Costco Price Comparison: Is Costco worth it?

I LOVE Costco! Since I live in the US that may be the reason for some of our differences, but I have found that many of my food purchases are cheaper if not comparable at Costco. Milk, butter, bread, rice, beans, yogurt, salsa, vegetables (fresh and frozen) are usually cheaper. Fruits are usually comparable but the quality of Costco produce seems better than conventional grocery stores… I could go on and on. It’s my go to shopping spot for most “real” foods unless I can get a better price with a featured sale at a chain grocery store. Love the post though!

Michelle @ FTSN

One thing on the Executive member payback… actually, you only need to spend $2500 for a payback. A regular Costco membership is about $50, so you should be doing the 2% calculation on the difference between the two.

Also, you are right about the cost of their produce, but in January, check out the difference between the cucumbers or peppers at Costco compared with Superstore. Although not organic, the visible difference between the two is amazing. 🙂

Having briefly worked at Costco, I find it’s not the best value for a small family or for those who like to be adventurous with food. On a different note though, the pharmacy prescription prices are one of the cheapest in the city. A little known fact is you don’t need membership to fill a prescription there 😉

The local grocery market here is strange. The best quality/lowest prices are at a pair of local chains. Less convenient than the Safeways and Save-on-Foods. There’s only 5 locations between the two of them, and one of the chains (3 locations) only sells produce. But the savings are huge, easily cutting a grocery bill by 40% over Safeway, without the quality tradeoffs that Superstore requires.

Neither of the cheap chains (Costco/Superstore) are convenient to me, so I see no reason to go fight the hordes when I can find similar deals with smaller crowds elsewhere.

Interesting as i was just at a FREE open house at Sam’s Club on Friday. These stores are NOT for me. I shop my fresh produce at local fruit/veg markets. I shop my bread stuff at outlet stores or the day old rack. I shop frozen & dairy at sales & Aldi.

Not only did I find ALL packages WAAAY too big for my single person household but they were NO bargain compared to my shopping sales paired w/coupons at my 2 local national chain stores, CVS, Walgreens, Dollar store and 2 independent local grocers. I even pass all these stores several times/week so no spending on gas to go out of my way to a Costco or Sam’s.

Fantastic article, thanks!! We normally shop at Costco, Superstore, and when the weather permits, our local farmers markets. We’ll certainly skip the fresh isle at Costco now and load up on the frozen.

As you’ve pointed out with the frozen veggie comparison, there are some Kirkland brand items which are better quality than some store brands. I’ve found the same to be true with purchasing cheese at Costco… it’s a little more expensive than the brands I would get at SS (only referring to cheddar here), but it’s a whole lot better (my opinion of course!).

You started the article with including the mention of the time and gas spent to go to the store, but didn’t include that in the conclusion of the comparison. In my mind, if I’m paying a little bit more for a large quantity of something, which means I don’t have to return to the stores to get more very often (and bonus points if it’s heavy) we can walk to the local superstore and bring back the lighter items.

Another quick mention is that the online store is not the bricks and mortar store. They don’t have the same items, or the same SKU numbers, so it definitely pays to keep an eye on both.

Great article, you’ve answered those burning questions. My issue with Costco is the lineups. Going early is a great idea, but the few times I’ve been to Costco, my wife wants to go as well, so that means early morning trips are out.

Great article! As a Californian, let me assure you that we do not lay claim to those sad looking vegetables.

Costco is a great deal for me. Cheese, bread, frozen veggies are the big ones. Also quinoa, organic peanut butter, almond butter, canned tomatoes. Costco does have coupons from time to time also.

We get most of our veggies from our CSA or the farmer’s market. However depending on the week, the amount we get might not be enough for our family. So I often supplement with frozen, especially when my spouse is traveling.

I for one, LOVE fresh broccoli stalks. Because I peel them.

I agree that you need to shop carefully at Costco but find I save a lot – especially when the coupons – which come out really regularly now – get subtracted from the total. I saved $22 off $120 just two days ago. Also, I love to buy gas there except on the occasion when it’s cheaper elsewhere. Again, comparison shopping is essential and you need to know your prices and watch the other sales. I make back my membership fee fairly quickly and am glad of the savings. I also use the online items to further save. I’m glad to shop at Costco, superstore, and others with sale items but I definitely save at Costco.

I want to point out that Costco prices are not all the same, they vary from store to store…especially on produce. I can do better and actually match a few of your Superstore prices making Costco an even better deal, even fresh produce. Bananas are $1.99 a kilo, the cocktail tomatoes on the vine which are the only ones with taste are 1/2 the price than at other local stores and lemons are 3.20 for 8 lemons. fresh Chicken is 11.99 per kilo and milk is at least 50cents less per 4 litre bag than any area groceries including discount chains. Costco rocks but u need to go in witha list and accept that u will not be able to get all your groceries there. You will still need to go to your local for a great variety of fresh produce.

Great article – one important note.. you cannot share a membership with just anyone – has to be a person 18 years of age or older who lives at the same mailing address as you. Some of the warehouses really stick to this, others do not.

Great article!

We have the Executive membership, and I agree with Lisa’s comment: as long as your return is above $45 (difference between the gold and executive memberships), you are ahead.

With two kids, we go through homo milk like crazy and I save about $1 a bag. I figure our membership is paid just by getting milk there.

Also, we stock up on cleaning products, toilet paper, paper towels, etc. when they are on sale or when there are coupons.

I know the article focuses on groceries, but I wanted to point out that the Pekkle brand (clothes, pyjamas for kids) is very good and high quality, for a low price. We wash and wash and wash them and they stay in great shape.

Finally, prices on books there are unbeatable!

Great article…….Has anyone shopped at Walmart? I am very impressed with many of their canned products eg
diced tomatoes 78c cnd, canned beans etc., their nn brand tea is great also at half the price of brand names also toiletries,
and I purchase my veg at a small market in my neighbourhood.
I gave up my Costco membership years ago as I prefer being
able to juggle my money and not to be a storage space for
the store – while they hold my money…….

Frugal shopping???
Foreign chicken..Peru = $6.13/pound! Canadian = $5.22/pound! bread = $10.56 for a 1 pound loaf!
eggs @ $3+/dozen!!! No offense folks but if you do some conversions & costing,then head to weis or giant, I think you’re going to be quite shocked! Prices I listed here are from converting what the author listed in above chart!
buyer beware & aware!

Interesting article, Kerry! We dropped our Costco membership here in Toronto after being here a year – the local branch just didn’t seem to have the savings and range of products that our old New York outlet did. Armed with data like this it might be more useful. I think any DINKy family without kids probably should share a membership though, for sure.

One other thing that’s important to me after a stressful work week is 24-hour opening and environment though, which costco falls down on. Heading out to Costco on a saturday morning to deal with crowds and the slowpoke sample-hooverers and the ill behaved kids ain’t worth saving 5% to me. At 25%? Maybe.

