top spectacular, they are very good, and an extremely good value.) Over the years I have bought several large electronic items, mattresses, and furniture there. And oddly enough, many of the employees there have been there as long as I have been a member. So I can't imagine they treat their employees badly.

Oh, and both stores are within a few miles of my house, so no advantage either way there. I agree with others that Costco is more upscale. But I end up giving a lot more business to Sam's Club.

I agree --- I tend to go to Sams Club much more often then Costco. They are both a comparable distance from our house, but I think Sams usually has better prices. The fruit, milk and meat are often less expensive.

That saying -- there are a few things Costco has that Sams doesn't and I keep the membership for that.

 

[sticker231]

What gift cards are available vary by the store, but I'm going to have to keep an eye out for those ones! Love WPE!!! We could easily spend $100 there in a week long trip to Disney!

they are available at Costco.com

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

You say that like it's a bad thing.
Let's face it, Costco, Sams Club and Walmart are all, for profit businesses. Profit is always going to come before people......

And making a profit is a bad thing?

 

[ericstac]

I should also add that being a costco member I was able to purchase a vehicle under their car buying discount and it was a rather pleasant experience.

 

[tvguy]

And making a profit is a bad thing?

Absolutely not. I think some believe Costco is above that.

 

[crisi]

Absolutely not. I think some believe Costco is above that.

Costco has spent years "in trouble" with Wall Street because they could be making a lot more profit than they do - Wall Street doesn't believe Costco should provide the pay scale or benefits to employees that they do.

Analysts don't tend to say the same things about WalMart.

Not that Costco doesn't make a profit - they do - but they aren't returning value to shareholders they way they could if they put in more part timers, stopped paying benefits, and stopped paying a living wage.

 

[crisi]

To answer the question, we have both, I prefer Costco - more of the stuff we want plus they pay a living wage. Costco cashiers make an average of $15.14 an hour and are almost always full time with a 401k and benefits. Sam's Club cashiers make an average of $9.36 and aren't qualifying for that profit sharing because they are usually not kept to hours that will allow them to qualify.

 

[sugarnspicex4]

I have been a Costco member for about 5 years. Recently I went to a Sam's Club "open house" weekend where non-members could shop without a membership and no upcharge. I had heard people say that Sam's Club prices are better than Costco's, but that turned out not to be the case for me. I compared prices on several of my staples that I buy at Costco, and in 4 out 5 cases the Sam's Club price was actually higher. Also disappointing was that Sam's carries very few organic items, while Costco has a good selection. I'm keeping my Costco membership and not bothering with Sam's anymore.

 

[kiramay]

Chiming in. As others mentioned, prices vary and Sam's doesn't have much that's organic. For us though, Sam's is 5 mins away and Costco is 30 mins away. So we shop at Sam's. My mom shops at Costco. We help each other occasionally.

 

[tvguy]

Costco has spent years "in trouble" with Wall Street because they could be making a lot more profit than they do - Wall Street doesn't believe Costco should provide the pay scale or benefits to employees that they do.

Analysts don't tend to say the same things about WalMart.

Not that Costco doesn't make a profit - they do - but they aren't returning value to shareholders they way they could if they put in more part timers, stopped paying benefits, and stopped paying a living wage.

No question Costco pays better, but Walmart blows them out of the water with their retirement program. Being it's a stock option plan, I'm sure Wall Street loves it.

 

[crisi]

No question Costco pays better, but Walmart blows them out of the water with their retirement program. Being it's a stock option plan, I'm sure Wall Street loves it.

From what I can tell, its a stock purchase program. In other words, you buy stock at a 15% discount. To do so, you need to be able to afford the stock. From what I can tell, they aren't giving sales associates stock. But if you have a cite that says something else, I'd like to see it.

They have a 401k with a 6% match - again a pretty good deal, but you have to be able to afford the match.

They do not have an option plan for cashiers listed anywhere I can find on the web. My husband was recruited by WalMart for an executive position - given what they were offering him in terms of options, I'm not thinking they hand them out to cashiers.

 

[okeydokey]

I prefer Sams. They have more of the types of items my family uses. I buy a lot of meats, produce and dairy at Sams. Also get granola bars, powdered gatorade, dental floss and deoderant. I recently bought a two pack of Roc retinol night cream for not much more than one would have cost at Target.

 

[rebeccalizzie]

Going by strict price comparison alone, it depends on what you buy. I do better at Costco, my "staples" are dairy (butter, cheese, etc), coffee, baking supplies and canned goods. All cheaper at Costco. My mom does better at Sam's, their meat is lower quality but much cheaper and their name brand stuff like Ziploc bags are sometimes little cheaper. Gas prices are almost identical.

If you can, just check out both. You don't have to have a membership to look around, so that's what I did before buying my Costco membership--I wrote down prices at Costco of what I bought at Sam's regularly and then checked them against Sam's prices. In almost every case Costco was a little cheaper, so I dropped my Sams membership and got a Costco one. Then my mom went with me to Costco and felt like she paid a little more for everything she buys regularly, so she kept her Sam's membership.

 

[Megkel]

I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE Costco. When I turned 18 I went to work in the warehouse by my house. I will say Costco is the only place I have continued to do business with after working there. I just moved into an area with a Sam's and haven't even bothered to check it out.

