We received a flyer the other day with an invitation to join Costco for $50 and I am wondering if it's worth it? We shop at a store called King Soopers which is really a Kroger store. They have some pretty good weekly specials but, of course, I would like to cut our grocery bill as much as possible. So, if anyone belongs to Cosco, I would like his or her take on whether or not the $50 is worth it and maybe some examples of Costco prices.

Thanks,

Frugal Doug

Well, it all depends.
If Costco is your only warehouse type store close by, then I would say yes.
I personally save enough money each year buying their Kirkland brand HBA to pay for the membership.
Ours does not sell gasoline but I've heard from others that live close by to one that does and they say that their gasonline is fairly cheap, well it's not "cheap" anywhere nowadays, but they are cheaper than others.

But, we actually purchased our Costco membership for the sole purpose of buying their dog food.
Yes, it's that good and the savings is unbelievable. We have 5 large dogs (3 Greyhounds & 2 lab mixes) and their 40# bag of dog food is only $20.00.

Normally I wouldn't even consider such a cheaply priced dog food, but after reading the ingredients lists, I couldn't find a more expensive, premium dog food for that price.

I also buy their dog beds. At $22.00 a piece for the large dog beds, I can buy 2 and stack them together to make a super soft, cushy bed for my dogs and still come out waaaaaay ahead of some of the other dog beds I've found for $100's of dollars.

So, I guess what I'm saying is.
Costco does have some good deals, but just like everywhere else, you have to be a wise shopper.

I will say as far as grocery items, I've never been unhappy with any of their generic items (Kirkland brand).
That includes everything from frozen veggies, juice, eggs, milk, toilet paper, etc.

Oh & they will also put you on their mailing list and you will be sent monthly coupon books to save on different items, as well.

HTH you some!:wave:
Michelle

Personally there are only a few things that I find to be a good deal at Costco so it doesn't make sense for me to buy a membership. I was just told recently that if I were given a costco gift card by a member that I can use it without buying a membership. I'm going to call the store and ask them if it is true because then I would just give cash to a friend and they can buy me the gift card and I can use it whenever.

I love my Costco membership, but not really for saving money, although I'm sure I do save by shopping there. I like the quality. There are some products like baked goods and a certain canned chili that I can't get elsewhere. But the reason I will keep renewing my membership is because that's where I buy our steaks and hamburger meat. The cuts are wonderful, very tender, reasonably priced. I can buy hamburger at about the same price at Wal-mart, but then I have to come home and break it down into individual packages. Costco hamburger meat (in the freezer section) is already in 1 lb packages. Their produce is good too. The spices are priced well. I also buy 10lbs of pancake mix there cheaper than Wal-mart.

Also, if you don't have health insurance, they are the cheapest for prescriptions and you don't have to have a membership to get a Rx filled.

Out of all three warehouse type stores, Costco is my least favorite. I never really thought they had good deals at all. I love BJ's the most because you can not only use the coupons that they send you in the mail, but you can also use coupons that you get out of the paper or any other type of manufactures coupons you may have. In some cases you can double up on coupons and really save.

We don't have a Costco around here. But, do they offer a non member day pass? Our Sam's club and BJ's do that all the time. If so, I would say, take your price book with you when they offer that and compare notes on the items you would buy most often. Then add the $50 to that yearly savings and see if it's worth it to you.

Costco does have nice stuff, and supposedly their business practices are some of the best. For me, though, it's more practical to have a BJ's membership.

Do you have a friend or know someone with a card. I don't have one and only go once or twice a year. So I go with a family member that has a card. Maybe you could get a card with a friend and split the cost $25.00 each.

I strongly support costco, mostly because of their political alignment (same as ours) and known good treatment of employees. The best prices that I find are when they issue their coupon books a few times a year -- especially on paper goods/detergents, etc. We tend to treat our college students to breakfast food a few times a semester, so the savings on muffins, croissants, etc. is well worth it for us. Their generic claritin-D is a great price (we have lots of allergies here!) and I like the quality of their meats and produce.

Costco has some really good prices compared to my local grocery store. I usually buy the Krusteaz pancake mix, paper products, laundry soap, large packs of chicken, beef and salmon. They have awesome double layer, filled 1/2 sheet cakes for under $15.00. Just like any other store, some prices are better than others. I stock up about every two months because it is very easy to drop a couple hundred dollars in one trip.

