Sam's Club Vs. Costco

I have been a member of both, but prefer Costco. Perhaps the membership fee is slightly higher (nominally so), however the reports on how both companies pay and treat their employees meant more to me than that nominal fee. I know this isn't a forum for political feelings, but suffice it to say that if the slightly higher fee helps to pay employees a living wage and health benefits (do a Google search for more information), I'll keep my membership dollars going to Costco.

I haven't been to a Sam's Club in a few years. We are members at Costco. We have a joint membership that costs us $50 a year. I love going there. We don't usually buy diapers or wipes there, more food than anything. We have a second freezer so we always stock up on meat. We also buy a lot of our produce there. It's always very fresh and extremely reasonably priced. If you shop there a lot than it's worth the membership fee.

I have a membership to Sam's and my friend has one for Costco. We both have lots of kids and use the diapers and wipes which appear to be the almost identical. I love how the wipe packs have their own dispenser tops on each of them so no more dealing with all the wipe boxes. They also have Huggies and Pampers there too but I like the Sam's brand best. I can't tell you the last time I shopped at Cub because I spend about $500 per month at Sam's Club on everything we need. I have to pick up milk in-between but Sam's pretty much feeds our family of 6 great.
I would say that you're best bet is to get a membership to the one that's closest to you so it's convenient. There are a lot more Sam's out there but if you live by a Costco then I would go with that. You'll die when you see all of the little kid clothes at Sam's for next to nothing, even Carter's. I've never been to Costco so I don't know what clothes they have.
PS buy a freezer before you go :o)
J.

I've been a member of both, but I like Costco better. The membership fee is around 45.00, so a little more perhaps. I believe Sam's is owned by Walmart, and they have a reputation for not treating their employees very well bothers me, so I choose Costco because I feel like the purchases I make are contributing to something on a larger scale and perhaps helping an employee.

we really like Costco
we have been getting their Kirkland brand diapers for our son and we like them. they are cloth-like, like the Pampers that we used to get and the sides are stretchy, which is what we loved about the Pampers brand. Don't quote me on price, but I believe the last box we bought was somewhere around $30-35 for 184 diapers size 4 large (our son is 2). Also, their Kirkland brand wipes we LOVE! they are clothlike, and fragrance free - Awesome! hope this helps.

If you like, you can check out the prices of diapers and formula online. We do belong to Sam's Club; there are no Costco stores nearby. As for Sam's, the yearly fee is worth it, considering the price of their store brand diapers and formula (which work well for us). We also buy our wipes there at a good discount. As already mentioned, they do have a very nice grocery area that I appreciate as well as a nice book selection for children.

Sam's club's fee is only $40 and costco is $50 a year. To me there is really no differance as far as pricing goes between Sams club, and costco. We went to sams club just because they are $10 cheaper than costco, and it was a bit closer than costco, when you figure gas. I checked prices on some same items at both costco and sams club and sams club was actually like anywhere from a few cents to about 50 cents cheaper than costco was.

I have friends/family who've shopped at both, and prices seem comparable. One thing might be higher at one place, but another item is lower. My belief is if something is a few cents more at Costco, I think it's worth it. Personally, I can't ethically shop at Sam's (which is owned by Wal-Mart) because of the employment abuses, discrimination, and questionable business practices. I'm sure my little opinion doesn't hurt Wal-Mart's bottom line, but I feel very strongly about this, and I want to behave consistantly to be an example to my son. We all matter & we can all make a difference.

We have been members of Sam's and went to Costco to check it out when our membership was up. It was more expensive to join Costco and had almost the same stuff! We live closer to Sam's, so decided to stick with that. I would say whatever you are closer to because it was so comparable.

Hi S.,
My suggestion to you would be to try them out both. Costco gives out one day passes for free where as Sam's Club doesn't do that anymore, from what I'm aware of, and if they still do you have to pay an extra 10% on your total bill. I prefer Costco because my experience w/ them has been great and my family has been w/ them for over 15 yrs.
P.S. They also sell gas for your car @ Costo and it's pretty good compared to other gas stations!! You get a membership discount!!!

S.,

I've belonged to both and think they are pretty comparable. I'd go on convenience and location if I were to re-evaluate. We belong to Costco and love it. Happy shoping!

T.

We love Costco. They carry Huggies and their own brand of diapers, which a lot of people love. We always buy wipes there. I know that we save tons of money on things, but we shop there ALOT and also buy gas from them. We feel their meat and produce are awesome. And my son loves to eat a hot dog there! He loves Costco! Another great deal are their cakes. $15 for a sheet cake and everyone LOVES them.

I believe at Costco you can go in and look around anytime, but cannot buy.

Good luck!

You may be interested in some comparisons that Consumer Reports did between the two companies. Some articles require a subscription, but most of them are free. There was a recent paper article in the Consumer Reports magazine that you could check at your local library (check the website for the date).

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/search.htm?query=costc...

My husband and I are members of Sams Club, the annual fee is $40. My husband is always looking to save a buck. Before our daughter was born we priced out diapers, wipes and formula at differt places (walmart, target, kmart, cub foods, etc.) and Sam's Club was over all the best deal. Plus the groceries! Milk is way cheaper there and now my daughter is 2 1/2 we find ourselves going through two to three gallons a week. You can always obtain a guest pass at the service counter and check out their prices. When we first signed up 5 years ago I never thought we would buy a lot of things but now we find ourselves going there at least once a week!

I've been a member at both and found them to be very similar and comparable. I would join the one closest to your house.
J.