May the 4th be with you 🙂
I let my Costco membership lapse because my mother-in-law is a member and takes me with her from time to time to stock up. While there are a few things that I think are worth going to Costco to get in bulk, I began to wonder if Target or Amazon‘s prices were comparable. So, I did some old-fashioned research and tried my best to compare apples to apples to see if the extra trip to Costco was worth it. Let me mention that if you’re someone who enjoys doing your weekly grocery shopping at Costco, I think it’s definitely worth the membership (say if you’re feeding a hungry family of 7!) But it’s not somewhere I would necessarily want to go on a weekly basis. So, for me it’s it’s more just to stock up on staples like paper towels and TP. I always end up spending more on snacky foods than I intend to anyways!
So, I did some price comparison based on the prices in the stores rather than online (because those can be inflated). I didn’t add anything back to prorate the Costco membership fee, but I suppose that should be taken into consideration. But I did subtract 5% from all of the Target prices because I use my Target RedCard and that savings is immediate. I also didn’t take into account sales or coupons. Several of the products I viewed had specials going on that made them by far the lowest (say it came with a $10 Target gift card or Amazon had a digital coupon right there), but I ignored those for the sake of apples to apples.
Here’s what I found in these household categories:
Storage Bags
Costco Ziplock // $8.90 for 100
Target store brand // $11.35 for 100
Amazon // Glad 4-pack // $8.20 for 100 // WINNER
Tide Pods
Costco // 22.8 cents per ounce // TIE
Target // 26.7 cents per ounce
Amazon // 23 cents per ounce // TIE (winner with coupon)
Paper Towels
Costco Bounty // $2.08 per roll
Target store brand // $1.61 per roll
Amazon Bounty // $2.42 per roll
Amazon Plenty (never heard of these, but good reviews?) // $.97 per roll WINNER
Toilet Paper
Costco Charmin Jumbo Rolls // $.89 per roll
Target Charmin Double Plus (is this the same as Jumbo?) Rolls // $.51 per roll
Target up&up // $.47 per roll // WINNER
Amazon Charmin Mega Rolls // $.89 per roll
Amazon Presto! Brand // $.80 per roll
Dishwasher Pods
Costco Cascade Complete // $.21 per pod
Target Cascade // $.21 per pod
Target up&up // $.12 per pod WINNER
Amazon Cascade Complete // $.21 per pod
Amazon Cascade // $.16 per pod
The End.
I’m sure there are some errors in my comparison, for example, maybe I didn’t notice that Costco had a store brand of paper towels that turns out to win. But this was just simple research I did quickly while I was shopping.
I was actually surprised Costco didn’t beat the other stores. I figured for the ~$50 a year membership, it would beat them by far. So, this just confirms my suspicion that shopping at Target or Amazon is pretty comparable and should just shop there when I can.
Overall, here are the pluses and minuses of the three:
Amazon + least hassle + variety – for boxes and shipping miles – for arrival time (2 days)
Target + 5% off + store brand + variety + other fun things to shop for while there
Costco + prices + best food options – annual fee – for least convenient
I would have loved to expand this even more on products and stores, like Boxed or Sam’s Club. Where do you guys shop for household products and why?
Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog says
Ugh, I love huge American grocery stores. They’re always on my list when I travel to the US!
Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog
http://charmainenyw.com
Lucy says
I’m a Costco devotee. You did miss out on their brand – Kirkland, which would be a much better comparison to Up & Up brand. I buy Kirkland paper towels/tp/butter/olive oil/nuts/shampoo and so many other items. I prob go once ever two weeks.
KathEats says
Yes, I knew I probably was missing their store brand, but I don’t tend to buy it there for some reason. I think shopper’s brain has me more fixed on BRANDS at Costco because it’s supposed to be a deal on brands and when I go to Target I’m more fixed on the store brand! Weird that I do that. If you know the Kirkland store brand prices, we could update some of the winners.
Lucy says
Looks like Kirkland paper towels are $1.55/roll based on online price.
I think the unit price is the key for comparison, since the rolls could all be different sizes.
Debbie says
I hope Kath has tried Kirkland products by now and will do an update. Also. Walmart has a White Cloud brand that is not so good for paper towels but is supposed to be Superior for TP. I have to shop almost exclusively online. There’s a Vons grocery that charges resort prices, Smart and Final, and a grocery outlet about 1.5 walk from my dwelling.
Jackie says
The Kirkland brand paper towels and toilet paper are superior to any brand name, in my opinion!
Angie says
I completely agree about the Kirkland paper towels and toilet paper!
Sara says
Yep. Kirkland is WAY better than any other store brand. Their paper towels are excellent.
Jennifer Valdes says
We go weekly or every other week. Some items like yogurt, milk, eggs, etc. are a great deal. We are a family of five, though, with three teens. ? At the same time, we use Amazon a lot for the convenience.
BeckyM says
Walmart definitely beats them all for household products. For food (and basic household supplies), Aldi is definitely the cheapest and the best, by far!
