Author Topic: Costco Help for Married No Kids!  (Read 7645 times)

CrimsonStache

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Costco Help for Married No Kids!
« on: January 06, 2016, 08:21:27 AM »
Fellow M's,

Just got a Costco membership and it is amazing how much cheaper everything is there! However, I am struggling with where it should fit into my overall grocery picture given how large the bulk sizes are. What do you find better to buy at Costco vs. the regular grocery store? I work right next to a Costco so it isn't difficult and live near a Kroger so travel distance isn't a factor.

Here's what I bought on my last Costco run:
Eggs
Milk
Black Beans
Oatmeal
Jasmine Rice
Lettuce
Clementines
Avocados
Onions
Potatoes

Here's what I plan to buy when I run out of my current stock:
Coffee
Tea
Protein Powder (Can anyone suggest a brand or a cheap place online to get Protein Powder?)

Wish they had grits. Does anyone know where I can bulk buy grits?

Thanks in advance!





MicroSpice

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Re: Costco Help for Married No Kids!
« Reply #1 on: January 06, 2016, 08:37:08 AM »
I know they're not groceries, but we buy our paper products there, as well - TP and paper towels.

Other ideas: rotisserie chickens, frozen veggies, frozen berries, sardines, tuna, low-sodium soups (they sell the Amy's Organic lentil and veggie lentil at our Costco), Greek yogurt.

And when it's priced right, booze.

LiveLean

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Re: Costco Help for Married No Kids!
« Reply #2 on: January 06, 2016, 08:46:02 AM »
95 percent of what I eat comes from Costco. I step into a grocery story maybe once every three months. We're a family of four, but we pretty much shopped this way before Costco. The stereotype of Costco only selling bulk sizes is mostly wrong. I shop there at least once a week.

Here's my Costco list:

Rotisserie chicken
Frozen chicken breasts
Fish (love their pre-marinated, wild salmon frozen stuff. Also a good wild salmon patty product that grills easily)
Canned tuna fish
Avocados
Asparagus
Organic power greens (bag of kale, spinach, chard).
Broccoli
Bananas
Apples
Steak (We don't eat much red meat, but I'll buy flank steak, freezing half of it)
Lunch-meat ham (The kids eat it.)
Bread (The kids eat it.)
Wine
Whey Protein powder
Muscle Milk ready-to-drink boxes (cases of 24)
OJ
Bottled water
Milk (for the kids)
Eggs
Egg whites (box of six 12-ounce containers, but I use them everyday and they don't expire for months)
Olive oil
Balsamic vinegar dressing
Almonds
Peanut butter (all-natural, organic 2-pack)

Snack food/treats: Clif bars, Kirkland trail mix, and those peanut butter pretzel bites that come in a jug that I try to avoid since they're so addictive.

Special occasion: There's no better value than a Costco sheet cake for parties. We also buy their boxes of chocolate chip cookies for whenever we need to bring something for parties.
« Last Edit: January 06, 2016, 08:48:14 AM by LiveLean »

Rubic

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Re: Costco Help for Married No Kids!
« Reply #3 on: January 06, 2016, 09:21:19 AM »
Don't forget the great deals on their quality cheeses.

bye-bye Ms. FancyPants

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Re: Costco Help for Married No Kids!
« Reply #4 on: January 06, 2016, 10:47:27 AM »
We are a family of two as well - we buy most of our goods at Costco except for fresh fruits/veggies we know we won't eat fast enough before they go bad. Also buy paper products, deli meats, bison, ground turkey and chicken with them as well. We wait for our vitamins/supplements, saline solution, etc. to go on sale and stock up on also.

We now get our protein powder there that is pretty good. I can't remember the name but it the version that comes in bag form (vs canister). If you buy some and find it yuck you can always return.

I loooovvvee Costco and I looooovvvvvee their return policy even more!

big_slacker

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Re: Costco Help for Married No Kids!
« Reply #5 on: January 06, 2016, 10:59:49 AM »
We get almost all of our fruit from costco because it's amazingly cheaper than most of the grocery stores. Kids eat some but we eat most
Frozen fruit and veggies as well which keep forever
Oils which might be a large size but last forever
Any big dried goods like brown rice and pasta
Canned goods like beans and Amy's soups
Beef jerky is significantly cheaper
2 packs of bread are crazy cheap
2 packs of milk

One of the great things about costco is that you can load up on staples. Yes they're big bags but if they don't go bad why not?

