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A few weeks ago I spent an evening walking through Sam’s being a spy. Â I was on a hunt for things that were horrible buys and to get an idea of what would be a good deal. Â I’m going to share the bad news first, here’s what you shouldn’t buy in Sam’s (or I’m going to be bold here and say any warehouse club). Â Don’t fret, tomorrow I’ll share a list of deals that are amazing at Sam’s.
10 Things NOT to Buy at Sam’s
1. Â Dog Treats & Dog Food
Rather than going big for your pets, the deals are much cheaper in grocery stores and Target with sales and coupons. Â One example:
Sam’s – Dentastix Treats, 62 ct., $19.94
Publix – Dentastix Treats, 6 ct., $1
Target – Dentastix Treats, 32 ct., $9.32
To compare the same size, grab 10 of the Publix packages for $10. Â You save $9.94 off the Sam’s price to buy it somewhere else.
2. Â Soda Bottles & 2 Liters
I would never pay more than $1 for a 2 liter soda, and I’m definitely going to pay to join a club just to pay $1.32 a bottle. Â Wait for sales at the grocery store and even without coupons you’ve got their price beat.
Sam’s – Coca Cola 2 Liter, 4 pk., $5.28
Most Stores – Coca Cola 2 L, $1
Other size bottles are also over priced. Â We can normally find the 6 pack, 16.9 oz bottles, on sale for $2-$2.50 each in the grocery store. Â At Sam’s they are basically $3.12 a pack.
3. Â Paper Plates
This is one item that even Fred’s beats the warehouse price.  Comparing name brand plates (Dixie) you can get them for 4¢ a plate at various stores on sale or 8¢ a plate at Sam’s.  That’s double the price!
4. Â Paper Towels & Toilet Paper
Let me guess, this is the item you bought your membership to save on… yeah you aren’t saving. Â To compare savings we have to go to sheet level as Sam’s is sneaky and sells rolls that are unique sizes that no one else carries.
Sam’s – Charmin Ultra Strong, 24 super mega rolls or 8448 sheets, $24.98
Various Stores – Charmin Ultra Strong, 6 Mega rolls, 1968 sheets, $4
Grab 5 packs in the grocery store and you’ll pay $20 total saving almost $5. Â You’ll also have a few extra rolls.
5. Â K-Cups
As long as your house can handle smaller packs of k-cups then you want to buy these in the grocery store.  On average you’ll get k-cups for various brands around 30¢-37¢ each at the grocery store versus 42¢-45¢ at Sam’s.  That’s an easy 12¢ per cup or on one 12 count package $1.44 saved not shopping at Sam’s.
6. Â Cereal
This is one example I’ve given hundreds of times teaching workshops. Â I was glad the evidence backed me up (though I’m sorry for anyone that buy their cereal at Sam’s). Â Typically in a grocery store cereal on sale with a coupon is around $1-$1.50 per box. Â At Sam’s you can grab a box that is the same as 2.5 grocery store boxes for $7-$8.50 depending on the brand.
Sam’s – Kellogg’s Special K Cereal, 38 oz, $8.49
Kroger – Kellogg’s Special K Cereal, 18 oz, $1.38
To compare by the ounce here, you’ll pay 7¢ an ounce at Kroger or 22¢ an ounce at Sam’s… that’s an insane difference.
7. Â Canned Vegetables
The case of veggies isn’t a savings either.  They have packs of vegetables usually 8-12 cans that are on average 80¢ a can.  Some higher end products, like Lesueur Peas, were up to $1.24 a can. In a grocery store these are less than 55¢ and sometimes around 40¢ depending on the sale.  That’s comparing the same name brands too!
8. Â Salsa & Other Condiments
Whether you coupon or not, these are easily cheaper in the grocery store! Ketchup, Mustard and Relish are routinely free to $1 each and Salsa is usually around $2 in grocery stores. Â The price in Sam’s is almost triple!
9. Â Laundry Detergent
Massive containers of laundry detergent just take up space and collect more dust. Â They don’t save you money. Â Every name brand product Sam’s sold was cheaper comparing against past and current sales at grocery stores!
Two examples:
Sam’s – Gain Flings, 120 ct., $24.98
CVS – Gain Flings, 14 ct., $1.98
Sam’s – All Free & Clear Detergent, 150 loads, $14.28
Bi-lo – All Free & Clear Detergent, 32 loads, $1.49
Per packet that 14¢ at CVS to 21¢ at Sam’s.  Per load on the liquid, Bi-Lo is 4¢ per load and Sam’s is 9.5¢.  With the amount of laundry I do, that would be a huge difference at the end of the year.
10. Â Diapers
Are you surprised? Â I know most Mama’s want the biggest package of diapers ever, but try to refrain. Â The same rule for paper goods, and detergent above in the list applies here. Â We see bigger sales on the smaller packs, plus through in coupons and Sam’s can’t ever compete on diapers!
Sam’s – Huggies Size 3, 164 ct., $39.98 (23¢ per diaper)
Kroger – Huggies Size 3, 27 ct., $2.49 (9¢ per diaper)
The Kroger price is right in line with prices we also see in the drugstores. Â If this is one item you decide to coupon for, it’s completely worth it! Â You’ll save $25 just on one box!!
I promise I don’t hate Sam’s and warehouse clubs. Â There are things that are deals, just not all the classic items we think of. Â Tune in tomorrow for the list of 10 things you should buy!