Membership can be bought and returned at anytime with a full refund. I share a membership with my mother-in-law which is frowned upon but they won't kick you out for it. The executive membership earns 2% back for all purchases. At the anniversary of your membership you get a check in the mail. You can do several things with it. Refund your executive membership if your check isn't the amount you like. You do lose that check but are refunded the $50 upgrade costs. You can apply it to your next year's membership (Free membership!). You can cash it out at the membership desk and buy something you want from somewhere else. You can also use it at the check out line for groceries.

The return policy is pretty much insane. They did change it while I was there (over five years ago) that electronics now have a 90 return policy. However that is still outstanding, try getting that from Best Buy. They will take anything you want to return. Half eaten food, clothes, prescriptions, photos, vacuums, anything. I have seen people return some crazy things. Even video games and movies that other places would never take back Costco will.

They price their items as low as possible. The only money the company makes is from their membership costs. Their products are priced only to cover their costs for the bills. Gas is something Costco usually loses money on. They see what the competition is selling gas for in the area and then will beat it. An employee drives the area twice a day to make sure the gas prices are lower.

I feel like the quality of Costco far exceeds any other club. My husband had a nail in his tire just Saturday night. On Sunday we took the car to Costco to have it fixed. It was the one place I knew I wouldn't over pay for service or the product. I didn't have to shop around or even considered I was being taken advantage of.

I'm sure it comes down to individual preference as to which one is better. Costco is often busy, doesn't accept coupons (except their own), only takes AMEX credit, and closes early on the weekend. They are also closed on government holidays. However I think that it's worth the few hurdles that it has for the quality of the products.

 

[JandJ]

We've been Costco members for years. We got our countertops through Costco and saved a bundle. We also got tires for DH's car and they came with lifetime free rotation. Plus, we have the Costco AmEx so we get 1-2% Costco cash back.

We drive about 20 minutes for Costco, but it's worth it. When the Sam's opened a few miles away from our house we joined, mainly for the gas, because it tends to be cheaper than other local stations. Now we shop at both. "Big" shopping is at Costco; gas and quick stops for lunch meat, fruit and veggies is at Sam's. I think a PP said it best - Costco is for meandering and Sam's is for quick in-and-out shopping.

I prefer the Kirkland brand to the Sam's/Wal Mart brand, and I don't like the paper towel or toilet paper brands Sam's carries, so we continue to buy Kirkland for that. The meat is comparable, but I prefer the Kirkland frozen individually wrapped chicken breasts and the Kirkland frozen shrimp. DH likes Kirkland brand beer and that's a lot cheaper than the name brand beer. We even get Kirkland brand dress shirts for DH for work. He has 10 and they wash and iron very easily - love them!

The service personnel at Costco are, generally, nicer and more professional than at Sam's. Never an issue to return anything at Costco either. I got some very sour blueberries at Sam's and I was just going to trash them, but it was $7 so I called to see about their return policy and the lady who answered the phone said I can throw them out and just bring in the receipt and they'll credit me. The next day I needed gas, so I decided to take the receipt for the blueberries. When I got there, the guy at the service counter questioned me and told me I had to have the original packaging. I told him I called and was told I only needed the receipt. He said, "no, she told you wrong" so I said I'd go home and dig through the garbage for it! He said he'll let it go this time, but in the future I need to save the packaging. Then he said to me, "I never return stuff like this, it's too much of a hassle" and I'm thinking, well it shouldn't be! I was put off by his attitude.

Also, Costco offers member coupons on stuff we actually use, whereas at Sam's you have to buy a higher-level membership to get coupons. I will say, though, I really like the self-checkout at Sam's - saves a lot of time!

 

[JoiseyMom]

I don't like that they don't take credit cards and I don't need an Amex. I pay my bills off every month, but there's something about me that just likes having that float time that credit cards offer (as well as the rewards I get back.)

Hmm...Amex is a credit card . The one I have is just like my Visa and Discover card. I know that until a few years ago Sam's only took Discover, now they also do MC. I have to say Amex is our card of choice, great extra coverage on electronics, great customer service and I like the cash rewards I get back.

 

[wiigirl]

Chiming in. As others mentioned, prices vary and Sam's doesn't have much that's organic. For us though, Sam's is 5 mins away and Costco is 30 mins away. So we shop at Sam's. My mom shops at Costco. We help each other occasionally.

 

[Legendteri]

We have found that Costco is a better value. For example, the Sam's cakes are cheaper but Costco's are made in their store ( not shipped in and frosted) and also have a filling. We also compared the deli made enchiladas at both. Sam's were a little bit cheaper, but Costco's were heavier and came with a lot more meat.

Let me think what else. Well a few years ago we were looking at both places for Doll houses. Sam's had a plain white three story doll house for $99. However, for $129 at Costco you got the same dollhouse, but all six room were decorated with wallpaper and flooring and all six rooms were furnished. Yes furnished. If you go to a hobby store one room of dollhouse furniture can cost $30 alone, but here you got all six rooms.

So that is the trend we have found with Costco. You might a pay little bit more but you end up getting a lot more if that makes sense.

FWIW, I have a relative that works for Costco and I know he is compensated very well. He just got promoted to low level manager and I want to say he makes somewhere in the late 50's early 60's. I also know he and his family get medical, dental, vision and prescription coverage, 401k ( that Costco matches), profit sharing, semi- annual bonues ( well at least he used to when we was just an hourly employee), and since he has been there 15 years; 5 weeks vacation. I don't know how that compares to Sam's, but those are still pretty good benefits. Heck, I don't even get that.