Ah behave yourself, add together being stuck in a car going round and round a full saturday-morning parking lot, a crowded store, parents focused on something else and long lines and, yup, the little angels round this way tend to be little demons long before the time they get to the checkout (and I don’t blame ’em really). The savings had better be good for me to choose that for my day off over getting quickly and painlessly in and out of Sobeys at 10pm. That is all.

Thanks for the analysis–I’ve been curious for a long time to see if what we’re doing pays off but have been calculating it mostly in my head. For us, the diapers are a huge deal, since we used almost 3,000 of them over the course of 12 months. Some quick math chalks that up to almost $200 in savings! 🙂

We’ve found the opposite to be true for chicken breasts in our area. They are notoriously expensive at the supermarket, and about HALF (not kidding) the price at Costco or Sam’s. A lot of the fruits and veggies are also less per unit here. Maybe it has a lot to do with location??

That made me giggle Mike. Where do you shop? I dont shop there either.

@Fiona: I’m single, with just one income, so I guess that makes me a “SINK” but I still try to plan my shopping for when the people with kids are not around. I hit Costco early, but Whole foods around 9pm. Crowds of bratty kids make the already annoying experience of shopping for food traumatic. I almost never go to stores on the weekends because of the people with kids. It’s not just the brattiness of the kids that is the issue. The parents are slowed down, the aisles are clogged with kids, and the whole situation is an MCF. The parents have become immune to how annoying their kids actually are, but we normal people find it unbelievable. Fortunately one can “accidentally” run one’s cart or swing one’s basket into the bratty kid as a training exercise for them. Or so I’ve heard.

All of which actually brings another factor into Kerry’s question about the “worth” of Costco. Or Walmart, or any other place. Who are the other people there, and do they disturb your calm enough to overcome any financial savings? After all, saving $5 isn’t a saving if it takes $10 worth of wine to de-stress from the situation…

@Fiona. 🙂

I think we are discussing shades of difference. I too shop when the fewest other people are around. And get the best deal possible then. I’d much rather pay more for my food than get something cheap that isn’t quite what I want…. 🙂

I think that the most significant piece of data from Kerry’s comparison is that one needs to investigate the world around where one lives, and make choices based upon the rules of that world…

DINKs, or SINKs, or whatever 🙂

But then I wouldn’t see what’s “on sale” at any given time.

I have actually considered grocery delivery, but so much of my shopping is spur of the moment that I know it wouldn’t work.

Great article Kerry!

Costco is a fantastic place to develop photos. Easy to submit online, cheap and great quality.

if i have to moderate the article would you please give me some guidelines…thanks…norman golledge

To officially share a membership, the second person is supposed to live in your house, as mentioned in a comment above. How strictly the store enforces this depends on your store. The easiest way to “share” a Costco membership is to just have one name on it, and to unofficially split the cost with a friend.

Technically, *I* am the one with a (regular) Costco membership, but a friend paid me for half of it, with the understanding that she gets some of the benefit. We go shopping there together, and we put everything on one bill that I pay for and she pays me back for her items. Costco is very good about putting subtotals on the receipt when you ask them to, so as long as you separate out your items when you check out it’s incredibly easy to keep track of who spent what.

I don’t have a Costco card, and while I shop occasionally at SS, I won’t buy any perishables there. The quality is not very dependable, and there was a CTV news report a few months back about them changing the expiry dates on fish and deli meat…HORRID!

My random observations on Costco.
1. You never touched on the meat products. I can buy a 3 pack of rib steaks for $20-25. I single steak at the local butcher runs the same price. I can’t tell the difference. I pack of back ribs are pretty similar to Loblaws on a per pound, but the amount of meat on the bones at Costco is much more.
2. If your local Costco has a gas station, you are looking at about $0.10/litre less.
3. First thing in the morning has less crowds. But even at peak times, the lines at the cashiers move fast (and more are open).
4. Electronics may be a few months behind, but Costco provides a two year warranty versus the standard one year.
5. Prices can change weekly (not talking about sales either). Products can disappear without notice, especially seasonal items. Products can be moved to the other side of the store.
6. No mention of clothing. I have bought plenty of slacks and shirts in the $20-30 range. Hard to beat that.
7. Service is pretty crappy if you are trying to find something. If you are lucky enough to run into someone that works there, they usually don’t know where anything is. (Returns are no problem.)
8. Tires are competitively priced, especially during their sales (best to order them online and pick up in the store to ensure you get your set).

Thanks Kerry, this is a great article and I like the pictures.

You have made me reconsider my Costco renewal of membership! 🙂 I had always thought that Costco isn’t that cheap etc. but it sounds like it just might be worth it, stocking up on the nonperishables and electronics.

I was aware their return policy was excellent, my friend returned a camera YEARS later and got a new model apparently at one Costco in California.

Costco is my favourite store. Everything is high quality, especially the meats and produce (hence it’s not fair to always compare with lesser quality elsewhere). While Superstore may be price competitive on many items, Safeway and Coop in Calgary are definitely not. The only thing I won’t buy at Costco is car tires because of the long installation wait (not appointments allowed).

Though Costco’s fresh vegetables are more expensive, I find the quality typically better than what I’d find at a local supermarket. The challenge I have is waste. I often end up throwing out 20% of the veggies I buy.

We love Costco and shop there all the time. A few things to watch out for, at least at our warehouse: Eggs tend to contain a lot of breakage at Costco, and you can’t open the package to check. No non-fat organic milk, I can’t see why. Produce in the cold room is ok, berries and other delicate produce stored on the warehouse floor without refrigeration are usually moldy or half spoiled.

@Mike: Don’t forget that Kerry is in British Columbia, Canada, and people reading the article are from all over Canada and the USA.

Each Costco is different, each local/national grocery chain is different, and what people BUY is different.

As an exercise in comparison shopping it was excellent, for what she bought in her area. YMMV.

@F Saunders:

Curiously, I have some good friends who are sisters, share a house and are in their 30s. Same last name, though 🙂

Hi:

I think some Costco prices vary by location; bananas here are $1.32 for the package; also I have seem much better prices on wine at Costco compared to our local BevMo store.

Since we are a family, the 24pak of hamburger buns for $1.99 makes sense for us, as does 2 large loaves $3.57; my local food store is over twice the cost.

Choose carefully 🙂

Regards

“numberous”?!

Why compare with Superstore. I find that most regular grocery items (eggs, milk, yoghourt, veggies, meat, ..) are less expensive at No Frills or Price Chopper than Superstore.

I find prices at Costco and other warehouse stores for fresh vegetables and fruits quite high compared to our neighborhood supermarket.

I shop at Costco for cereal, some frozen vegetables and occasionally cans of soup.

