displace Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 Hello! I'm curious of those of you who have been to both, which you prefer and why? I don't have a BJ's close so that's out. I try to buy staples in bulk but also get processed things too. Big money savers for me at Costco include cheese, deli meat, hot dogs, frozen fish, meat, milk, peanut butter, butter, nuts, boxed juices, ravioli, and sometimes snacks. I also get some fruit while there but not much because of relative cost and quantity. I hear Sam's club has popcorn kernels, which I do go through a bit of from the regular grocery store. I also like Costco's little workbooks and easy readers at the tables, though I don't buy a lot of new books often. One thing I've noticed about Costco is they don't have a lot of "healthier" options (low fat, etc). I haven't been to Sam's so I'm curious what they have. ETA -- I heard Sam's club is also cheaper for a membership... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 I am a member of both. Sam's offered a $5 membership this year so I jumped on it, but I don't go often. I do 90% of my grocery shopping at Costco. I find the meat quality to be much higher, the cheese at Sam's is just gross IMO, and the Kirkland brand products are very good. We buy Kirkland milk, dog food, cheese, coffee, meats, laundry detergent, etc..... I find Sam's to be a giant Walmart. That said, you can find things at Sam's that Costco doesn't carry, like regular brand items......Doritos, Lays, several of those items are not available at Costco. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kewb Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 Since I believe that Walmart is largely responsible for driving down the standard of living in this country I choose not to support them with my $$. Costco pays their employees a living wage, offers health benefits, and provides top quality products at a reasonable price. My costco offers a decent amount of organics. I have never had any issues with the quality of their private label (kirkland) products. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prairie~Phlox Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 I wish we had a Costco, only Sam's here and I do shop it. Gotta get the best price possible. I also order in bulk from Azure Standard. They have delivery stops all over the country and are great for beans, oatmeal etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vonfirmath Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 I've had a Costco membership for close to forever. (We lived in Puget Sound WA and for the longest time they didn't even have a Sam's Club at all!) A year ago, we moved somewhere that is <10 minutes away from Sam's Club. (maybe less than 5. But there are stop lights) And the nearest Costco is half an hour away and a HUGE pain to deal with (Both entrance and exit goes out onto the same road, which is a feeder road for a busy highway) SO in March I used a Groupon type thing to get a Sam's Club membership. since then, I've been to Costco... once. And to Sam's club... at least 10 times. which to me is saying that the convenience WAY outweighs the great history we have with Costco. Oh and I prefer Sam's Club hot dogs and pizzas to Costco (surprisingly) Though Sam's Club does NOT have my favorite drink -- MR. Pibb. ANd Costco does. I haven't found any food at Costco that Sam's Club does not also sell. And we even buy a few things at Sam's Club I never thought to check Costco for. Sam's Club "extras" are not as appealing to me as Costco's so I tend not to come home with much of anything that is not on the list (Or maybe because Sam's is so close I just figure if I end up wanting it, I can always go back). We've even stopped at Sam's Club on the way home from church to pick up a quick pack of diapers and have lunch there. Something we NEVER did at Costco even when we went to church quite close to one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 Our Costco has a gas station while the local Sam's doesn't. That is why I joined Costco over Sam's. However, since the Safeway gas station opened, I've gone to Costco much less often. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vonfirmath Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 One downside to our Sam's Club is that it does not have a gas station, true. But the convenience still wins out. I get gas at the Wal-mart on the way to work mostly instead. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charcat13 Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 We have a Sam's about 45 minutes away and a Costco about 2 hours away in Nashville. We use Costco. We make a few trips to Nashville a year to buy clothes, bulk items at Costco, and eat a nice dinner. It works for us. Our Sam's is like Walmart and I'm just not a fan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
