Don't laugh at me but we have a Costco opening up next week. The first in the state! Years ago (for many years) before I got to Maine I had a "Pace" membership until Walmart bought it to become Sam's club. There is one here but it's 45 minutes away and I just didn't make the trip often enough and let it expire. I have 2 questions about Costco. Is it similar in price and offered products? (To Sam's) What's the best plan for only occasional use as it's also 45 minutes away. We're not really into pallet quantities of chips or TP like I remember Sam's to be. It's just that Costco's often brought up in mostly forum conversations as if people go there almost every day or week. Is it that great? It looks $60 is the basic personal or business membership, I've just never set foot in one and not sure if the $60 fee would be "paid for" in savings in 12 months of my purchases not that $60 is a big deal but this goes back to my Sam's Club days where I probably spent several hundred dollars or more on my unused business membership before I finally didn't renew.
I’m interested in what folks have to say. We have a BJ’s membership and use it a fair amount. There is also a Costco less than a mile from the bjs. I have heard that Costco has “better” quality items. Apparently Costco has a crazy no questions asked return policy. A good buddy’s FIL is a chronic shopper and buys stuff just to return it.
I only have a Costco membership because they have pretty good prices on wine and some of their name brands aren't too bad. It's unfortunately about a 40 minute ride away and now that BJ's is selling wine right down the street from me I'm considering dropping the Costco membership because I just don't get there any more. BJ's wine selection, however, sucks. Sometimes I'll order something online from Costco. If they have a gas station and it is close it might be worth it. All the Sam's in this part of the state closed a few years back. Costco has cut back some on their returns policy. If there is a gas station at the Avon, Ma Costco I've not seen it. I don't think the clothes/linens and things are any better at Costco than at BJs any more. One problem with BJs is all the stores are not the same size so some larger stores have things the smaller stores don't. Dunno if Costco is the same as I've only been to the one. Costco is also getting real picky on credit cards.
That's my question. We just don't view shopping as a pleasurable "activity" anymore and have all but withdrawn from participating in this economy. But you still need some chit, and it's generally overpriced anymore so a "discount" membership is appealing.
We were sams club members for several years until we went to a Costco one time. We joined Costco that day and cancelled our sams membership the same day. Sams is 12 miles away and Costco is 36. No regrets. Its been 12 years now.
Just the wife and I and the closest cosco is about 85 miles away. We do not use enough bulk style items to make it worth our while to justify the membership cost.
Well Costco... I have two within 15 miles... One is on the KS side and One is on the MO side... MO sells Liquior... KS can only sell beer... Costco... I have the up step membership... It pays back on a percentage of what you buy..Which the check I get back is pretty much the yearly membership cost.... They basically accept Cash or there teamed up with there Visa... The quality of items is in my Opinion better than Sams.. The Service is better... As mention prior the return policy is there... just dont abuse it... But there is items that Sams carries that Costco doesn't so I have my friends buy them...
We have the higher membership as well. Its basically paid for by the kickback. We shop for a couple others too so that helps. I agree on the higher quality products and definitely service than sams.
We have both Sam’s and BJs up in this neck of the woods. Costco in Scarborough is a couple hours away so I won’t be getting that membership. Wife gets a sams card from her work because she uses it for work and we do too for free. We also have a BJs card. Diesel is sometimes cheaper. They occasionally have some good deals. There’s some stuff there you can’t get at Sam’s. No lines is AWSOME and can park within a mile of the store. They are close to each other and 20 minutes away so we use both and shop prices. We really never go to the grocery store but for milk, beer, perishable stuff. We have a cow and just got a moose in the freezer plus I haven’t even started on deer yet, we don’t buy any meat, potatoes I get in the county cheap. Usually can 50 pounds and store 50 pounds. All the garden stuff is canned, this year with the rain we didn’t get jack chit but have plenty to last a year still canned up. Can 4 turkeys after T-day when they go on sale for 20 cents a pound.
I like Costco, but we have memberships to both Costco and Sams...fortunately my wife's ex boss pays for both of them for us. We have the business account, but any payback money goes back to him. We also have the Costco Visa which pays us back well! The gas is cheaper at both stores around here
We had Costco for a while and at first it was pretty good. The worst thing for us is that if you bought some food products and liked them, the next time you go back the brand was no longer in the store. Of course they wanted you to buy their brand but most were not up to par value. We finally decided to drop our Costco card because we weren't buying enough and getting enough discount to make the card worthwhile. Another factor was the distance to the store.
Hear good things about Costco, unfortunately there is none conveniently located in my area so we are Sam's club members. My wife shops there often in bulk and they have pretty solid quality items IMO. She really scores on some end of season items as well. After xmas we get a lot of good stuff for the following year.
We have both Costco and Sams memberships and go to them every other week. We are a family of 5 with three grown boys so we are looking for larger quantities. Sams seems to have more of the basics and often at a lower cost. Costco has more variety and is more upscale. I can go to Sams and stick to the list. Costco you never know what I'll come home with. I'm pretty sure you can get a trial pass at Costco for one shopping trip.
We probably make up for the $60 in gas savings alone. Ours is close, but we still probably go maybe 8 times a year. Sometimes I’ll stop just for gas. One big ticket item like a TV or car tires can easily make up that $60 too. Other than that, for us, it’s little savings of a couple dollars here or there on random items. We like the pesto, the giant blocks of cheddar cheese, the granola bars for kids. Also, if we’re ever making a big load of food for a lot of people, it’s a great way to save. In summary, our family likes Costco—it’s a good deal for what we buy, but it’s not life changing.
