Era, Is Costco Membership Worth a 3 Person Household (2 adults 1 newborn)

JaY P. · Sep 2, 2019

I have a family of four, but when it was three of us, it was and is well worth it. For gas alone you will save a ton of money. Not to mention the prepared ready to heat meals are a great time saver.

Just be careful not to get too caught up in samples and buying something that tastes good when shopping, then struggle to finish the giant package. This happens from time to time while shopping at costco.

bionic77 · Sep 2, 2019

Chan said:
I'm legit surprised your cheapass is willing pay to spend money.

'A penny saved is a penny earned.

Talking about that interest on them greenbacks!'

Direct quote from the dude that discovered electricity by flying a kite in a thunderstorm. Read some books and one day you will be living that Costco life you see in magazines.

BringBackSonics · Sep 2, 2019

Oh yeah, their extra large pizzas are legit and only cost 10$ which is a stupid deal

BringBackSonics · Sep 2, 2019

Chan said:
I dunno how people wait like 30 minutes just to pump fuel at Costco to save a few bucks.

They open an hour before the store opens and closes an hour after. I go at 9:15. No wait. We save between 35-50$ a month just on gas alone

BringBackSonics · Sep 2, 2019

Also Costco treats it's workers extremely well. Like giving their employees holidays off like today (Labor Day)

bionic77 · Sep 2, 2019

BringBackSonics said:
They open an hour before the store opens and closes an hour after. I go at 9:15. No wait. We save between 35-50$ a month just on gas alone

Yeah the gas is the thing that we use most regularly. We don't buy a ton of shit at Costco actually.

In addition to gas we saved a lot on our fridge (amazing deal on that Samsung with the screen) and on our last trip.

But I wouldn't say it's for everyone. My Costco is pretty close to my house.

BringBackSonics · Sep 2, 2019

bionic77 said:
Yeah the gas is the thing that we use most regularly. We don't buy a ton of shit at Costco actually.

In addition to gas we saved a lot on our fridge (amazing deal on that Samsung with the screen) and on our last trip.

But I wouldn't say it's for everyone. My Costco is pretty close to my house.

Yeah we used Costco vacations for our Vegas trip a couple of years ago.

Our Costco is about 2 miles from us and on the way to the gym, so it's even better to stop before or after

Katarn343 · Sep 2, 2019

Absolutely. Even if I lived alone I would have a membership.

Supercrap · Sep 2, 2019

Diapers
Wipes
Eggs
Organic milk
TP / paper towels
Meats
Fruits
Vegetables
Bread chips etc
Processed stuff (if you're into it lol)

Ive also used them for rental cars alot, they usually beat the competition. They have deals for tires n stuff too. I haven't tried vacations yet though

Wubby · Sep 3, 2019

Hell I live alone and the closest Costco to me is a 1 hour drive and 2000 yen ($20) toll away and I still think its worth it. Supposedly this year though we are getting an online Costco ordering system here in Japan so when that starts it will be even more so worth it for me.

neon_dream · Sep 4, 2019

ameleco said:
I feel like crest (and maybe walmart?) has similarly priced chicken. Not sure its worth the cost of membership for this alone unless you're eating this every day?

Other places have worse quality and smaller chickens at similar prices, yeah.

megashock5 · Sep 4, 2019

Do you happen to have any pets?
We save enough on two bags of dog food (compared to what we were paying for similar quality food elsewhere) to pretty much cover the yearly membership.

Makes it a no-brainer.

chandoog · Oct 2, 2019

Bumping this thread to confirm that yes I am a Costco member now and yes, the money saved on Kirkland diapers and wipes (compared to say Huggies brand products) alone has covered the Costco membership for a year already.

Well worth it, essentially saving $15~20 just on each box of wipes and diapers. Anything else (incl. cheaper gas) is just cherry on top for me.

ReAxion · Oct 2, 2019

i've heard from new parents that buying a shitload of the onesies is also a good idea.

chandoog · Oct 2, 2019

ReAxion said:
i've heard from new parents that buying a shitload of the onesies is also a good idea.

The kids grandparents have loaded us with clothes for upto a year already, but i'll keep this in mind for future.

Dahellisdat · Oct 2, 2019

chandoog said:
The kids grandparents have loaded us with clothes for upto a year already, but i'll keep this in mind for future.

We still get diapers/wipes through amazon prime subscribe and save....how much cheaper is it compared to that?

AndrewDean84 · Oct 2, 2019

balohna · Oct 2, 2019

I live in Canada so YMMV if you don't, but the Costco MasterCard is worth it. The only fee is a Costco membership, and I make way more than that back in rewards. They send you store credit in the mail, but they let you trade it for cash if you want and give you your change in cash, with no penalty. I usually get like $300 back a year.

chandoog · Oct 2, 2019

Dahellisdat said:
We still get diapers/wipes through amazon prime subscribe and save....how much cheaper is it compared to that?

