Many people purchase memberships to wholesale clubs such as Sams, Costco, or BJ’s. Last year, after much calculation we purchased a membership to Costco because they were cheaper than the Commissary on six or seven grocery staples.
Even though my membership pays for itself in grocery savings, I still don’t like paying $45 or $50 a year for the privilege of shopping at a certain store. In order to stretch my membership money I buy a membership every thirteen months instead of renewing every twelve months. The month my membership expires I buy double what I normally buy and the skip the next month. Then I basically get a month’s membership free.
For example my Costco membership expires in January. I made a large purchase this month and I will allow my membership to expire. I will not start my new membership until February or March. So each year I gain a free month.
Since most wholesale clubs charge the same price to renew or to get a new membership you save a little bit of money each year.
Save your pennies because they do add up!
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{ 32 comments… read them below or add one }
My dad used to do the same thing when we were younger! My husband thought I was nuts, but I think he gets it now
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You could also share a membership. My daughter and I do.
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This is a great way to stretch your membership. I used to do something similar. It became a game….how long could I go without renewing my membership. One word of warning…I was reading (Consumer Reports I think) that said that some stores will backdate your renewal date. So, be sure to ask.
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TheHappyHousewife Reply:
January 28th, 2010 at 12:30 pm
Thanks for the tip Lawanna-
It is always best to check with your local store and confirm their membership policy!
Toni
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Aunt T Reply:
January 29th, 2010 at 2:54 pm
Costco is in a class-action law-suit over their membership policy. Regardless of when you renew it dates back so that there is no lapse in the membership. The problem is obvious; you actually pay for months that you never were able to use.
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Janel Reply:
January 30th, 2010 at 3:41 pm
I found out last year that Sam’s Club back dates memberships. I ended up paying for 3 months that I didn’t use!
My sister and I share a membership to Costco. They allow 2 people to a membership.
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So smart! Love it!
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I was going to say the same thing as Kim. Club membership gives you two cards – most people will share them between a husband and wife. Since my husband almost never does the shopping, that second card is a waste. Find a second household and split the cost! One person will be the designated Master account holder but otherwise, they have the same priviledges. BIG savings.
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I do the same whenever we have a zoo or museum membership. I always let it expire, even if they offer a free month for renewal. We go a lot when we have a membership, but after a year of going we are a little burned out and can handle a little break. We let 6-months to a year go between memberships. Once we are itching to go again we will usually get another one. Just with our family of four we only have to go 3-4 times to pay the price, so it is a good deal, but even better when we don’t have to pay for the months we don’t feel like going.
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Thanks for the tip. I hate it when my Sams membership comes due.
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Great idea! We too have Costco and love it
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I share a membership with my mother-in-law to cut back on the expense. My mom has a membership that my sister shares with her. Sometimes, we divide up our purchases of things we can’t use as quickly.
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I tried this in Nov when my costco membership expired I knew that I hadnt paid my membership bill in nov of the previous year we paid it in dec.
when i brought this to the attention of the membership person they said that its coscto (at least CA) policy to not allow you to change your renewal month without waiting 3 months. that way you cannot get a free month. THUS you actually loose a month of membership because you were expired so you wernt allowed to shop there but you still have to pay the full amount!
I complained enought they let me do it this time, but its not woth the few dollars to try agaiN!
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Amanda Reply:
January 28th, 2010 at 2:49 pm
Thanks for this info, since I am in Cali to, I was wondering what the policy would be. Ours expires in April and I was thinking of waiting until Aug 1st to reknew bc we will be gone some during the summer. I may can stock and save. That new membership will carry us through our next move and home set up.
Amanda
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monica Reply:
January 28th, 2010 at 6:37 pm
sounds like it will work for you! as long as you wait 3 months its worth it! you will save!
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Use a free guest pass and you don’t have to pay for membership at all. We have Sam’s, Costco and BJ’s all competing here so I wait for guest pass offers and stock up then. I don’t really need to shop at a warehouse monthly.
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TheHappyHousewife Reply:
January 28th, 2010 at 1:25 pm
Great idea!
Toni
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April Reply:
January 28th, 2010 at 4:35 pm
Ours charges a 5 to 10% fee on your entire bill with guest passes. This could add up depending on how much you are spending.
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We’ve done that, too. We’ve also figured out that, at least in our experience, it’s better to purchase the membership early in the month. If I start a membership on January 31, it’ll expire the following January 31. If I wait until February 1, it’ll be good until February 28 of the following year. That’s effectively another free month.
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I belong to Sam’s and when I tried to “stretch” my renewal, even two or three months after it expired, they backdated it.
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Could you please tell me which items you found are cheaper at Sam’s Club then the BX? I would greatly appreciate it if you possibly can.
