Sam's club
auntstephie321
Posts: 3,586 Member
Does anyone have a membership there or a similar type store? I saw a deal today for a membership for 45 dollars for the year and was wondering if anyone had experience shopping there. Is there a big benefit to buying in such large quantities?
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I'm single, and I do shop at Costco occasionally. Not to stock up on everything, because I don't have a deep freezer or enough pantry space to store it all, but there are some things like cheese, olive oil, coconut oil, and baking soda, etc., that I like the larger quantities of. Also they have a better selection of prepared meats and fish that I can just microwave and go when I don't feel like cooking. I think it's worth it.0
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We had one for awhile but rarely used it. I found it beneficial when planning for a party, but most of the time I can get better deals at Aldi's. If you are a fan of certain brands than you can certainly stock up on them at Sam's. It was also helpful for things like trash bags and paper products. Their produce is nice.0
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Buying in bulk usually saves in per-item price. ie:
Roll of toilet paper sells for $2 individually
Pack of 20 sells for $30, or $1.50 each.
I've never found it particularly useful, but that's because I've never really been one to need (and for a while, couldn't store) the amounts that they sold and what they had. I know a lot of people in this group do, though. Even with the cost of membership, if you buy enough of the things they offer, it is a savings in the long run. You do sacrifice selection, though, so if you don't like the brand or variety they offer for X item, you're out of luck.
I do go to Gordon Food Service occasionally, though. Same idea, though smaller and doesn't require a membership. It's the same place many restaurants get a lot of their stuff. Great place to buy spices in bulk or the utilitarian stuff for a party (flatware, drink mixes, etc).0 -
I was thinking mostly for meat, I guess. I don't know how much I'd go but meat is so pricey0
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I don't get my meat there but I do get grassfed cheese and butter at a fabulous price as compared to the grocery store (Kerrygold), wild salmon (frozen), smoked salmon, organic greens and salads and lots of fresh veggies (cauliflower, string beans and fresh Brussels sprouts), and lots of avocados. We also get olive and coconut oils there and, most importantly, my Paul Newman coffee K cups
!! We definitely save a lot on all these items. But I'm feeding a big family so YMMV. 0 -
I recall they had large bags and boxes of things like chicken breasts and they have the meats they cut. I don't recall them being any lower priced than regular grocery stores, though, and no sales that I ever saw.0
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I found online that BJ's offeres a free 60 day membership, I think I'll do that and see if its of any benefit before paying for a membership. Thanks all. I saw they have the appelgate farms lunchmeats and bacon which is really expensive everywhere, but it didn't show the price.0
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On occasion we by Black Label Ribeye and Ground Beef and Leg o Lamb.
I always buy Chicken legs/thighs/breast/whole chicken, all decently priced. I just freeze it and it lasts for a long while.
I don't usually buy fish at Sams, i go to our local market for that stuff, and deli stuff is cheaper at the market.
At Sams, Cage free brown eggs (18 count) for about $4, butter, heavy whipping cream, cream cheese (6pack) some veggies like green beans and sprouts, mushrooms, bella caps, avocados, etc.
Toilet paper and paper towels 0 -
I had a Sam's membership but could never really get into going amd it didn't seem worth it to me. ..but it was also a one hour drive each way.0
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I haven't liked the lack of selection when I go, especially when they don't have everything and I still have to go to the grocery store to finish my list. However it's starting to sound more appealing for buying meat and bacon in bulk. Luckily our freezer hasn't been so full since we stopped buying all the carby packaged stuff.0
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We had a Sams until Costco moved in. Now we do costco for the organic and grass fed options they provide. We buy toilet paper, paper towels, dishwasher detergent, lunch meat, sliced cheese, shredded cheese, block cheese, flax seed, organic canned goods, frozen organic fruits and veggies, antibiotic free beef, chicken and some fish, pickles by the 3 gallon jars, avocados, mushrooms, etc
Our costco doesnt carry grassfed milk or butter, but if they did id get them there. We have chickens and pigs so I dont get the eggs or pork there but cheap prices on free range eggs there. Cheap mayo but the gallons if you dont make your own.
You can always walk in without a membership and check it out. We did before we purchased the membership at each place. Take a list of things you normally buy and their per unit ball park prices and check it out. You wont know if it is worth it for YOU unless you compare on things you buy.
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Have used in the past, but I live an hour away from the nearest Sam's, so not practical for a membership for me. If I lived closer in would use it.0
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I don't like Costco for some reason, I find it lacking some of the stuff and more pricier, and SAMs is 10 min away 0
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I have a BJ's membership and have used it extensively over the last year to buy the following:
Bacon (3 pounds at BJ's cost the same as 2 pounds at wal mart pretty consistently).