The_path_less_taken

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Re: Costco Help for Married No Kids!
« Reply #6 on: January 06, 2016, 11:24:43 AM »
I'm single and the Executive membership pays itself and I make several hundred a year on the Amex rebate (soon expires though).

Gas
Carrots (me and the horses)
quite a bit of the produce
vegetarian-type stuff: they get more each day, also more gluten free
cheese! Big time cheaper!
fish, cheaper than catching your own
Nuts
coffee and bottled tea
supplements when on the coupon book
canned fish
books!

Etc.

The hardest part is storage and rotation for something like when I buy an entire salmon.

maco

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Re: Costco Help for Married No Kids!
« Reply #7 on: January 06, 2016, 01:48:32 PM »
Cheese! Even shredded cheese at Costco is half the price per pound that block cheese is at the grocery store. Cheddar/colby/jack/etc type cheeses are under $3/lb, and smoked gouda is $6/lb versus the $9/lb at the grocery store.

Also: Costco freezer pizzas (for the day, like this past Sunday, you get done doing a bunch of home improvement work, look around, and discover the entire first floor, including the kitchen and all the dishes and pots and pans, is covered in a layer of plaster dust, preventing you from cooking until after it's all cleaned up) are 4 for $10. They're cheese only, but you can add your own pepperoni if you're into that. For reference, store brand elsewhere, on sale, is usually a little over $3.50.

I'm a red panda

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Re: Costco Help for Married No Kids!
« Reply #8 on: January 06, 2016, 02:16:38 PM »
Can't help you with groceries as we haven't been able to make Costco work for us, but nothing beats Costco for wool socks.  I just wish I had bought more than one pack, since now I can't go back until someone with a membership takes me.

sunday

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Re: Costco Help for Married No Kids!
« Reply #9 on: January 06, 2016, 02:20:38 PM »
We're a 2 person household also, I get from Costco:
Cheese, nuts, paper products, salt/spices, pet supplies, oil, butter/milk, eggs, cleaning supplies, coffee, vitamins, wine. I think we spend most of groceries budget at Costco.

Jack

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Re: Costco Help for Married No Kids!
« Reply #10 on: January 06, 2016, 03:00:32 PM »
The stereotype of Costco only selling bulk sizes is mostly wrong.

That depends. Metro Atlanta has several Costcos, but the one on the south side of town is a "Costco Business Center" and that one really does fit the stereotype. When you go in it's got displays of commercial restaurant equipment instead of gigantic TVs, the center area of the store has convenience-store "labeled for individual sale" junk food instead of clothes, and the packages of everything are even more bulk than regular Costco. It was amazing: you can buy things like whole lamb carcasses (for $3.29/lb!) and bottled water by the pallet.

That said, for a lot of my shopping Aldi beats "normal" Costco prices, although I do like some of the slightly-more-luxurious stuff we can get at the latter. (Stuff like fancy cheese, bottled drinks, Wholly Guacamole for less than the cost of the equivalent number of avocados, etc.) I might have to go back to that business center place for 25 lb beef shoulder clods at $2.39/lb though (which is the sort of thing that makes owning a chest freezer worthwhile).

oinkette

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Re: Costco Help for Married No Kids!
« Reply #11 on: January 07, 2016, 12:16:06 PM »
Single person with Costco membership here.

Don't forget the non-food stuff! Case in point: soap.  bar soap specifically.  I shower everyday (with one of those net-like sponge thingys--which matters). I had an entire pack of soap last me 5 years. Unfortunately the first time I went with Irish Spring, which was a dollar cheaper. This time around I splurged for the Dove. Still on my first bar 2 months in and going strong. Other than that, I load up on the paper supplies, which also last forever.


OSUBearCub

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Re: Costco Help for Married No Kids!
« Reply #12 on: January 08, 2016, 08:53:10 AM »
That said, for a lot of my shopping Aldi beats "normal" Costco prices, although I do like some of the slightly-more-luxurious stuff we can get at the latter. (Stuff like fancy cheese, bottled drinks, Wholly Guacamole for less than the cost of the equivalent number of avocados, etc.)

I'm having trouble with the warehouse (gift membership to Sam's Club) vs. Aldi.  As a single person.

