Why a Warehouse Club membership is worth it:
- I'd say 95% of the time, they have the cheapest gas in town. Sometimes by 5¢ or more. I use an App on my ipod to see which is cheapest in the area, and rarely is something else cheaper.
- Propane. At least at BJ's, the propane is significantly cheaper then anywhere else. We're talking like $10 cheaper.
- Seasonal/clothing/books/tvs/etc. Honestly you can find a lot of good deals on these items at warehouse clubs. Our most recent was 150 cubic feet marine cooler that we got for about $50ish for our fridge breaking. That was the price Target was charging for some 50-100 cubic feet ones. Now we have it, and it will be great should there be a power failure, or a need to evacuate, or even if we are taking a long trip and want to bring food to cook with (like camping!)
- Eggs, Milk, Butter. A simple price comparison (and I realize our prices are higher here then many areas): Milk at Publix: $3.85, Milk at BJ's: $3.29. Eggs at Publix $1.60ish, Eggs at BJ's $6ish for 5 dozen (so about $1.20/dz ). Butter is usually about $2.50 for 4 sticks at BJ's and that's generally a sale price at Publix.
- Meat. Here's one example from a sale a few weeks back. Publix Ground Turkey was on sale for $2.69/lb. Ground Turkey is regularly priced $2.29/lb at BJ's. This is similar across all meats. There are times where Publix (or Winn-Dixie) has a great sale on meat, but generally it's still cheaper at BJ's then the sale price at Publix. Of course if I can make a deal happen at Publix where I get $X off Meat wyb some item, I try to do that, but only if the item I have to buy is a good deal.
- Some produce. If I need a lot of some produce it's often cheaper to buy at BJ's. Like say I'm going to make stuffed peppers, it's about $5 for a 6 count bag (and these are good size red peppers). I often buy salad from there because I can get a large container of organic salad for $5ish. Considering the BOGO price for regular salad is generally $3.99 for two, and the amount in this container is about 4 of those bags and organic, I'd say it's a better deal.
- Bread Products. Sure occasionally good deals come with coupons at Publix, but a lot of times I can get it for the same price at BJ's. I consistently buy hamburger and hotdog buns from there, as it is always $1.99 for 16. The bread we like (Martins Wheat Potato bread) is consistently about $5 for 2 loaves when it is about $4 for one at Publix. Even regular bread is fairly cheap there.
- Pet items. If your dog or cat uses a typical brand pet food (like Dog Chow, Purina One), a lot of times the Warehouse club is the way to go. I've compared several stores on the price and a lot of time even with sales and coupons the warehouse club is cheaper.
