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  1. #11
    Join Date
    Apr 2002
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    NJ
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    9,114

    Default RE: Those who belong to Costco/BJ's: Is it worth it?

    LOVE me my Costco. Was just there, in fact. I usually go there twice a month (otherwise I get myself in trouble). My local on has both chocolate and vanilla Horizon single box milks at the moment (just because they have them now and have for a while, doesn't mean it's a permanent thing).

    I think it's absolutely worth it. We get all our paper products there, along with water, cleaning stuff, a lot of toiletries, cereal, juice, sundries, etc. Their meat and produce is beautiful, and their frozen stuff is great.

    We also tend to get most of our books and kid DVDs there, too.

    The rotisserie chickens can't be beat for $5 (that's why I was there today).

    I think, however, the best part about Costco is their customer service. NO matter what. Receipt or not, you can return whatever it is that you bought whenever, regardless of whether it's been opened, partially used, etc. That applies to food, clothing, dipes, formula, electronics, housewares. You can't get anyplace else to match that policy.

    Oh, and their optical shop prices are positively awesome.

    -m
    Wife to Jonathan
    Mom to Sophia 12/02 and Amelia 12/04

  2. #12
    SnuggleBuggles is offline Black Diamond level (25,000+ posts)
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    Default RE: Those who belong to Costco/BJ's: Is it worth it?

    I just went with a friend to Costco today. I had never been there before. I wasn't impressed, to be honest. I don't plan to join. I didn't think the prices were amazing. I thought most things were on par with Target. I saw a few deals.

    My problem is that I am a food snob. I would much rather fill my fridge with things from Trader Joe's b/c the ingredients are more natural and there aren't such long ingredient lists. I usually shop at TJs, the natural food store or Whole Foods so keep that in mind when considering my opinions. :)

    I expected it to be better than it was. If you have a friend w/ a membership I'd recommend tagging along and see what you think.

    Beth

  3. #13
    dogmom is offline Diamond level (5000+ posts)
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    Sep 2002
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    boston, ma.
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    Default RE: Those who belong to Costco/BJ's: Is it worth it?

    I have found that if I join a warehouse club I buy things I wouldn't necessarily buy because they have limited options. I do just as well, if not better, knowing how much the things I generally buy are and keep an eye out for sales. There are a limited amount of things I buy that are prepared/packaged and I can get all of those just as cheap at the supermarket on sale or at Target. And honestly, the meat there scares me. It just screams factory farmed stuff with ecoli in the ground meat. I'd rather eat a lot less meat and buy stuff I feel better about. Also, how much produce can I buy in one shot without it going bad? What really ticks me off is none of the warehouse clubs sell post-consumer recycled paper towels. I buy the Marcel brand at the supermarket for cheap and it's 70% post consumer. The milk is much cheaper there, but I don't think it's worth the 30 minute drive. Plus I'd rather get the stuff from a local market that is from a local dairy.

    I think a lot of it depends on what you buy. There is a list of about a dozen pre-packed stuff we buy that I could even find at a Costco/BJ's. For other people it might be a better deal and closer.


    Jeanne
    Mom to Harvey
    1/16/03
    & Eve 6/18/06

  4. #14
    Bens Momma is offline Platinum level (1000+ posts)
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    Default RE: Those who belong to Costco/BJ's: Is it worth it?

    BJ's member here. IMO it's totally worth it if you have kids (for diaper, wipes, even baby food.) Costco is too far away for us. The last time I was at BJs I noticed that they are carrying A LOT more organic and eco-friendly products. Good deals on paper products, cereals, some meats, health & beauty, etc. You just have to know prices and compare because everything isn't necessarily a better deal. And go with a list because you can talk yourself into buying a bunch of stuff and spending too much money just cause you think it's a great deal. BJs with often give you a trial membership for a month to see if you like it. Check and Costco may do the same.

    HTH-
    Momma to 2 DS

  5. #15
    anamika is offline Sapphire level (2000+ posts)
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    Sep 2004
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    USA.
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    2,543

    Default RE: Those who belong to Costco/BJ's: Is it worth it?

    Love my Costco too. For us the diapers were the big draw (back when we were using them). Quite apart from the price,they were much, much better quality than Huggies and Pampers.
    “Live a good life. If there are gods and they are just, then they will not care how devout you have been, but will welcome you based on the virtues you have lived by. If there are gods, but unjust, then you should not want to worship them. If there are no gods, then you will be gone, but will have lived a noble life that will live on in the memories of your loved ones.”
    ― Marcus Aurelius

  6. #16
    Join Date
    Mar 2005
    Posts
    4,082

    Default RE: Those who belong to Costco/BJ's: Is it worth it?

    We belong to Costco and totally think it's worth it. I don't go on a regular basis (mostly because I spend too much time there), but usually when they have coupons or I need something in particular. They send out these coupon books on occasion that save you quite a bit on their products, making the deals even better.

    I usually buy DH's coffee there, sometimes laundry detergent, personal hygiene items, paper products and produce. I was just there this past weekend and bought tomatoes and raspberries for the same cost as the grocery store, but the amount of produce in the package was 2-3x more than the grocery store. I also get gas there and pay up to .10 less per gallon sometimes. I get gas there weekly since we drive right past it when I take DD to dance class.

