Sam's Club or Costco?

[Chris Duel]

I've never been a member of Sam's Club or Costco.

Like everyone else, I'm trying to minimize over-spending in this economy.

Many people have told me to become a member of Sam's Club or Costco to buy items in bulk and save money.

Anyone here prefer one over the other?

[tlongII]

Love Costco, but never been to Sam's Club.

[Blake]

they arent much different

except Costco has a liquor store (although you dont need a membership for that).

advantage: Costco

[EricB]

Costco has better food in bulk and more house hold items.

Sam's Club is good for business type stuff in bulk, better than Costco.

[Party Pete]

Sam's Club is owned by Walmart and is evil.

Costco is an incredibly ethical company. They take care of their workers and their customers. Costco FTW and it isn't close.

[PuttPutt]

Sam's Club is owned by Walmart and is evil.

Costco is an incredibly ethical company. They take care of their workers and their customers. Costco FTW and it isn't close.


Very much true. They treat their employees very well.

For the most part they have a lot of the same products, but the "krikland" brand is much better quality than the sams/walmart brand.

Costco all the way. And I agree with another previous post about the liquor store. They mainly carry 1/2 gallon sizes at a very good price. You just have to be in the right state to take advantage. Here in WA liquor stores are state run & we get taxed big time on booze. In Texas they are independently run & are only subject to minimal taxation. I miss SA for being able to go to the Costco & get booze & not feel raped after buying a bottle. I used to buy Maker's Mark there for $37.99 in SA & now have to pay $55.99 due to heavy taxation. SUCKS!!

[TDMVPDPOY]

buyin bulk do you mean buying supplies for a month? what duration are we talkin about here, cause costco is in the process of openning a store down here in melb....but i dont think aussies will get the hang of it..

[Laker Lanny]

Witch ever one still carries body solutions. :tu

[balli]

Two things about Costco-
1. They have quality fucking food products. I mean, I've gotten steak there that'll go toes with any prime meat out of my local grocer's case. Their bakery's legit. Their dairy is good. The commercial products they carry are incredibly well chosen.

2. Their pharmacy is one of the cheapest and most honest in the nation. They don't mark up a single cent of profit on generic drugs; which is rare to say the least. And I don't even have a prescription for anything, but I think it's just a microcosmic example of Costco's entire operation.


buyin bulk do you mean buying supplies for a month? what duration are we talkin about here, cause costco is in the process of openning a store down here in melb...
IDK man, Costco's crazy. In terms of bulk, yeah, you're buying larger quantities of food, etc. How much larger just depends on the product. For example, you can't buy 1 steak, you have to buy 5. Not 6 rolls of toilet paper, 36. You can get an individual jar of salsa or a bag of coffee, but it'll be pretty big. At the same time, you can get a TV at Costco... Or a blender or coffeemaker. Or clothing. Or DVD's/Videogames. The nice thing about it is that the store's architectural utility seems to offset the horrible self-loathing that would normally accompany such blatant & overly-abundant American consumerism. That and the fact that it's a co-op.

I will say what each Costco carries depends on region though. The three in Utah are pretty cool, but I've been to a couple in Alaska and Arizona that were small and lowly.

[Trainwreck2100]

costco on dezavala=awesome
sams on dezavala=loaded with usaa "empoyees"

[King]

Costco has a hotdog/drink for $1.50. That alone gives it the advantage. Except you don't have to be a member to eat there.

[Melmart1]

I love Costco. If you buy electronics, the warranty is extended to two years through them, and you have 90 days to bring it back, no questions asked. Their produce is really cheap, and even me who lives alone can find sizes that won't go bad before I eat it all.

I have a friend who comes with me specifically to buy the Starbucks gift cards. You get 5 $20 gift cards for $80, and she goes through so much Starbucks at her office (both consuming and as incentive gifts) that she saves a ton of money that way.

Sam's Club is OK, but I feel their selection isn't as good.

[Saved By Zero]

I am not sure which on is better but next time let Panda bear make the this or that topic.

[CheapBastard]

You don't have to buy bulk to save. Watch for sale items and use in-store and manufacturer's coupons and you can save big time. The time is worth the savings and there are some great websites for coupons and tips. Just last week I took my grocery bill from $102 down to $68 just using coupons.