KathEats says
I would rank our Wal-mart last for the shopping experience, but that’s interesting they’d beat all the prices! We dont’ have an Aldi here but I’d love to try it someday!
Colleen says
There’s an Aldi in Waynesboro.
BeckyM says
I agree. I find shopping at Walmart as much fun as stabbing myself in the eye with a knitting needle but my husband is a teacher and I’m a substitute teacher so we’re always on a budget. I only go to Walmart first thing in the morning and I only try to go once a month. I go to Aldi weekly. I love that Aldi is small, no music, and if you go first thing in the morning, it’s so calm and easy to get what you need and get out quickly (their cashiers are faster than The Flash!)
KathEats says
You know when I go to Walmart I am usually in a rush. I bet if I went one morning when I had the time I would enjoy it more!
Lynda says
I totally agree about the Walmart experience especially if you go on a weekend. I only go if absolutely necessary. Their prices are good though. Checking out is a nightmare. Long lines usually and very few lanes open. I love Aldi though!
julie @ peanut butter fingers says
I second ALDI! The prices are fantastic!!!
Marci Gilbert says
We have a Costco membership but don’t go often. It isn’t far at all, but opens at 10 (later than target at 8) and check out usually takes a lot longer, and is usually crowded.. It’s always an extra trip when I’m more frequently at target.
Shana says
I have mixed feelings about Wal-mart because of their ethics BUT it meets my middle-class, working Mom needs + they have FREE grocery pick-up, which literally saves my life. It also saves money because there is no meandering around the store and picking up random, un-needed items.
KathEats says
I only shop there on occasion so I didn’t include it, but I wonder how their prices would compare.
Shana says
I re-read my comment and hope it didn’t sound judgmental! My husband and I just joke that Wal-mart corners the market of middle class Americans because they are generally so much more affordable than most other stores in our area. It was supposed to sound self-deprecating and not judge-y or classist about store choices. I felt the need to clarify that 🙂
C says
I think it is also important to consider the impact on the environment here. I use Amazon a TON, but I don’t buy staples like paper towels, toilet paper there because I hate the idea of having such bulky items boxed (in large cardboard boxes) and shipped (gas) on a regular basis. Personally, I find these kinds of items last a while…so one trip to Costco per quarter works and I feel better about not using up so many resources to get what I need. I suppose this may be different for people who do not live close to a Costco or Target, but many of us do.
KathEats says
I agree with you on that. I hate breaking down boxes and feel guilty whenever I get a big one (I try to give it a double life by making a box fort for Mazen). I rarely order bulky paper goods online for this reason. But when I drive to Target it’s a good 30 minutes in the car, so I think the gas is sort of evened out (esp. when you consider that the delivery service gas is really efficient because it’s delivering thousands at a time).
If we wanted to make this a super nerdy experiment (which I did not) we would create a factor for environmental impact which might take into consideration both delivery and packaging (sometimes the TP is double wrapped in plastic, which I think is so dumb)
Molly says
When the toilet paper is sent to retail stores it actually comes in boxes of one or two for the big packages, so not much difference there.
KathEats says
Good point
Karen says
Agreed, we haven’t bought paper towels in years (aside from one roll a year when we make a turkey, I insist on paper towels for drying raw poultry!). As for toilet paper, we are a family of six and I find one mega-roll package of the Kroger brand lasts us quite a while and I usually only have to get more every other week. We use rags for cleaning, and cloth napkins as well. I can see if I still had children in diapers (cloth diapers never worked well for us), getting diapers shipped via Amazon or store pick up would have been a godsend. Back when I was diapering kids we never had that option. Anything to survive those early months when it’s hard to get to the store!
We often order our Christmas gifts from Amazon because I absolutely hate shopping in stores near the holidays, and so does my husband, so we end up with a lot of boxes! Some I have repurposed as drawer organizers, the small boxes anyway. It does annoy me to see a small item get sent in a large box, but they’re getting better at using padded envelopes for smaller items. Luckily our city just revamped their recycling program and we have bigger, covered and wheeled bins now! Our recycling program will take boxes if they are broken down and can fit in our large recycling bin.
Pam says
I’m not sure I understand your method. Wouldn’t comparing “apples to apples” as you say involve comparing the SAME brand across all stores? It would also be useful for your readers to have the correct membership fee for Costco, which is $60 for the standard membership. I found this by googling.
KathEats says
I wasn’t really looking for the same prices but the BEST prices so store brands win that when applied. I warned you this was not perfect science!
KathEats says
Also, I didn’t include the Costco fee because it doesn’t apply to me – I’d be going with my mother in law.
Pam says
But other people go there!! Isn’t the point of this research to provide information for your readers? and you did include that the fee was about $50. I am not trying to be argumentative here, but if you’re going to include an amount, why not have the correct amount?
KathEats says
I think it’s impossible to prorate the $50 fee because the number of visits and items purchased would change that too much. So I just mentioned it and will let people prorate as they wish.
