We have a Sam's Club membership. Although we still have our S&B, we are living full-time in the coach. We are careful about what we buy at Sam's because we don't have a lot of room. At this point the membership is still worth it, but we're keeping an eye on the purchases to see if it will continue to be worth the cost. One factor, once we actually hit the road, is how often we're near a Sam's when we need the things that we normally buy there. right now it is about 50 miles away, so when we go we usually have other reasons to go down to Springfield and make a day of it.

I think this is a really good question.  Not sure we really were considering this when we take off next year.  We currently have memberships in both  I guess some of it depends on whether you use travel or other bennies through them.  But we often get fruit and produce which we can go through rather quickly.  And often times you'll find that they aren't always the best prices.  Sometimes the local grocery stores will be better.  But if you're traveling, how often can you compare prices without fliers, etc.

I'd also be interested in hearing what folks do about that.  Is it just hit and miss or is there a method to the madness?

And if you only did one of them, which one would it be?

Cindi,

Apologies if this is going too far in another direction.  I can always start another thread on the topic.

Sams, there prices are cheaper

Costco.. They have the best NY strip steaks..

I think it depends on what you buy. I keep ours cause we use certain things things that save us enough to cover the cost. Plus we had tires put on our tow vehicle so we could always find a Coctco to have the rotation and check done. Although I do not buy the quantities I used to, things like Ziplocks and toilet paper are such a great savings it is worth it. Fresh roasted coffee beans and a few canned things like sardines and salmon are nice to have on hand.

Produce is sold in wayyyyy to large a quantity for me to use with a couple exceptions like Avacados and Asparagus. But it is summer and we are in PA so I am finding wonderful fresh produce sold at stands or even just the farmer's house etc. We are big on eating what is fresh in season. Then going on to the next fresh item's.

Milk quantities too much, but butter is such a good price and the couple cheeses we love are a terrific savings in the bulk size.

I do a lot of dehydrating for food storage in the RV so we can have some things through the winter. Looking forward to seeing what is fresh in the south this winter. It will be our first one!

Those are just a few of ours that make the membership woth keeping. And if you do any vitamins or pharmacy style products it is a great savings even though you have to buy a little bigger quantity. And one last thing for me is glasses. $300 approx. from exam to finish with a new pair of glasses. Way less expensive than my home town eye Dr. was.

I do agree sometimes it is hard to find one. And driving 50 miles just for Costco is a bit of fuel. So we make sure to plan things around the trip. I get by with every couple months.

We do not have Sam's Club on the West Coast so I am unfamiliar with it.

We have Sam's and use it for a few items plus the fuel discount. It does depend on where you travel, when visiting our family in Dallas and OKC, we're very close to Sam's so we can take advantage of the fuel savings, as well as when we visit the area we used to live. We occasionally find a Sam's in other locations but do not like to go too far out of our way to shop. We have gotten better about finding them while enroute if we have specific items we want to stock up on.

We are Costco Executive Members and have the American Express that doubles as a membership card. Both of these pay us cash each year based on our usage. We get more cash they we pay in, so Costco is very worthwhile for us. We also have a Sam's club membership and do not use it as much, but feel it is breaking even. We end up in areas with only Sam's and when we are around them we buy some of the products only they seem to have. For example, Sam's has great sausage choices, multiple Italian sausage in three 1lb packages, perfect for a jar of spaghetti sauce. We do not have the fancy and more expensive Plus Sam's membership, the extras are not important to us and I already have a Discover card with better deals than the one theirs gives. Often both of these stores have the best gas prices around and some Sam's have diesel. Costco's warranty terms for electronics, computers, TVs, iPads, are better than most places.

For both it depends on what you buy, not just food, and how close you will be to them. In some places these stores are almost as close as the nearest Wal-Mart or grocery store, in other places they are an hour away. In some places everything is an hour away.

Great points everybody regarding things we hadn't considered like the eyeglasses for example.  You've given Brian & I a lot to think about. 

Kim, shhhh on the cheese in bulk... Brian's the house mouse. 

Thanks everyone, Cindi

We have both memberships. If we had to give up one, it would be Sam's without any hesitation.

Costco IMHO has better quality products, great prices and employees that care.

Sam's, on the other hand, has customer service that is only a half a step above it's Walmart partner. Their prices are also good but I get frustrated every time I shop there. 

Definitely check the locator maps for both. I have heard of Costco, but have never seen one, so I checked their site. There are four Costco stores in Missouri, all in Kansas City and St. Louis. The closest one to us is just over 100 miles. There are five Sam's Clubs within 100 miles of here, including two in Springfield (about 50 miles from here).