Among Friends

[sunshine45]

have been a member of sams club for probably 20+ years.

would not be without our membership......we have a business membership and pay $100 a year.

i am there about every two to three weeks.

i am like a kid in a candy store when i get there.

[RedTop]

Sams Club is the only available option here in southern WV; I do not have a membership.   As a state employee, my teacher daughter can pay a discounted price to have a membership, and has done so in the past.   Sams Club is 4x the mileage between my house to Wal-Mart, and we decided it's just not worth the trip.   

I always felt I needed to make the trip count, so never got out of the store under $300, then had to find room to store all those large sized items in the pantry and freezer.   I can always find stuff to buy there, but just stick to Wal-Mart trips every few months.   

[Mominohio]

I've had a Sam's Club membership for many years, and use their store quite frequently.

Everyone says Costco is better, but we don't have one within about 70 miles, and the one I did visit one time wasn't really any different than the Sam's in our area for selection or prices (but I was told it wasn't one of their newer and better Costco stores).

I don't really pay a membership fee, because of a cash back program they have, I make back the fee (or more) each year.

I like their produce a lot. Lots of selection, and good quality. I like their meat too, one of the few places that has a lot of choices of uncured meats in our area.

I like buying in bulk for many things. I know some people see no need to have 100 rolls of toilet paper in the house, or 20 rolls of paper towels. I do! 

Certain things I buy, like batteries, cannot be had at a price anywhere close to what I pay for them when they are on sale there (yes, Sam's does have sales now, every few months, on selected things). 

My only caution is that you may not be able to understand how much you will (or won't) use the option to shop there, when only going the first time. I think a lot of people go once, stock up and then think it won't be worth it to have a membership, as they won't need that stuff for many months. 

Be sure to consider seasonal changes in merchandise that you won't see right now in just one trip, and consider the grocery aspect of it. I buy more groceries there than anything else. 

All that said, the most frustrating thing about Sam's is that they change their merchandise frequently and you can't always get some things that you love and wish they would continue to carry. 

[momoftwo2007]

We tried both Sam's Club and Costco, and we prefer Sam's Club and now just have the membership to Sam's Club. We buy toiletries, food, fresh fruits, clothes, throws..etc. It's great and we love it!

[3suwm5]

@Group 5 minus 1  We do have a membership.  If you have space for buying in bulk, I think it is worthwhile.

I mostly purchase meats I can freeze and fresh items I will use within a few days.  I do buy bulk for things I use often.

Our membership fees are about $100.00 and so far, I feel it has been worth it.  There are only 2 of us, so we'll see how things go.

[patbz]

I love two hours from Sam's and three and a half from Costco; I have both memberships.  Even with a family of three years these work ( bulk).  I prefer Costco but they are both OK.

[chickenbutt]

I tried it, years ago, when they first came to town and offered some businesses free one-year memberships.    

Maybe what didn't help was that I have belonged to Costco for some 30 years and the first thing of note that I found Sam's Club to be inferior in several ways to Costco.   One thing was that the merchandise was ot generally as quality as I'd have liked.  in some ways it was a glorified Walmart - inferior quality meats and veg/produce items.

Also, as I would buy the same items the prices went up every single time I went.  I felt like they offered lower prices when they first opened and systematically raised them after reeling people in.

I believe I renewed it once and let it go after that.  I tend to be one to always pay my way so I felt like I should renew it, after receiving the first year free, because I did go there numerous times after that.  But that was it for me and I've never looked back.

Costco, otoh, has been worthwhile all these years for us.  JMHO, FWIW.  

[Q4u]

I shopped for years at the old Price Club and loved it.  It turned into Costco and developed some of their own brands and I loved it.  We moved across country and there's a Sam's Club and yes, I joined and love it and they carry many of the same brands that Costco did.

I buy (and stock up) on my Keurig coffee there.  They have the best meat in town.  Fresh Strawberries are usually the best.  I also love their lunch meat because it is fresh, big turn over in everything they sell.  DH and I have the regular account and recently we gave DH's card to our oldest son.  SC just put him on the record and took a new pic of him.  He loves that place too.

It's just DH and I now so I don't have to load up on gunga sizes but they have so much more and I always have non-perishables stored that I rotate through (especially in the winter) because sometimes you get stuck out here with the snow and can't get to town, so it works out well.    

[x Hedge]

@Perkup, I'm having trouble justifying keeping up my Sam's membership. It was convenient when I worked near one, I could stop in frequently. But now it's a 25+ mile round trip, and I'm adding in all those gallons of gas to the annual membership. Lov Sam's but don't think I'm saving much anymore.

[sgraham30]

I currently have the Executive Membership at Costco, I get a 2% rebate every year. I also have the Anywhere Visa card that Costco accepts. Last year, between the 2, I got a rebate for $167, which more than paid for my Costco membership.  I've belonged to Sam's Club in the past, I have nothing against them but I prefer Costco because they have a much bigger selection of fresh & frozen organic produce than Sam's does.