Pam says
I feel like I am talking in circles. My point wasn’t that you should prorate the costco membership fee. I don’t care if you include it all. But you did include it, but misstated the amount. It’s $60/year. Not “~$50”.
Pam says
But that’s not really apples to apples, right? We can usually assume a store brand is cheaper than a name brand. For example, I’d love to know how cascade dishwasher pods are priced at all stores. I’ve used the up and up ones and they don’t work as well.
Sara says
I don’t think you can really compare the Target Up&Up brand to Charmin – it’s vastly inferior to Charmin and probably should be left out of the comparison. You really have to compare brand to brand for it to be even close to a useful analysis.
Lynda says
I agree that you have to compare the same brand. Charmin Jumbo rolls are much different than the Target brand.
Jen says
Were your Amazon prices dependent on a Prime membership? That cost (going up soon) should also be considered.
KathEats says
No but that doesn’t change the price does it? Only shipping?
Jenny says
Shipping is a charge that should definitely be considered as it is part of the total cost to purchase an item from Amazon. Also, you can get cheaper rates for these types of products through Subscribe & Save or Prime Pantry, but only if you are a Prime Member.
KathEats says
Yes, but the free shipping min is $35 and I can’t imagine anyone would not take advantage of that
Beth says
Right it would only include shipping, but that adds to the final price, right? For this to be a useful “apples to apples” comparison, it should be an analysis of the same brand across the board, including shipping/memberships/discounts. All of that contributes to the $ beings spent on the item. Your comparison has too many variables to be an accurate comparison.
KathEats says
Which is why I said in the post this is not a legit scientific experiment – this is just me taking some notes in the store.
Carla says
Dang, so many haters on this post! I for one thought it was very interesting…and did not expect a scientific experiment with my morning blog post reading time XD. Do wish Kirkland brand was included because we’re considering a Costco membership, but hey – IT’S YOUR LIFE hahaha.
Karen says
Amazon Prime is only increasing the monthly subscription rate. Those who sign up for a year membership are not affected, I believe.
yasmara says
The Kirkland brand is great – I think a lot of times it’s actually produced by a name brand & then sold under the Kirkland label. I agree, it’s not apples to apples to mix brands. I have 2 boys, 1 teen and 1 tween and we definitely get our money’s worth from Costco. Their perishables are great – organic fruit & veggies, grass fed ground bison, etc.
Janie says
This is very interesting. I always love comparison shopping, but don’t have a lot of time to do it myself. Thank you for sharing your research! FYI, Costco does have a really good quality store brand of paper towels, toilet paper (we like it better than Charmin!), dishwasher pods and laundry detergent. I buy all of these products and I think they do come out overall cheaper than your name brand comparisons. Have been reading your blog for years and always enjoy your posts:)
Nina says
I wish this comparison included good, quality, and (often organic) food items! That’s where Costco really stands out for me and my husband.
For example: a 1-lb clamshell of organic baby spinach at my Costco is $3.99, while the same product is $4.99 at Whole Foods; Chosen Foods avocado oil in a 1L size is $8.99 – $9.99 at Costco while a bottle HALF that size is often $9.99 – $14.99 at other grocery stores and Target. For a couple of weeks now they’ve had an 18 oz. clamshell of organic Driscoll blueberries for $9.99, and last week a 2-lb clamshell of organic strawberries for $6.99! And their prices on Kerrygold butter cannot be beat. Same goes for their high-quality imported cheeses from Europe – better priced than Trader Joe’s (although in bigger quantities, of course)!
I actually never get paper goods or household items at Costco unless there’s a special coupon on them, so I’m not shocked that your study shows that Costco isn’t the clear winner in the paper goods etc. category. But again, for “high end” food products, it’s a really good deal! That’s the only thing that could motivate me to “deal” with Costco on a weekly basis!
Nina says
… And after I hit publish, I thought of other great things we’ve purchased there! Huge 7 lb bag of Bob’s Red Mill organic quick-cook steel cut oats (for $7.99 I believe?); they now carry Sir Kensington’s avocado oil mayo in a 32 oz. huge jar for somewhere in the $7-$8 range; Nativa cacao powder in a large bag that, again, sells for approximately the price that a bag half the size sells for at Whole Foods or MOM’s; organic hemp seeds, organic chia seeds, organic quinoa, and more! (Sorry Kath; can you tell I’m excited?!)
melissa says
yes this! Costco is so good for organic and specialty items. sometimes half price (or twice the amount for the same price)
I have to say this is an odd “experiment.” It includes so much detail, and yet is lacking so much other detail. The costco membership fee isn’t even correct, and Kirkland brand goods are one of the best things about Costco. I even love the clothes by that brand.
Norie says
Thanks for this! I’m too lazy to do it! I use Costco cause I’m lazy! Buy a lot at a time so I don’t have to shop for a while. Hate to shop! One quick thing about big boxes. If you live in Richmond you can use Prime Now the two hour delivery for your big TP orders. We don’t box it. Just slap a label on it and our drivers deliver it to your door in 2 hours for free.
