Cosco vs. Wal-Mart

[niki_the_tiger]

Re: Cosco vs. Wal-Mart

We got free one day passes to both BJs and Sam's Club, and then decided to get a membership at Sam's Club after checking them out. It's prices were often at least a $1 cheaper than BJs.

We also saw that between just two items (protein powder and razors), the savings would be equal to the cost of the membership for the year, so we were sold.

We also wanted to buy in bulk, which is why it sounded much better than just going to a Walmart Supercenter.

And we noticed a lot of great deals on other items that Sam's Club sells (other than food items), so that will be good for us too. We will see how it goes this year... if we decided it's not worth it, then next year we will not renew. Though hopefully by next year we will be living closer to either a Sam's Club or a Walmart Supercenter!

[marglo]

Re: Cosco vs. Wal-Mart

I buy at both stores, but for different things. I like to buy my meat and dairy products at least at Wild Oats (dairy also at Trader Joes), and some produce at Wild Oats too, so I spend more on those things, but then other things I may buy at WinCos or Wal-Mart. Then I go to Costco for somethings that I know are good buys there and I can buy the larger sizes without concern for them wasting. I also really like the roast chicken at Costco. Because of the way I shop these days I don't use coupons much.

[niki_the_tiger]

Re: Cosco vs. Wal-Mart

The price of gas has gone way up, which makes it even more difficult to get to Sam's Club or SuperWalmart, as they are 2hrs20 minutes from us. But we plan on going once a month and we spend enough between the two places to make it worth it.

They're both in the same city, so we make a Sam's Club list and a Walmart list... Sam's Club is awesome for a lot of things, but doesn't always have a lot of choices. For example, I buy Iams large breed puppy food. Sam's Club has a great price on Iams puppy food, but does not offer the large breed option. Also, for fresh fruits and veggies, I buy either at the Walmart Surcenter or locally because we would never finish the bulk amount... and the savings would be wasted.

My biggest problem with Sam's Club is that you have to use cash. Yes, I know you can sign up for their credit card, but we don't want another credit card... lol. Well, I guess now having to use cash is a good thing... we're trying to pay off all our debt and not use credit card any more. It's just that at Sam's Club, we sometimes buy stuff for the month... so if I put it on credit card, I could use some of the food money from the next paycheck to pay for it too, instead of using ALL our money to pay for it. :P But we're getting smarter about it and saving for our Sam's Club visits.

[CherylOK]

Re: Cosco vs. Wal-Mart

I can't believe that noone has mentioned one of the great things about Sam's...the grazing!! (I've never been to Costco or BJ...maybe they have the same thing.)

Sam's has samples being served in the food area. During the week there maybe 2 or 3. But on Fridays and Saturdays, its a smorgasborg (sp?)! (We live in the country, an hour away, so I always schedule dr's appts on Fridays.) We go in and get a big soft drink, and then head out into the store. On really good days, you end up with a great variety of foods to try and are stuffed!

I don't have a current card anymore, so I don't usually shop there. I do love their kitty litter, and we use the 5 gal plastic buckets it comes in, so every few months I go with my SIL to get that. But it's not enough to warrant a yearly membership card for our family. I keep a Price Book and most staples are cheaper by the pound/unit at Aldi's.

[marglo]

Re: Cosco vs. Wal-Mart

Yes Costco has the samples too! We sometimes feel like we've had lunch by the time we've eaten all the samples! LOL If we still want something else we stop for the hot dog/sausage, saurkraut and soda deal for $1.50! Sometimes we each get our own, sometimes we share! Very cheap date! :-) We keep our AMEX only for Costco purchases - we actually got it for the gas rebates. Their gas is usually one of the cheapest around (esp with the rebate!) here plus our car seems to run better on it!

[jmjj215]

Re: Cosco vs. Wal-Mart

We did price comparisons of Costco to Walmart for every type of staple food we buy (eggs, milk, fruit, bread, cottage cheese, yogurt, tuna, etc.) Costco and cheaper milk by about $.20 a gallon. But other than that, Wal-mart had them beat. Plus we can price-match at Wal-mart, which gets us the best of the best every week - the Top Gun of grocery prices, if you will.

[niki_the_tiger]

Re: Cosco vs. Wal-Mart

If we had a Walmart supercenter in town where we could do weekly grocery shopping, I would just do my shopping there instead, but as the nearest one is just as far as the Sam's Club, I like Sam's Club better cuz we can buy in bulk. Not sure if it would be just as cheap to buy the same things but in bigger quantities at superwalmart... maybe I'll check that out for next year. For now, we're happy - the card paid for itself in our first visit or two. So even if we never went back, we are still ahead.

I love buying food at the snack shop... so cheap! $0.77 for this HUGE cookie you would pay $3 or more somewhere else. 1/4 lb cookie! Less than $2 for a huge slice of pizza and a soda. I mean maybe it's not super healthy LOL... but it is CHEAP. Next time we will definitely pick up some of their pizzas... $7 or $8 for a 16in pizza... in town it would cost us over $15 for that same size of pizza. We have company over often, with two pizzas we'd have enough for everyone for $16.

[terry1156]

Re: Cosco vs. Wal-Mart

This is a funny little film

<a href="http://www.jibjab.com/Movies/BoxMart.aspx">Box Mart</a>