displace Posted July 10, 2013 Author Share Posted July 10, 2013 I do get gas too, but only go there every 1-2 months or so. I wonder if Sam's has freeze dried fruit? I like those for snacks too. I don't love Walmart but do appreciate their convenience and prices sometimes. And quality is sometimes iffy for me with no-name Walmart brand. I agree Kirkland products are fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lea1 Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 We have been members at both but prefer Costco. It just seems to have nicer quality stuff. I think it is like the difference between Target and Walmart. Target seems to have nicer quality than Walmart. We now live where there is no Costco though so we are regulars at the Sam's Club, which is still much better than neither. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Momof3littles Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 I strongly prefer Costco. I like the organic and more natural item selecti theyon, the meat options work better for us, etc. I like how they treat their employees. I already buy things like Coleman products, and I love that Costco carries them. I rarely buy non food items, but I will say they have some great items and things that really appeal to me. I just picked up a Replogle (?sp?) globe the other night for the kids. They carry things like ecofriendly dishsoap, organic apple chips, and Maranatha almond butter. I like the quality of the sheets I've purchased there, greeting card sets and wrapping paper are high quality, etc They also carry things like quality enameled cast iron that may be Staub. I admit that I do like that they carry some of those higher end items. The contact lens prices are very good and the savings on that vs. Walmart covers most of the $50 membership, although we have had the Executive Membership the past few years. On electronics like TVs, they often double the manufacturer's warranty automatically, so we have purchased quite a few of our electronics there. Their return policy is also excellent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 I use costco.com frequently for things like laminating pouches, printer ink/toner, and combs for my binder. They're cheaper than Amazon in many cases, and I have free shipping. I also use them to pre-buy things like Amusement park tickets before vacation, and often consumer electronics are cheaper through them, and they have a good warranty. We have the Costco AMEX, and it really doesn't take much to get the membership/yearly fee paid by the cash-back on the card. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoobie Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 We won't support Wal-Mart with our dollars. :) Costco gets our vote and money. I appreciate their stance on paying a living wage and benefits even if that cuts into corporate profits. The way they treat employees is reflected in the level of service they provide customers too. I can't think of a single negative experience in terms of customer service or employee interaction in the 15 years we've been members. We have an Executive Membership, and it's a business expense. If you don't get more back in the percentage rebate, they will refund the difference in membership fee. We have a fee-free Amex through Costco, so we get the Amex rebate AND the executive rebate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Momof3littles Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 I use costco.com frequently for things like laminating pouches, printer ink/toner, and combs for my binder. They're cheaper than Amazon in many cases, and I have free shipping. I also use them to pre-buy things like Amusement park tickets before vacation, and often consumer electronics are cheaper through them, and they have a good warranty. We have the Costco AMEX, and it really doesn't take much to get the membership/yearly fee paid by the cash-back on the card. I don't know if Sam's carries GCs, but our Costco has good deals. Every year for Christmas we take our families for brunch at this amazing restaurant. We pay $80 for $100 worth of GCs, and you can use up to two GCs. That shaves off $40 with almost zero effort on our part. An annual membership is $55 if you don't do the Executive. Something like that almost pays for the membership in one day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craftyerin Posted July 10, 2013 Share Posted July 10, 2013 Hello! I'm curious of those of you who have been to both, which you prefer and why? I don't have a BJ's close so that's out. I try to buy staples in bulk but also get processed things too. Big money savers for me at Costco include cheese, deli meat, hot dogs, frozen fish, meat, milk, peanut butter, butter, nuts, boxed juices, ravioli, and sometimes snacks. I also get some fruit while there but not much because of relative cost and quantity. I hear Sam's club has popcorn kernels, which I do go through a bit of from the regular grocery store. I also like Costco's little workbooks and easy readers at the tables, though I don't buy a lot of new books often. One thing I've noticed about Costco is they don't have a lot of "healthier" options (low fat, etc). I haven't been to Sam's so I'm curious what they have. ETA -- I heard Sam's club is also cheaper for a membership... Of course, every family's definition of healthier food options varies, but I find Costco's selection of snacks to have far more healthy items than Sam's. We are gluten and dairy free, and they always had more at Costco that worked for us than Sam's does. We lived in Houston for years and had a choice. I tried both, and VASTLY preferred Costco. We are in New Orleans now, and have only had Sam's. I've used it, but really dislike it. Whoever said above that Sam's feels like a giant Wal-Mart is dead on, IMO. NOLA is getting its first Costco in August and I can't WAIT!! As soon as it opens, I'll never go in Sam's again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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