[Bigzax]

costco all the way, but the cheap bastard has a point.

you can find yourself spending a shitload of money at costco and wondering what the hell you bought.

you get really good stuff there and i swear by it, but if you on a budget, you would be better off coupon cutting at heb. :tu


also, be sure to get the executive membership if going to costco, cuz the 2% back per year pretty much makes membership free after the first year...

[chode_regulator]

i ahve to second ballijuana on the meat selection. my wife went to costco in SA 3 weeks ago and spent like 300 on pretty muchjust steaks, chicken breasts etc. i was a little hesitant on the steak bc of steaks ive gotten at sams before. the one from costco was excellent.
but i also have to agree that you can save a ton buying stuff at heb with coupons, you just have to have all your ducks in a row before you go.

either way theyre better than walmart. when i was in FL we had a walmart that was like a block away that only sold food. the steaks sucked.

[tlongII]

I love Costco. If you buy electronics, the warranty is extended to two years through them, and you have 90 days to bring it back, no questions asked. Their produce is really cheap, and even me who lives alone can find sizes that won't go bad before I eat it all.

I have a friend who comes with me specifically to buy the Starbucks gift cards. You get 5 $20 gift cards for $80, and she goes through so much Starbucks at her office (both consuming and as incentive gifts) that she saves a ton of money that way.

Sam's Club is OK, but I feel their selection isn't as good.

I do the exact same thing! :lol

[mookie2001]

do yall use a george foreman cReg?


you know what sounds good right now, chicken breasts with cheese and carrots

[AmericanWoman]

you don't have to buy bulk to save. Watch for sale items and use in-store and manufacturer's coupons and you can save big time. The time is worth the savings and there are some great websites for coupons and tips. Just last week i took my grocery bill from $102 down to $68 just using coupons.

+1

[CubanSucks]

Welcome to Costco. I love you.
http://calacanis.files.wordpress.com/2008/07/picture-16.png

[Taco]

Think i'm gonna go with costco

[Blake]

I forget, does costco sell tires? I know sam's does....

[Taco]

I forget, does costco sell tires? I know sam's does....

http://tires.costco.com/TSSapp/TireLanding.xhtml

Looks like they do

[BlackSwordsMan]

life long supply of toilet paper
for the win

[Biernutz]

Costco has more higher end items, but if you see something you like and don't buy it you may never see it again. I would go to their web sites and look at the items on it and then decide what store items I would buy there all the time. I saved $450.00 last year at Sam's.

[Chief]

Sam's club has more selection for Business Members.
Costco has very limited items, quality might be better but still

The service at Sam's sucks ass tho, When I went to Costco they treated me like a god.

perhaps cuz i spend 5g's there each week.

[wrench]

Which ever one Dawn doesn't shop at! :lmao

[Chris Duel]

Thanks for all of your feedback on this.

I do appreciate it.

Chris

[Blake]

The service at Sam's sucks ass tho, When I went to Costco they treated me like a god.

perhaps cuz i spend 5g's there each week.

what if you only spend 1 g a week? Do they treat you like a star from a VH1 reality show?

[JudynTX]

Which one offers the best samples on Saturdays? :D

[Blake]

I always wanted a gallon size can of Beefaroni.

"aww.....Rusty!"

[TDMVPDPOY]

hey samsco and costsco, do they sell popular branded stuff, or cheap frills bs?

[Dex]

I always have this desire to sign up for CostCo or Sams so I can get amazing deals on bulk buys.

Then I remember I live in an apartment and can hardly fit my fo0d in the pantry as it is.

I'm pretty sure you need one of those big industrial freezers to fully take advantage of buying in bulk. One box of Eggo's from Sam's would fill my freezer.

[balli]

hey samsco and costsco, do they sell popular branded stuff, or cheap frills bs?

Popular, brand-name products. Costco also sells stuff under their own brand called Kirkland Signature, which is generally pretty damn high in quality given a few exceptions (Sumatra blend coffee, I'm looking at you... though the Costa-Rican is off the hook). I'm not sure what Sam's in-house product line is called, but earlier in the thread someone mentioned that it isn't as high quality as the Costco line.

Edit: For example: http://www.costco.com/Common/Category.aspx?cat=28564&eCat=BC|3605|28564&lang=en-US&whse=BC&topnav=

[rkpatt]

I like Costco better for customer service and selections but Sams Club is close by gets my business on regualr basis .