I don't know about the kind of saving through amazon prime. But a ta cursory glance I see Prime members get 20% off of diapers/baby stuff, which also sounds pretty good. Though I don't know if it applies to all brands or just Amazon specific brands.

But just going by Costco's Kirkland brand, all of their sized diaper packs are $10 less than Huggies for the same count (eg the Kirkland size 1 are 192 ct for $29.99, while Huggies for 192 ct is $39.99), and you get like a thousand wipes for $19.99. I haven't seen any other brand in Safeway etc offer that high of a count at that price.

donkey · Oct 2, 2019

Worth it when I was single and absolutely worth it with my fiancée. Gas, chicken, milk, eggs, rice, electronics, glasses/contacts, etc.

neon_dream said:
Unuderrated use of costco's rotisserie chicken, TBQH.

That carcass makes an amazing soup:
- boil carcass for 1-2 hours
- strain/drain out the bones; keep stock
- a bit of boullion/concentrated stock/a bit more water
- salt, pepper, garlic, garlic powder
- chicken meat
- peas, carrots, other veg
- rice/noodles if you want
- cook another 30-60 to your desired mushiness of meat/veg

Bam, soup for a week

Haha we just did this with ours earlier in the week. Just by itself makes a solid broth

Deleted member 5148 · Oct 2, 2019

Is sams club worth it also?
Which is better?

Pwnz · Oct 2, 2019

Yeah it is. Make a list from the monthly flyer.

Last month I bought $150 worth of Proctor and Gamble products for effectively $100. Laundry detergent, razors, paper towels, etc etc.

Sometimes I spend $450 there but my weekly grocery bills are $75 on average instead of $150. Typically I spend on average $250 per month at costco.

Schlep · Oct 2, 2019

Dragonzdogma said:
Is sams club worth it also?
Which is better?

Sam's Club is essentially the same as Costco, just with more focus on name brands and less focus on natural/organic, at least as far as what they carry in store. I can't speak to what kind of differences there are on ancillary services (vacations, tires, mortgages, etc).

Fat4all · Oct 2, 2019

Dragonzdogma said:
Is sams club worth it also?
Which is better?

sams club is a bit cheaper for a membership, but CostCo has deals on their membership through Groupon ever now and again

CostCo has more variaty, but both stores are p similar

CostCo's food is better if that's your deal

Tanooki · Oct 2, 2019

While this thread is active: is it true you don't need a membership to buy alcohol at Costco in the US? I'm planning a quick trip over the border next month, and I heard Kirkland vodka is super cheap.

Kill3r7 · Oct 2, 2019

neon_dream said:
Unuderrated use of costco's rotisserie chicken, TBQH.

That carcass makes an amazing soup:
- boil carcass for 1-2 hours
- strain/drain out the bones; keep stock
- a bit of boullion/concentrated stock/a bit more water
- salt, pepper, garlic, garlic powder
- chicken meat
- peas, carrots, other veg
- rice/noodles if you want
- cook another 30-60 to your desired mushiness of meat/veg

Bam, soup for a week

Throw in some vegetable scraps a few onions, carrots etc and you can make a proper chicken stock. Absolutely delicious.

Kill3r7 · Oct 2, 2019

Tanooki said:
While this thread is active: is it true you don't need a membership to buy alcohol at Costco in the US? (I'm planning a trip over the border soon)

It depends on state laws and whether the store is located outside or inside Costco.

Lashes.541 · Oct 2, 2019

BringBackSonics said:
They open an hour before the store opens and closes an hour after. I go at 9:15. No wait. We save between 35-50$ a month just on gas alone

My Costco has no line compared to other gas stations. But I am in Oregon we're we don't pump our own gas so it might be quicker for other states. Here getting gas normally takes about five minutes.

Silver-Streak · Oct 2, 2019

Ever going to buy a car? CostCo Auto gets you great discounts beyond what retailers already give, AND they restrict dealer haggling.

Going to travel? I've consistently gotten rental cars for 1/3 to 1/2 off compared to sites like Kayak.com from CostCo Travel

Buying lots of a product? Kirkland Premium in many cases has better quality stuff than many store bands, and in some cases better quality than name brands. (Also I like their fruit snacks better than main brands).

Pwnz · Oct 2, 2019

Lashes2ashes said:
My Costco has no line compared to other gas stations. But I am in Oregon we're we don't pump our own gas so it might be quicker for other states. Here getting gas normally takes about five minutes.

