What do you buy at Costco?

[Trudie]

I love Costco (for many reasons) and am always the person peeking into others' carts to see what they buy.  I live in a rural area, but pass through a town where a Costco is located about every 4-6 weeks and stock up.  I am not a big coupon/ad/multiple stores kind of shopper -- and this is a practicality because of where I live.  I usually hold out and wait for my Costco trips to stock up.

We do not have kids or pets, so our purchases are food and household items.  What do you recommend?

[MoneyCat]

I get most of my groceries at our warehouse store.  The savings on milk alone are worth the trip, because we save about $1.50 a gallon.  I also purchase greeting cards there as well as office supplies like printer ink and paper.  Our warehouse store has gas pumps as well, which typically save us about 30 cents per gallon.

[Meggslynn]

Frozen Wild Fish
Butter
Nitrate free, gluten free, humane smokies and sausage
Coffee
Hummus & Pesto
Organic Tomato Paste, Chopped Canned Tomatoes, Tomato Sauce
Vanilla Extract & Cinnamon
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Bag of Basmati Rice
Avocados
Cherry Tomotos
Salsa
Tortilla Chips
Fancy cheese sometimes
Gluten free Cereals & Pasta
Canned soup for lazy days
Laundry Detergent
Muscle Rub
Sheets
Socks and Undies
Books


Not a big fan of their produce with the exceptions listed above.

[welliamwallace]

LED BULBS! Both floodlights and regular bulbs, they are ridiculously cheap, like $3 a bulb. I replace even my working incandescent bulbs, and these pay for themselves within half a year.

[Lkxe]

Raisin Bran
Mini Wheats
Cinnamon toast crunch (occasionally) These all cost $.12 oz (my cereal limit)
Greek yogurt
Toilet cleaner (once a year)
Justin's Dark PB cups
Aussie Bites
Computer ink
Led bulbs and outdoor light fixtures ( though I am done now)
Switch Sparkling Juice
Refried Beans
canned tomatoes
Salsa
Ziplock bags
Shrimp
edit- oops forgot Wild planet tuna and sustainable salmon

[Zikoris]

Flour
Soy milk
Veggie burgers
Veggie ground round
Hummus
Deodorant
Chocolate chips
Maple syrup
Nuts
Movie tickets

[jbow808]

Normal Purchases:
Almond/ Coconut Flour
Chicken (for some reason it's super expensive at my local market - $5-6/ lb)
Muffins - for the kids (cut in 1/2, a dozen last about a week for 3 kids)
Portabello mushrooms
Spinach
Karrygold Butter
Hummus
Olive Oil

As required  purchases:
Kirkland Brand Toilet Paper (last my family of 5 about 4 months)
Kirkland Brand Flea treatment for the dog (1/2 the price of the name brand stuff)
Ziplock bags
Clothing - socks/ underwear/ jackets (if priced well below retail)
 

[ketchup]

Avocados
Coconut oil
Olive oil
Balsamic vinegar
Wild-caught frozen fish
Canned tomato paste/diced tomatoes/tomato sauce
Kerrygold butter
Laundry detergent
Paper towels/toilet paper
Ziploc bags
Foil
Rice
Gluten-free bread (that doesn't suck)
Bacon
Carrots
Onions
Spices - they rotate what they have sometimes though; ours no longer has chili powder :(
Cheese
Frozen sausage links (lazy breakfast)
Frozen fruit (strawberries, blackberries, mango, blueberries)
Frozen veggies (broccoli, cauliflower)
Nuts
Chicken stock
Maple syrup
Vanilla ice cream (seriously, the Kirkland Signature vanilla ice cream is some of the best store-bought ice cream in existence, an occasional guilty pleasure of ours)

We go pretty regularly, but that's all I can think of at the moment.  Everything I listed ranges from exceptional-deal to pretty-good-deal to same-price-as-elsewhere-but-higher-quality.

[Melf]

We go way too often!

laundry detergent/dry sheets/dishwasher tablets/trash bags/toilet cleaner/bleach
milk/cheese/other dairy products
produce and fruit
dog treats and dog food/cat food/flea and tick treatment
meats
clothes/shoes (if they have something we want or need/quality and price is usually very good)
printer ink
spices and cooking oils
bread
nuts
Halloween candy
wine
synthetic motor oil
tennis balls
paper towels/toilet paper/moist wipes
health and beauty stuff
books on disk
reading glasses
and lots more I can't think of I'm sure!