I shop Costco once or twice a month for things like salmon, tilapia, artichoke hearts and cheese. These really are money-savers for us plus the quality is second to none. Every once in a while they'll send me a coupon for free muffins so I'll grab those and freeze them two in a package for quick snacks or as an addition to breakfast. I've also found their bacon and link sausage to be super cheap so L gets a nice hot breakfast every day before school. Some things like paper goods really aren't inexpensive so I buy those at Kroger or CVS with coupons. For me the membership cost is absolutely worth it.

Gack! You have to pay THEM to be able to shop at their store? I completely get the Costco and Sam's Club (crosses self) business model, but I don't see the return on investment for membership. Does Costco accept coupons? Do they have better prices than the loss leaders for other grocery stores? I would think the temptation would be too great to fill up my cart with lots of things I just did not need because they were 'a good deal'. I remember reading in one of the 'Tightwad' books that few people actually saved money at warehouse clubs because they couldn't resist temptation.

If you pay for the $50 membership, can you get your money back if you change your mind? Is it pro-rated?

If I were in your shoes and considering a membership:

1. Buy the membership but check their coupon and cancellation policy first.
2. Share a membership (if possible) with a friend or family.
3. Give a friend the money to buy a gift card for you.
4. Go on a trial member ship. But, you usually have to pay an extra 10% or so on top of your purchase price, so not a good deal.

Here's Costco's 14 page membership brochure, might have some useful info:

http://www.costco.com/Images/Content/Misc/PDF/WelcomeBrochure05.pdf

I know Costco will fully refund the price of your membership if you aren't satisfied at any time.

I don't have a Costco anywhere around me but we have a Sam's membership and use it a lot. They ofcourse sell gas and I save enough on gas a year to more than pay for my membership and there are other great deals there as well. You do have to watch and figure single unit prices though b/c some things are not a good deal in bigger pkgs.

I go to both, my BIL added me to his costco, but I normally don't go as it is a little farther away . But I have thought about just stopping at random ones to fill up for gas. I usually go to sam's and the savings on a few things of kraft Parmesan cheese and Sue Bee honey pay for the membership. I also like their meat , they usually have a good price for korean BBQ-short ribs .when we have a get together, that would also save us the cost of membership. But I also buy meat markdowns at the other chain grocery stores and those work out to be cheaper than the membership stores.

The quality of Costco's stuff is top notch. It's like having loss leader prices anytime you want. I go about twice a month, and I've learned to stick to my shopping list! I also buy non-food stuff there when needed, and end up getting a better quality item for the price of an average item. Some examples of what I've bought there: towels, sheets (a higher thread count than I could normally afford), shrubs, patio furniture, appliances. I saved a BUNDLE on tires.

Also, they don't take credit cards, so there is no temptation to overspend. :yippee:

Me & a friend share the more expensive membership, and if we spend a certain amount there we don't have any fee because we get a rebate (we manage to spend enough every year between 2 families). We are grandfathered in to sharing a membership, but I've heard that now everyone on one membership must share the same address.

Dolores,
Yes, they accept coupons. They also send out coupon booklets every month to members for both name brand merchandise AND their own generic brand (Kirkland brand) items.

To the OP, I know I mentioned this before, but thought I'd say it again. Costco *can* save you money *if* you shop wisely. There are some things that I've found that seem too expensive to me.
But there are alot of other items that can save you considerably.

I personally don't shop at Wal-mart or Sam's club, but Costco is another great alternative for me to be able to buy things in bulk-paper products, cleaning products, dog food, dog beds, etc.
I also have a BJ's membership card and we can't beat their gas prices plus it's about 5 minutes from our house, which makes it super convenient for us.

I also think you have to take into consideration alot of things:
Do you have to travel a super long way to even get to your local Costco?
Do you have the space to store alot of things in bulk?
Do you mind shopping at warehouse type stores?
Can you stick to a list and only buy what you need? (I think this one is a biggie, 'cause in any type of warehouse type store (or any type of store for that matter) you can easily overspend without going with a list.

After all of this, I would suggest, if you can, to go along with a friend a few times. Check prices and products and *then* decide if it would be worth your money to invest in a membership.

Good luck!

We definitely think so. We have certain items
like meat that we specifically like to get from
Costco. We love their Kirkland brand also.
The Gala apples are the best.

We have a membership. We got the executive membership which costs more initially, ($100) but we get 2.5% back on it. So every January we get a coupon for over $200. So it works out that i get my membership free and am paid to shop there.

It's like any other store, some prices are better some the same and some more.

On milk alone I save $.70 per gallon. Detergent, I save a HUGE amount. I love the Ecos, $15 per 210 use for HE. Compared to $25/96 use of tide, or 5.99/32 use Purex. It's a great deal.

