Wondering if a Costco membership is worth the price? Or wondering if you are really getting good deals when you shop? It can certainly be confusing to shop… you need to do quick mental math to compare bulk sizes to standard grocery sizes. I find that impossible when the store is super crowded and I am trying to get through the crowds and just get the heck out.
Usually my kids are whining or poking each other and really it is all I can do to keep them happy, check off my list and not have cart rage when people stop to chat or clutter up the aisles waiting for samples. (Grab n go people, Grab n go!) So I thought I’d make an easy guide for you with some of the best deals I find at Costco AND some of the things that I personally think are overpriced. I have been a coupon blogger for about 7 years now and I have gone through stages of heavily using coupons and following sales in stores to just occasionally using coupons and trying to simply buy things at good prices. At this phase of my life, I seem to have become a professional chauffeur for the kiddos in addition to my other responsibilities and so that means I need to figure out ways to save money on groceries without spending as much time cutting coupons or running to different stores. I do find myself in Costco about once every three weeks or so stocking up on things. So this is a list that is just my opinion after watching prices as a coupon blogger for several years. You may find some slight variation in pricing at your local store.
Best Deals at Costco
. 1. Condiments: Not all condiments are great deals and sometimes it is just too much to buy and store in your pantry but many are great deals at Costco. Some things to watch for:
Extra Virgin Olive Oil– this is an excellent price at Costco
Coconut Oil- this is an excellent price but the tubs are actually more than we need and I can fit in the pantry. So again only a good deal if you actually use the quantity they sell.
Pure Maple Syrup– the cheapest I see anywhere on pure maple syrup
Agave– if you use it regularly it might be worth buying in bulk
2. Dog Food: We used to use Kirkland Brand dog food- but after lots of readers mentioned quality issues, we upgraded to the premium dog food at Costco. I still think this is an excellent price and you can check the comments below for lots of feedback from readers.
3. Spices and Seasoning: Another great stop is the spices and seasoning section. I buy vanilla, cinnamon, cinnamon sticks, lemon juice, salt, pepper and more. Often the giant container at Costco is cheaper than the small container at the grocery store. The vanilla especially is one to look for- you get real vanilla not the yucky imitation vanilla you see at the grocery store. The flavor difference is amazing. This is an easy way for Costco to suck you in! Don’t buy if you won’t use the entire package within 6-12 months or if you really don’t have the storage space.
4. Organic/Green Cleaners: The big two for organic and green cleaning- baking soda and vinegar. You can buy these two items specifically in bulk and use them to clean just about everything. I use vinegar all over the house to clean and also just switched to vinegar instead of fabric softener. So much cheaper and the clothes are just as fresh at a fraction of the price of fabric softener. Plus no nasty chemicals and one less container to store in the laundry room.
5. Canned Goods: I always stock up on canned tomatoes, beans, olives etc… when I shop. Often the prices can be cheaper than if I used coupons at the grocery store. If you like canned veggies these are a fantastic price as well. You do need to buy by the case so I only get the items we use a ton of- but any extras make great food bank donations! For example, I get the organic S&W black beans at Costco for $.84/can. At the grocery store I would pay $.99 for conventional beans. The exception to this rule is during the holiday season. You can often get Del Monte canned veggies and such for about $.50 a can or less in the grocery store.
6. Organic Produce: Organic produce specifically can be an excellent deal at Costco. I buy large containers of mixed greens, power greens and spinach on almost every trip for about $3 a container. I also find the best prices on organic apples, grapes, raspberries, strawberries and more depending on the season. I find the quality of the produce not quite as good as a Farmer’s Market but far superior to a grocery store. Not everything is a great deal- they do offer convenience packs of pre husked corn, chopped butternut squash, chopped mango etc… that are a little more expensive but the convenience of getting meals quickly to the table might be worth considering. Costco tags will have a per lb price listed on the lower left corner of the price tag. I typically try to stay somewhere close to $.99/lb for in season conventional produce and $1.99/lb for in season organic produce. This varies by item so it is absolutely worth checking the fresh produce when you stop in. Consistently Costco has the best prices on bananas that I see anywhere. Oh and note if you see a big markdown on something just note it needs to be eaten RIGHT AWAY. I just bought 3 lbs of organic peaches for $4.99 at Costco (great price) but I was kicking myself 2 days later when every last peach was covered in mold and we had only made it through about half the box. (So it isn’t a good deal if you are tossing things out!)