Ground Beef
Pork Chops
Chicken Thighs
Fish Occasionally
Roasts occasionally
Eggs
Almond Milk
Heavy Cream
Cream Cheese
Shredded Cheese
Sliced Cheese
Deli Meat
Salsa
Coconut Oil
Butter
Nuts
Powerade Zero by the case
Paper Towels
Napkins
Toilet Paper
I don't have the amounts on the other things besides bacon, but every single one of these items is very consistently cheaper at BJ's per pound/unit/whatever than I could get anywhere else.
With the meats, I prefer to cook in bulk for most things, I don't like cooking in general, but I like leftovers.0 -
I used to have a Sam's Club membership, but know I go to GFS. GFS is free, no membership required. I love their chicken, my dad swears by their salmon, I buy cheese in bulk there and divide it up and freeze it when I get home.0
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@radiii thank you for that list. I tried looking online for prices but only saw the powerade zero with a price and was much lower than I've seen it everywhere. I did see that they have grass fed beef there to so I'll have to check on that. Thanks all for the feedback0
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I shop for my food almost exclusively at BJ's club.
Why? Because I eat the same food in large amounts. I can get chuck roll for $3.99/lb (in 15-25 lb slabs), boxes of burgers for around $3/lb, bacon for under $3/lb... and, if I want eggs, I can get 5 dozen for less than the cost of 4 dozen at my grocery store.0 -
I think Costco is a little better than Sam's Club.
The Kirkland house brand is nothing short of amazing! Incredible quality & value.
And you can probably pay for your membership just in the ginormous $5 rotisserie chickens and gasoline.0 -
No Costco up here
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Our biggest savings at Sam's is honestly on our gas and bacon.0
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My family had costco and sams for awhile, we dropped sams because they lacked selection.0
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All this talk about Sam's Club and a Groupon arrived in my inbox. $45 for a year of Sam's Plus membership (normally about $99 I think). Plus they give you a $20 gift card, a roasted chicken, and some other goodies. Cool! I bought one. Made my way to Sam's to sign up. Apparently they started selling the Groupon's yesterday, but you can't start redeeming them until Friday. Fine print fail! I was a bit crestfallen having wasted time, but I got to poke around. My initial impression is that they have some great stuff by way of meats/cheeses/coconut oil, but the selection is not so great. Overall, it's a heck of deal. I'll have to go back Friday and get my card.0
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DonPendergraft wrote: »All this talk about Sam's Club and a Groupon arrived in my inbox. $45 for a year of Sam's Plus membership (normally about $99 I think). Plus they give you a $20 gift card, a roasted chicken, and some other goodies. Cool! I bought one. Made my way to Sam's to sign up. Apparently they started selling the Groupon's yesterday, but you can't start redeeming them until Friday. Fine print fail! I was a bit crestfallen having wasted time, but I got to poke around. My initial impression is that they have some great stuff by way of meats/cheeses/coconut oil, but the selection is not so great. Overall, it's a heck of deal. I'll have to go back Friday and get my card.
LOL that groupon email is exactly why I posted this.0 -
DonPendergraft wrote: »All this talk about Sam's Club and a Groupon arrived in my inbox. $45 for a year of Sam's Plus membership (normally about $99 I think). Plus they give you a $20 gift card, a roasted chicken, and some other goodies. Cool! I bought one. Made my way to Sam's to sign up. Apparently they started selling the Groupon's yesterday, but you can't start redeeming them until Friday. Fine print fail! I was a bit crestfallen having wasted time, but I got to poke around. My initial impression is that they have some great stuff by way of meats/cheeses/coconut oil, but the selection is not so great. Overall, it's a heck of deal. I'll have to go back Friday and get my card.
As far as I can tell it's always $45 where I live.
Seems right to me it was $35 when I quit going there.0 -
I have a BJ's membership and have used it extensively over the last year to buy the following:
Bacon (3 pounds at BJ's cost the same as 2 pounds at wal mart pretty consistently).
Ground Beef
Pork Chops
Chicken Thighs
Fish Occasionally
Roasts occasionally
Eggs
Almond Milk
Heavy Cream
Cream Cheese
Shredded Cheese
Sliced Cheese
Deli Meat
Salsa
Coconut Oil
Butter
Nuts
Powerade Zero by the case
Paper Towels
Napkins
Toilet Paper
I don't have the amounts on the other things besides bacon, but every single one of these items is very consistently cheaper at BJ's per pound/unit/whatever than I could get anywhere else.