    Things that I haven't seen mentioned that have and do save us money are tires (have bought for 3 cars there - best price we could find) and prescriptions and OTC meds. I have to take a magnesium supplement and it's $4 less at Costco than in the drugstore. I also buy some of my medication by self pay as it is less than paying a co-pay. I do this with two medications and Costco is cheapest by far. Also, at this time of year, they have a lot stocked for the holidays. Every year, I find gifts there for a much better price than I do elsewhere. The item usually contains more than you would find at Target, etc. For example, I just bought DD the Fisher Price Digital Camera for Christmas. The one I got a Costco included a memory card - haven't seen that included anywhere else.

    They also have awesome gift basket and candy gifts this time of year.

  7. #17
    brittone2 is offline Blue Diamond level (20,000+ posts)
    Join Date
    Nov 1999
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    back to where we started
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    23,590

    Default RE: Those who belong to Costco/BJ's: Is it worth it?

    nak-
    the savings for me on contacts alone (I think about $4 a box cheaper for Acuvue 2 vs. Walmart's price) pays for my membership over the course of a year.

    The key to any buying club is to know what products you like and use, and get a general idea of what you pay vs. the regular grocery store sale and nonsale prices (some people keep a price book for this reason).

    We don't buy a ton of food there, because it isn't stuff I'd normally buy. They do have quite a few organics now, but I find for many things I can do better on my own, or the organics sold are processed stuff we don't buy anyway (like organic animal crackers, or organic breakfast cereal). We regularly buy their big tub of organic salad greens, especially in the summertime. Organic frozen blueberries to supplement our fresh picked local one. We buy organic chicken on occasion because the price is comparable to my co-op, and lately my co-op's organic chickens have been mighty skinny ;) They now have organic ground beef at our Costco, but I can buy local biodynamic beef for the same price, so I don't buy from Costco. Organic peanut butter is a decent price. We also buy big containers of baking soda and vinegar for cleaning. Oh, and Giovanni hair products, which are substantially cheaper than retail prices, and are one of the "safer" shampoo/conditioners if you are into that stuff. Our dog takes Prozac for anxiety issues and it is way cheaper at Costco for the generic compared to anywhere else.

    I think the key is to know what is a good price and what isn't. Impulse buys do kill the savings though, and there is so much nice merchandise it can be hard to resist. That can be a problem for some people. They do have interesting merchandise and a fabulous return policy.

    My parents just got glasses and paid about $100 less for frames/lenses for each of them over walmart optical, which they used last time around. Their optical for glasses/contacts is a big, big savings.
    Mama to DS-2004
    DD-2006
    and a new addition-ds born march 2010

  8. #18
    Join Date
    Jun 2005
    Location
    Virginia.
    Posts
    8,281

    Default RE: Those who belong to Costco/BJ's: Is it worth it?

    we do for the diapers (love Kirkland brand diapers!), phone cards (we don't have long distance plan, just have the card # programed into our phone), photo development, individual fruit cups, toys, laundry detergent.... and the cheapest lunch in town-huge hotdog and drink for 1.50! DH works right next door which means he eats there a ton!
    Margaret and
    (DS 2/06) and (DD 3/08)

  9. #19
    egoldber's Avatar
    egoldber is offline Black Diamond level (25,000+ posts)
    Join Date
    Oct 2001
    Location
    Northern VA, USA.
    Posts
    31,123

    Default RE: Those who belong to Costco/BJ's: Is it worth it?

    I love Costco but I try to only go once or twice a month to avoid impulse purchases. Mine has the Horizon milk boxes in chocolate and vanilla only. I recently picked up a case of the Organic Valley milk boxes in plain milk at Wegman's for a similar price to Costco. I was pretty happy to see that. My older DD takes one in her lunch to school pretty much every day.

    Other than that my Costco staples are:

    children's books
    organic 1% milk
    boneless chicken breasts
    pork tenderloin
    string cheese
    turkey bacon
    snap peas
    produce in season can be crazy cheap (I freeze what I don't use right away for smoothies)
    Kirkland diaper wipes
    Huggies (they are the same price as the Kirkland brand at my Costco)
    OTC meds
    personal care products (but thankfully I haven't had to buy any in about 2 years LOL)
    Brita filters

    They have raincoats for kids (Whipette brand) that are nice and warm and only $12 or so.

    Their seasonal toys are usually a good deal as long as you don't impulse buy something you wouldn't ordinarily buy.

    I recently bought a memory foam mattress pad there that was a substantial saving over normal retail.

    We gotten our holiday cards there for about 2 years now. There is limited selection but they are soooo inexpensive for flat photo cards. You can upload on-line and pick them up in the store.

    And like others have said, their customer service is really phenomenal.

    So like anything it depends on what you buy and you do have to be a savvy shopper.
    Beth, mom to older DD (8/01) and younger DD (10/06) and always missing Leah (4/22 - 5/1/05)

  10. #20
    Lovingliv is offline Sapphire level (2000+ posts)
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    Jun 2005
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    Default RE: Those who belong to Costco/BJ's: Is it worth it?

    One gallon of milk weekly, pays for your membership!!!!

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