Taylor B says
I love this idea but it definitely doesn’t seem accurate to include the target or amazon store brand and compare that to the name brand from Costco but not the Kirkland store brand. The prices are obviously cheaper to buy the store brand. I would be interested in an update to include all the store brand and not just some of them!
Carly says
I use Boxed for a lot of my household products. Or CVS when I have a 30% off coupon.
Andrea says
Interesting!! I need to more formally do this for things that I buy. Since I’m shopping for two most of these don’t make a big difference but some do add up!! I do find bigger differences at Costco on things like fish, nuts, almond flour (my current favorite) but I also just purchase as a tag along when possible – no membership fee. I’d like to do this for toothpaste, meats and produce!
Linda @ the Fitty says
I would have loved to see this for food, and fitness equipment and stationary!
Wendy says
I don’t have a Costco near me but I think your experiment did help to at least think about your choices and what is most cost effective and convenient for you. When target sends coupons or has a sale I try to stock up in things I use often like in the up & up brand. But I should take into account amazon and Walmart to ensure I’m getting the best deal available if I’m sticking up.
KBT says
A better way to do this would be to take a brand that you can find at all three stores (for instance Charmin), and compared prices at all three stores, and taken something like store brand paper towels and compared prices of all three store brands. For example, I compared each store’s diapers, Size 1, in comparable box sizes:
Costco Kirkland Diapers, Size 1/192 count: $29.99 ($0.15/diaper)
Target Up & Up Diapers, Size 1/176 count: $21.99 ($0.12/diaper)
Amazon Mama Bear Diapers. Size 1/216 count: $38.49 ($0.18/diaper)
And for something name brand, my son is formula fed and specifically needs Similac Pro Sensitive. Each store sells this, so some quick research landed me these results:
Amazon: 22.5 oz: $28.95 ($1.28/oz)
Target: 29.8 oz: $36.99 ($1.24/oz)
Costco: 34.0 oz: $35.00 ($1.02/oz) (sold in a 2 pack for $69.99)
This research is what an “apples to apples” comparison should be.
Linds says
You would need to add shipping to the Amazon prices unless you have prime, which is going up to ~$110 a year now (I think). So Costco’s membership is cheaper. That being said, I love Amazon for all household goods great and small! Too often I’ll put something on my shopping list, and then days go by and I’ll think “if I just ordered it online, it’d be here by now!” Shipping boxes get a double life in my house as gift boxes and storage boxes 🙂
KathEats says
If you don’t have Prime you just need to meet the $25 (or $35?) level to get free shipping I believe.
Kaci says
I just have to give my 2 cents that Pam up above is kind of taking this too far.
I appreciate your research! I have often wondered where is best place to purchase household essentials (cleaning supplies, tp, paper towels, etc), but I just haven’t taken the initiative to compare. I have found that Aldi has pretty great quality tp (sorry you don’t have one!) & honestly pretty low prices for everything there. I do, however, buy the majority of my household essentials at Target because I go there every 2 weeks or so to stock up on my fav cold brew coffee: Chameleon brand! I am pretty irritated that Amazon has added an additional Prime fee if you order household items (I loveeee Carol’s Daughter brand leave-in conditioner & hair water wax & used to purchase those on Amazon sometimes but now there is an added fee so back to Target I go). I’d say my shopping is mostly Aldi & Trader Joe’s for food and then Target for anything else.
Lauren says
I disagree. I think Pam’s comments were accurate and fair. This “research” post doesn’t really compare apples to apples. It’s more like apples to oranges. Of course the generic brand is going to be cheaper. It would have been so much simpler and more accurate to have selected something like Bounty brand paper towels at all stores + basic brand rolls (with the same sheet count) at all stores.
It just doesn’t really seem very well thought out, honestly. And I don’t mean that in a rude way, I’m posting from a constructive viewpoint, as a reader, as someone that WANTS to click back here and read stuff that I relate to and enjoy – and this sort of post doesn’t do that for me. If you’re going to do the experiment on a blog that has a large following, do the dang thing and think it through. To me, it seems disingenuous to just say “well that doesn’t apply to me!” or “well this is a diary!” as a sort of defensive reaction to constructive, insightful comments. If you’re going to take into account a coupon or Target REDcard discount, why not also include the cost of an Amazon Prime or Costco membership? Again, that sort of stops this from being relatable. I wish I had a mother in law or friend to take me to Costco for free, or an Amazon Prime account to use from a friend.
Anyway, all of this was meant in a constructive way. I’d be interested to see a re-do of this with accurate pricing and membership costs taken into account!
KathEats says
But that’s the point – this is not a “research post” – this was me taking notes at Costco and doing some comparisons that I thought that I would share with you all based on the brands I like and the stores I visit. I am not Consumer Reports and anyone looking for hard, variable-constant, time intensive research should go there for that kind of data.
