What do you find worthwhile at Sam's Club?

[sherry7]

Someone recently asked this exact question about Costco. However, our closest Costco is almost 90 minutes away, and we only have Sam's Club.

What items to you find to be more reasonable or higher quality at Sam's Club?

 

[Halbleib1]

I buy my brand name shampoo, condt. and deoderant there as it is cheaper. I also buy their paperplates,cups and aluminum foil. I used their diapers and wipes for my son but toward the end they changed them and so I do not recommend them any more. The diapers I had problems with the tabs breaking off alot (even worst than huggies) and the wipes have way too much soap in them. Literally you would wipe with them and see soap everywhere. I think they changed the manufacturer of these products which was a bad decision. We also used their brand of soy formula.

I also buy their brand of body soap. Comes in a pack of three bottles for under 9.00.

I also get my snuggle fabric softner and swiffer cleaning solution and pads from them-much cheaper than other stores. We also buy our printer ink from them.

I use to buy their dishwasher detergent until I bought silverware that said do not use anything with citrus in it. Unfortunately their brand has lemon in it so I can not use it any more. But it was very good quality and cheap for two large boxes that lasted a long time.


You can always give a membership a try and if you do not like it you can ask for your money back at any time. They have a 100% money back guarantee and will give you back the full price of your membership.

Also you have a 100% money back guarantee on items purchased. 200% on fresh products such as meat, fruits and vegs, and bakery items.


We get our money's worth out of our membership just from buying the gas alone as they are almost always cheaper than any other station. Of course this only works if you are not driving out of your way to get there. We always fill up when we are already in the area.

 

[missenmickey]

We love the meat at Sam's Club. You do get a large quantity. However, I buy ziploc bags and divide everything as soon as we get home. Their steaks and baby back ribs are to die for. Every time we serve them people ask where we get our meat.

 

[hanutedmansionmomma]

Gas is just about 10 cents cheaper at Sam's here. As far as food, we haven't had a lot of luck. Not brands/flavors we want, or doesn't really save you $ (per unit). I'm a coupon shopper, and I can save more $ with them at a grocery store than at Sam's. It's good for big things like computers, mattresses, etc...though. Again, limited variety, but good deals.

 

[lurkernj]

Milk!!! We go through 3-4 gallons a week and it's $2.29/gal at Sams vs the grocery store ($4.09).

Their half and half is about half price too.

They have great rotisserie chickens for $5 each that are much bigger than the ones an A&P (and they charge $6-7).

Eggs, some of their meat, bread, muffins. Unfortunately our Sams is moving in a few weeks and will no longer be worth the time it will take to get there.

 

[Pastamom]

We buy their plastic silverwear (the sturdy ones) and paper plates. I also buy kleenex and tp there.

As far as food goes.
There milk is usually cheaper. The snacks/chips are usually cheaper too.
We also buy olive oil, canola oil, potstickers (yum). They have also had good sales on chicken breasts recently (not the frozen ones). I think those chickens were relatives of Dolly Parton though they were so big....

 

[worm761]

Here in Florida they don't double coupons. I make everything from scratch so I do a ton of shopping at Sam's. I buy my allergy meds at Sam's. I take Claritin. The Sam's brand, Member's Mark, works just as well and is around $15 for 300 pills. That is worth my $40 membership right there. We have two dogs, one of which is 115 pounds, so we go through a lot of dog food. We buy that at Sam's. I have a vacuum sealer and buy the bags there. It is the best price I have found. School snacks were a good deal when my son was in school. Their chicken and milk are the cheapest in town. Pork loin is also super cheap there. I buy the bulk of my meat at a butcher but he can't beat some of Sam's prices. Vitamins are cheaper there too. We get our toilet paper and paper towels there. They have a good price for that. Oh and garbage bags. I have no idea if it is cheaper but I love only having to buy them once or twice a year. Worth the convenience to not have to worry about them. ( I am very forgetful and would run out! ) We make bread, cookies, snacks, pizza dough, and such at home so we buy the supplies there. I get the giant bags of flour and it lasts me for a couple months. I also buy any seasonings we use a lot of there since they are cheaper than our local stores. I can't think of anything else. I am sure there is more though.

 

[figment3258]

we used to get diapers and that paid for the membership all in its self but now thank goodness that i have no need for diapers we like getting
bottle water
trash bags
tide
dawn
butter
vitamins
vitamin waters
organic juice boxes

and stuff like that you should go and look around your local one for us its bj's and write down prices and see if its worth the membership maybe see if a friend wants to share one also we use lots of coupons and its really helps.