+1 on the rotisserie chickens, they're bigger and cheaper than grocery store

I get most of my non-edibles at the warehouse club:
TP and paper towels - the large size cuts down on frequent runs and is on par with Aldi prices
Bar soap - awesome value
Deodorant - gotta buy 5 at a time but that's almost a year's supply for 9 bucks
Toothpaste - I have to use a particular kind, price can't be beat in bulk

The only edibles I buy are:
Rotisserie chickens
Eggs - I like Eggland's Best so I pay slightly more than the Aldi price on generic eggs
Produce specials of the month
Fresh chicken breasts - always cheaper than anywhere else, though I have to freeze 3/4 of the 5lb package immediately


hops

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Re: Costco Help for Married No Kids!
« Reply #13 on: January 08, 2016, 10:04:45 AM »
Basmati rice, lentils, tofu, cheese, and many oils and spices are our big Costco staples, along with beer. My fiancee likes to take ZonePerfect bars or string cheese to work as a snack and those items are ridiculously inexpensive at Costco compared to supermarkets. When big bags of Pirate's Booty or Skinny Pop are on sale, we can buy one for $4 or $5 and it provides work snacks for a good two months. Occasionally we find spices cheaper at an ethnic grocer, but generally Costco wins.

The Aldi/Costco debate on items like produce or milk is often settled by apps like Ibotta (I'll post a referral link below if anyone's unfamiliar with it). It's not unusual for Ibotta to offer $0.50 back on a gallon of milk or a particular produce item at select stores. Costco participates in some of these rebates (so do various regional grocery chains, Target, Walmart, etc., but you have to check each offer for details), you just use the app to scan the item's UPC code, submit a photo of the receipt, and within a few hours your account is credited. Aldi doesn't currently participate, which often makes milk cheaper at Costco despite the shelf price being identical.

We save probably $20 to $30 per year that way, in drips and drabs of $0.50 here and there on things like milk, cheese and produce.

Ibotta: https://ibotta.com/r/qyvrlgo

robartsd

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Re: Costco Help for Married No Kids!
« Reply #14 on: January 08, 2016, 10:44:40 AM »
Costco is generally (not always) cheaper for equivalent quality. I don't find that the size of most Costco perishable items is too much for my own two person household, except things you rarely use (for some items it even makes financial sense to buy at Costco if you can only use about half before it would go bad). For instance, we switched from cold cereal to green smoothies for breakfast nearly two years ago; after the change it no longer makes sense to buy milk two gallons at a time but we now buy multiple packages greens, bananas, and frozen fruit at a time - with a chest freezer we load up even more when they are on sale. Almost any item sold at most Costco warehouses can be consumed by a two-person houshold that uses the item regularly. On the other hand, Costco tends to have a certain minimum quality level that I don't always want to pay for - store brand cereal was a regular non-Costco purchase for us before we made the switch to green smoothies.

Jack

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Re: Costco Help for Married No Kids!
« Reply #15 on: January 08, 2016, 10:59:26 AM »
On the other hand, Costco tends to have a certain minimum quality level that I don't always want to pay for - store brand cereal was a regular non-Costco purchase for us before we made the switch to green smoothies.

+1

MayDay

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Re: Costco Help for Married No Kids!
« Reply #16 on: January 10, 2016, 05:53:43 AM »
We have kids now, but we've been shopping at Costco since before kids.  The below take a long time to spoil, or are sold in reasonable quantities. In some cases (vegetables) yes we do have eat salad every day to finish the lettuce, but that's a good thing!

Eggs
Single serve yogurt or the big tub if you eat a lot.
Butter
Olive oil
All the frozen veggies and fruits
Toilet paper
Nuts
Tortilla chips
Cheese
Lettuce
Carrots
Chocolate chips
Lemon juice

Basically there is a lot of stuff that doesn't spoil quickly, so if you use it regularly you'll use it up.

tipster350

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Re: Costco Help for Married No Kids!
« Reply #17 on: January 10, 2016, 07:34:58 AM »
The clothes are worth looking at. Men's button-down shirts are excellent quality, will last a long time, and are cheap. I've bought some women's basics at a very reasonable price for the quality.

Also, the Vision department has a decent selection with prices that are hard to beat. The only cheaper optionis buying online from the Chinese sites like Zenni, which I am opposed to.
« Last Edit: January 10, 2016, 07:37:09 AM by tipster350 »

horsepoor

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Re: Costco Help for Married No Kids!
« Reply #18 on: January 10, 2016, 09:59:30 AM »
DINKS here.  Disclaimer - we have a big clown house with a gigantic laundry room, so storing CostCo sized stuff isn't an issue.