Costco, BJ’s and Sam and the supermarket are all in the town not too far apart from each other. There are all on the same road so I don’t have to drive a big distance for each.

Honestly, Costco is great when it comes buying in bulk. Keep an eye for the dollar stores around though. 10 trash bags you will get for $, not only that buy they are very low quality bags. I paid $8 for a pack of 500.. That’s 62.5 bags per dollar, and the’re also a lot more durable.

A side note on the Executive Membership – when you use your no fee Costco American Express you also get a percent cash back on the card – you get double savings AND with gas prices going up the Costco gas bar is always the cheapest in town and you have to have a membership to use it.

My family (3 adults) does meal planning 30 days in advance. Got a new Costco membership at the beginning of last month and stocked up on enough non-perishable food to make our month’s worth of meals. We were pleased to find apples from our own province which tasted twice as crisp and fresh as the same variety of local apples at Sobey’s. Great price on a case of Florida oranges which is our nearest source. The meat we bought, especially the sausages, was excellent quality. The price on organic whole bean coffee was better than we can get elsewhere. The frozen vegetables in our Costco were mostly from Europe so we declined. We don’t have a chest freezer so can’t stock up on baked goods. Overall, it will be well worth stocking up on non-perishables every 1-2 months.

I used to shop at costco but found that I can buy same things cheaper price other stores when it goes on sale. Most of the items go on sale 6-8 weeks.

In regards to SS,(we also refer to it as Stupid Store) you failed to mention the games they play with their ” limit 1″ or “buy 6” for the “special” price. I can’t stand these games and the location of their price stickers are often hidden or in front of the wrong item, making it almost impossible to figure out with our a magnifying glass.Takes me forever to shop there! I shop at both places, because SS has some of the items I just can’t get at Costco, but I hands down prefer Costco for ease of return-ability, for customer service,for no games on prices, for way cheaper BBQ propane,etc.,etc. Line ups are bad everywhere(I won’t even get started on Hell-Mart)but for me, with all things considered, I’d rather shop Costco any day!

Costco is great when they have deals with a reasonable quantity. If not I go elsewhere. I indulge in the 2 for 1’s at Publix. I can usually find the cheapest OJ and milk at the CVS or Walgreen’s. it’s a game you have to play if you want to save a little money.

what you should buy at Costco:, granola, olive oil, sugar substitutes, vanilla, yeast, relish, soy sauce, actemetaphin/aspirin/ibuprophen, allergy meds(w/o decongestant, cold meds, hydrocortisone cream, tums(generic) trash bags, dried cranberries, dried mixed fruit, pickles (very lg jar) rice, taco seasoning, white viegar. DON’T BUY: cooking oil (cept olive) powdered sugar, beverages, canned chicken, canned chilies,, frozen meatballs, icecream, multivites, yo name a few

Fantastic article, being both a costco and superstore shopper I agree with everything. My only comment would be to watch Costco online prices versus in store. We purchased an office desk last fall instore costco for under $400. The same desk was offered on costco online for $900. So shipping is obviously built into the online prices and many are already available in store.

You do not have to spend $5000 to break even on a executive membership since you already spent $55 for a normal membership. So $45 more to gain 2% is a no brainer. Plus they will refund you back the difference in the first year if you don’t gain enough back. Again you cannot loose.

I agree with most of the comments here, although as others have mentioned, you have to know your local prices and what constitutes a good deal.

Here are a couple of my observations that I didn’t see mentioned by others:

If you have a dog, you can save a huge amount by purchasing the Kirkland Signature dog food. It’s excellent quality, and about $25 less per bag than I used to pay from Pet Smart or other pet stores for an equivalent dog food.

On the other hand, soda pop is quite expensive at Costco compared with a sale price at any other store.

Just a quick note regarding Costco. The Costco closest to me has a gas bar that offers between 3 to 7 cents a liter lower price than all other gas stations. I typically save $4.00 per fill up per week which equals approximately $200.00 in savings per year. That’s almost 4 Costco memberships. Additionally Costco’s tenderloin steaks are fantastic! I have never been a fan of Superstore meat.

Costco’s Kirkland Brand Balsamic Vinegar is exceptional, as well… It gets a ‘four leaf’ rating, which is as good as your going to get without buying a $100 bottle…. It’s not that expensive, either.

I agree, some of the Kirkland products are exceptional, including the balsamic vinegar. Excellent for making your own thrifty and delicious salad dressing.

We don’t think of Costco as grocery shopping but as a monthly trip. It’s fantastic for items such as paper towels, napkins and toilet paper, paper plates and cups, garbage bags, and other disposable items which you know you will always use and won’t mind buying in bulk. Paper towels especially are SO much cheaper at Costco.Cleaning products such as dish soap and laundry detergent are at MUCH lower than retail prices provided you can store;handle the large containers this is unbeatable.

I also go to Costco for Eggs, egg whites, and milk. For holiday baking, I buy a 50 lb bag of flour there for a very cheap price. I also buy sugars and butter there, though with the butter and cream cheese a very good sale at the grocery store may beat that price.

The produce can be as expensive or more expensive than normal stores, but the quality is generally excellent. I love it for bags of spinach, kale and salad. The only issue is when the packages are larger than what we need. Then it’s not necessarily a good buy anymore.

Olive oil is also a great buy at costo. It’s half what you’d pay at the grocery store

A few other tips, not sure if they may have been mentioned, as I didn’t have time to read evrything.
I go in the afternoon rather than the morning, for the free samples! You can make almost a meal out of them, and you can go back for seconds if you want. A great way to try out brands you may not be familiar with.
Sign up for their email. It often comes with info about what will be on sale this week in-store. That way, you can pace your trips for best results.
If you live in a big city, try out the different Costco stores in your city. In my city, there is one store that has a lot more frozen product items, so i go there every 6 months or so to stock up.
In Quebec, Costco crrries wine apparently. A good place to check out when travelling! Your membership is good anywhere in the world.
My favourite items, for price and quality: Kirkland chocolate-covered raisins, fresh humus, crackers, Michelin windshield wipers.
I agree that the produce is kind of expensive, as is the fresh meat, although often the quality is better and fresher than supermarket (not always). On these items, the price does not tend to fluctuate so much from week to week as it does in supermarkets.
For best prices on produce, I find that the ethnic grocery stores are often best, especially the Chinese ones, but you have to examine the quality closely for quality etc. Among supermarkets, we find T&T is best for price and quality in produce, although they are only available in some large cities – now owned by the Loblaw conglomerate..

I should note that CostCo has always had better prices on dairy goods than our local grocery stores, from Connecticut to California. There *was* a brief period when Walmart was cheaper on milk, but those occasions have been few and far between.

