Saving money on groceries while eating organic may seem oxymoronic, but here's how: by growing your own fruits and vegetables.
In this review:
|
Sam's Club vs. Costco Tires and Auto Services
Sam's vs. Costco Pharmacy and Wellness Services.
Sam's and Costco offer several health and wellness services, including a pharmacy with discounted prices on items not covered by private or a state/federal insurance program. But if you don't have insurance for medications, Sam's Club is ideal. For $4, the superstore can fill a 30-day prescription for select medications; a 90-day supply goes for $10. If you join as an Advantage Plus member, you save 8% off name-brand medications and 40% off generic medications that aren't part of the $4/$10 prescription plan. We didn't find similar discount deals at Costco pharmacy apart from already low prices on medications.Optical services are available at both wholesale clubs as well. Some Sam's Club locations have an optometrist on site and the club accepts vision insurance. The day we visited the store, the starting price for contacts was $13.85 a box. Costco operates a vision center in most locations, where eye appointments can be made with trained optometrists. Both Sam's and Costco sell frames, but we couldn't find comparative pricing information.
Both superstores also offer hearing services, including free hearing tests for members. Costco goes a step further with its free hearing-aid testing, which includes a free cleaning and battery change.
Health screenings can be done at Sam's Club and Costco pharmacies. Costco makes this service available only at select locations and it was hard to gather useful information about it, but we did learn that some stores offer osteoporosis and heart screenings for free through the pharmacy. Sam's Club follows another model. Each month features a different free screening; for example, June is men's health and July is kids' health. Screenings are conducted by trained professionals and offered at select stores one Saturday a month to the first 100 members who show up.
Sam's Club vs. Costco Online.
The online experience is everything in this technology-driven era, and Sam's Club and Costco both host organized, straightforward websites. In fact, the organizational structure of the two is very similar and navigation is quite easy. Both wholesale giants encourage members to create an account. You can also sign up online for a membership. To make shopping even easier, Sam's Club's Click N' Pull perk lets members buy online and pick up the next day at the nearest location.Despite the organizational appeal of the websites, the few wholesale clubs reviews we could find are harsh. On Epinions, shoppers report that the Sam's site is slow, the offerings are limited, customer service for online orders is terrible, shipping takes forever, and the online ordering process is confusing and frustrating. Similar assessments are shared in other wholesale clubs reviews on Epinions about Costco's online services, although Costco earns slightly higher ratings than Sam's Club. The main barbs lobbed at Costco include very slow shipping times, misleading product information on the site, and even one complaint about a delivery filled with cockroaches.
Back to top »
Costco Photos vs. Sam's Photos [next]»
«[prev] Costco vs. Sam's Club Credit, Sam's vs. Costco Club Coupons
Read user comments below
Filed in:
Cheap Groceries,
Costco,
Costco vs Sams,
Discount Stores,
Groceries,
Home-Office,
Sams,
Shopping,
Wholesale
Best Cheap Wholesale Clubs
Sam's Club
Sam's Club offers low-priced memberships starting at $40 that include in-store perks like free health screenings; tire repair, car battery testing, and wiper blade installation; cheap prescriptions, contact lenses and eyeglasses; delivery and installation for big ticket items; and 24/7 technical support on electronics. The wholesale giant's large selection of discount items includes many bearing its Member's Mark label. Sam's barely edges out its chief rival as our top pick. Read more »Costco or Sam's Club Deals
| SamsClub.com |
Costco
Memberships at Costco start at $50 and provide access to a wealth of departments featuring low-priced groceries, home goods, electronics, furniture, pharmacy, photo printing, and more, and at some stores, even cheap wedding dresses. Members also get additional coupons for extra savings, as well as deals on home and auto insurance, car buying, car rental, travel, and numerous financial services. The in-house brand is Kirkland. This wholesale superstore is a near-miss for the top spot on our list. Read more »Costco or Sam's Club Deals
| Costco.com |
Cheapism.com on Facebook
What to Grow in the Garden to Save at the Supermarket
The Best Things to Buy in May
As the warm weather moves in and schools let out for the summer, May is the time to buy household goods and entertaining essentials.
Swimwear 2012: Hot Bikinis on a Budget
If longer days and diet program ads are any clue, swimsuit season is quickly approaching. Toss out your old sun-beaten, pool-weathered bathing suit and prepare for a new season of pool parties and beach vacations with a new bikini.
© 2012 Cheapism
We do not accept payment or other gratuities from manufacturers or retailers to recommend or discuss their products on Cheapism.com. Nor do we accept any payment or other gratuity from websites to blog about their news stories or posts.
Made in NYC