I haven't checked the dog food. But i'm going too! That would save me $30/bag if my mutt can tolerate it. Money back guarentee so if she can't I've lost nothing. Next month.

Meat there is great! We love their frozen chickent breasts, savings of $8/ 4kg box. Any cut, all kinds.

Printer ink was a tremendous savings. $72 for 4 HP cartridges, walmart best price I've seen was $42 for 1.

Books, I picked up a cookbook I wanted for $15, book stores was $32. I dont' buy books often, but gifts and things, I do, savings of $5/book on average.

I found a camera I'm saving for, Costco was $359 Future Shop was $549.

Not everything is a deal. They sell Dell computers for $200+ MORE than dell does. DIfference is you can seet hem I guess.

Mattresses are great prices, we're in teh market for next year. Dh will have to hang tough until I deal with some cards here. Then we'll look into another big purchase.

Dh likes the low alcohol beer(0.5%), the brand he likes is $7.99/doz in the grocery. Best price was Walmart at $5.99/doz. Costco has it $11.99/30 cans.

You can get a day pass. You can go with a friend. Check it out to see if there's stuff you'll want to get or not.

I got my girls a huge stamp set, quality stamps $20. Michaels had a set, much smaller for $40. So it depends. Lots of great finds for Christmas. Last year we got dd the huge Dora Castle for $60, TRU was $139.

Bad side, is when these things are gone, they are gone..lol. So make up your mind fast..lol for gift items.

i think your best bet is to go there on a "free" (nonmember) day, check and see what they've got & if you'd buy there regularly AND if you'd save money.

we don't have a costco here, but the wholesale club we do have, we save OVER the cost of membership each year there.

so it's really worth it for us.

it just depends on your needs really.

i'd recommend it, but we buy lots of necessities there and some things we can't get elsewhere. :)

If you happen to need tires this year, it's worth it. They have great tire service at my Costco.
I also agree with the Kirkland brand. It is top notch. I have never found a better can of tuna than Kirkland brand.
I just went over the weekend and stocked up on tp. I'm hoping it's better than the deals I get at the grocery store. It always seems to last longer than a "normal" roll.

There are only a few things I regularly buy at Costco (we don't pay for our membership), so it's a tossup whether it's worth it for me. You really have to know your prices--lots of things are cheaper at Winco. Too many people assume that it's a good deal just because it's Costco . . . and don't even get me started on all the silly stuff I see people loading in their carts there!

The quality is generally good, prices OK, but it can be a pretty tempting store and an easy place to waste money. All in all, if I had to pay for my own membership I don't think I would.

I work for BJ's so I may be a little biased.

I used to have a membership to Costco and I really like their store, but our store didn't sell gas and they didn't take coupons. So I didn't really end up going there enough to get my moneys worth. The quality of their products and their store brand is excellent, though.

BJ's (if you have one near you) has been great for me too. The selection is smaller, but you can also buy smaller packaged products. Also you can use multiple coupons. The membership is currently $45 a year, but you can still shop there without being a member, you just have to pay a 15% surcharge.

I hope this helps

I haven't been in a Costco lately, but I really had to double check the prices,and compare them to Winco. I could usually, especially on canned food, get a better deal at Winco. Some other things like pharmacy OTC items are good in price. I also like some of the bakery items. Just check and double check your prices, to make sure you are getting the BEST deal.

Unfortunately I have a Sam's membership. My dad wanted chairs that only Sam's sold. The savings on the chairs alone made up for the membership on its first purchase. I am doing a lil study - I am seeing how much I spend in a year and how much I truly do save. I renewed the membership and so far have saved $15 from one purchase. Thats only $35 more to go and its only early February.

On the flipside, my boss has a membership at Costco and the meat and produce is MUCH better there then Sam's. Also its more crowded but I find the products to be better priced and quality - both name and store brands. I have gone with my boss twice since November - once for Christmas gifts and once for vitamins. I think I've saved more at Costco simply b/c they offer what "I" need/use/want.

As others have said - take the freebie one day non member pass and take a tour. I know when I tried to do that here, when it came time to actually BUY anything you had to BUY a membership before being able to buy anything so be sure to look into that BEFORE you go in.

I prefer Costco over Sam's. I think the memberships are interchangeable between Canada and USA. I know the Sam's in the US is better then here in Canada. :(

I may be partial to warehouse type clubs, since I am a manager with BJ's but I think for the most part it is a good value to get the membership. I am unsure of Costco since I obviously don't shop there, but with BJ's we accept our own coupons stacked with manufacturer coupons--and if you get REALLY lucky the item has an instant rebate (I take high advantage of those deals).