7. Eggs/Milk/Butter: Again you are buying in bulk so this will depend on your consumption but I find the best overall prices on eggs and milk to be at Costco. My store has organic milk (2) gallons for $11. That is slightly less than the local grocery store where organic is $5.99/gallon. I go back and forth on buying milk at Costco just because 2 gallons takes up so much space in the fridge. The one thing we always get is the organic eggs. Costco has great prices on organic eggs. You might also consider almond milk- my Costco has (2) almond milk for the price of one at Target and the brand Costco carries (Califia) is far better then what I find elsewhere. The butter is an excellent, excellent deal as well. About $12 for 4 lbs and I typically see 1 lb for $5 at my grocery store. You can freeze butter so don’t be afraid to grab it.
8. Cheese. Goodness our family loves cheese and I find great prices at Costco. We regularly buy bricks of mozzarella (or sometimes fresh mozzarella), bricks of cheddar, sliced Tillamook cheese, Laughing Cow and more at Costco. It is by far the cheapest prices I find. They also have excellent prices on gourmet cheeses but again you do need to buy in bulk- so only a good deal if you eat it all.
9. Frozen Fruits and Veggies. The prices can be similar to the grocery stores but the quality at Costco is excellent. I make a lot of green smoothies and I find the organic fruit at Costco in general to be a lot cheaper than the grocery store. Plus I get larger bags so I am not running out every few days. We love the frozen peaches, mango and blueberries specifically. The blueberries are great for tossing into pancakes, smoothies or my kiddos love frozen blueberries as an after school snack. Again just watch the per lb price on the price tag so be sure you really are getting a good deal (most likely you are).
10. Wine/Alcohol. I tend to buy wine at Costco- they have lots of good brands for very reasonable prices and I tend to get Bogle or Liberty School as our house wine for about $6-9 per bottle. The Kirkland Margarita Mix is awesome as well. Just add ice- no tequila needed. And those are just some of the things I love to buy at Costco. There are many other great deals of course including tortilla chips, bread, grains, juices/lemonade/coffee etc… As for the Costco coupon book- not everything is a great deal in the coupon book but many of the items are. Unfortunately the only way to tell is to do the research- for example as of posting Costco has a coupon for Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal. The price is $3.99 after coupon for (2) 24oz bags. Now that sounds good right? But to tell if it really is a good deal- I just Google Cinnamon Toast Crunch and click on images. I can see a standard size box and see that it is 12oz. So the Costco price is $.08 per oz which is like paying $.99 for a standard size box at the grocery store. That is a great price and if this was on my list I would grab it for sure. I also love to stock up on garbage bags, Ziploc bags, scrubbing pads, paper towels and toilet paper at Costco. I usually find the best prices when there is a coupon in the coupon book.
The Worst Deals at Costco
Again this is just my opinion and for sure there is something to be said for saving yourself some time shopping. These are the items that I don’t personally find to be a great deal and I typically avoid at Costco.
1. Fresh Meats. The prices at Costco on boneless, skinless chicken, ground beef and steaks in particular tend to be FAR more than I would pay at the grocery store. Note with these items it is very important to watch for sales at your grocery store and stock up and freeze the items. You will save a ton of money and save yourself the hassle of always trying to buy this stuff week after week. If you want something fancy, Costco might be the place for you to buy but for the basic staples I tend to buy at Sprouts or another grocery store on sale. (NOTE: You do need to watch the ads for you area in grocery stores and buy when things are at the cheapest. For example the price of boneless, skinless fresh chicken might be $3.49/lb one week and $1.99/lb the next week.)
