Is a Membership to Places Like Costco and Sam’s Club Worth It?

Like most financial questions, the answer is, “It depends.” Here’s how to weigh the cost, pros, and cons of a warehouse membership for your family.
  1. Lisa Lacroix says:

    I love Costco. We are only two, me and my son. The meat alone end up being less expensive then the grocery store. It’s not the olny thing I buy. It woth the $140 I pay for the membership.

  2. e says:

    I have a Costco membership & I live alone & it has been worth it to me. I’ve worked with my naturopath to identify routine items I need in my diet daily: flax seeds, chia seeds, protein powder, veggies, etc. Those are essentially smoothie ingredients & buying it at Costco has saved me over time; the biggest saving was the protein powder. Then I began adding other items to my Costco trip that also saved me money: getting prescription glasses (by the way, you can use the pharmacy without a membership so price compare your families medications, especially if you/they take routine meds!), paper towels, toilet paper, contact lenses solution (which is also great as a stain remover!), dish soap (I literally don’t buy dish soap more than once in a year!), bread (it’s half the cost and I freeze the second loaf until I’m ready to use it), rice, hydrogen peroxide, rubbing alcohol, oxi-clean, & q-tips are just a few to name. Since I live alone I allow myself one “base” protein per trip max if needed/wanted. IE I’ll buy a rotisserie chicken and plan the week’s meals around it; that way I don’t overcrowd my space and prevent food waste. When the pandemic hit, I began using the gas stations too. I am now considering getting the Costco credit card since I’ve got my spends down & in control.

  3. Tiffany says:

    I love that you shared this. I have hesitated with joining a warehouse for a long time and ultimately decided not to because we are striving to be more minimalistic as a family of four. I don’t like stock piling and shopping. I don’t want to fill every nook and cranny of my house with bulk amounts of things. Therefore, it was not a good fit for us.

    Weekly store savings and coupons have worked fine and if food spending gets really out of hand, we learn to limit spending in other areas (entertainment, clothing, etc).

  4. Sarah says:

    The has savings alone pay for the membership. And I split one with my mom (had mail with her address and my name), might be an option for some people since you can have 2 people on the account. and Christmas presents! I buy pretty much all my kids Christmas presents there and some adult ones. The electronics are hard to beat too. Their jeans are so cheap and great quality. Underwear, socks etc are usually cheaper than discount stores for quality name brands and a bit more expensive as the cheap stuff that falls apart quickly, so overall I find it’s a better long term value at Costco. Definitely a place that I have to be prepared to spend a bigger chunk at once, but it does save overall.
    Don’t forget, they also have to let you in for free without a membership for the pharmacy, which can save a ton of money. Low dispensing fee and lower drug costs! And they might have to let you in for glasses? Not sure on that one.

  5. AJM says:

    Go in with a family member and share a membership. You get two cards with a membership. Each family member can have a card. So the membership cost is half price. I prefer organic foods and Costco has an enormous amount of organic food products and their Kirkland brand is very cost effective. While on sale about a month ago, their large jar (about a quart in size) of organic strawberry spread was $4.99!!! If you have a freezer and are buying in bulk, make sure one of the first things you do is freeze a good size portion of the produce. Most fresh produce freezes well. They have a huge bag of frozen mixed organic veggies (broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots) which I bring home and separate for use as individual frozen vegetables. It’s price is better than the individual giant frozen bags. There’s no need for waste when you plan ahead.

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