With the meats, I prefer to cook in bulk for most things, I don't like cooking in general, but I like leftovers.
We shop at BJ's too for all the items above except the powerade. Now that me and my hubby both are LCHF, it saves us money and smaller trips to the grocery stores and or local butcher are all we need. We also buy tons of fresh veggies and Atkins shakes by the case there because hubby uses them in his iced coffee.
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The "Sam's Savings" regular membership is only $45. The business version is also $45. However, Sam's Plus is normally $100.monicapavlick wrote: »DonPendergraft wrote: »All this talk about Sam's Club and a Groupon arrived in my inbox. $45 for a year of Sam's Plus membership (normally about $99 I think). Plus they give you a $20 gift card, a roasted chicken, and some other goodies. Cool! I bought one. Made my way to Sam's to sign up. Apparently they started selling the Groupon's yesterday, but you can't start redeeming them until Friday. Fine print fail! I was a bit crestfallen having wasted time, but I got to poke around. My initial impression is that they have some great stuff by way of meats/cheeses/coconut oil, but the selection is not so great. Overall, it's a heck of deal. I'll have to go back Friday and get my card.
As far as I can tell it's always $45 where I live.
Seems right to me it was $35 when I quit going there.
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DonPendergraft wrote: »
The "Sam's Savings" regular membership is only $45. The business version is also $45. However, Sam's Plus is normally $100.monicapavlick wrote: »DonPendergraft wrote: »All this talk about Sam's Club and a Groupon arrived in my inbox. $45 for a year of Sam's Plus membership (normally about $99 I think). Plus they give you a $20 gift card, a roasted chicken, and some other goodies. Cool! I bought one. Made my way to Sam's to sign up. Apparently they started selling the Groupon's yesterday, but you can't start redeeming them until Friday. Fine print fail! I was a bit crestfallen having wasted time, but I got to poke around. My initial impression is that they have some great stuff by way of meats/cheeses/coconut oil, but the selection is not so great. Overall, it's a heck of deal. I'll have to go back Friday and get my card.
As far as I can tell it's always $45 where I live.
Seems right to me it was $35 when I quit going there.
How does theirs work? At costco, it is $99 for a premium membership but they give you 2% back on all purchases except gas. At the end of your membership year, they give you back your money if your 2% wasnt more than the $50 more it cost for the premium membership over the regular membership, so you dont lose any money going premium.0 -
DonPendergraft wrote: »
The "Sam's Savings" regular membership is only $45. The business version is also $45. However, Sam's Plus is normally $100.monicapavlick wrote: »DonPendergraft wrote: »All this talk about Sam's Club and a Groupon arrived in my inbox. $45 for a year of Sam's Plus membership (normally about $99 I think). Plus they give you a $20 gift card, a roasted chicken, and some other goodies. Cool! I bought one. Made my way to Sam's to sign up. Apparently they started selling the Groupon's yesterday, but you can't start redeeming them until Friday. Fine print fail! I was a bit crestfallen having wasted time, but I got to poke around. My initial impression is that they have some great stuff by way of meats/cheeses/coconut oil, but the selection is not so great. Overall, it's a heck of deal. I'll have to go back Friday and get my card.
As far as I can tell it's always $45 where I live.
Seems right to me it was $35 when I quit going there.
How does theirs work? At costco, it is $99 for a premium membership but they give you 2% back on all purchases except gas. At the end of your membership year, they give you back your money if your 2% wasnt more than the $50 more it cost for the premium membership over the regular membership, so you dont lose any money going premium.
A) I was never even offered the premium membership at Sam's
B ) Now I really want a Costco in my neighborhood0 -
So I made a BJ's run tonight and noted some prices:
Smuckers Natural Peanut Butter (no sugar added) - 2 jars for $8.29
Coconut Oil - $11.99, I can't remember how much, but I'm sure at Wal Mart the same thing is $14
1 pound deli hard salami - $5.99
1 pound Finlandia Swiss Cheese - 5.99
3 pounds shredded sharp cheddar - $9.99
6 pounds bacon - $15
85/15 Ground Beef - 3.89/lb, got about 5 pounds
Boneless center cut pork chops - $2.89/lb, got about 5 pounds
Perdue Chicken Thighs w/ skin, $0.99/lb, comes in 10-12 pound packages
3 dozen eggs - $4.99 (i usually buy 6 dozen at a time, we had some from a store nearby though)
I also get 50 pounds of IAMS dog food for my sister, that's $44 which they tell me is a spectacular price.
I'm in North Carolina in the US, for reference.0 -
Thanks so much. I signed up for their free 60 day membership, I'm gonna check it out this weekend.0
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