Lots of people argue the steaks and beef at Costco are amazing deals. Our family has been consistently disappointed so I can only speak from my personal experience. You might take a look and see what you think.
Exception: The rotisserie chicken is always a great deal at Costco and a nice easy dinner!
2. Personal Care items such as shampoo, conditioner, razors, body wash etc… I personally don’t find these items to be a great deal at Costco. Often they are actually a lot more expensive than just watching for sales at Target or the drugstores. If you don’t mind occasionally clipping a few coupons you can probably get these items much cheaper at the drugstores. One exception is that I tend to buy Nexxus shampoo liters when there is a coupon at Costco. The shampoo is about $10. (Note: even for salon haircare I tend to buy it at Ulta when they run a big sale. I grab two shampoo and two conditioner at Ulta and that will easily last until the next sale. With the coupon, Nexxus conditioner is about $18 at Costco. Just to provide a comparison the Ulta sale mentioned above gets you a comparable product like Matrix for $9.49. A significant savings.
3. Books. I always check out the books at Costco and I snap photos of any books that catch my eye. I will usually keep them on my phone and when the time comes for me to buy a new Kindle book, I pull up the picture and buy the book. I find that Amazon frequently beats the Costco prices on books- especially if you like Kindle versions or paperbacks. Not always but it might be worth checking- you can download the Amazon app for free and actually just scan the bar code on the book to check quickly in store.
4. Cereal. I don’t tend to buy cereal at Costco unless there is a coupon and even with a coupon it isn’t always a great deal. We don’t buy the sugary cereals but I do get regular Cheerios and Kashi when they go on sale. Otherwise usually my grocery store has better prices (even without coupons.)
5. Household Cleaners. Not all the household cleaning items are a great deal at Costco plus you are buying in huge packages. Unless you are the Duggars or you have a small business or something you probably don’t need a lifetime supply of dish soap and Windex plus those packages are very hard to store. Here is an example of the prices I tend to see at Costco on cleaning products:
Tide Laundry Soap is priced at $19.99 for 170oz. That works out to $.11 per oz.
Tide regularly goes on sale for $5.00 (50oz) in my area. That is $.10 per oz. I try to buy Tide 50oz for $3.50- that is with a coupon and store promotion- so .07 per oz.
And you might be saying- well they offer coupons for Tide so that could be a better deal. The last time they ran a coupon book deal on Tide it was $18.49 or $.108 per oz- still more expensive.
So again this doesn’t apply to every single item but it can be worth checking out before you buy.
6. Candy and Treats. I thought I’d put this out there with Halloween around the corner. I don’t buy candy at Costco for two reasons- it is usually much more expensive than stores like Target and Walmart and the quantity is just too much for a standard size family. I love the chocolate covered raisins at Costco (they are seriously the best anywhere) but I find that I eat the entire vat of chocolate covered raisins so I tend to stay away :).
7. Diapers and Wipes. Yikes this is a controversial one and some people absolutely love the Costco brand wipes no matter the price. I have personally compared prices many many times and I always find Costco to be higher then a sale and a coupon at Target.
Pull Ups are $29.99 for 86 at my Costco. That works out to $.35 per Pull Up or like paying $7.70 per pack. At Target the regular price without a sale is $8.99 and I can always print a $2 off Pull Ups coupon. When there is a coupon in the Costco coupon book the prices are better but they still work out to be like paying $6.13 per pack or so – so not really a huge savings. A sale at Target is typically going to get you a better deal. So it doesn’t hurt to do the math before you buy.
8. Office Supplies. With the exception of ink refill cartridges- I don’t find the prices on paper and pens and such to be that great at Costco. The best bet is typically to watch for sales from office supply stores in the weekly ads or to just stock up on your supplies during the dirt cheap back to school sales in July and August every year. You’ll pay pennies on the dollar for your supplies.