Mine has a line around open but it's short. I don't always use it because I have a QT nearby that's almost always the same price and if not a few cents higher. Same top tier quality gas.

doublechocochip · Oct 2, 2019

Also Costco employees are treated pretty well

Cation · Oct 2, 2019

Is it just me or is Costco getting more busy these last few months, more than usual

Kill3r7 · Oct 2, 2019

Cation said:
Is it just me or is Costco getting more busy these last few months, more than usual

Depends where you live but yes retail business generally picks up once kids are back at school pretty much until January when things slow down.

Pwnz · Oct 2, 2019

Cation said:
Is it just me or is Costco getting more busy these last few months, more than usual

Well they put out back to school and then 2 weeks later Halloween, Christmas and winter clothing all at once. People stalk up. They sell tin cookies, hot cocoa, and chocolate that are stupid easy gifts.

TheeFanatic · Oct 2, 2019

Thank you Costco for the gas. Paying $3.75 instead of $4+ just for regular. :rejoice:

MrToughPants · Oct 2, 2019

Executive membership pays for itself with the 2% cash back option.

Also when buying appliances and electronics with the Costco no fee credit card you get 4 year warranty.

HeySeuss · Oct 2, 2019

I have one just for myself and pay for the cashback tier and it pays for itself every year. That's just for one person. So for 3 yes it's worth it.

Muu · Oct 2, 2019

If your kid likes it Target's Up and Up diapers often comes out cheaper and is still of reasonable quality.
Trident Ultimate Fish Sticks are the best frozen fish sticks you can buy, and they go on sale once or twice a year. Pair with an air fryer.
Single serve chips can go on sale for ~$10/bag of 54. Amazon can go cheaper but these don't expire a month later.

Long as you realize that Costco isn't always going to be the cheapest option you should be OK. Do some research and you'll more than make up for the membership fee.

Chucker · Oct 2, 2019

If anybody is saying food court they're doing it right.

Cation · Oct 2, 2019

Pwnz said:
Well they put out back to school and then 2 weeks later Halloween, Christmas and winter clothing all at once. People stalk up. They sell tin cookies, hot cocoa, and chocolate that are stupid easy gifts.

Kill3r7 said:
Depends where you live but yes retail business generally picks up once kids are back at school pretty much until January when things slow down.

Ah makes sense, thanks. I didn't know if it was just in my head or actually an occurrence

Deleted member 22750 · Oct 2, 2019

cagey said:
Yes.

these are better than the same club ones?

smurfx · Oct 2, 2019

BringBackSonics said:
They open an hour before the store opens and closes an hour after. I go at 9:15. No wait. We save between 35-50$ a month just on gas alone

pretty sure they open the gas station at like 6am.

FaceHugger · Oct 2, 2019

They sale a lot more than just food. You can even save money on eyeglasses or contact lenses there. Or jewelry. It's pretty crazy.

My ex had a membership via her parents. We'd go and make lots of large purchases there. My old television, same exact model, was like $100 more on both Amazon and at BestBuy, for example. We also used to buy a lot of the frozen food to bake, which is all about 25% less that what's at the local supermarket.

If you end up buying yourself a large freezer you could probably saves hundreds of dollars a year in meat alone.

BringBackSonics · Oct 2, 2019

smurfx said:
pretty sure they open the gas station at like 6am.

I think you are right, I think the hour after closing holds true though.

Deleted member 13101 · Oct 2, 2019

While the store itself wasn't that crowded today, the food court line was really long.

Today was kind of an off-day, where the sell-by dates are only a day or two away. Had to hold off on a few things.

Pwnz · Oct 2, 2019

Yeah produce is tricky at costco. Some will go bad fast so usually only get for parties day of.

Vinci · Oct 2, 2019

Seriously. Yes.

Unless you actively avoid shopping there after getting the membership, it's hard to imagine it not being worth it.

Superman00 · Oct 2, 2019

Answer is always yes. I have the executive membership between me and my mom. I always get over $200 on cash backs at the end of the year. That's on top of the savings from gas which is enough to pay for the membership. Costco also have some great quality stuff for cheap.

Annihilator · Oct 2, 2019

Yea totally worth it since prices for amount you get is amazing.

Trike · Oct 2, 2019

It depends on what you're getting. It probably won't replace all of your grocery needs as some things you just won't need in large quantities. Non-perishable items you would probably end up saving on, not to mention gas. I got mine in November of last year and got a discounted membership, so you could always wait for a deal. But if you get a membership and decide it's not for you then you could likely just cancel and get a prorated refund.

Era, Is Costco Membership Worth a 3 Person Household (2 adults 1 newborn)

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