Lauren says
I don’t expect research-level or dissertation-like information from your blog. But you actually did frame it as such (“So I did some old fashioned research and tried my best to compare apples to apples to see if the extra trip to Costco was worth it”). Anyway, research vs. not research post aside, that’s not the point I was making, and it’s sort of frustrating that you chose to only respond to that portion of my constructive comment.
I still stick by my comment before about membership and shipping fees – not everyone can relate to having the time to drive around from store to store, with memberships paid for by friends/family. Just because it doesn’t apply do you doesn’t mean we readers have the same luxuries as you. For many, I’d think that a $60 yearly membership fee negates rather minimal savings. If you’re going to preface your post with trying to justify a Costco trip, it should at least have a fair baseline for comparing products, you know?
Kelly says
Well said, Lauren!
Similarly, if Amazon requires $35 minimum purchase for free shipping, that might put it out of reach for some people, and seems like relevant information to include…
KATE says
I always find myself going right to amazon because there’s a variety of prices to choose from and I like reading the reviews, plus the convenience factor. However I always wonder if this is the worst option for the environment, although I know things get shipped to target and costco as well. Just makes me wonder because there’s an emphasis to buy local groceries, but not other items.
KATE says
Plus the cardboard it ships in, etc
Hampton says
Toilet paper should be measured in sheets, not rolls. A roll can be many different sizes! I also have a comment that I hope doesn’t come off more critical than intended. I cringed when I read where you wrote that you didn’t include the Costco membership because it doesn’t apply to you. You’re ostensibly writing this blog for your readers, correct? You get paid for it; this is your job. This isn’t your personal diary. We don’t all have a mother in law to take us to Costco. We don’t all WANT to go with our mother in law to Costco. My parents belong to Costco & BJ’s but I belong to Costco because I want to go when I want to go. Also, I am 38 and am capable of paying $60/year myself.
KathEats says
Correction: this is very much my personal diary!!! Always has been, always will be.
Elizabeth says
Yes! Thank you. Of course this blog is your personal journal. People tend to forget that you were not hired and paid a salary by some corporation to write it. It has always been your daily diary, and if these critics have a problem with it they don’t have to read it. I have been reading it and enjoying it for many years. Rock on, Kath!
KathEats says
Thank you!
mollie says
Kath and Elizabeth: I think some of this came off the wrong way to people, including myself, because the approach to it felt a little lazy and self-centered. Of course no one has to read this blog, but blogs are a balancing act that benefit both parties. I think some of this criticism from folks, again including myself, is meant to be constructive. I certainly get positive things from reading the blog which is why I read it almost daily, but when posts like this have minimal applicability to anyone else – it feels like there’s a lack of care of recognition/gratitude that people take 5-10 minutes out of their day to read the blog (which financially does have benefits to the writer).
Amanda says
I love Costco for their organic food prices. It also directly across the street from Target so I hit both.
Liz says
My husband and I are huge Costco devotees for several reasons, but one is that their Kirkland brand products are very high quality. They are able to work with bigger brands to put their private label on what are essentially the exact same products as the name brands because they do so much volume. We found out from someone we know who works in the wine business that the Kirkland wine comes from the same vineyards and even the same fields within the vineyard as other, higher priced bottles. And another example, the Kirkland diapers are Huggies. They are made by the same manufacture and are basically a slightly older version of current Huggies.
KathEats says
This is great to hear, as I have not tried them. Another reason why I wanted reader input for the post!
Liz says
Now that we know this we buy lots of Kirkland wine and joke that if we have a dinner party we will change the labels so no one can tell 😉
Jessica says
I don’t like to go to a bunch of different stores to get my shopping done. I feel like it’s a waste of my time to drive to all of the places! So, I just buy all of those staples at my grocery store while I’m there getting other groceries. The one exception is I do use Target to get diapers and wipes delivered. I wait until they have a baby sale, and stock up. Those $10 gift cards come in handy when I go there for my impulse buys 🙂
KathEats says
I’m the same way about store hopping, which was what inspired this post 🙂
Danielle says
For us it’s the pet section that makes our Costco membership worthwhile. All my other purchases are because I happen to have a membership and be in the store, but we didn’t get a membership until after we got our lab.
Cheryl says
In town we just have Food Lion and Wal-mart… most of the grocery shopping is done at food lion with some things at Wal-mart that FL doesn’t carry (Cashew milk only at wal-mart, almond milk at FL). I do have a Sam’s membership, over Costco because Sam’s is closer to work and more on the way home. I have standard things we buy there on a monthly basis that makes up for the cost of membership (cat litter!) But for bargain shopping – I love ALDI! The closest one is all the way over at Southpoint, so we typically plan our aldi trips for after a bike ride when we are nearby. We like all of their in-house brands, they have good produce, cheap wine (Winking owl… I’m looking at you!) and awesome sales on meat. We often leave Aldi amazed at how much we save on some items. Shopping at Trader Joe’s is nearly impossible because it always seems that everyone in Chapel Hill is in the store at once… and it’s in Chapel Hill. But we will pick up some things there if we are nearby. Generally, you have to know your prices of what you buy regularly. Sometimes, it’s worth more in TIME to just pay a few cents extra if we know we’re just not going to get to the store that sells is cheaper.