9. Fresh Flowers. This is another controversial one. I hear a lot about how cheap flowers are at Costco and I just don’t find that to be the case. My Whole Foods, Farmer’s Market or Sprouts and Safeway all beat Costco prices on fresh flowers. (Update: I gave the flowers a second chance after people insisted they were wonderful. My $10 bouquet lasted precisely one day and then started to die. I will never buy flowers again myself but I am sure this can vary by local provider. You can also return the flowers to Costco for a refund if they die but really who wants to hold on to a dead bouquet and then go to the trouble of fighting your way back into the store for a refund. No thanks.)
Other Perks:
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AND if you do have a gas station at your Costco that alone can be worth the price of membership. When we lived in Seattle I exclusively bought gas at Costco because they always beat out everyone else in price. Now that I am in California, we don’t have gas stations at our store so I do miss those savings.
The deli at Costco is awesome. I am a vegetarian myself but I know people love the hot dogs! Get a fountain drink for $.59, Churros, smoothies or pizza. You can’t beat the prices.
Gift cards can be awesome deals at Costco if you can use them for restaurants, activities and vacations! We occasionally get gift cards to local restaurants for about 20% off the retail price. These can be great gifts during the holidays.
The Pharmacy and the Eye Glass center are also huge perks. We don’t often get prescriptions but I always buy glasses and contacts at Costco- the prices are significantly less than if I bought through my Doctor’s office. If you do need glasses, watch those monthly coupon books. They occasionally offer savings on prescription glasses.
And now it is your turn! What are your favorite deals at Costco and the things you tend to avoid?
Mike K. says
Flowers aren’t the cheapest UNLESS it is Valentine’s Day, then I can get my wife roses for 14.99 because they don’t jack up the prices like every florist in town.
Charlene says
Mike- totally. Valentine’s Day is a great time to buy at Costco 🙂
Charlene says
Andrea- yeah I didn’t want the post to be a mile long but snacks CAN be awesome deals or not so awesome. Usually the snacks are awesome when there are coupons. If you happen to see the Luke’s Organic Cheese Puffs at your store- they look like Pirate’s Booty– those are amazing 🙂 Your little one would love them.
Kimberly says
I have a bunch of friends who are all “Costco people” – always talking about Costco this and Costco that. I almost didn’t become a member because I got so sick of it! LOL My husband said it felt like we were joining a minivan club when I finally convinced him to get a membership. How did I convince him? The cheap K-cups! Coffee solves EVERYTHING! haha
Richele says
Upgrade your cellphone for sure! You will pay less, and the warranty is cheaper.
Jenny says
One thing I find to be a great deal is the Neutrogena makeup remover wipes. Every few months they have a $3 off coupon, making it an even better deal. The Kirkland brand is good too.
Casey says
The kirklands frozen chicken is Way cheaper than our grocery store! My husband manages a meat department and Costco is cheaper. Many times the hamburger is as well. I believe it may be different per location.
ange says
Another great deal is the quaker oatmeal! You can get 10lbs for $8 versus 2lb 10 oz for $3 and that’s on sale. Also for ogranic fresh chicken and ground beef they have good prices.
Melissa G says
We buy the San Francisco Bay Kcups from Costco. Most stores have Kcups for $.50 or more each, at Costco I get them for about $.33 each. Amazon sometimes has them for a comparable price but other times they’re more than Costco.
David Turnbull says
I don’t like Costco because they take only the phony American Express! At the Gas Station our Visa card is no good because it’s a credit card! We live about a half mile from Costco and was made a fool of at the gas station once and it won’t happen again!
Charlene says
Oh that is the most embarrassing thing ever isn’t it David? Yes the payment process is not ideal for sure.