Marlan

[Mrs. Frugalwoods]

We go once a month and we don't buy all of this every time we go:

Food:
Raw oats
Quinoa
Garbanzo beans (in GIGANTIC cans)
Black Beans
Rice
Dried fruit
Salad greens
Bananas
Avocados
Limes
Any other fruit or veg that's a good deal
Frozen salmon burgers
Frozen Costco-brand pizza

Household:
Laundry detergent
Dishwasher detergent
Tissues
Toilet paper
Paper Towels
Vitamins
Shampoo
Soap
Toothpaste
Floss
Deodorant
Dog food

[Thegoblinchief]

I have some insanely cheap grocery stores, so my Costco buys are a bit smaller than most, but here's what I typically buy:

Cheddar cheese in the 2lb bricks
Bread flour in 50lb sack (unfortunately my Costco does not stock whole wheat)
Almonds
Organic lemon juice
Sugar in 10lb sack
Peanut butter
Fresh mozzarella
Goat cheese
Some vitamins or supplements
Ground bison

You really have to check prices, however. Sometimes Costco is cheap. Other times it is laughably expensive compared to other local markets. Particularly meat and produce. YMMV.

[minimustache1985]

As needed:
Laundry detergent
Dishwasher detergent
Trash bags
Beer and Liquor (but not wine, I've gotten a suspicious amount of turned wine there)
Cheerios
EVOO
Rotisserie Chicken
Frozen (wild) fish
Thick work socks
Hummus- when they carry the sabra individual lunch packs
Lipton tea (I prefer Sprouts green tea, otherwise would get that here too)

When the costco coupons come out for these products:
Ziplock bags
Razors
Shampoo/Conditioner
Kirkland brand Zyrtec

I always assume we don't use enough dairy to get it there, but I'll look at butter next time since that freezes very well.  And the LED bulbs!

[Trudie]

Keep the lists coming... I find this interesting and helpful.

Here's what we usually buy:

Food:
oatmeal
real maple syrup
flour
balsamic dressing - Kirkland
grass fed hamburger
hormone free chicken breasts
Ancient Grains snack crackers
butter
organic carrots
romaine lettuce - 6 pack
nuts
Kirkland egg whites (in cartons)
organic canned tomatoes
chicken and beef broth
parmesan cheese
other cheeses -- occasionally
sweet onions
garlic
wine - especially Bota boxes
Greek Yoghurt - Fage plain nonfat, and other non fat fruity varieties
Store brand cheese pizzas (then put our own meats and veggies on top)
Kirkland tuna and salmon (canned)
wild rice
quinoa
flour
whole grain pasta
Wholly Guacamole - but used to like it better when it was sold in bigger pouches

Non-Food:
Kirkland laundry detergent, TP, paper towels, Kleenex, paper napkins
Kirkland brand Zyrtec
Kirkland brand shampoo/conditioner
Kirkland brand toothpaste and mouthwash
Borghese mascara and facial products
Kirkland trash bags
Razors and shaving cream

Basically, I do the bulk of my shopping there, then accomplish the rest at the local grocery store chain and farmer's market (for fresh veggies).  We belong to a CSA also.  I avoid Wal Mart -- just not a place I like to shop.  We spend big bucks at Costco, but I like not having to do frequent shopping runs -- especially during the workweek.

I always fill up my gas tank before I go:-)

[Beric01]

I'm in Australia. Our nearest CostCo is about 20km drive away (as opposed to our local shops which are in easy walking distance) so we've only gone once so far. We'll go again in the next month or two and then let our membership expire.

Maybe the prices are better in the US, but there were very few things at CostCo that were cheaper than Aldi (within walking distance) or our local greengrocer. We bought:

tinned tomatoes
juice poppers for hypo treatments (ugh, too hard to use with a shaky hand so will not be getting again)
some toiletry stuff that hubby likes
toothbrushes (again, really don't like these ones, won't be buying again)

I don't see the big deal, to be honest.

Same here. Trader Joe's is actually cheaper on some things for me. It's also hard to use up some things before they go bad as a single person. You have to save enough to cover the yearly membership.

[lexie2000]

Eye glasses and contacts (the savings more than cover the annual membership fee)

We normally buy at Costco:
nuts
dried mango
flour tortillas
tamales
butter
cheese
olive oil
seafood
filet and rib eye
liquor
male undershirts
male socks
cat kibble
dog flea/tick meds
cat flea/tick meds

We wait until Costco offers a coupon to buy:
dog kibble
peanut butter
coffee creamer
crackers
beef jerky
Ziplocs

That's pretty much it other than a specialty item from time to time.

[alibean]

brown rice
canned tomatoes
hummus
bread
almond milk
frozen organic veggies
frozen fruit for smoothies
maple syrup
jam/preserves/jelly
tortilla chips
organic carrots
spring mix
spinach

[gimp]

Costco is way more expensive than other stores in the area. I like how they do business, but it doesn't mean I'll give them mine.