KathEats says
I can’t wait to check out an Aldi someday!
Mandurah family accommodation says
Thanks for the information.
Kristen says
Thanks for this, but comparing brand name products in one store to generic options in another really isn’t an “apples to apples” approach. Would love to see a follow up, as this is something I’ve wondered about myself.
Pat Kilmain says
I live in Alaska,~50 miles out of Anchorage, and while we have had a Costco here for more than 20 years (but an hour’s drive for me). Target has been here less than 10 (20 minutes drive). Wal-mart also 20 minutes away. We have no Trader Joe’s nor Whole Foods (now owned by Amazon) in the state; Sam’s club closed statewide earlier this year. What I have closse by is a Fred Meyer (a Kroger affiliate) and a Safeway. I have Amazon Prime and use it a lot, including its free kindle books and some videos. We do not get 2 day shipping, but it is usually faster than regular shipping. I hane a Costco membership and usually shop there once a month. A friend and I often use it for a girl’s day out and go to linch and other shopping. For us Costco is cheaper on a lot of items – my favorite comparison is Thomas English Muffins. $4 regularly at grocery for package 6 muffins; at Costco I get 4 packs of 6 for ~ $7.50, more than 50% less. Of course everything isn’t that much different, but what is are bulky lightweight things like bread products anf paper goods. What I have to weigh between Costco and other stores is quantity. We are. A family of 2, so a lot of bulk items don’t work for us. TP does because I can store it inan unheated shed, other things don’t because they have to be kept above freezing. I also ike their produce, but again much comes in too large a quantity though sometimes my friend and I spilt something. Amazon is great for me for non-grocery buying. I can find so many things that are just not available here or available only with special order or a longer than an hour drive. An just do not get me started on the lack of availability of decent clothes shopping. If Target or Wal-Mart has something half the female population is wearing it! I do a lot of online shopping
KathEats says
This is exactly my struggle with Costco. I once bought ketchup there in a 3-pack of GIANT jars that barely fit in my fridge and took us over a year to use up. It made me wonder if it was really worth the savings or if I should just buy a reasonable size at a regular grocery store in town.
Patricia Kilmain says
Oh my gosh yes, I never buy condiments in multiples! I do buy the 2 giant peanut butters as it’s in daily use; and I buy large bottle of olive oil and transfer to small container for daily use. The large bottle is kept in the back of a cool and dark cupboard.
Liz says
We just got a Costco earlier this year and I LOVE it! I always joke that the membership pays for itself just by what we save on gas and pure maple syrup! But I also buy paper towel, toilet paper, baby wipes, berries, and lots of vegetables there. They have the BEST rotisserie chickens too, the price and quality is unbeatable. The Kirkland brand is pretty great from what we’ve experienced. I love amazon prime but have only gotten household items once or twice. We used to do diapers through Amazon Mom though, but if I had a baby now I would just use the Kirkland brand since they are basically Huggies. I rarely shop at Target, we have Meijer here that is much more convenient for me. And for grocery staples like cereal, oats, baking needs, rice, etc Aldi always wins.
polly says
Thanks girl!
I do almost all our shopping at costco now even tho we are a family of 3 (actually 4 since abbi’s boyfriend is always here lol) and we love it! I admit I can’t get everything there but I guess we eat a lot. 🙂
I admit the ketchup in 3 packs of big ones is crazy but abbi’s bf eats ALLLL the ketchup.
I can’t beat that pre prepared food in the back near the rotiseree chickens. I have gotten way less worried about organic everything as we used to be (if I still blogged I’d love to talk about relaxing a lot about food) but I am thankful for lots of organic options! My fave store to just shop at is Target, as always because of clothes and fun house stuff. 😉
I love that you did these comparisons! You rock!
XOXO
polly says
if you ever need anyone to chime in about eating for health and fun, but not perfection who has learned a lot over the years, I’m your girl! haha
XOXO
KathEats says
: )
Brenda says
Thank you for your post! While it doesn’t really compare apples to apples, I always appreciate posts that encourage people to think about comparing prices between stores. 🙂
I use Costco a ton but that’s because we have 5 boys, most of whom are teenagers. We have the premium membership that is $110 per year because we then earn a yearly rebate check. My last rebate check was around $250, so that way more than paid for our membership. Not only do we love the food options including tons of organic and paleo ingredients, but we buy as much of our gasoline there as possible. Their gas is about $0.30/gal. less than most other gas stations around us. For food and other goods, I love their house brand, Kirkland Signature, and buy that option most of the time. And their fresh veggies are very good compared to other options we have.
That said, once our boys grow up and leave I’m not sure how much my husband and I will use Costco by ourselves. Time will tell!
Ella says
as a mom of 4 I second everything about this post including the premium membership! Love those rebates!