 

[gregokdisney]

We buy milk, chips, fruit, toilet paper, cat litter, laundry detergent, dishwasher detergent, pop tarts, cheese in a block that we shred ourselves, buckets of ice cream, pre-cooked bacon, brown sugar, flour, some spices, etc.

We used to buy diapers, wipes & formula there, but thankfully we don't have to do that anymore.

 

[eyeheartgoofy]

Claritin-D 24 hour - the generic is under $6 for a 15 count box.

 

[jmpellet]

Here's a list of what I feel is a good deal at Sam's Club. I'm an avid couponer and won't get the things I can get cheaper there:

Tires -- lifetime rotation and flat fixes included
Milk -- as others have said always $2 a gallon cheaper
american cheese -- 5lbs of LOL for $11.xx
chips -- BIG bags 2 for $4.98
bread -- if I need it and I'm there
fruit
sirloin tips -- always good and a sale-type price
chicken -- same as above
rotisserie chix
birthday cakes
Pastene tomatoes, paste
other things like mattresses, etc.

 

[eliza61]

Claritin-D 24 hour - the generic is under $6 for a 15 count box.

Do you like the generic? I tried cvs generic brand and it made me sick (upset stomach) I asked the pharmacist and he said it may have been the "coating" cvs uses on the pill. Now I'm gun shy on trying generics again.

Op,
I pretty much stick with paper products, tide, bread and toiletries.

My local supermarkets are terrific. The one problem with my Sams is lack of variety. Generally I do just as well with my double coupons at my supermarket and Sams doesn't carry alot of the steriod and antibiotic free meats that I'm now addicted to.

I live in NJ which has some of the cheapest gas in the nation so no savings there.

 

[disneyfans95]

For us.

The meat selection is great
Kid chips (smaller bags for lunches)
Milk
24 cases of 20oz soda
All paper products
Dog Food
Water. They have 5 gallon water for our home dispenser that you don't have to return for a deposit (you just recycle with the trash).
Books (my wife loves getting books there)

 

[JB2K]

Nearly everything I like about Costco is also available at Sam's Club (except for my MIL).

However, I am a Sam's Club member because it is only a couple of miles from my house as opposed to Costco being 25 miles.

Plus, Sam's Club tends to have better locations, as they shoot for the population centers (whereas Costco will not build a warehouse in any town where the average annual income is less than $50K).

 

[Mouseless2Long]

For me it is, hands down, the meat. I always get the most beautiful cuts of meat at my Sam's Club. The steaks are cut thicker than I find at my local grocery store, and I think the overall quality is just superior.

All of the other items people have mentioned are great deals too, but I would be at a loss as to where to buy meat if my Sam's Club disappeared.

 

[Piecey]

Meat, milk, apples, muffins, hoagie buns, bottled water and spices.

 

[v.t.]

Fresh flowers, shampoo, printer ink, vitamins, chips, peanut butter, go-gurts, cheese (both sliced and cheddar), deli pizza and dry baking goods. We also use it for paper goods for our football concession stands. They are cheaper than we can get from SYSCO.
We also use it for lunch. We can feed a family of 5 for $10!

 

[poohfriend77]

We also use it for lunch. We can feed a family of 5 for $10!

Same here! My girls were especially excited about the addition of an icee machine at ours.

We buy a lot of the things already mentioned, but I wanted to add that we like their take-and-bake pizzas. They are HUGE and cost under $7. I also buy Fresh Salsa (in the refrigerated cases), and it is sooooo good.

And I don't think anyone has mentioned clothing. I buy a lot of baby gifts there. They usually have Carter's outfits, under $4 for summer stuff. And I think I paid about $8 for a 2-pack of fleece jammies last winter. Not a big selection, but great deals.

Oh, and my husband loves the microfiber towels. It's a big pack (maybe 20 or 25?) for $7-8. Similar towels were $4 for 3 at Target!!!

 

[kirstenb1]

I second the fresh salsa, yum!
Also the Member's Mark pre-cooked frozen chicken breasts,
On the Border tortilla chips (seem less salty than other brands, and more restaurant-like)
Big bag of flat Pretzel Factory pretzels
Big bag M and M's
Halloween candy
Flour tortillas
Spinach and artichoke dip
24 pk sodas
Beringers 2 pk of white zin
Horizon 18 pk of chocolate milk for school lunches
Fruit chews also for school lunches
Kraft shredded cheese
3 pk DiGiorno's pizza

 

[debf]

We buy the 4 gallon jugs of water for our fridge pump. It is so much cheaper than having it delivered. We pay $3.88 a bottle and no deposit. We were paying $6.99 a bottle and a $5.00 deposit on each. I buy other stuff but the water is the best deal for us.