Many people may not know that Sam’s Club and Costco are both warehouse stores, where you have to pay either a yearly or a monthly membership to get in.
According to the Walmart website, Sam’s Club is a chain warehouse store owned by Walmart, which was founded in 1983 by Sam Walton to help small businesses be able to afford bulk items at wholesale prices, without having to get overcharged. According to the Costco website, Costco was founded in 1983 by Jin Senegal and Jeff Brotman to help small businesses and Individual consumerism at a high volume sale for low profit margins.
Many people prefer Sam’s Club over Costco, due to how up-to-date Sam’s is when it comes to technology. Sam’s Club introduced a new feature in 2016 called “Scan and Go,” which allowed customers to be able to scan their items without having to wait in line for a long time. Sam’s Club also introduced a new feature in January of 2024, where AI is able to scan people’s receipts without a worker having to manually check them. This benefited the customers by allowing them to be able to leave the store faster without having to wait for their receipt to get checked. Sam’s Club also has a feature where you are able to do curbside pickup, so you do not have to go and pick up the groceries in store.
“The technology helps people be able to scan things quicker,” said physics teacher Mr. Brandon Salany, “allowing more faster lines and less wait times.”
When it comes to technology, many people believe that Costco is behind Sam’s Club, but in reality, Costco is also introducing new things daily. Recently, Costco has introduced a new checkout system that allows employees to be able to scan things while they are in your cart. This allows customers to just be able to go up to the kiosk and pay without making customers wait in line longer.
“The best part about the self-checkout at Costco is the fact about how you don’t have to do anything,” said Jacob Quaka. “One guy takes all the groceries for you out the cart, and another guy scans it. Which makes it faster and more efficient for everyone.”
Another important thing when it comes to both of these warehouse stores are there cafe’s. Many people prefer Sam’s Club due to how cheap their food is and how easy it is to order. Sam’s Club has recently lowered its food prices, so it’s more affordable for people. The highest priced item is a 16-inch pizza for $8. Sam’s Club also made it so you are able to only order your food on the app without having to wait in line. This makes it more efficient for everyone because people can shop while waiting for their food, and do not have to stay in the store longer than needed.
“I like having online ordering because it makes it faster and more efficient since I don’t have time to walk around the store,” said high school teacher Mr. Jack Momeyer.
Costco also has low prices at its cafe, but less technology behind it. Costco has a lot more variety when it comes to their food range and what you can get at the cafe, but it is more expensive. The highest-priced cafe item at Costco is their pizza, which goes for almost $10. At Costco, you can’t preorder anything other than the pizzas, which makes people have to stay longer than they are supposed to at the shopping center.
“I like Costco’s cafe more because of how you’re able to get a quarter-pound hot dog with relish and Dijon mustard for cheap,” said senior Jacob Quaka. “I also believe not being able to preorder your food is good because it allows more fresh quality.”
Another difference between Costco and Sam’s Club is their membership prices. Costco has two different memberships that you can obtain. You can obtain the executive membership, which is $130 a year and allows you to have two membership cards and early access to the store. There is also a $65 dollar membership, where you’re not able to have the same privileges like coming into the store early, but you can still do stuff. Sam’s Club also has two memberships that you can get, including the Plus and Club. The Plus starts at 120$, which is 10 dollars less than Costco’s. When you get this plan, it also includes early access to the store before opening, and getting money back on discounted items. The Club membership costs $60 and you’re still able to get 2 membership cards, but you’re not able to get in early or get cash back on purchases.
“Costco is definitely more expensive, but it’s worth it because there is a wider range of items and worth it for the price,” said Quaka. “On the other hand, Sam’s Club has a slimmer selection, and prices can be overall higher. One benefit of having the membership for Sam’s club, though, is that Sam’s club is closer.”
Costco and Sam’s Club also have their own brands called Kirkland and Member’s Mark. Many people prefer these brands because of how their prices compare to each other. When it comes to their brands, Sam’s Club is cheaper for food and pharmacy. At Sam’s club, you’re able to buy fruits and vegetables for way cheaper. An example of this would be how 2 dozen eggs at Costco cost $4.53, while at Sam’s Club, it only cost $3.74. If you were to sign up for a pharmacy at Sam’s Club, you would save $200 dollars every 3 months and have medicine be way cheaper.
”When it comes to saving money,” said Lilly Chess, “I save around 370$ when it comes to prescriptions, groceries and car service.”
When it comes to Costco, their groceries are more, but it’s worth it. At Costco, the eggs are more expensive, but they are healthier, like how their eggs are double AA, while Sam’s Club eggs are only A. Not only that, Costco has a bigger store layout when it comes to items than Sam’s Club, but it all really depends on where you go. Out of 100 students in Norwin High School, 30% prefer Costco’s food variety, and 70 more people prefer Sam’s Club’s food and variety.
“When it comes to Sam’s Club, it should have more variety,” said Jack Momeyer, “and they should have more organization in the store when it comes to the layout.”