Re: buying meat. I can’t eat beef, so I tend to buy Costco’s ground pork. It’s a much better deal at Costco than at the local Superstore. It’s about 50% the cost.

we also did a comparison with Superstore,and it literally came within pennies of Costco. Now all of costco was American brand while Superstore was Canadian. that works better for me.

I don’t know if this was posted up above yet or not but, I was told by a Costco customer service agent that at the end of the year if you don’t recover the cost of your executive membership – present yourself at the desk and they will give you the difference.

I am the only person I know who doesn’t worship at the Costco church. I overspent every time I went there and came home with books, movies, clothes, etc.

Read a fascinating book called Mindless Eating. They make a good case for the fact that when you have large quantities of something, you use it up about 25% faster. So even if the stuff costs you less in the store, you will go through it faster, so it isn’t really a good savings. I did a great post about it.

this is a very interesting article and some can save a lot shopping in large amounts. however for me I am alone and so buy buying family size frozen veggies I can use from that bag all month. also I am fortunate that I have a farmers market just down the street where I can get fresh organic grown veggies at half the cost of what they are in the store.

With $2-300 in monthly auto gas bills, shopping w/AMEX issued by them (3% return f/already cheapest gas at their stations + 2-3% savings on all other stuff), card always paid monthly, makes shopping @ Costco a no brainer.

So – aside from the pure / on the spot potential for savings this article mentions, I get back at the end of the year usually at least the cost of my executive membership.

This what I really wanted to see!

I’m often in an in-store debate with my better half about what is good value for the money. This confirms a lot of what my numbers were saying— check before you buy. Cheap is one thing, best bang for the buck has been my motto.

Anyone else accept “you can’t get out of Costco for less than a hundred bucks.”, even if you’re just going in for a three pack of bread.

28^J

I haven’t been in a CostCo in years; do they offer any organic products?

Not sure how you came up with Chicken being cheaper at a Supermarket. Guess it matters on quality. I purchase the Foster Farms Bulk fresh chicken (12 breasts) for $2.99lb. The stores sell the same chicken for $4.99lb. Pretty big savings if you ask me. Everything else I pretty much agree with.

Been shopping at Costco every Sunday morning for years and then head to my local Ralphs to pick up the other items I need.

We go to the butcher for our local organic meat and we get our vegetables delivered from local farmers. For our frozen foods and bulk items, we go to costco. For items that we don’t use a lot of or that you can’t find at costco (like asian or indian foods) we go to the grocery store.

Good article. How about gas prices? That’s why I originally got my membership. I get frozen food and pantry stuff there sometimes, but mostly just gas. It’s always cheaper at the membership stores. Sometimes even by 20¢. Most of the time it’s about an 11¢ difference though

Your math on the executive membership is incorrect. You say that breaking even requires spending $5000 but that doesn’t take into account the Gold Star membership price you would otherwise be paying (half of the executive price) . So instead, breaking even on an executive membership requires spending $2500. Still not for everyone, admittedly. In 2011 I spent $6k at Costco so my $55 investment turned into a $135 rebate (excluding the gas station).

Also, Costco guarantees the price of the upgrade under their return policy . If you sign up and don’t get a $55 rebate check, they downgrade you to Gold Star and refund the difference.

For American (USA) readers, I will add to this the following.

1. The fresh chicken in my local costco comes in premeasured 2 skinless boneless breast halves per pack, and 6 packs per overall package and it is always the flat price of $2.99/lb. That is cheaper than ANY grocery store or big box store even if coupons are taken into account.

2. Bananas and apples – get at the grocery store for sure, but Grapes, Strawberries, Blueberries, Raspberries and Blackberries are always 40-50% less per lb. at my local Costco than anywhere else I can get them. Yes, the package is large, but my wife and I eat a lot of fruit.

3. The exec membership policy may be different in Canada than it is here in the USA. Here, the price difference is $50 dollars, which, to earn back with a 2% reward, a little quick math says you need to spend more than $2500 to make any profit. However, if you don’t meet the minimum spend to break even, USA Coscto will simply send you a check for the $50 dollar difference. Basically, it’s a no lose situation.

That’s my two cents, and hopefully it helps people thinking about a costco membership here south of your borders.

I am not sure why everyone said return is no hassle. I bought a bulk organic cereal bar which expires in end of April some time in Nov 2011. I opened it in middle of Jan and the nut was stale.

I brought it in at the Issaquah Costco and the person told me this is the last time she will do the return since you bought it some time ago. I pointed out the expiry day it in April and I just opened it and it is already no good. She did not really answer anything and said “yeah this is the reason why I said I let you do it this time”.

Honestly if I buy bulk food and the items only last 1/2 of the time span it should be, I am going to bring it in.

For those who think Costco is great place to return things, try PCC or WholeFood. They charge more. But you don’t waste food. And the most important part, if there is soething wrong with the food they sell, the refund it hassle free and no verbal disagreement.

That’s great K but if that’s the case then most people will be eating fresh green peppers for six weeks a year, tops.

I buy local AS MUCH AS I CAN but I’d also like my kids to have bananas on their granola and raisins in their lunch.

If I was ‘buying local’ right now I’d have turnips and apples to choose from if I had put them in my noexistent cellar myself.

SHOP LOCAL! Wonder why the Green Peppers are cheaper at Costco, who is getting the shaft on that stick, most likely the farmers who grew it for you. Check to see if produce has been grown in your own city or country.

Here in the Seattle area you can’t beat Costco’s price on meats, nor can you beat their quality. For example, the Costcos here sell Washington grown chicken for about half the price of any other grocery store. Sure, if you want to get the gross Southern grown chicken at the grocery store you will likely match the Costco price, but you’d have to be brainless to compare the fresh Washington chicken to the Southern grown. Also, the beef at Costco is significantly higher quality than what the regular grocery stores get, yet it’s also significantly less expensive. Obviously though, in both cases, you have to be able to either use large quantities or freeze them. Anyway, it’s wise to know and shop YOUR market area because they are not all the same. We also buy most of our cheese at Costco because it is generally about half the price. And oh yes, the frozen veggies at Costco are WAY better! The only thing we have to be careful about are the fresh veggies because of the package sizes. We do use our regular stores for most of that.

Foods I like are typically 25-30% cheaper at Costco than at any of the local grocery stores. However, there’s things I’d avoid because price doesn’t offset…”damaged in processing” of certain things.

I heartily endorse Costco’s fresh tomatoes, romaine hearts, fresh baked bread, San Pellegrino (seltzer water), Gorgonzola, lemons, organic milk or soy/almond milk.

Costco’s parmigiano reggiano is bitter, the cut flowers die before opening their blooms, baked chicken is injected with salt and gelatin–and has made me sick. I’ve yet to have a bunch of Costco bananas ripen to be edible, and the mushroom box has lots of rotten ones covered by pristine firm beauties. For these items, I’ll pay 25-30% more to get from the local stores (Safeway, QFC, Fred Meyer, PCC Co-op, TJs).