Charlene says
Hey Casey– you know I don’t really look at the frozen chicken but that is a good point :). A long time ago I bought Safeway frozen chicken and then one day I realized they pump it up with all sorts of nasty fillers and saline and such and started buying fresh only from then on. I am sure Costco brand is better.
Charlene says
Ha ha! Kimberly there are few brands that elicit the same loyalty bordering on fanaticism as Costco. And I mean that in the nicest sense of the word :). It really is amazing how loyal people are and how much they love Costco. I always wondered how they managed to do that. Pretty impressive marketing.
Charlene says
Ha ha! What a dummy! Thanks Winnie! I’ll fix that in a sec.
Katie says
The meats may be more expensive, but the quality is far superior to our local groceries in Central PA. Since we are a family of two, I divide the meat and fish packages and freeze portions for later consumption. And the roasted chicken is cheaper, tastier, and larger than any of the local groceries.
Bridgette says
You don’t have to do the math or mentally break down the price at Costco. That’s actually one thing I love…All the price tags (the white paper above each item) breaks every item down to serving size, each price, laundry loads, etc. the grocery store doesn’t even do that!
Charlene says
Bridgette,
My store does not have that feature. They have a breakdown of say $.18 per oz on cereal but that is the only information. If you are a person that has memorized how many ounces are in a standard box or package of the product that is perfect information. I don’t happen to know how many diapers are in a standard Jumbo pack of 3T Pull Ups or how many ounces are in Kashi Go Lean cereal or how many bars are in a box of Nature Valley Granola Bars or how many refills are in a Swiffer refill pack. So I am not sure how you get all the information you need to compare to the grocery store sizes? Do you have all that memorized in your head?
Terri says
Both hearing aids and hearing aid batteries are great deals at Costco. They even provide free cleanings and battery replacement anytime you stop in.
noel says
i have to say that i found everything to be spot on except the cereal one. granted, we ONLY do plain cheerios, but i’ve done price comparisons everywhere- including walmart and target, and i cannot find them cheaper anywhere, with the exception of the very occasional sale/coupon. but then again, we’re in san diego and things here are a bit more expensive than other places.
Jason says
Costco takes my visa debit card no problem. Just enter your pin. You have to shop smart at Costco or you will over pay.
Charlene says
Jason- yes they take a Visa debit but I think he was saying that his card is only a credit card.
Charlene says
Hi Noel- I bought plain Cheerios not too long ago when they had a coupon. It was a good price. Not sure about the regular price but if it is not a significant difference sometimes saving yourself an extra trip is worth paying a little more 🙂
Maryrose says
How about costco’s baked goods (on site)= best muffins, cookies, bagels, cakes, danish, etc, etc!!!!
Tonya says
Some time they clear out the season end on their clothes and discount them
Charlene says
ha ha– those always smell good Maryrose but I stay away from them :). The sizes are a little much for us and the calories are insane. Great though if you have an office party or something.
Lori says
Hi Charlene,
When you replace vinegar with fabric softener, how much do you use? We started doing this with our towels, but want to try with our clothes too! Do you just use it straight up?
Charlene says
Hi Lori, I use plain white vinegar- it is like $4 for a monster size jug at Costco. I divide it in half in two containers- one in the laundry room and one in the kitchen. Vinegar and water are a great simple all purpose cleaner and also if you happen to burn something in a pot or have a nasty mess to clean up you can sprinkle baking soda on the mess and then add vinegar and that works so much better then dish soap and elbow grease 🙂 I let it sit awhile before scrubbing.
As for the laundry our washing machine has a tray that shows you how much fabric softener to add. I just fill it up to the line indicated so I am not sure how much that is. Does your washing machine have a tray for softener?
Sara says
Charlene,
I know that the clothes are not always the best, but I do find the men dress non iron shirt to be a good deal at 17.99. They carry tall sizes and have them in stock and they are good quality.
Thanks for the run down on the Costco deals!
