Sams VS Costco

pgprescott

Terrebandit said:

I maintain memberships at both and actively shop at both.  I like pork butts and smoked sausage at SAMS but other meats are generally bought at Costco.  They seem to compete with each other on other sale items, which is nice.  I like the credit card that comes with my SAMs account. I get about 400 cash back on that per year. 

I think it's a no brainer that Costco is superior and carries a higher grade of beef, but it sounds like the Sams is better than most grocery store options. Is this your take as well?  Thanks. 

RRP

Thanks for posting this today, Pete. All the positive remarks today pushed us off the dime and we will be joining COSTCO this week - travel time be damned! LOL

Botch

nolaegghead said:

The founder of Costco is a great guy.   Takes care of his employees, which take care of the customers and make the whole experience from a customer standpoint night and day compared to Sam's.   From wiki:

In 1997, the name of Sinegal’s company was changed to Costco Wholesale.

In an interview published in the Houston Chronicle on July 17, 2005, he told Steven Greenhouse that he did not care about Wall Street analysts who had criticized him for putting good treatment of employees and customers ahead of pleasing shareholders. Investors might want higher earnings, but Sinegal stated, “We want to build a company that will still be here 50 and 60 years from now." A favorite quote attributed to Sinegal, in part about his philosophy on dealing with success, is, “you have to take the **** with the sugar”. Investors who bought $10,000 of Costco stock in 1992 found it worth $43,564 just ten years later (a return of 354% [15.855%, annually]). A 2012 CNBC documentary stated that from 1985 until Sinegal's retirement, the stock's value had increased by five thousand percent. Costco's two highest-sales years to date, were Sinegal's final two years as CEO.

In 2009, Sinegal was considered one of "The TopGun CEOs" by Brendan Wood International, an advisory agency.[5][6]

And on the flip side:  Some full-time Sam's/Walmart employees still qualify for food stamps, while the seven Walton heirs have as much wealth as the bottom 43% of ALL Americans.  
Ironically Sam Walton (whose autobiography I've read) began his business by choosing carefully-thought out locations, and featuring made-in-America goods only.  He's dead now, as you can probably guess.  

pgprescott

RRP said:

Thanks for posting this today, Pete. All the positive remarks today pushed us off the dime and we will be joining COSTCO this week - travel time be damned! LOL

Hey, quite welcome Ron. It sounds a little out of the way for you but very manageable. May your trips be fruitful! 

Terrebandit

pgprescott said:

Terrebandit said:

I maintain memberships at both and actively shop at both.  I like pork butts and smoked sausage at SAMS but other meats are generally bought at Costco.  They seem to compete with each other on other sale items, which is nice.  I like the credit card that comes with my SAMs account. I get about 400 cash back on that per year. 

I think it's a no brainer that Costco is superior and carries a higher grade of beef, but it sounds like the Sams is better than most grocery store options. Is this your take as well?  Thanks. 

I've never been disappointed with the quality of beef coming from SAMs and would definitely rank it better than Randall's which is a grocery store chain in Austin Texas.  Another issue with SAMs, compared to the grocery store, is bulk packaging.  That's not a problem for me, assuming I have the freezer space available.   HOWEVER,  I am blessed to have an HEB grocery store in my neighborhood that has an excellent meat department that will custom cut meat in smaller quantities and they have USDA Prime at very good prices on sale.  I buy a lot of my beef there and from Costco, and occasionally from SAMs

pgprescott

Terrebandit said:

pgprescott said:

Terrebandit said:

I maintain memberships at both and actively shop at both.  I like pork butts and smoked sausage at SAMS but other meats are generally bought at Costco.  They seem to compete with each other on other sale items, which is nice.  I like the credit card that comes with my SAMs account. I get about 400 cash back on that per year. 

I think it's a no brainer that Costco is superior and carries a higher grade of beef, but it sounds like the Sams is better than most grocery store options. Is this your take as well?  Thanks. 

I've never been disappointed with the quality of beef coming from SAMs and would definitely rank it better than Randall's which is a grocery store chain in Austin Texas.  Another issue with SAMs, compared to the grocery store, is bulk packaging.  That's not a problem for me, assuming I have the freezer space available.   HOWEVER,  I am blessed to have an HEB grocery store in my neighborhood that has an excellent meat department that will custom cut meat in smaller quantities and they have USDA Prime at very good prices on sale.  I buy a lot of my beef there and from Costco, and occasionally from SAMs

Thanks much. 

stlcharcoal

Costco hands down......

I still have a Sam's membership, but I'm only there once in a while.  Sam's has wider selection of stuff geared toward businesses.

Legume

If you ever become dissatisfied with your Costco membership, they will gladly refund your fee, no questions asked.