Grace says
You need to check out Kirkland’s brand baby wipes! That is the main reason I joined Costco along with the almond butter price.
KathEats says
I definitely will when the time comes!
melissa says
Sheesh some people are taking this a little too seriously (and aggressively!). Thanks for the great post! I always feel guilty that I don’t shop at Costco-like I’m missing out of so many great deals. But I really just can’t stand going there!
Lauren says
Great discussion! We had a Costco membership for a year, but didn’t renew because it was too far and busy. We have a BJs membership that is $35 through work and it’s a much better deal for us. We buy their brand tp , luncheon napkins, bounty paper towels, Plastic wrap, baggies, ALL or tide free and clear, their batteries, 3 packs of Colgate toothpaste, all of our shampooo, hairspray. 2 packs of natural pb, organic jam, baking supplies, pasta. Those are always good deals for us. Whenever we go, I also get our produce for the week+ and the double packs of wheat bread, English muffins, milk and eggs. Even though we’re a family of 3,
we’ve had great experiences with this. I find the quality much better than our Aldi and TJ’s, where is the bread and produce never last more than 3 days for us.
Ella says
Thanks for your thoughts on this – who knew people would have so many strong opinions on this rather off-the-cuff cost comparison post? ha!
About 5 years ago I did a down-to-the-pennies cost comparison on Costco vs. Ralphs (aka Von’s) vs. Target vs. Amazon Prime/Subscribe-and-Save on many of the items I always buy including diapers, paper products, milk and other foods. This post makes me want to do it again. In my experience, Costco has GOOD quality items at BETTER prices than regular old stores (this includes but is not limited to generic brands at Costco and other stores). I can buy good meat, milk, eggs, nice cheese, nice produce (just some of the produce tho), baked goods, excellent baby formula/paper towels/napkins for less than they would cost at Ralphs or Target. The catch is that I have to be willing to buy them in bulk. Gas is WAY cheaper. Kids clothes are often cheaper (including brands like Carters). Only Amazon’s subscribe-and-save program was competitive in prices of things like diapers, wipes, and paper goods; if other goods at other stores cost the same, they weren’t of as high quality.
As my family has grown (4 kids under age 6 now) I find myself at Costco 3-4x/month, and as of this past year I supplement with Amazon Fresh ~3x/month (definitely NOT cost effective, but so convenient), and make a couple trips to Trader Joe’s at Target each month as well. I think I’m maximizing my costs with this routine as well as allowing for some convenience.
Jenny says
Your results aren’t surprising! I compare a lot of grocery store prices and feel like the idea of Costco makes people think they’re getting things cheaper just because they’re buying in bulk. I buy very few items there because they are typically cheaper at other stores.
KathEats says
This was the question I was trying to answer for myself : )
LMN says
I’ve got the giggles because people are so riled up about your methods 😉 I always wonder about bulk stores and think Target is just too much fun to give up! Though…I can’t tell you how much a gallon of milk cost, just that I prefer to use a place that will bring it to my car.
Janet says
I do not have a Costco locally but do have a Sam’s Club. I rarely by toilet paper or paper towels there. I can usually find better deals at grocery stores. Food products and books/magazines I do like to buy at Sam’s Club. Kids are no longer at home, just hubby and I. But I do still find certain things to be a value compared to grocery stores. I make sure to watch my prices.
Katy says
Fun fact…diapers at Target (at least at my target!) are more expensive in store than buying the same diapers through target.com…even when accounting for shipping.
KathEats says
Wow that’s interesting!
Sharon says
I’ve wondered about this myself! But I’m with you, Costco is overwhelming for me. I usual do Target for the household basics. I also somehow feel better not wasting the boxes shipping these large toiletry items.
I love Amazon, but find the prices can fluctuate. Something to keep an eye on if you use Subscribe and Save at Amazon Prime. I’ve seen the full price jump significantly from what I originally saw when I added to my list. So now, I run through all the items each month just to keep an eye on things.
We have a Target 5 minutes from our house, making it much more convenient as well.
Megan says
Kath- thanks for the post! We usually shop at Costco for our staples and love the Kirkland brand. Like others have said you should definitely check out their products. We also find that wine and liquor is very well priced at Costco.
Also, just wanted to say people should understand this was not meant to be a scientific post and was just you doing your own research! It is your personal diary that you are willing to share publicly.
Ash diamond says
Kath id recommend trying Walmart and their Walmart Onlin Grocery pickup as this allows you to have the prices of Walmart but have the bags carried out to your car – prettt great! !
Cathy says
I’ve decided to not renew my Sam’s membership. I usually stock up on toilet paper and paper towels. I can do grocery shopping at Aldi’s and Meijers. More convenient.