Charlene says
Yup great point Sara! Sometimes I find great deals and sometimes not. It can be hit or miss 🙂 That sounds like a great deal!
lisa says
I agree with the all tbe stuff that is listed as a good deal, but I disagree with a few if the “worst deals”. I do find that the dish detergent and laundry supplies are a better deal than I can get locally. Also cereal when it is on sale is a better price than my local super Wal-Mart. I think it depends on where you live and how far away a warehouse store is. Basically, my town has zero competition from warehouses as the clisest ones are at least 80 miles away. This list is a great starting point, going into a warehouse with no idea what to look for, especially with kids in tow can be very overwhelming.
Charlene says
Hi Lisa- if you don’t have any major grocery stores like Safeway, Publix, Kroger etc… you are completely right on. I almost never shop at Walmart. I find the prices to be significantly higher and I tend to buy so much more junk food. Do you have drugstores or Target? You can often get excellent deals there even without coupons. One important note is that to shop effectively and save money, you do need to be aware of sales cycles at your favorite stores. At a standard grocery store the price of Cheerios will be $2.99 week 1, $1.99 week 2, $2.49 week 3, buy 4 boxes get them for $1.49 week 4 and so on. So it is important to not just walk into a store and toss stuff into your shopping cart but actually pay attention to the circulars and see what the lowest prices are on the items you buy :). I based my opinion on this list taking into account sales cycles at a normal store in a normal city without using coupons.
Tina says
Peanut butter, Coffee, bread, and I always buy frosted mini wheats.
Rikki hargrove says
We ordered our wedding flowers from costco at, literally, a quarter of the price of any other store/shop we looked at and the quality of the flowers were amazing!
Charlene says
Oh great tip Rikki!
Chellis says
I buy the shelf stable soy and rice milk – soo much cheaper then grocery stores. Also the fresh boneless pork chops because they are so thick I am able to cut them in half and freeze them. A package usually costs me around $15-$17 for a pack of 9. Which I then cut in half to make 18 servings which for my family of 3 is 6 dinners. It works out to about $2.00 a meal for 3 people. No way you can get that at the grocery store even on a good day.
Charlene says
Hi Chellis- the trick with Costco is comparing apples to apples. So you can say $2 per meal but I find boneless pork chops to be $1.99 per lb regularly at the grocery store. Are you getting over a lb for your meals? That is the easiest way I have found to compare- so maybe take that entire package you bought and see the weight and it should say per lb on there in tiny print somewhere so you know for certain 🙂
Susan Rokosz says
The ground meat and stewing meat prices are comparable in prices for us in Edmonton, Canada. Also way better quality! Fresh Chicken breasts are outrageously priced although the frozen ones aren’t bad at all!
Tina G says
i have to say cellphone upgrades are great! My family has Verizon. Verizon was running a “deal” on the GalaxyS5. For 310.00. And because I am phone accident prone I looked into insurance. $199. For 2 yrs AND you pay a $150 deductible if you use the insurance (each time with a max of 3 claims). I couldn’t afford that. Looked at Costco got the phones cover and screen protector for $200 & $99 for insurance for 2 yrs. so I spent 50 less with insurance than I would have through Verizon.
Miranda says
I have to strongly disagree with the diaper/wipe.. for us it is MUCH cheaper to buy at both Costco and Sam’s Club. (We have both in Lubbock, Tx and they are about a mile or so from each other) They run sales every other month and luckily, Costco and Sam’s Club sales are opposite of each other so we buy the limit, (2) and get it for about 33.00/box for 120+ diapers in each box. I used to purchase the Sam’s wipes, but when we got Costco a year ago, they gave us samples of the Kirkland wipes and they win hands down. They don’t rip like the Huggies or Pampers wipes and I will pay 18.00 a box for them. I have two in diapers and we go through 2 boxes of diapers a month and the box of wipes usually lasts about a month and a half. Our Target has terrible “sales” and you aren’t actually saving ANYTHING- you actually pay more for less diapers to get a $10.00 Target gift card that you have to use on the next trip. Walmart doesn’t really have much better, but if I see a pack of Huggies in their size or the size above on clearance, I will snag it.