[lemonlime]

We go once a month. Our general strategy is to buy animal protein that can be frozen, root-cellar type vegetables, a few canned foods, and paper products. I have found their sheets, clothing, and other home products to be of high quality.
chicken
ground beef or turkey
some cut of beef
frozen raw shrimp
trout or salmon
bacon
(divide up all of the above and freeze)
occasional frozen junk food
occasional delicious broccoli soup
some frozen vegetables like broccoli, peas, green beans
canned tuna, tomatoes
dish soap
pet treats
toilet paper
paper towels
facial tissues
tooth paste
face wash (they carry my preferred brand 99% of the time - Cetaphil)
onions
carrots
sweet potatoes
large block of cheddar cheese
whole pepper corns
EV olive oil when they have an unadulterated brand

this is our standard list, we buy as needed each month. paper products usually last us (two and a half person home plus two dogs) three months. we don't usually need to buy every protein on the list every month, but probably 80% of the protein is purchased monthly.
Every thing else goes bad too quickly (fresh produce and fruits) for our small household and monthly shopping frequency, so we buy that stuff from the grocery store or farmer's market.

We recently purchased a wahl hair clipping set for $10 less than it was advertised on amazon and the results were great. It should pay for itself in two more haircuts, which we'll be able to do more frequently on the mister than when he was going to the barber.

I guess I just really like having all my proteins in the freezer and only having to buy fresh produce weekly.

[MrFrugalChicago]

I'm in Australia. Our nearest CostCo is about 20km drive away (as opposed to our local shops which are in easy walking distance) so we've only gone once so far. We'll go again in the next month or two and then let our membership expire.

Maybe the prices are better in the US, but there were very few things at CostCo that were cheaper than Aldi (within walking distance) or our local greengrocer. We bought:

I don't see the big deal, to be honest.

It depends what you use.

Example 1: Costco has a very good price on their brand, Kirkland, toilet paper. I like it more than the national brands, and it is a little bit cheaper. TP at aldi is just cheap junk.

Example 2: I eat organic quinoa. Aldi doesn't even sell quinoa, and trader joes is a LOT more expensive.

Example 3: Laundry detergent. I think kirkland detergent rocks. Neither aldi nor trader joes has anything special in the detergent isle.


I like Costco for its:
1) House brand stuff, awesome nicer than the national brands
2) Cheap prices on bulk healthy stuff (organics, cage frees, etc)
3) Rotating stuff in the middle, can get an awesome deal on something like an area rug. Can never count on them having something, but if you watch it you can pick up some awesome stuff for cheap.

But if you don't do the organic thing, and you don't spend money on your house for things like area rugs, or you are single - I agree costco is excessive for you.

[dragoncar]

LED BULBS! Both floodlights and regular bulbs, they are ridiculously cheap, like $3 a bulb. I replace even my working incandescent bulbs, and these pay for themselves within half a year.

I'm about to replace a bunch of can lights and other fixtures w/ LED, and was wondering about the costco quality/price.  Did you research other options (online?).  Which brand did you go with (or is there only one?).  Do you recommend buying one or two to try out first under their generous return policy or just go all out and REALLY use their return policy if the lighting doesn't good.

Obviously, I'm worried about light output/pattern and color (prefer warm color profile ala incandescent).

[justajane]

Here's what my family of five regularly buys:

food
cereal (whatever is on sale, esp. Cheerios)
2 lb blocks of cheese
bacon (4 lb Kirkland)
bread (2 pack white for kid sandwiches)
peanut butter
canned beans (black, garbanzo, refried)
seaweed (individual snack packs)
bagels (Einsteins 2 pack)
whatever snack is on sale that month (goldfish, crackers, cereal bars etc.)
applesauce
coffee
yogurt

household
vitamins
shampoo (whatever is on sale)
cat litter
toothpaste
Kirkland brand toilet paper
butt wipes (ahem, a "splurge" for wiping the youngsters)
Tide
Finish dishwasher tabs (break in half, get two washes out of each one)
breathing strips (a snorer amongst us)
Kirkland brand Claritin
sunscreen
lotion

For all of the household, we wait for the rotating sales and most of the food as well. Sometimes I try new frozen or fresh products on the sales. We also buy socks, shoes and clothes when they are a good deal, some toys at Christmas.

What we don't buy
Beer (bad selection, IMO)
milk (worst jug design ever)
carrots and other bulk veggies (can't finish them in time and not cheaper than grocery store)
diapers (cheaper at Target)
chips (gargantuan bags that encourage binge eating)
hummus (great price but too big and we often had to throw away some)
eggs (too many at once)
quinoa (used to buy, but every time I made it it tasted like ass. What am I doing wrong? I love the taste of other peoples' quinoa)

Thanks for the tip about LEDs. As our CFLs and incandescents die, I will replace them.