Sometimes the avocados turn to mush on the outside, yet are unripe 1/8th inch in, indicating they were ‘cooked’ in transit. I think the same thing happens to the bananas.

First time I went to Costco (with a friend) I noticed that I could buy most things for the same price or cheaper at other stores on sale. I stock up when on sale and never bothered with Costco. Recently, I switched to Kirkland Dog Food for my 3 dogs. It is a great dog food, a fabulous value and worth the price of the annual membership. Now that you pointed out the difference in the frozen veggies, I will probably start buying them at Costco now. Thanks for the info.

I like Costco because it sells a lot of organic products. We are two in our household and usually spend enough to get the full amount back ($100 executive membership). You just need to buy what makes sense for you…not everything is a good price.

I drive an electric car, so I can’t really count the cost of gas to drive there. The cost for electricity for the trip is about 35 cents so I’m not concerned about that (2.2 cents per km).

Costco HAD a great return policy, but it has changed over the years and has become a lot more strict. We have had issues returning basic items to costco that were not even a month old. They were returned due to defects, but we had to fight with the local manager and make many calls to Costco before it was resolved. This has happened at both of our local Costco’s here in the Reno NV area. We used to shop at Costco for all our needs, but after our latest problems with returning items at Costco, we only buy our food there and little else.

Interesting comparison. I would agree with some other commenters above that the thing for me that grants Costco the upper hand in this debate is the consistent quality of certain fresh food items. Take avocados for example. They beat out any other avocado I can buy in the Portland area. They are always top quality, restaurant grade avocados. I feel the same way about the apples. These items may be cheaper at another store but, for example, 1 out of 3 avocados might be bad from Safeway, so that makes the cheaper argument kind of moot in my mind. Anyway, interesting read. I always tell people “Costco is great because they don’t stock crap.” I feel like they have high standards for what they stock.

I have no idea how old this article is, but excellent work. You do have to be careful but there are some excellent buys at costco.

Re. the executive membership (which I don’t have) there are actually a couple of things that could help pay for the membership much more quickly.

1) More cardholders are allowed on the same membership (can’t remember but I think it is 5). More people using the same card could help rack that 2% up more quickly.

2) The big one – executive member exclusive savings. I saw a flyer that an exec member had and while I can’t remember the prices, fusion shaving blades were some ridiculous cheap (relatively speaking). I don’t know the other deals but that sounded like it could make it worth it.

Prices on items in all franchise stores vary according to the area that you are shopping in. For example, a store in a more well to do area will charge higher prices for the same item than in the same store in a lower income area. For example, a bottle of soap in a more upscale area will likely be priced higher than the same bottle of soap in the same store in a different neighbourhood.

I did a similar price-comparison experiment with BJ’s, a warehouse club we have out here in New Jersey. I concluded that, for the way we shop, the savings at the store were minimal and would not cover the cost of membership. (You can read the whole story at http://www.stretcher.com/stories/06/06jul24f.cfm.) But for those who have big families, run small businesses, or are loyal to specific brands, the savings could be significant.

I’m quite surprised that your savings with Costco were so big, though. A certain consumer magazine, which shall for legal reasons remain nameless, recently did a cost comparison on a “market basket” of foodstuffs, and they found that while Costco did offer the best prices for a few items (diapers were a big one, and trash bags, and peanut butter), overall you’d achieve bigger savings by buying store brands at the supermarket. But maybe the equation is different north of the border.

Went in a costco store in the chicago area the other day. Walking thru the door ,i didnt make it in time to pull out my card to make that magical entrance and the guy at the door said in a sarcastic way OH YOUR NOT GOING TO SHOW ME YOUR CARD” I said yes I will . And as i was pulling it out I said. WHAT IS THE BIG DEAL IF I WAS A LITTLE LATE IN SHOWING YOU< WHAT IS THIS FORT KNOX OR SOMETHING.
His responce was WELL WE HAVE TO KEEP OUT THE RIFFRAFT. I said what??? He said YA ANYONE WHO DOESNT HAVE A CARD IS RIFFRAFT.
I Was chocked. Here was a store calling AMERICAN CITIZENS INCLUDING VETERANS RIFFRAFT. This store is getting an attitude. NEEDLESS to say, I went to the counter, threw my card down and demanded my membership After taking to the manager.

I experienced the same” riff-raff” attitude from the costco in the western suburbs of chicago. I gave Exec. card to my 18 yr.old daughter so that she could do our shopping while I was finishing up at work. I went to the store to meet her 20 mins.after she had arrived. the greeter had taken my card from her,took her to the customer service counter. “customer service” wouldn’t look at her I.D. to see that we lived in the same house and have the same last name. they told her that they were trying to” protect” me and other club members from unwanted intrusions by outsiders.

Interesting comments regarding your local Superstore.
I’d be curious as to where this is Trish.
Our Superstore (Lethbridge, AB) has none of the problems you’ve mentioned in your post – in fact they have excellent produce and meat.

What you say about Costco is true and you do have to know your prices to do any comparative shopping – however the very fact that you have to pay a membership fee simply for the “privledge” of shopping there is what sticks in my craw and I refuse to do it.

As for our local grocery store (in Coaldale, AB) they are a smaller store in a smaller town and due to lack of any competition, seem to feel they can get away with charging ridiculous prices.
They’re not even in the running as far as competative shopping is concerned and I only shop there if I happen to run out of something. Otherwise I shop in Lethbridge at the larger stores with more choice and much better prices.

Trish – that’s the way to “stick” it to Costco. Our “Family Food” store is not the greatest place to shop – and I too will only shop there for flyer (sale) items or if I’m really pressed (out of something) I’ll shop there.

Wow – hey Trish – small world.
Lived on Metchosin Road for years and View Royal before that – graduated from Belmont High in 1962 then moved away in 1963. Came back for the Belmont graduation in 1964 (girl friend).
I know this is off topic for this forum but just had to get back to you and say hi.
Used to have a ton of friends in that area in the 1960’s when Langford Corner was just a blip on the map. I assume that it’s all “grown up” around there now. I don’t even think there was a traffic light at Langford Corner.
The lagoon used to be our favorite “parking” spot if you catch my drift.

I have a BIG question, at my place there is an argument, they tell me the food from Costco is $100 for a MONTHS supply at Costco per person, and I am certain it’s got to be higher. Now, the meals are basically common food, (eggs, bacon, tuna sandwiches, PB & J, cheeseburgers, pasta, Asian rice and veggies with chicken or beef, cereal, ham and cheese, mayo, mustard, fried chicken, and the like-to name most of them) and it’s pretty standard. Is it possible that $100 MIGHT be a little to short, after all this is a group home of 7-10 people, and I find it hard to believe that Costco’s prices are THAT cheap! I would go shopping with AT LEAST $150-$175 for the whole month for myself at ANY produce super store.

