Costco vs Sams Club

[docj]

31 minutes ago, Carlos said:

Sam's is much better about having non-bulk that is useful even in a small space.  Many of the frozen foods are in normal portions.  We always keep the natural fruit smoothie/juice bottles, and they come in a normal size pack of 12 small bottles (grocery store sells six large bottles--same difference, but the small bottles fit in the fridge door).  The fresh produce is normal-sized, as is the bagged produce.  You can buy a single melon, six bananas, things like that.  It's really not a bulk-only place.

 

Right; at our local Sam's Club we can buy a single gallon of milk, a standard package of 18 eggs, etc.  Furthermore, I don't mind buying 3 rib-eye steaks at a time or a package of boneless chicken breasts. With a residential fridge we have plenty of space to freeze and store a few extra meals and it reduces the number of trips to the store.

[Chalkie]

2 hours ago, docj said:

Right; at our local Sam's Club we can buy a single gallon of milk, a standard package of 18 eggs, etc.  Furthermore, I don't mind buying 3 rib-eye steaks at a time or a package of boneless chicken breasts. With a residential fridge we have plenty of space to freeze and store a few extra meals and it reduces the number of trips to the store.

The only way you can buy a single 18 pack of eggs at our Sam's is to buy Eggland's Best at a highly inflated price. If there is a Sam's, there will be a Walmart somewhere nearby and Walmart is generally cheaper. Overall it is the same company. I sometimes question why I maintain a Sam's membership when Walmart stores are far more plentiful than Sam's. 

For example, I just bought 5 dozen eggs for $4.78 at Walmart, where Sam's was $7.98.

My point is that you need to know prices. Just because a store bills itself has a "wholesaie" store or whatever is not always true.

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[FL-JOE]

14 hours ago, Kirk W said:

We were on our son's account and would probably not save enough to pay us to belong either. When you live in an RV bulk buying can take too much space and weight. 

It may or may not depending on your set up.  In our case we can hold a ton of extra paper goods and canned goods in our enclosed trailer.  Our 3-door residential size frig also holds more than most RVs.  

But really even if you can't take advantage of buying much of their bulk items it appears just visiting Sam's for certain "non member" purchases could save everyone some money from time to time.   

Probably for the majority of full timers it would not be worth having a Sam's or Cosco membership, but again could be worth visits at Sam's for those certain items when needed.

[Twotoes]

Also you are correct on hearing aids and glasses, I was wrong.  It's the exam that you can get without a membership.  The hearing exam is even free.

Nope. Costco told me that I need to be a member even to get the hearing test. Sams did the test but said I need to be a member to purchase the hearing aids and Sams was 2x more expensive than BelTone who told me that I didn’t them. Sams said I did. 

[Carlos]

I had a hearing exam done free at Costco after my membership had expired, before I got the Sam's membership.  Some of these laws vary by state.

 

[sandsys]

It's neither Sam's nor Costco but my audiologist does the exam for free plus promised me free batteries for the first three years. After that, sometimes they charge me for batteries and sometimes they don't. They do get frustrated that I don't make it in for another free exam every year, though.

Linda

[Sehc]

Any one expecting the need for hearing aid, please visit a true otolaryngologist before deciding on a quick test at hearing aid centers. 

[TXiceman]

12 minutes ago, Sehc said:

Any one expecting the need for hearing aid, please visit a true otolaryngologist before deciding on a quick test at hearing aid centers. 

We first went to NewSound at first and had the audiologist check my ears.  Them we went to Costco and the audiologist ran the EXACT same test for my ears.  The Costco hearing aids were less than 1/2 the price of NewSound.     NewSound is a rip off.

Ken

 

[Kirk W]

2 hours ago, Sehc said:

Any one expecting the need for hearing aid, please visit a true otolaryngologist before deciding on a quick test at hearing aid centers. 

Quote

Otolaryngology (pronounced oh/toe/lair/in/goll/oh/jee) is the oldest medical specialty in the United States. Otolaryngologists are physicians trained in the medical and surgical management and treatment of patients with diseases and disorders of the ear, nose, throat (ENT), and related structures of the head and neck.

 

[Bill Joyce]

Since I know many full timers, including ourselves, who have Costco and/or Sam's memberships that they use heavily, I question someone using the term "majority of full timers" here. Full timers are quite diverse and each has their own wants and needs, so I always question when someone decides that their view of what full timers do and want is the majority case.   For some it makes sense to have such a membership, for others it does not.  

 

[Carlos]

The Sam's I go to is next to a HUGE Walmart, and it's one of the best in the area.  Very clean, not overly busy.  Sam's quality always blows it away, particularly on produce, but also on so many other things.  I'm not price sensitive on groceries, but very quality sensitive, so that's my priority.

 

[FL-JOE]

20 hours ago, Bill Joyce said:

Since I know many full timers, including ourselves, who have Costco and/or Sam's memberships that they use heavily, I question someone using the term "majority of full timers" here. Full timers are quite diverse and each has their own wants and needs, so I always question when someone decides that their view of what full timers do and want is the majority case.   For some it makes sense to have such a membership, for others it does not.  