RRP

dumb question time...I know liquor laws differ all over the country, but I assume COSTCO sells booze where they can - right? The thing that has always surprised me has been how overpriced SAMS' wine, beer and liquor is. I mean even Kroger beats SAMS prices and selection. 
And while we are still talking about COSTCO - I know their house brand is Kirkland, but is there some cross reference site somewhere that at least suggests XYZ makes COSTCO's such and such or do you just live and learn what Kirkland labels to buy and what not to?

Legume

Yes to the liquor.  In Texas they can't, so beer and wine only, but many have an attached liquor store that is run by someone else.

I have yet to find a Kirkland brand item that is not really really good, if not great.  No idea who makes most of them.  Their wine is good, their balsamic vinegar is fantastic.  It's all good.

Beer and wine are priced well and I remember they had some great deals on liquor when I was going to Costco out in California.

Botch

Legume said:

I have yet to find a Kirkland brand item that is not really really good, if not great.  

Consumer Reports agrees with you, 100%.
Sadly I live in utard, where the church-state has forbidden even beer/wine sales, unless They control it.  

HeavyG

Legume said:

...
I have yet to find a Kirkland brand item that is not really really good, if not great.  No idea who makes most of them.  Their wine is good, their balsamic vinegar is fantastic.  It's all good...

Agree completely. I've yet to try a Kirkland brand product that turned out to be a clinker.

The Kirkland Roasted Seaweed is better than any other Korean brands I've tried. It too is made in Korea and would love to know who actually makes it. I'm actually more curious as to how Costco decides to pick an item to put out under the Kirkland label. I was actually surprised to see Kirkland roasted seaweed. Seemed like a bit of an obscure choice of product (at least in most markets).

nolaegghead

The Kirkland brand booze, I am told by associates, is name brand.  The vodka is grey goose, the bourbon is Jack Daniels, etc.

I do have a membership to both but Costco is where I go 90% of the time.  Also their food court is awesome and their gas is the cheapest in town.  No credit cards (unless it it theirs). 

Legume

nolaegghead said:

No credit cards (unless it it theirs). 

They'll only accept same card that theirs is (used to be Amex, now Visa) but it doesn't have to be a Costco Visa, just a Visa.

nolaegghead

Legume said:

nolaegghead said:

No credit cards (unless it it theirs). 

They'll only accept same card that theirs is (used to be Amex, now Visa) but it doesn't have to be a Costco Visa, just a Visa.

Checked, you're right.  This must be new since they switched from Amex.

bhedges1987

Sams seem gross to me. 

I go to costco. Cleaner building and crowd. 

Teefus

Costco for sure. We used to be members of both. We let the Sam's membership lapse as we never went there. Costco is my regular source for Salmon, Strip Steaks, Pork Chops, and Brisket. We've never been disappointed. 

PirateBill

I will say the meat is great at Costco and you get more "bang for your buck" at Costco, my wife and I booked our Honeymoon through Costco Travel and saved around 2 grand total. I don't think that Sam's has a travel group associated with them.

Shiff

Legume said:

I have yet to find a Kirkland brand item that is not really really good, if not great.  No idea who makes most of them.  Their wine is good, their balsamic vinegar is fantastic.  It's all good.

Definitely true. There was also a recent investigation on Extra Virgin Olive Oil brands and whether they were really EVOO or not.  Kirkland brand was one of the few that was truthfully labeled.

Shiff

nolaegghead said:

I do have a membership to both but Costco is where I go 90% of the time.  Also their food court is awesome and their gas is the cheapest in town.  No credit cards (unless it it theirs). 

They take any Visa card (at least here in Pennsylvania) - it doesn't have to be their branded Visa card.  This was also true when they took only Am Ex cards.

GatoGordo

You really need to visit the store to decide. We have four Costcos around us and three Sam's. They are all different. For example, one of the Costco locations has a far better alcohol selection than the others and we will not go in one of the Sam's while the others are fine. I also purchased a clock radio at one Costco that was $10 cheaper than the other Costco locations.

I am not really a fan of either since neither has much of a selection. For example, if you want cereal, Sam's and Costco carry a few brands, while the local supermarket has an entire aisle to select from. If they carry what you want great otherwise you need to either eat what you do not want or shop elsewhere.

Of the two, I prefer Sam's since I can purchase in smaller quantities. Costco only sells milk in two gallon boxes, while Sam's sells milk by the gallon. We do not purchase produce at Costco since we must purchase in such large quantities and a lot of it would rot before we could finish it. If you have a large family this is not a problem, but it is with just the two of us.

Sam's also carries brand name pet food while Costco only sells their brand. My cats will not eat their cat food and my dog gets flatulent with their dog food.

I usually purchase meat at the local grocery store since I purchase choice and the supermarket is cheaper than Costco due to weekly sales.