Costco can definitely be a money-sucker, but one definite money-saver that no one has mentioned is the incredible savings on baby formula. A 660g (approx) container of Enfamil, for instance, runs about $25 at Walmart. The 1.46kg container of Kirkland brand is also $25. That’s more than twice as much formula and, after comparing the nutritional info, they were virtually identical. The savings from this alone more than pay for a membership. Oh, and just to avoid any lectures, I had to wean early due to illness.

Love Costco! Saves me lots on money here in Southeast AK! Thank goodness we have one 🙂

You forget what every American (unfortunately) forgets. Gas! Costcos are usually a number of miles further away than a local grocery. We can walk to several local groceries in our area (we have 3 within a half mile) and the Costco is 14 miles away. That adds the cost of a gallon or gallon and half of gas to each trip and therefore reduces the savings by $3 to $6 per trip at current prices. It is not a lot, but it cuts the saving in your example by 20-25% and we should all be conscious of the gas we use. And shopping locally is better for the environment, keeps stores locally available for our convenience and saves the time of going to Costco. We can be in and out of our local grocery in 20 minutes with the items in your example. At Costco, that is nearly an hour, car door to car door.

Another problem with Costco is their “supersizing”. We have a lot of fresh food spoil before we can use it and have to buy volumes of things like toilet paper that mean we have to find a place to store it for the year it takes a family of 2 to use it up.

And the final comment is that Costco is a master at getting people to buy what they don’t need. If the shoppers stick to their shopping list (and don’t mind the other negatives), there are savings. However, as soon as you get suckered in to some other item, your savings are loss…and then some.

Thanks good read. I go for Diapers.. and nobody seems to believe me that the Huggies brand is cheaper there than at Walmart.

Costco USED to have some good deals. Not much any more. If you have to have a specific NAME brand packaged product and can store a gallon of mayonnaise, go for it. The price is usually lower than at a supermarket, BUT the store brands are consistently cheaper. The meat prices are OUTRAGEOUS and Kirkland isn’t much of a bargain either. A ladder, TV, car battery or something like that MIGHT be a good deal if you want the top of the line with little choices. As with anything else, you pay for convenience and if you shop around you can more often than not get a better deal elsewhere.

We find the quality of the meats to be better at Costco so we will buy in bulk and then freeze in smaller quantities with our foodsaver. I find a lot of the produce to be over priced but as a foodie I find that they sometimes have hard to find items like fresh figs or champagne grapes. All in all I think I’ll keep my membership.

Something that doesn’t seem to have been mentioned is how employees are treated at each place. Some years ago, Wayne Cascio (Professor in Human Resources at University of Colorado School of Business) got curious as to how Costco was able to stay in business when competing with Walmart and Sam’s Club(also owned by the Walmart folks). He found that the top folks at Costco get paid a lot less and those savings are passed on to cover benefits for the Costco employees, who also get paid a lot more than Walmart/Sam’s Club employees. Costco saves money on recruiting and training, because they promote from within and KEEP the same employees. I’ve never had someone be rude and, at this point, I know many folks by name since I’ve been smiling at them for the past ten years as they check my card (which I always have ready when I walk in). We’ve returned all kinds of stuff with NO hassle…our small business had a barbecue fundraiser a while back that was poorly attended. I checked in advance about returning the food, because I knew they couldn’t re-sell it…they DONATED it to a local food bank and returned our full $400 plus dollars!) Nice to know that we’ve been getting good deals (and lower priced gasoline) and I do shop our local King Soopers (union labor)(a Kroger store now) for smaller amounts of organic spinach and celery,onions and mushrooms, because we just don’t go through fresh food fast enough to use it all. The avocados, though, make wonderful guacamole!

PS – I am comparing the exact same brands to the same brands at the regular supermarket and all are NAME BRANDS!

Here’s a quote from that Wall Street article.

“As usual, Costco’s membership fees provide more than 100% of the company’s profit.”

So in otherwords without the membership fees, Costco would be unable to compete in the “real world”.
Now I know why I’m glad I dropped my membership – people are paying their membership fees simply to keep Costco afloat.
I found when I was a member that my grocery bills were always higher simply because of the fact that I was forced into buying “bulk”.
For a family of two, this just isn’t practical.
So they sell their gas a little cheaper, but I can match their price with my Safeway Club Card.
I guess for some Costco “might” be the answer but I certainly don’t miss shopping there and I can find prices at several outlets either the same or in many cases much less than Costco offers – especially when it comes to hardware or electronics.
With our weekly paper, we always receive flyers for groceries and pretty well anything a person would want to buy and I can always find them cheaper than they are offered at Costco.
Future Shop, Visions, Wal Mart and even Canadian Tire beat the pants off Costco each and every week on computers, tablets and television sets and in the case of Canadian Tire – tools that are often on sale for half price.
I will never be convinced that Costco is a “good thing”!

I’m moving to Vancouver in just under 2 monthes, and stumbled on your blog. And am I ever thankful I did! You’ll get me through frugal student times!

i have shop at costco when it first open in my area about 18 years ago.1 bought 3 items which i figure was a good deal.all 3 items cost about $8.oo . after checking the prices they had over charged me $1.20.i tought i made a mistake when i looked at the prices,so i when back and check the price on the sign in front of the items.i had seen right.i mentioned that to the clerk who contact one of the manager.she went to check the prices and after about 20 minutes(no exageration)she came back and refund me the over charged.i am pretty good with numbers so how many people don,t really check their slip.i have never been to costco since.

We just joined Costco a week ago, because they have the best prices for Contact lenses and they are covered by my insurance. I expected to have to submit for reimbursement, but it wasn’t necessary, and they even had to contacts on hand.

I love Costco. It comes from years of shopping there with my mom while I was still living at home and now for my own family. Up here in Northern Alberta Costco offers the best produce; period. They have a growing number of good organic products and their hams are the best you will ever have!
The last two sets of glasses I purchased were from this store and I saved over 150 $ on the same pair from an independent optical place here in town. The selection isn’t as good; but the prices are excellent.
It is true that Costco doesn’t have the greatest food selection but I know what my family uses and buy the same items every time.
I am an executive member and always get cheques of 150-220$ return. Not too shabby.

I realize the post (and most responses) are quite old, but wanted to chime in. First and foremost, KNOW your prices! Costco is a great deal on many things, but not on everything. I live on the Central Coast of California, near Santa Cruz, and I find MOST things that I purchase at Costco to be much less than the same items at the supermarket. Some items are so much cheaper that even if I end up throwing some out, it was way cheaper than the same item (in a smaller package) from the market.

