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I really thought that I could share all my Costco thoughts in one big ole' post, but goodness I just have too many thoughts to go around! 😉 (Now that my kids are back in school and I finally have time to actually think, I feel like I have way too many words to say when it comes to penny pinching ~ so get ready.) Last night the Sunday School class that we've been visiting (who have been so. sweet.) went to a Columbus Clippers game, and a few of us got to talking groceries. (Y'all know this is one of those areas I get waaayyyy too excited about!) I've been curious about how prices at Costco compared to Sam's Club, because the Sam's in our area is quite a drive.
After talking about it last night I decided it was worth checking out, and made a quick trip this morning. There really are some good deals to be had at on very specific items at Costco, but goodness it's just so easy to spend too much if you're not careful! Here are a few quick things I learned:
- Costco has coupons available every month. These are offered to every Costco shopper, and you don't actually need the coupon to even get the savings! I think there were some fantastic deals included in the coupon book, and if you don't get it mailed out to you, swing by your customer service desk to pick one up.
- Produce and even some meat prices are decent at Costco, but I wouldn't call them rock bottom prices by any means. On the flip side though, they offer great prices on organic produce, which probably would be tough to beat elsewhere.
- I LOVE (love, love, LOVE!) that Costco's tagged prices include prices per unit on every item. It's so easy at Costco to do the math and know if you're getting a good price, as long as you have a basic stock up price list in mind! I think there are many deals that would be just as easily found at your local grocery store by waiting to shop the sales ads, but there are some decent prices to be had if you're careful to go in with a budget, and stick to it.
- Costco shopping to me requires much more “bulk” shopping than what I've seen at Sam's Club. There are some great prices, but on certain items (like frozen boneless, skinless, chicken breast, eggs, potatoes, onions, etc), you'll need to buy a bunch to get a great price. If you have enough folks in your family to eat a bunch (and enough room to store it!), there may be some great deals, but you'll want to take that into consideration before purchasing!
Here's what I thought about the produce pricing . . . and I'll share more updates on other items in the store shortly . . .
Seedless Watermelons $3.99 – I thought that was an incredible price and picked one up!
Pineapples $2.99 each – pretty reasonable considering they're huge
Broccoli $4.49 or $1.49/lb. – I paid $1.99/lb. last night for it at Kroger, however we could never eat that much before it would go bad! If your family eats a bunch of broccoli, it might be worth it. 😉
Onions $8.49/10lbs., or $.84/lb – not a bad price at all, but that's a lot of onions!
Small Red Potatoes $7.99/10 lb
Organic Salad Blend $4.49 1 lb. – I thought this was a great price – typically I purchase the smaller bags that aren't organic at Kroger for around $2-$2.50 per bag (which I'm guessing would be about 1/3 the size of this container), so I think this was a decent deal
Garden Salad $2.99/3 lb. bag – great price!
Grapes $1.74-$1.87/lb. – I bought grapes last night at Kroger for $.99/lb., so I think this is an okay price? If I couldn't find a good sale this is a decent deal, and Costco's produce really is great quality
Organic Strawberries $6.99 – I'm not sure how to compare these – I *think* the same size of non-organic grapes at Sam's is $4.99
Granny Smith Apples $6.99/5.5 lbs or $1.27/lb. – I think this is a good price, but these apples are huge, so I'd have a hard time sending my kids with a whole apple in their lunch box because I think a lot of it would go to waste! If I was slicing apples at home those for them, this is a decent price.
Organic pre-sliced gala apples $9.99 for 8 6 oz. bags – goodness, these are not worth it at all (in my humble opinion?) That's a whopping $1.07 per bag – yikes! Sam's Club has these in one big container that I separate out for my kids, and I was so much happier with that price!
Watch later today for meat pricing – I'd love to hear your thoughts too!
Looking for more updates on Sam's & Costco pricing? Here you go:
