Price Comparison: Sam's vs. Walmart
We did a bit of sleuthing over the weekend: Is it worth it for us to get a Sam's membership?
Short answer:
For us...no. We cannot buy perishables and many other "bulk items" at Sam's, because we cannot eat that much...nor do we have the room to store everything! But it WOULD be worthwhile for us to visit a few times a year (with my mom, who has a membership) and stock up on certain items!
For large families...probably, yes! If you were able to do most of your shopping there and finish off the large quantities of food offered more quickly, you could probably save a lot! You would only have to save about $4.00/month to break even.
For my purposes, I only compared items that we either a: Use a lot of, b: I can freeze, or c: I can store (i.e., it would do OK out in our garage, because that's really the only place where I can fit excessive amounts of things!).
Sam's Best Deals:
Sam's: Ground beef (90% lean) at $1.98/lb
Walmart: Ground beef (93% lean) at $2.98/lb
Sam's: Shredded mozzarella cheese (5 lb bag) at $1.75/lb
Walmart: Shredded mozzarella cheese (2 lb bag) at $2.93/lb
Sam's: Butter (4-16oz pkgs) at $1.64/pkg
Walmart: Butter at $2.24/pkg
Sam's: Honey (5 lb bottle) at $1.33/lb
Walmart: Honey (3 lb bottle) at $2.18/lb
Sam's: Pure Vanilla Extract (16 oz) at 0.43/oz
Walmart: Pure Vanilla Extract (2 oz) at $1.96/oz
Sam's: Walnuts (3 lb bag) at $3.29/lb
Walmart: Walnuts at $4.28/lb
Sam's: Pecans (2 lb bag) at $5.86/lb
Walmart: Pecans at $8.12/lb
Sam's: Georgia Pacific copy paper (2500 sheets) at $14.86
Walmart: Georgia Pacific copy paper (2500 sheets) at $19.35
We go through a lot of this! :op
Sam's: GE Softwhite60 flourescent lightbulbs (pkg of 8) at $1.59/bulb
Walmart: GE Softwhite60 flourescent lightbulbs (pkg of 3) at $2.51/bulb
We are planning to start using flourescent lightbulbs to save on energy costs
Sam's: Always feminine pads (72 ct) at $8.08
Walmart: Always feminine pads (36 ct x 2 = 72 ct) at $9.88 total
Other: Sam's has fresh flowers at good costs. It's a great place to buy large quantities of flowers for special events, such as a wedding! My parents and others have gotten excellent deals on clothing, books, and other items that come and go at Sam's. Their stock is constantly changing, so you have to need the right thing at the right time!
Sam's Not-So-Good Deals (Walmart was about the same or better):
Flour, sugar, baking mix, rice, pasta and other low-cost staple items are not generally cheaper at Sam's.
I found it cheaper or about the same to purchase most generic canned goods at Walmart, than the namebrands common at Sam's.
Paper goods (toilet paper, paper towels, kleenex, etc.) are not generally cheaper at Sam's. Neither are most cleaning products and detergents. (In fact, Walmart carries most of these items in bulk sizes as well).
Short answer:
For us...no. We cannot buy perishables and many other "bulk items" at Sam's, because we cannot eat that much...nor do we have the room to store everything! But it WOULD be worthwhile for us to visit a few times a year (with my mom, who has a membership) and stock up on certain items!
For large families...probably, yes! If you were able to do most of your shopping there and finish off the large quantities of food offered more quickly, you could probably save a lot! You would only have to save about $4.00/month to break even.
For my purposes, I only compared items that we either a: Use a lot of, b: I can freeze, or c: I can store (i.e., it would do OK out in our garage, because that's really the only place where I can fit excessive amounts of things!).
Sam's Best Deals:
Sam's: Ground beef (90% lean) at $1.98/lb
Walmart: Ground beef (93% lean) at $2.98/lb
Sam's: Shredded mozzarella cheese (5 lb bag) at $1.75/lb
Walmart: Shredded mozzarella cheese (2 lb bag) at $2.93/lb
Sam's: Butter (4-16oz pkgs) at $1.64/pkg
Walmart: Butter at $2.24/pkg
Sam's: Honey (5 lb bottle) at $1.33/lb
Walmart: Honey (3 lb bottle) at $2.18/lb
Sam's: Pure Vanilla Extract (16 oz) at 0.43/oz
Walmart: Pure Vanilla Extract (2 oz) at $1.96/oz
Sam's: Walnuts (3 lb bag) at $3.29/lb
Walmart: Walnuts at $4.28/lb
Sam's: Pecans (2 lb bag) at $5.86/lb
Walmart: Pecans at $8.12/lb
Sam's: Georgia Pacific copy paper (2500 sheets) at $14.86
Walmart: Georgia Pacific copy paper (2500 sheets) at $19.35
We go through a lot of this! :op
Sam's: GE Softwhite60 flourescent lightbulbs (pkg of 8) at $1.59/bulb
Walmart: GE Softwhite60 flourescent lightbulbs (pkg of 3) at $2.51/bulb
We are planning to start using flourescent lightbulbs to save on energy costs
Sam's: Always feminine pads (72 ct) at $8.08
Walmart: Always feminine pads (36 ct x 2 = 72 ct) at $9.88 total
Other: Sam's has fresh flowers at good costs. It's a great place to buy large quantities of flowers for special events, such as a wedding! My parents and others have gotten excellent deals on clothing, books, and other items that come and go at Sam's. Their stock is constantly changing, so you have to need the right thing at the right time!
Sam's Not-So-Good Deals (Walmart was about the same or better):
Flour, sugar, baking mix, rice, pasta and other low-cost staple items are not generally cheaper at Sam's.
I found it cheaper or about the same to purchase most generic canned goods at Walmart, than the namebrands common at Sam's.
Paper goods (toilet paper, paper towels, kleenex, etc.) are not generally cheaper at Sam's. Neither are most cleaning products and detergents. (In fact, Walmart carries most of these items in bulk sizes as well).
posted by Erin | 11:28 AM
2 Comments:
Erin,
That info is really helpful. I was wondering if getting a membership at Sam's would be worth it for Jim and I after we get married. Do you and Micah have any other tips on how to save money on groceries? I always feel like I spend way too much when I go to the grocery store! I usaully go through the coupons in the newspaper, but alot of times they are for things that I don't need or they are still too expensive even with the coupon. Would you consider doing a post about this in the future? Have a wonderful day!
Samantha- glad it helps! We are not experts in saving money on groceries, because we are just now starting to seriously work on this! But I will try to write a post on what we are learning soon!
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