We buy there:

Coffee (both the Rainforest blend for at home and Folger's that husband takes to work for the communal pot)
Olive oil - usually.  Sometimes I run into a better deal at World Market or Trader Joe's or something
Coconut Oil - their price is pretty good, though I just recently bought bulk from Bulk Apothecary instead.
Olives - sometimes cheaper at WinCo
Pretty much all paper and cleaning supplies - TP, bleach, vinegar
Dog food - their dog food is pretty good quality, especially for the price. 
Spring mix salad - $1 cheaper than the grocery store, so we grab it if we're there but don't make a special trip
Garlic
Mushrooms
Cheese - cheddar, gorgonzola crumbles, Kerrygold and pecorino usually.
Butter - I actually buy Kerrygold at WinCo, but hope our local CostCo starts carrying it.  Their price on butter is pretty good if you like the kind they carry. 
Chicken breasts - we don't buy much meat there because I source beef locally and load up on whole chickens when the free-range ones are on sale at a different store.  But it's nice to have some plain old chicken around and theirs are pre-packaged 2 per pack so I can just toss them in the freezer.
Salmon burgers - another easy protein for when we're busy.
Boxed wine $1-3 cheaper than the grocery store

Other various stuff as needed - lightbulbs, windshield wipers, batteries, potting soil, garden hoses (these are like 1/2 price), gloves, electronics, etc.  Their household stuff is worth looking at.  The other day I was kicking myself because I bought a charging station type thing at Fred Meyer for around $22 so we can plug our USB stuff in.  Exact same product in a 2-pack at CostCo for $16.99.  Doh.

purplepear

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Re: Costco Help for Married No Kids!
« Reply #19 on: January 10, 2016, 10:55:42 AM »

Also: Costco freezer pizzas (for the day, like this past Sunday, you get done doing a bunch of home improvement work, look around, and discover the entire first floor, including the kitchen and all the dishes and pots and pans, is covered in a layer of plaster dust, preventing you from cooking until after it's all cleaned up) are 4 for $10. They're cheese only, but you can add your own pepperoni if you're into that. For reference, store brand elsewhere, on sale, is usually a little over $3.50.

+1 for Costco freezer pizzas. These are great in case of food emergencies (a.k.a. ultimate laziness). Not the healthiest... but at least they don't have hydrogenated oils.

DINK here. We usually go to Costco once/month and make sure we're stocked up on:

Aforementioned frozen pizzas
Giant bag of dry black beans
Giant bag of brown rice
Giant bag of steel cut oats
Shredded cheddar cheese (comes in 2 giant bags taped together. Freeze 1 of the bags)
Package of 20 cans of diced tomatoes
Coffee
Salsa
Pasta sauce
Paper/household goods
Kirkland brand dishwashing soap tablets
Whole Wheat Grain-y Bread (comes in pack of 2 loaves. Freeze one.)
Giant container of pre-minced garlic
Large bottle of vanilla extract
Cholula hot sauce
Boxed wine
24-pk of beer (Selection changes seasonally. Sometimes you can get really great variety backs of beer for cheap. We currently have a variety pack of Alaskan Brewing Co :) )

Basically, I walk around Costco and look for staples that we use all the time (like black beans & rice) and stuff that I can freeze easily (like bread and cheese). Since we only have 2 people in the household, I only buy stuff in bulk that are non-perishable or that I can preserve easily.

Sylly

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Re: Costco Help for Married No Kids!
« Reply #20 on: January 10, 2016, 11:14:18 AM »
Two person household here. We rarely buy groceries from Costco because we can usually get them cheaper on sale at grocery chains.

Things we buy at Costco:

Gas (this alone probably makes the membership worthwhile)
Bananas, raspberries
Soy / almond milk
Chicken sausages
Ground beef (the only meat we consistently find cheaper than grocery store sales)
Cleaning supplies (including dishwashing detergent)
Frozen chicken tenders
Ham
Hot dogs
Cereal (occasionally, if we're low and nothing's on sale)
Bottled / canned drinks - juice, tea, vitamin water
Honey, agave syrup
Ketchup, mustard (we do go through that much of these, b/c one of us likes to make bbq sauce)
Chicken (Better than) bouillon
Yeast
Bread flour
Sugar
Some spices
Rice
Canned goods - diced tomatoes, black beans, refried beans
Oil - extra virgin olive, mediterranean blend, coconut
Toothpaste
Shampoo & conditioner
Bar soaps
Vitamins
Clothes
Potting soil (seasonal)

And other random stuff Costco manages to hoist on us as we shop.