Miranda says
Oh, I forgot to add that we signed up for Directv in October through the sales guy at Costco and we got a $200 gift card for Costco! Major score! I’ve been told the other services are great too.
Amy says
You know, if your fruit or any food spoils quickly like those peaches did, you can just tell them at Customer Service and they’ll give you a refund. Costco is great about that, their return policy is part of the service you’re paying for with the membership.
Lillian says
Water delivery. I was getting water delivered to my house for $8 per five gallon bottle. Through Costco member services, the same water company now charges me $5 per bottle, still delivered.
Charlene says
Hi Amy- yes that is excellent. I only go about once a month though and I never want to keep things that have gone bad (obviously). I always feel bad going up with a really old receipt too and then I don’t want to make a special trip right away… So I guess I haven’t really taken advantage of that service 🙂
Kendra says
Charlene, I was totally bummed when you stopped updating Raleys deals but I think this post makes up for it! 😀
Charlene says
Ha ha! Sorry Kendra- you may have been the only one that was reading Raley’s deals every week 🙂
Ginger says
You may want to look at Pedigree dog food at Costco. We started to get the Kirkland brand and saw that the Pedigree is cheaper and you get a 55 pound bag. Right now we are paying about $24 for a 55 pound bag. We were surprised to see this, so we buy the Pedigree!
Melissa says
Kirkland Cetirizine (generic Zyrtec) – 15.99 for 365 tablets. Absolutely the best price I’ve found on cetirizine, hands-down.
Kirkland K-Cups – 0.36/serving. The flavor is better than the San Francisco Bay brand and you get a pack of 100.
Osteo Bi-Flex – often is at a promotional price. Regular price is the same as Amazon.com.
Pamela @ FlowerPatchFarmhouse.com says
With all due respect, to be fair, lets compare apples to apples. Costco fresh meats are USDA PRIME, this is the grade that you usually only get in restaurants. Unless it is an upper scale grocery store you won’t find that grade in your local market like Safeway, Winco etc. They don’t even bother carrying that grade of meat. Is there a difference in flavor, a big fat YES. So Costco prices on Prime grade beef is excellent. Cheaper grades will always be less in price but so is the quality.
Another thing that I like and support Costco for is they pay and treat their employees well. I have a few friends that work there and they will be there till they retire, they won’t go anywhere else, great benefits and Costco treats them as part of a appreciated team.
Charlene says
Hi Pamela,
Thanks for sharing your opinions! That is a great point on worker’s compensation. The employees do tend to be more cheerful don’t they?
But to be fair I mentioned basic steak, ground beef and chicken in the post. The chicken is Foster Farms brand at my store. 😉 I wouldn’t consider that premium chicken. If you are buying specialty cuts of beef they do have good prices on USDA Prime. The standard ground beef I have purchased makes no notation about being USDA Prime. Have you found that to be the case at your store? The $4/lb ground beef that is 80% or 85% is USDA Prime? I have not found a flavor difference in ground beef- comparing a standard lean ground beef from a store like Safeway vs. Costco- we have not noticed enough of a difference to pay premium prices.
Also I don’t think it is fair to include Winco in a comparison. I don’t shop personally at Walmart or Winco and while those stores might be a great choice for some, when I wrote the post it was comparing standard mid-level grocery chains like Safeway, Sprouts Markets, Kroger etc.. in mind. I wasn’t comparing Costco to the discount stores. 🙂
bookburn says
The rotisserie chicken was great at just $4.99, and I would frequently add one to my basket–up to a couple years ago, when I found the meat tasting like cardboard. After several more tries, I stopped buying, concluding that the chickens were being frozen too many times.
I do like the free samples sometimes, but am starting to see people from off the streets circling around for them without baskets.