Thank You!
Angie
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Amanda Reply:
January 28th, 2010 at 2:53 pm
Capri suns come out cheaper at our Costco than the Commissary. We watch the meats, cheeses, eggs and milk, sometimes they do. I think the frozen waffles were the last time. I would love to know what else.
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Leah Reply:
January 28th, 2010 at 3:14 pm
At Costco the lettuce and butter (1.79 lb,)
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What do you usually find at COSTCO that is a better deal than the Commissary?
I know that butter is consistently lower – what else do you buy there?
~christyb
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TheHappyHousewife Reply:
January 28th, 2010 at 3:46 pm
My Costco Shopping List:
Butter
Eggs
Honey (if I can’t get it locally)
Maple Syrup
Cheese (depends)
Frozen Fruit
Whipping Cream
Organic Salad Mix (not cheaper, but we like it better)
These items are almost always cheaper than the commissary unless I can get coupon/ sale match up.
Toni
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Amanda Reply:
January 28th, 2010 at 3:49 pm
Have you ever tried Mesquite Honey. I found it at Trader Joe’s here in So California. It is very good, not local to you but good. Didn’t realize about the butter, but I am all out of butter (how I do that????) I see a trip to Costco in my future.
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Sams club backdates it when you renew late. I have tried this with them before and they always revert it back as if it just continued on.
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I never thought about sharing membership costs with someone else. That would really help with savings. I usually buy diapers and wipes from there.
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For all the people sharing a membership…have the rules changed? When we signed up with Costco, they required that the cardholders live at the same residence.
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That is a great tip! My Sam’s membership just expired, but I am not renewing it and just keeping my “free” Costco membership through my dad’s business. Costco just tends to be so much busier.
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Hello there!
Wow, I used to follow your blog a LONG time ago.. it still looks great and looks like your family has grown a little. So glad to have found you via the Blog Frog
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We got an executive membership at costco. We buy a lot of things there, and although the membership is more ( 100 /year) we spend enough that with the rewards it works out to be almost free. My reward for this year was $95, so it only costs me $5 for my next membership.
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We actually got the Executive Membership at Costco. Yes it’s costs $100 a year however, we go so much and spend so much that we end up getting about $80 back so in effect the membership cost me $20. You can ask at guest services if it’s worth it for you to upgrade. They have all your purchase history in their computer.
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If you have a BJ’s in your area, they will let two different households share a membership. They also accept both their own coupons and manufacturer coupons on the same item.
The combination makes for some really nice savings!
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We got a membership to Sam’s last year that came with a $25.00 rebate. That was probably a recession special. At times, they offer a student membership with $15.00 back. Good to know if you have a college student.
I was unaware of the backdating of memberships. I was thinking of rejoining after a few months, but won’t do so if they backdate.
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Costco allows you to pay one membership fee for cards sent to two addresses. My mother and I split a membership, so each pay only half of the membership fee! With what we save (and spend with two households), we decided to go for an executive membership. Each year we now get a rebate check for over $200 — that’s a lot of groceries where I come from.
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I’m very frugal too and love my savings at Costco but don’t love the membership fee. So what do we do? We pay double to get the executive membership – which means we earn a certain percentage of our purchases back at the end of the year. It means more money up front (I think 100 instead of 40) but we typically get about 200$ back at the end of the year – so our membership not only pays for itself, but gives us 100$ extra to boot!
This wouldn’t work for everyone, you would want to calculate about how much money you spend there annually.
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My alumni association has a Costco membership discount (if you are a member of the Alumni Association of course). Go Cougs!
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It always pays to check the policy at your local store (and to remember that policies may change over time). My mother and grandmother do share a Costco membership that they’ve had for a long time, but now Costco (at least locally) will not let you split the membership between 2 addresses.
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We’re getting ready to get a Costco membership again. We’re far enough away (traffic) from Ft. Myer and Ft. Belvoir it’s not cost effective for me to shop at the commissary. There are items I’d prefer to buy in bulk, coupled with coupons, at Costco over Wal-Mart or Target. The only thing really helping at the moment is printing online grocery coupons. Wegman’s actually takes printed coupons over a dollar while Shoppers only goes up to a dollar.
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Another great way to save money is getting a second card for someone else and sharing that. My best friend and I got a Sam’s Club card together years ago when we were roommates. We hardly see each other now because of our schedules, but we split the $40 a year cost between the 2 of us and each have our own card. Works great!
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I haven’t tried this because we don’t have a costco, but my brother at college gives his friends that have a costco membership $50 to buy him a $50 gift card for costco and then he can use it with out a membership. He stocks up on sugarless gum and stuff , or uses it for gas. Let me know if anyone else has tried this.
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