I'm probably forgetting things, but the above is the bulk of what we get. We're also relatively close to the Costco business center, which has some things the regular store doesn't have (like the non-low-sugar vitamin water, for example). But the food packaging in the business center is more geared for restaurants (or large households, I guess). For example, pasta is cheap, but we decided we don't want 2 x 10lb packages of pasta.

horsepoor

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Re: Costco Help for Married No Kids!
« Reply #21 on: January 10, 2016, 11:32:30 AM »
Yeah, those last two posts reminded me of some of the condiment type things that are way cheaper.

Worcestershire sauce
Vanilla extract
Grey Poupon mustard
Soy Sauce

I wish they sold Sriracha!

Nuts - I eat mostly raw, unsalted nuts, so I get almonds, pecans and walnuts from their baking section.
Also, almond butter and maple syrup are like half price at CostCo.

When they do their organics sale there are good deals on almond milk, chia seeds - stuff like that.


SilveradoBojangles

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Re: Costco Help for Married No Kids!
« Reply #22 on: January 10, 2016, 11:51:26 AM »
We are two people, and we have a hard time getting through costco sized amounts of food. We also have minimal fridge/freezer space because we share a house. We use costco to stock up on canned/dry goods for the most part. Here is what we buy:

Grains - rice, quinoa, oats, what they have varies.
Beans
Baking supplies
Nuts/Nut butter
Canned goods - diced tomatos, tuna, corn, more beans, we eat a lot of beans
Toiletries - conditioner, contact solution, TP, cleaning products, etc.
Booze when appropriately priced - we picked up 1.75L of Bulleit Rye for 33$ the last time we were there, usually .75L retails for $26.
Cheerios
Butter
green coffee beans - Picked up 30 pounds organic sumatra for $3.50/pound, which is a damn good price.
Oils maybe?- I actually think the coconut oil at TJs is cheaper, and I've found avocado oil cheaper at grocery outlet, and I have my doubts about the purity of the olive oil, but maybe I would buy canola oil there?


GreenSheep

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Re: Costco Help for Married No Kids!
« Reply #23 on: January 10, 2016, 11:58:37 AM »
My boyfriend/housemate has a membership through work, so I've gone to Costco with him twice, most recently yesterday. I have been disappointed in their "deals," with some exceptions. Part of that is probably due to what I eat; I don't eat animal products or refined grains, and I avoid most processed foods, so that eliminates a lot.

Things I do buy there that seem to be cheaper than elsewhere:
-Toilet paper
-Organic spinach ($3.50 for 16oz is much better than I've seen anywhere else!)
-Frozen fruit
-Brown rice
-Avocados
-Cholula hot sauce
-Medjool dates

Things I've found better deals on elsewhere:
-Nuts (at Sprouts, when they're on sale, which is often)
-Vanilla (Buy the cheapest vodka you can find, order vanilla beans from Amazon, slice beans in half lengthwise, put 7 of them into a 750mL bottle, shake, set aside for several months, shake occasionally -- voila, 750mL (~25oz) vanilla extract for about $16)
-Spices (I get these at the local Mexican and Middle Eastern markets, or rarely on Amazon when I can't find something locally)
-Fresh produce (We grow a lot, but also it appears that Sprouts has better deals, if you're willing/able to create meals around what's on sale. Pineapples were recently on sale for 98 cents each (not per pound!), and they're $3 each at Costco.)

purplepear

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Re: Costco Help for Married No Kids!
« Reply #24 on: January 10, 2016, 07:10:16 PM »
I wish they sold Sriracha!

Amen.

At least they carry giant bottles of Cholula, my 2nd favorite spicy sauce.

accolay

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Re: Costco Help for Married No Kids!
« Reply #25 on: January 11, 2016, 06:24:39 AM »
Just the two of us. The only things we buy at costco are the things we can get cheaper there than our regular grocery store and have found we really have to price compare. We probably go once a month on average. We found that sometimes we weren't able to eat the bulk fresh items before they went bad.

Our standard list includes oil, cheese, frozen chx breast, nuts, butter, lemon juice, oats, brown rice, frozen broccoli, spices, eggs. Mostly raw ingredients.