Rachel says
We are quarterly (generally) Costco shoppers and we get TP, paper towels, laundry soap, dishwasher tabs, garbage bags, olive oil, avocado oil, and chicken stock there always, and the Kirkland brand whenever I can. The Kirkland brand is usually the best of all the options in price, quality and taste. The avocado oil is double the cost on Amazon. 2L of olive oil on Amazon is $4 more, and not even the organic kind like you get at Costco. The Kirkland brand of olive oil consistently wins taste tests. We buy garbage bags once a year, maybe?! I love rarely having to think about purchasing so many of these staple items. Then on top of it, you add the fact that they treat their employees incredibly well and give them benefits, the CEO makes a modest amount of money and Costco is actually investing in organic farm, I feel like I am shopping my values. The Target Up & Up brand is hit or miss quality wise, and so often when I go to Target they are out of stock on an item I really need. We shop there less and less and I usually only go when I run out of a Method brand product. Target is usually the same kind of busy at Costco and not nearly as organized and well run. As for Amazon, there are some things I buy there, but not staples.
Kristen says
Who would have thought this would be so controversial. I was like, oh cool I should think about looking closer at prices and moved on. Fun post that made me thing which is generally why I read blogs! Congrats on the baby as well.
KathEats says
Haha. I can never predict the controversial posts!! They are usually some of the most boring!
Karen says
I think it’s kind of funny that so many people are uptight about including the $60/year Costco membership. It’s $5/month. I can guarantee you I spend at least that much each month impulse buying at Target. Target may not have a membership fee, but they get their $60 a year from me (in Dove chocolate alone)!
Ttrockwood says
The real savings at Costco is when i buy food items thst are easily 2-3xs as expensive elsewhere. Nuts, chia seeds, greek yogurt, organic greens, nut butters, oatmeal and dried fruits are all things i stock up on when i go with my friend who is a member- i’m a household of one so i would never shop there often but it’s absolutely the best prices in my area
Maggie says
I would love to see you do an expanded comparison to other items in the future! I live in Burlington, VT where we have a Costco, and no Target or Whole Foods. Just getting a Trader Joe’s a couple of years ago was a big deal! I have heard Costco has great prices for the organic produce but don’t know much about quality. Amazon for the household products is a lifesaver when you don’t have much retail close by, or time to shop around for the best deals.
BTW, congratulations on your pregnancy!!
KathEats says
Thanks!
Christine says
Oy – I’ll have a glass of wine for you Kath after reading all these comments 😉 Thank you for posting your findings!
KathEats says
Thank you! Maybe have two : )
Tonya says
Ooh ooh! I’ll back her up! Anything to help a friend. LOL
Kerri says
If you take any kind of allergy medication, Costco is the winner. It more than pays for my membership every year.
Adrienne says
Thanks for the info! I can use it to see how stores in my area compare to Amazon and Costco. I saw some other commenters mentioning the Walmart free grocery pickup, and I definitely recommend giving them a try sometime. It’s been a great service for me, especially for stocking up on bags, foil, detergent, frozen and canned products. Ordering produce or meats doesn’t always work out since they may not have what you selected in stock, so you could end up short of what you needed for a particular meal and have to swing by another store. I’m not sure if Target has a similar system yet, but I’d probably want to wander through their store anyway 🙂
Those virgin margaritas looked delicious!
Amanda says
I love Costco but we only shop there about 1/month. For us, the savings on heart worm medicine for our dogs make the membership worth it without factoring anything else. We also buy their grain-free (which is highly rated) dog food and save probably $100/year on this alone.
Other items I find are cheaper: olive oil, avocado oil, organic spinach, organic quinoa, organic mixed greens, organic half-and-half, whole bean coffee, organic greek yogurt, cottage cheese, babybel (or the organic Kirkland brand) cheese, some meat, stick butter, oats, vanilla, frozen organic fruit and protein powder. We do buy their store brand paper towels and toilet paper. I like the quality and it’s convenient because I only have to purchase them once a year.
Sara says
WEGMANS! We buy all their store brand items. I also enjoy shopping at Lidl and Aldi. I used to belong to all the big club stores, but let them lapse when we got a Wegmans. They have a lot of coupons on their app too to make their bulk toilet paper and paper towels cheaper.
Susan says
I don’t buy a lot at Costco, but find that Kirkland brand TP and paper towel and good quality and cheaper than elsewhere — same with their brand of laundry detergent and softener. Their Kirkland shampoo/conditioner is sulfate free and parabens free and very inexpensive. Organic peanut butter (nice and drippy!), almond butter, maple syrup, vanilla, kombucha, and Dave’s Killer Bread (two loaves for cheaper than one loaf at the grocery store) are all things I regularly buy at Costco.
Kelli @ Hungry Hobby says
Diapers? ha ha
Jolene (www.everydayfoodie.ca) says
We buy all the following products consistently at Costco (mostly Kirkland brand) and they are by far cheaper than any grocery store or department store we have here in Canada:
– paper towel
– toilet paper
– tin foil
– plastic wrap
– zip lock bags
– parchment paper
– garbage bags
– dish washing pods
– laundry detergent
It feels like we never run out of these things, which is awesome! I think we buy garbage bags once a year!