I agree with other posters here....See if you can go in and take a look around...then make note of prices and come home and compare. You need to be a savvy shopper to get the good deals, but there are MANY to be had at the warehouse clubs.

I work for BJ's so I may be a little biased.

I used to have a membership to Costco and I really like their store, but our store didn't sell gas and they didn't take coupons. So I didn't really end up going there enough to get my moneys worth. The quality of their products and their store brand is excellent, though.

BJ's (if you have one near you) has been great for me too. The selection is smaller, but you can also buy smaller packaged products. Also you can use multiple coupons. The membership is currently $45 a year, but you can still shop there without being a member, you just have to pay a 15% surcharge.

I hope this helps

Hello fellow BJ's employee!!! I am the CSM manager at my club and have been there for almost 5 years (since we opened here). Unfortunately I am about to make the dreaded sick call into an overnight manager tonight...I really enjoy my job, but there is no way to function the way I am feeling :(

I have a membership to SAMS club and it is great!! I always purchase my flour, sugar, spices in large quantities. Also they have the meats, (sandwich ham, bacon, kielbasa and such) in larger quantities. Not to mention I get the large bags of onions, potatoes, carrots and fruit when they look good. I think for our family it is well worth it!

I feel its worth it just for dog food and paper products ( tiolet paper, paper towels)... you can also have 2 people on a membership and may consider spiltting the membership with a neighbor or friend.

The negative issue about this is storage as buying in bulk means storing things and if you don't store them right ( they get wet or damaged) or the stock is invading your living space and overtaking it.. it may not be for you.

I actually just went with a friend to see if it would save me money. I didn't buy anything, I just took my price book and looked at everything. We went to both Costco & Sam's Club. We found that Sam's Club here had the better deals. However, the closest of either is about 45 miles away, so we can't shop there weekly.

But I calculated everything and found that if I shop there 4 times a year, and just buy my basics, like flour, sugar, coffee, creamer, etc. I will save over $400 there (that is the cost savings after paying for the membership, too). Plus, I talked to a couple of other neighbors and 4 of us are going to all go up together. We all have vans or trucks, so we will each only have to drive once, therefore saving the gas. So for us, it will be worth it.

Even if we don't shop at Costco very often, we always get gas there. Just from that, we saved 70 dollars.

I've shopped at Costco, BJs and Sams. I don't really like Sams in comparison to the other 2. BJs has a better selection of smaller sized grocery items than Costco and I love their coupon policy. I moved from the east coast to Seattle and we don't have BJs here so now I shop at Costco (Costco trivia - Seattle is the home of Costco, and their store brand Kirkland is named after a town in the Seattle area).

I do think that overall the quality of items of Costco is top notch. I highly recommend their rotisserie chickens - they are the best we've had, and much larger than the ones at the grocery store - for $4.99. Costco also sells discounted movie tickets, we can see an evening movie for the price of an matinee with these.

They have amazing customer service and a fantastic return policy - they stand behind everything they sell. They also treat their employees really well and that is important to me.

I personally don't care for costco. There just isn't enough things I'd purchase to make it worth it. I do have a Sam's membership, but dh's work pays for it. I got the free spouse card that came with the corporate membership.

I found something I wanted to buy from costco. A new bread machine. I debated on getting a membership so I could buy it.

I did not get the membership. I paid a 5% surcharge for not having one, which was only $4.25.

I acutally saved $45 doing it that way, since I really didn't want the membership to start with.

My father had both cards so he put me on as his spouse for each card even though we live in different states. I just let him put his address so it all worked out. My mom doesn't go without my dad so she has no problem with him switching everything to me. YAY for free memberships!

I perfer Costco's to Sams.

I mooch trips with my mom because she has a card for her daycare.

I think their meat prices are very good compared to my local stores. I like that they have different items than my regular grocery store too.

We used to have a Sams membership for several years, until we changed to Costco last year. I can only speak for myself when saying this, but every time I go to a club store I buy way to much! Everytime I leave our bill is over a hundred dollars. Sure you can find some good deals, but I am giving up our membership at the end of this month when it is due again. If I want something from there I will go with my parents or a friend. It just isnt worth the extra money.

