Earlier this year, Chris got a cheap Sam’s Club membership through a credit card offer. For wholesale warehouses, I’ve only ever had exposure to Costco since that’s where my parents go. I’ve never even stepped foot into a Sam’s Club or BJ’s, but I’ve heard decent things about both. So today on our way back home from Vermont, we stopped first at a Costco in Massachusetts to buy the bulk of our supplies, and then at a Sam’s Club in Connecticut just to check it out.
Overall on like for like items, what I’ve read about is true: there is a small price difference between same or very-similar items, and Sam’s Club does end up being a little cheaper. I was pleasantly surprised to see the selection of skin and body care products at Sam’s Club; anecdotally speaking on this one visit, I was impressed to see the sheer number of brands and variety of items they had here; the range is undoubtedly larger for this type of product at Sam’s Club than at Costco. If you are interested in Korean skincare, they had at least six different brands represented, which is more than I’ve ever seen at a single Costco location.
It’s partially my brand loyalty to Costco (Costco can do no wrong in my eyes!), but I think I prefer the Costco Kirkland Signature brand and packaging over Member’s Mark. I also like that Costco has especially made and designed products with specific brands that are just for them. My one little “indulgence” I like to get at least once a year is their jumbo-sized four-pack set of Mrs. Meyers’ liquid hand soaps; I love Mrs. Meyers’ soaps! (One of my friends made a comment and said that it’s totally a “me” thing that I would consider soap to be an indulgence given I am such a clean freak, but hey, to each their own!). Some years when we visit Costco, I choose Mrs. Meyers’s standard everyday scents (last year, I found their “Tomato Vine” scent fun). This visit, I got the holiday scent set, which includes apple cider and elderberry (the latter scent is NEW!). The reason these are special for Costco is that the standard liquid soap bottle for Mrs. Meyers is 12.5 oz (370ml) ; these bottles are 16 oz (473ml), so you get 3.5 oz (104ml) more product; you can tell the size difference between the bottles right away if you hold them up side by side! Chris also got the same brand but different style of toilet paper at Sam’s Club, As soon as I opened the packaging and took the toilet rolls out, I could tell immediately these were smaller and inferior to the Costco ones.
Seeing the food similarities and differences was fun. For the meat and seafood, on first glance, the Costcos we’ve visited have had better range and variety, especially for the organic meat and wild-caught seafood. Costco also seems to have higher premium cuts of meat than Sam’s Club did. This Sam’s Club location had a larger variety of farm-raised seafood and “conventional” meat. I also think for packaged food (yes, including lots of highly processed snacks), Sam’s Club had a larger range and more variety within types of items. Overall, I’d say that the Costco snacks lean healthier (lower added sugars, higher protein, lower carbs, etc.). Costco’s variety of coffee and tea is definitely better than Sam’s Club: I don’t think I saw any coffee at Sam’s Club Chris would seriously consider buying. And when I saw that the only packaged tea this Sam’s Club had was Lipton, I knew I could never rely on them to be my wholesale warehouse of choice!
So yes, while for a number of items, it is true that Sam’s Club is cheaper (whether it’s by 10 cents or $1.50 for the same item and quantity), I still think Costco’s average assortment feels more premium and better curated than Sam’s Club. While I appreciate that we have a discounted Sam’s Club membership for a while, I still stand by Costco, Kirkland Signature, and my premium, especially curated source of Mrs. Meyers’ liquid hand soaps… amongst other things. And no one can ever take away my Costco-sized 13.5-lb/6.12kg bag of baking soda, which we really do go through (and which Chris pointed out to me when we got back tonight because our last bag before the one we got today is likely to end by December or January!). I don’t know how anyone properly cleans their homes and laundry without this baking soda bag!!
Plus, if we really have to look at both Costco and Sam’s Club all around, I think it’s pretty obvious that Costco wins as an overall company and employer. After listening to the Costco Acquired podcast episode, my love for them was solidified in STONE. If I could marry a store, it would be COSTCO FOR-EVER.
Oh, and if you were curious: we picked up three things during our Sam’s Club visit: a large 3-pack of nasal saline spray (how riveting!) and two zip-up hoodies for Kaia that she insisted she “needed”: one was Hello Kitty and Friends (the trifecta!), and one was Ariel/The Little Mermaid with little “fins” on the end of the hoodie. Even my sweet little Kaia has embraced Costco and now Sam’s Club!