Currently, we have Costco for the gas. My wife drives a long distance to and from work and Costco is on the way. The gas savings alone is enough to warrant the membership. We visit the store maybe once a month.

pgprescott

Hey @GatoGordo , the last thing anyone needs is their beloved pet crop dusting them all the time. LOL, literally!

CoMoBGE

I guess I'm on the outside of this one. The SAMs club in my town is fantastic. Always very clean and well staffed. Always has prime in brisket/tenderloin/sirloin/ribeyes. Has a fantastic bourbon selection(find Blantons there several times a year).  The local store might be a little better due to the fact that 2 Walmart heirs live in town. There is a rumor that Costco is coming to town so I will have to check them out also. 

RRP

Reporting in - we joined the masses and are now COSTCO members. We spent 2.5 hours scouring every aisle except computers, furniture or drugstore area. MAN-O-MAN do they carry a lot of stuff!!! As for prime beef availability that was a disappointment. There were only 3 small packages of New York strips and 2 smaller packages of ribeyes carrying the prime designation. Honestly that cow must have died from obesity as that was not attractive marbling, but pure fat! Just the same our experience was very good and we got out of there only spending $226 none of which was for meat and just $10 for a bottle of champagne. As others have said the store was ultra-clean and the employees were friendly and helpful. I'm so glad we finally joined!

Eggcelsior

nolaegghead said:

The Kirkland brand booze, I am told by associates, is name brand.  The vodka is grey goose, the bourbon is Jack Daniels, etc.

I do have a membership to both but Costco is where I go 90% of the time.  Also their food court is awesome and their gas is the cheapest in town.  No credit cards (unless it it theirs). 

The bourbon is not Jack Daniels, a)because it is typically a Beam product(was a step above knob creek last, I believe) and b) because Jack Daniels is not bourbon.

Eggcelsior

HeavyG said:

Legume said:

...
I have yet to find a Kirkland brand item that is not really really good, if not great.  No idea who makes most of them.  Their wine is good, their balsamic vinegar is fantastic.  It's all good...

Agree completely. I've yet to try a Kirkland brand product that turned out to be a clinker.

The Kirkland Roasted Seaweed is better than any other Korean brands I've tried. It too is made in Korea and would love to know who actually makes it. I'm actually more curious as to how Costco decides to pick an item to put out under the Kirkland label. I was actually surprised to see Kirkland roasted seaweed. Seemed like a bit of an obscure choice of product (at least in most markets).

They find out which sells the best, then co-brand it for a while. Eventually, the product goes straight under KS branding. Hot dogs are branded KS, but at Hebrew Nat'n or Sinai. Cranberry Juice products are Ocean Spray. I worked their for 5 years and know a few people at the buying office in Sterling, VA.

thetrim

I had a college friend gunned down, under very suspicious circumstances, by the Las Vegas Police outside a Costco several years ago.  The video of the incident mysteriously disappeared off their cameras.  I hadn't been to a Costco before and won't go after.  I might be missing out, but that's that.  I don't think they have Brisket here in the Tampa area.  I'm happy with Sam's and am working towards getting into Restaurant Depot.  We also have Gordon Food Services around here that I hear good things about.  

Bentgrass

RRP said:

Reporting in - we joined the masses and are now COSTCO members. We spent 2.5 hours scouring every aisle except computers, furniture or drugstore area. MAN-O-MAN do they carry a lot of stuff!!! As for prime beef availability that was a disappointment. There were only 3 small packages of New York strips and 2 smaller packages of ribeyes carrying the prime designation. Honestly that cow must have died from obesity as that was not attractive marbling, but pure fat! Just the same our experience was very good and we got out of there only spending $226 none of which was for meat and just $10 for a bottle of champagne. As others have said the store was ultra-clean and the employees were friendly and helpful. I'm so glad we finally joined!

Ron- I'm assuming you went to the Costco in Peoria... I have stopped there a couple times passing through and have noticed their meat supply a little weak, but it may have just been the day or time of day.  We go to the one in Coralville, Ia.  It is loaded, and a hang on to your wallet in that meat department.

RRP

yes - East Peoria, but we hit the meat bin right after opening and the bins were full, not picked over. Oh - I forgot they had pork galore which made me happy and also a huge selection of briskets and sub-primal ribeyes to choose from.

pab

One other thing I like about Costco is they have pretty good rebates on some products and services. When I joined it was AmEx card only and once I spent X amount of money I got a card for what I remember as $150 I could spend there. In October I bought a Samsung S7 (not the Note 7) for a great price and yesterday got a rebate card for $175. I know the vendors spring for some of the cost, but if SAMs did that I never took advantage of it. Going to Costco tomorrow and pick up a ribeye sub-primal for my first attempt at dry aging with no money out of pocket.