I had one but it has exspired . I liked cosco ,but I had to drive over an hour to go there. my neice will go some times and I ask her to pick spmething up for me.

today I went to costco... here is some of what I got.

case of campbells mushroom soup 5.97

swiss miss hot chocolate mix - 60 indiv. packets 1.97

lysol air srpay, citrus scent... 3 huge bottles- 5.97

soft scrub, 3 pack... 4.97

3 pounds kirkland brand tortilla chips
( its a corn chip) with sea salt- 3.97

kirkland brand professional makeup brushes, 14 peice set- 12.00

stove top stuffing, a case ( 6 packs I think)- 1.97


a rotessie chicken- 4.99

a honeydew melon 3.50

12 pack variety pack breakfast danish 6.99

We just got a Costco membership. I think it will benefit us in the long run. Some things that I thought were a great deal, 15 boxes of Annies Mac and cheese were 9.99. They are $2 a box at Kroger!

We also use 100% maple syrup for our waffles/pancakes. It is pretty pricey, usually around $5 for a small bottle. I got a big jug for $19.99 at Costco. Also, their 1/2 sheet cakes are really good and are only $15.99. (Kroger charges $40 for that size PLUS whatever decoration you put on it.) Since I have 4 kids and we always get a bakery cake as a special treat for their bday, $15.99 is a good deal.

I also go 6 hearts of Romaine for about $3. Milk was $2.79 a gallon, I haven't seen milk that cheap in a while, it has been $3.50+ at Kroger for months.

Some things I didn't think were worth the price, $7 for 2 average size jugs of Kirkland diswasher detergent. I can get name brand for cheaper when I use coupons.

I know Costco will fully refund the price of your membership if you aren't satisfied at any time.

I was treated rudely by the card checker on the way in one time. I went to the customer service desk and told them I wanted to cancel my membership and why. The manager refunded my membership fee but kept my account active. That gave me a year to shop there free and that told me that Costco doesn't work well for a single person. I didn't re-up when my membership ran out.

UKBB

I looovvve Costco. We built a home in 06/07, and Costco was a huge help in getting us in under budget. We purchased granite countertops (saved over $6,000), toilets, faucets, fireplace, TV, cfl lightbulbs for the whole house, DDs bed & dresser, silverware, coffee maker (save me from Starbucks), etc. I have found great deals on holiday dresses (ususally $15-20) for DDs, clothes for DH (undershirts, socks, jeans ). The couple of times I have had to return something it has been super easy. I regularly shop there for staple items (eggs, milk, bananas, meat, kirkland laundry detergent, and chicken breast). I love that they now have chicken breasts in multi-pacs like ground beef. I would recommend Costco for regular shopping, but especially for anyone who is working on their home. We also get our gas from Costco. Since we knew we would be spending a lot in building the house, we upgraded our membership to Executive Membership with AmEx CC that we pay off each month. We got 2.5% rebate back from Costco and (3-1%) back from our AmEx. Hope this helps. BTW I do not work for Costco, but I should.

Currently the Costco I frequent has gas 20 cents cheaper than the average elsewhere in town, so that's my main focus, but there are other pluses, as well as some minuses.

Pedigree dog food is was $18.59 for 52 pounds while I found a 40 pound bag for almost the same price at Walmart. 12 pounds of food is about 10 extra days of feeding per bag.

The granola at Costco rocks! It's full of lots of healthy stuff but isn't exactly low in fat or calories; like anything, you can definitely overdo it, but I find that I can get nearly a month of servings out of one carton. It's kind of addictive....

The fresh veggies are almost always an amazingly good deal as well as frozen foods.

It's easy to have a huge bill at checkout, because even though the buys are a good deal per serving, you are getting a whole lot of servings per item, so they add up fast.

I'd say, do your research and limit yourself to a list and you'll do fine. The savings on dog food and gas alone are worth the price of a membership to me and you can split the fee with a friend/family member because you get two membership cards per account.

I have no idea about Sam's Club, but the gas prices usually are pretty comparable with Costco, so maybe that would work if you were more inclined towards that company.

Jo

I adore Costco. If nothing else, milk in my neighborhood runs $3.59 per gallon, at Costco it's $2.99 per gallon. We go through so much that milk alone makes the membership worth it. I love everything else about Costco too.

You have so many replies you may never get around to reading mine! lol.
But I had to say, my costco card is completely worth it.

#1 - We are a family of 6 and I shop 3 x a month max.

#2 - The city I shop in is hard pressed for good deals, it's pretty spendy generally.

I actually just upgraded to executive membership, when I found out, if I had done that a year ago I would have gotten a $70 dollar Costco gift card as my reward this year, based on my spending. That would amount to a $20 yearly membership fee, and the savings blow that out of the water. I especially love their produce. It's a flat fee and good quality. It's the best savings, on most things, in my area. I suppose it is very relative to where you live.