 

I suppose it depends on your definition of "uses heavily".  We probably go to a Walmart once a week or more where we get most of our staples and our cash.  We visit the local Sam's Club maybe once a month throughout the year.  We also use Publix, Krogers, or IGA grocery chains depending on what part of the country we are in.

Are you saying as a full timer 60% to 80% of your shopping is done at Sam's?

[Kirk W]

Did you know that COSTCO & Sam's Club plan to start selling cars soon? The price is very low but you do have to buy them in a sixpack. 😳

[Bill Joyce]

"Are you saying as a full timer 60% to 80% of your shopping is done at Sam's?"

We probably buy about half our groceries at Costco, plus many other things.We are Executive members, which pays us 2% on our Costco purchases and get more than the upgrade costs ($55) and some years more than the total cost ($110) of membership back. 

When we had Sams we did not spend as much at them, but felt it was worthwhile for us to have the standard membership ($45 a year I think). Now that Sam's closed all Washington state stores, where we spend the summer, we cancelled our membership.  The closest Sam''s Club to Washington state is Billings MT and there are no Sam's Clubs in Idaho, Oregon, Alaska or California north of the Bay Area.  These places all have Costco.

Edit: We have a residential fridge and do buy lettuce, milk and other things at Costco (or Sam's when we had a membership).

[SWharton]

We use our Sams Club membership primarily for gas. Packaging, even with a residential refrig, is just too much to carry and use. We primarily shop at Walmart and fill in with others. We do try to buy meat at Sams, but due to the large quantities have to be careful and make sure we have the space.

[Bill Joyce]

Gas is definitely a deal at Costco and Sam''s.  Here in the Mesa AZ area both Costco and Sam's are charging $2.299 for regular, while other places are charging $2.399 or more according to GasBuddy..  If you buy 450 gallons in a year you paid for your Sam's Club membership in cheaper gas.

Packaging can be a problem with membership clubs, but we have arranged the fridge knowing we were going to buy those sizes.  Sometimes it makes no difference, since we buy gallons of milk and 16 oz packages of Spring mix even when buying a grocery stores or Wal-Mart.  Yes we do go through them fast enough.  Milk seems to run 20c to 40c a gallon cheaper at Costco than the sale prices or everyday Wal-Mart/Winco Foods/Aldi's prices.  Spring Mix saves us $1.30 on average.  

[bobsallyh]

Bill, there is a Sam's Club in Idaho Falls, ID. We use it before we head up to the Island Park and Yellowstone area.

[Bill Joyce]

20 hours ago, bobsallyh said:

Bill, there is a Sam's Club in Idaho Falls, ID. We use it before we head up to the Island Park and Yellowstone area.

My bad.  It is the only one in Idaho.  Since there are none around Boise I did not check further. 

[bobsallyh]

No problem, Bill. It just jumped out at me because that is one of my favorite Sam's/Costco parking lot watching areas. There are always many Wyoming licensed vehicles in that lot, many pulling enclosed trailers. When opening the trailers there is usually a chest type freezer and looking around to the trailer tongue, there will be a Honda genny powering it. And forget the grocery carts, they use the flatbeds. My Costco favorite is in Kalispell, MT. 

[whj469]

I just saw a TV program on the 3 lb rotisserie chicken that the sell at Costco's for $5. They said that a three lb chicken that you buy their and take home to cook cost more! They sell 81 million of them per year and they bring people into the store and they are always at the back of the store.

[Carlos]

Pretty much every store around here has those chickens.  They vary in flavor, I like Fry's the most (Kroger) and Sam's second.

 

[Barbaraok]

Unfortunately we can no long get those because too much sodium used in their seasoning.  Kidney disease is a real downer!  

[Carlos]

They are major salt bombs.  I rarely bought them, and then a few years ago really cut out salt so I stopped getting them at all.  My joints are much happier with low salt, even though nobody told me to cut salt for any medical reason.  

 

[RV_]

I'm sorry Barb and Carlos. We have no salt issues but do eat low fat/salt for continued good cholesterol/BP no diabetes health. I even quit smoking and since I drank beer with smokes quit that too at the same time a decade or so back. My bane is lumbar and cervical issues that were mostly resolved with surgery on both at Laser Spine Institute in Tampa.

We eat those rotisserie chickens at least once a month and it lasts for two dinners. (or suppers if you ain't from aroun' here.) Anytime we don't have time to cook because of an outing or TV program we get one too. I also love breakfast for supper. Eggs and eggo waffles (or toast) with real maple syrup butter and turkey sausage on the side.

[docj]

2 hours ago, whj469 said:

I just saw a TV program on the 3 lb rotisserie chicken that the sell at Costco's for $5. They said that a three lb chicken that you buy their and take home to cook cost more! They sell 81 million of them per year and they bring people into the store and they are always at the back of the store.

Here in Corpus Christi at HEB a fresh chicken costs $0.95/lb which would make the cost of a 3 lb chicken $2.85 (assuming you wanted to buy one that small).  We usually buy a 5-6 lb one for less than $6.  We like Costco, also, but it doesn't sell miracles.

There's no way that you can sell a cooked chicken for the same price that someone is selling an uncooked one.  Someone has to pay for the energy used for cooking.  Unless we've been traveling all day I can't see why I would want to buy a cooked one rather than make it myself.