In our area, dairy products in general are a better deal at Costco, unless on sale elsewhere (that’s where it pays to watch the sales and know your prices). Costco butter is less than $2/lb, $3-4/lb at the market. Lettuce and fresh broccoli florets are screaming deals! Again, even if I end throwing some away (well, it gets composted), it is way cheaper than buying the same products at the market.

Kirkland brand items – I have never been disappointed! Price savings – significant! Their mayo passed the “potato salad” test in our house (otherwise, it must be Hellman’s/Best Foods). Juices (bottled) generally beat even sale prices outside. Kirkland balsamic is awesome – very smooth and excellent price (any balsamic I have bought in the supermarket is way too acidic, no matter how much I pay). Kirkland ibuprofen – 1000 caplets (2 bottles of 500 each) – around $10!! The brand name of the same product is cheaper at Costco than anywhere, but why buy the brand name when the product is exactly the same! Even the gel-caps (which work in 10 minutes instead of 30) are unbelievably cheap compared to anywhere else (360/under $15).

Multi-pack bacon? Never had a bad pack – EVER!

TP, paper towels, garbage bags – can’t beat the price anywhere!

I watch the sales at the local supermarkets (Safeway, Raley’s, local independent) and shop where I can get the best price, regardless of the item.

I have also observed that shopping at or after dinner time is the best – unless you are checking out close to closing time, the wait is minimal. Of course, as someone previously mentioned, DON’T shop hungry!

Regarding TP – the Kirkland rolls have more sheets per roll than almost any other brand, and have maintained 425 sheets per roll for years.

Great article, however, I did not see the word “Quality” mentioned. I think that this is one of Costco’s strong attributes.

Great article but I do find that Costco is better than Superstore/Sobeys for produce both in price and quality.

Great site, lots of good ideas. Newbie who learned about you from David Chilton’s newest book “the Wealthy barber Returns”.

Do most of our grocery shopping at local Superstore. They PRICE MATCH all of their competitor’s flyers. Takes a bit of time, but one stop shopping and for a family of two I figure we save $10 – $25 weekly!

We are a married couple with two babies and hoping to have more, so Costco saves us a lot more it does for small households. The savings on diapers and milk alone pay for our membership several times over.

I think it really depends on what your other local grocery stores offer in terms of price, quality and quanitiy. We have found that buying meats in bulk is a better deal at Costco. Specifically ground beef, and chicken on the bone is a great deal when you buy in bulk. Chicken legs are 99 cents per pound, which is a very decent price. We also buy bread, frozen foods, sliced cheses and fruits. Its crazy now how expensive fruits are at your local grocery store or even walmart. At Costco, we we will buy a couple bags of fruits that last for 2 weeks at least, and its great quality and doesn’t go bad…and guess what, if one isn’t good, you can return it very easily. We haven’t encountered poor quality produce though. We are slowly comparing prices and making sure the unit cost is cheaper than what we find at the regular grocery store even with sales. I will say we do find specific sales for things we must have at Harris Teeter and buy them in bulk there which is cheaper, but those sales only occur every few months or so. Costco has been a great way to buy quality food for us. We just now have started looking at the costco clothing too…not bad prices or quality.

I think that with the cheaper gasoline (usually 4 cents a liter) that tipped the scales for me, but the Costco gas station is on the way to work, so it is easier for me to take advantage of this part of the membership.

We end up buying a few staples all the time and that alone makes the membership worthwhile for our family.

Costco does not water down their gasoline. It is actually illegal do this. I often find many mechanics are full of it. There’s enough cars rolling through their gas station if they even did such a thing they would have a large law suit on their hands.

We buy our milk at costco weekly. It costs a dollar less then at Walmart.

We also bought flooring there which is an amazing price. It was less than $2/sq ft for 15 mm flooring when it went on sale.

I often see a lot of furniture for really good prices. Which reminds me we bought my desk on sale there for $300 (I think) but the same desk any where else would have been $800 to $1000 easily.

I’m probably going to buy my big screen there, just waiting to see if it goes on sale.

As suggested above, not all stuff at Costco is cheaper. You just have to know the price you would pay at the stores you regularly visit.

I know people that work at Costco and I know people that work at Superstore. I do some of my shopping at Costco and none at Superstore. The best difference between the two is that the Costco employees are full time employees making decent wages and benefits, while the Superstore employees are all part time at very low wages and no benefits.

No matter what I fail to see who does a MONTHLY shopping spree for no more than 100 dollars per person, in a house filled with adults (say group home or other housing situation) NO ONE can fulfill the dietary needs on that low of a budget, people eat a whole lot more on their plates than they recall, sorry to burst your bubble guys…PRICES ARE HIIIGH!

Great article, we have been shopping pretty much exclusively at Costco for years now, glad to hear your research backs up our decision. I think when I first became a member in 1990, just the savings in buying milk alone there for a year paid for the membership. We were a family of 4 then.

On the subject of Executive Membership, I was told during the sales pitch while waiting in line (this many years ago), that if your 2% savings does not pay for the membership, just stop at the front desk, and they will makeup the difference. For instance, if your rebate check is $67.00, they will give you the $33.00. I don’t know if that’s cash or store credit, but they will make it pay for itself. I haven’t tested this, as our rebate is always over $100.00! Yes, we shop a LOT at Costco 🙂

Where I’m from, Costco is ALWAYS cheaper on coffee, milk, cheese, and fresh meats. If you want organic meat, the organic lean ground beef is at least $1/lb cheaper than the leading big brand organic (Amy’s). The chicken breasts are ususally the same. With increase in coffee prices lately, coffee is dramatically cheaper than any of the big brands like folgers, and it tastes much better. Milk is often 1$ less than other stores and sometimes 50% cheaper. However, I agree with the fresh food being much more.
If you buy guy on the day or day after the prices jump in the area, you are often paying .20-.30 per gallon cheaper.

In terms of the executive membership, you are not really consistent with your math. You say for you it will take 2 months to break even on the $55 dollar membership, then say that in order to break even for the executive you need to spend $5000. This is just wrong. Around here the executive is $110. Assuming you break even on the normal membership in 2 months, then the 2% back needs to add up to the difference of $55 to “Break Even”. This is much less than your dramatic $5000. In reality this is only ~$200 a month, which is not that much.

The executive membership is worth it for me because I save hundreds of dollars on my car insurance buying through Costco. Then again the state I live in has strange car insurance rules and most companies have the same price. In another state it might not save me money going with their car insurance.

Shipping is not free. It’s built in the price. For heavy items like furniture you might see quite a difference on the website vs in the store.

I found your article interesting and entertaining, thank you for it! So, we are only a couple in a too small apartment so sadly, we suffer for space when we go to Costco. But their produce is amazing – it’s always fresh and delicious. The prices seem about the same as in the local superstores. The packaged goods are definitely much cheaper and we order and buy all of our celebration cakes and desserts from Costco. They are incredible! Some of their seasonal offerings are very nicely priced, and they are usually things you may not find anywhere else. We have an Executive Membership and we have a Costco Amex card, which I think you have to have with an exec membership, not sure about that. You earn 3% on some things, 2% on some things and 1% on everything else that you purchase using the Costco Amex, so we charge everything we can, even rent and household bills. We get a rebate on all of it! This year we got a check for nearly $400 in these earnings! Now that $400 we do have to spend at Costco and it expires after about 6 months.

It would seem that somebody used your pictures a year later for their own (crummy, tbh) post with the same subject: http://lifehacker.com/5883360/what-to-buy-at-costco-versus-your-grocery-store

Just the bbq tank refills pay for the membership .At local gas stations $30.00 vs Costco $12.00. Gas savings for car. The way I figure it if Costco can sell it up to 12 cents a liter cheaper,there is something wrong with the other guys.

I agree with Bud about eating first. The biggest Costco advantage is their quality. In over twenty years I have never had a problem with anything they sell. Their bananas last longer than their competitors. Where the heck where they when we were raising three kids with hollow legs??

One major problem with your methodology: You forgot the membership fee. It has to be included as a weighted average into your prices for Costco since your Superstore (I assume) does not have a membership fee. It is a cost of shopping at Costco and should have been included.

Late 2014-15 40% rise in Costco bread prices: $4.99 double loaf whole grain+others replaced with $6.99 single round loaf (Silverdale, Wa.) Bread and Kirkland dog food are staples in our house.

I guess it’s dog food on the table for us and less than !%er Costco members. Too bad. Time to switch to Safeway, Trader Joe’s … for decent bread.

Great article thanks. Regarding the executive membership, I’ve been told by the employee that if by the end of the year you cash backs are less than the amount you paid for the membership, you’ll get that difference in cash back.

The problem with Costco is they try to sell everything in giant packages when I only want a small amount making it significantly cheaper to shop at a grocery store. Say I want a apple I can spend 70 cents on it at the grocery store or I can buy a giant bag of them at Costco for $6.

High quality? I don’t know what these people are talking about. My father uses it for bulk and I shop there when he goes sometimes. I wonder even what he gets out of it. The optical place is not bad if you shop carefully although on food heres what there is – bland pasta (which they love to emphasize at taste tests – talk to the women at the Costco food samples test about food and see what they know about food which is AMAZING, all the ready made meals – I mean in terms of selling that microwave pizza – look at what people put in the cart there and talk to anyone who works there they don’t value quality merchandise I know it I spoke to many of the employees and the shoppers. Look at the fact that you can not buy coffee beans though the ground is OK – you cannot buy loose tea or organic produce (not that I trust it much always) and one or two main commercial brands of products and look at the energy bars in the whole front. They love quantity and thats that. Good for bulk shopping when you want economy goods at a high quantity for reason although quality, I dont think so. I cannot believe some people think thats what they get out of it. Mind you if you want milk, butter, eggs, cheese and certain meats at a good amount its may be good although skip the pasta and microwave foods there and you’ll be OK. That however is 85% of what it is

The exec membership is worth it for big families. We got 134 dollars back this year so that is our membership free plus some. I don’t mind paying the little bit more for the fruit/fresh when it is better quality. Maybe it is just the stores around here but I find most of the fruit at other stores last only a few days where as stuff from costco lasts 2 to 3 times longer. We don’t buy everything from costco but fruit, chicken, pork loin and baking stuff is our must haves from costco. 🙂

I’ve always been a believer that Costco is overpriced on some things and this proves it, although it would be more meaningful if the calculations were in pounds and gallons, rather than kilograms and liters, especially when the pictures show price/lb for example.

Costco is great

I’ve found that Costco is worth it, but only if you can make up the annual membership fee. It takes us about six months to accrue enough savings to cancel out the cost of membership. Then for the other half of the year we reap the benefits of bulk buying. I don’t think Costco is worth it if you don’t shop there regularly enough to make back your money.

I think the Executive membership is SO worth it! Even if you don’t earn the $55 difference in a year, they will REFUND what you don’t make up but you have to remember to ask for it! And you can downgrade any time you want if you don’t feel that it’s worth it.

Considering the executive membership. You should really see it as 45$ if you’re already paying 55$ for your regular membership. In reality, it pays itself back with less than 2500$ spent. Factor in gas and you’re laughing.

Fast forward to 2018. We are located in SE Wisconsin. The prices on many produce items are highly competitive. As an example, fresh strawberries are always the least expensive at our local Costco And they are almost universally of the best quality. Likewise for most fresh berries. During the winter season, Costco is very competitive on citrus fruit, chopped lettuces and a number of other things. There were very few items that they were not at least competitive on. Most of the meats we commonly purchase, chicken breasts, and the beef products we buy, are either USDA Choice or a few USDA Prime, and priced well below most local mega stores, or are within similar price range and are of much better quality. By far, they are much more competitive on fresh orange juice, and without question, most frozen foods such as vegatables and frozen pizzas are of higher quality. We don’t get everything there. But the list of things that Costco isn’t most competitive on grows smaller every day. It has now become more a matter of not wanting to buy items in quantity that there is now way you will ever use before they will spoil, regardless of how good a deal they may be.

I wanted to leave one more comment: I think the best weapon you have in price comparison shopping is $/unit.

The packaging will always change, for the purpose of catching your attention and/or hiding the fact that they are giving you less, yet charging more. Example – a box of crackers may look taller, yet the width has decreased (total volume decreased), yet the price has increased. I see this all the time with just about any items.

A classic example I’m sure anyone will recognize is toilet paper. Not only do the marketers change the number of rolls (or equivalent value rolls) but the sheets per roll. The only way to effectively compare is to multiply the rolls x sheets per roll, then divide that number into the price of the package. That gives you price/sheet. This assumes that the sheets are of same width/length, which is usually the case.

So, yes – ignore the fancy new packaging and get down to the numbers game – if you really want to be sure you’re stretching your dollar.

A good app is Flipp – that will compare prices from all different flyers (except Costco of course). That will save you much driving around and wasting time/gas.

We are creatures of habit, so I continue being a Costco member – in Canada.

I enjoy buying their rotisserie chickens and frozen berries/veg/chicken cutlets/anti-pasta jars.
Having said that, the membership keeps creeping up which I’m not thrilled about.

Lately – the gas is really not that much less, if at all, than other nearby gas stations. So I’m not exactly seeing savings there.

I continue going to regular grocery stores as well, because usually they aren’t mad houses like these warehouses.

Also, many customers buy products at Costco & may buy at a lower price but because they end up throwing out around half the product they actually are losing a lot of money. If you could track how much people throw out I think you’d see a high percentage of customers waste both the product & their money. Most customers are NOT smart when they buy in bulk.