10 Major Differences Between Costco, Sam's Club, & BJ's

Warehouse chains are as popular as ever, with Costco opening dozens of new locations this year as a result. It's just one component in an ongoing effort to lead the industry, though Costco has some steep competition.

Similarly, Sam's Club and BJ's Wholesale are sticking to innovation and customer service to be the premiere warehouse chain. All three chains offer similar benefits to their members, but there are also some key differences. If you live near at least two of the three chains, you may be torn on which warehouse is worth joining.

From the variety of items in stock to online shopping and potential savings, there are many factors to keep in mind when deciding which warehouse chain to become a member of. If you need some guidance or have always wondered what exactly the difference is between Costco, Sam's Club, and BJ's Wholesale, this roundup will give you some additional insight.

Membership Prices

Costco: America's leading warehouse club offers two main membership levels for families. Its introductory Gold Star membership costs $65 per year, or for $130 a year, you can opt for its executive membership. The biggest difference between the memberships is that executive members receive an annual 2% reward on qualified Costco purchases. Companies can also sign up for a business membership for $60 per year, which allows members to make purchases for resale.

Sam's Club: Membership to the Walmart-owned club comes in at a slightly lower cost than Costco. Its introductory Club membership costs $50 a year, and its premium Plus membership costs $110 per year. Many of the benefits overlap between each membership level. However, Plus members qualify for perks like free shipping, earlier shopping hours, and added savings at the pharmacy. There is no business membership option at Sam's Club.

BJ's: This East Coast wholesale chain offers two membership levels: Club and Club+. The Club costs $60 per year per member, with the option to add up to three additional members for $30 each. Club+ costs $120 per year, with members earning up to 2% back in rewards, plus added savings at BJ's gas stations. BJ's also offers two business membership levels for $55 and $110 annually.

Return Policy

Costco: Costco members find the return policy quite generous, as most items can be returned at any time unless otherwise noted. Some exceptions include electronics, major appliances, and cell phones, typically with a 90-day return policy. Other specific items may be a final sale, but those are generally few and far between. Even grocery items can be returned for a full refund.

Sam's Club: Most items can be returned to Sam's Club at any time, with few exceptions. Electronics come with a 90-day return policy, while items like heavy equipment and motorsports items must be returned within 30 days. Cell phones have one of the smallest return windows at 14 days.

BJ's: While also generous, BJ's Wholesale is the only one out of the three major warehouse chains that put a limit on what would otherwise be an unlimited return window. General merchandise must be returned within one year of purchase, except for electronics. Those, from televisions to computers to electric scooters, must be returned between 14 to 30 days, depending on the exact item.

Branded Credit Cards

If you want to take your warehouse brand loyalty a step further, you can sign up for a branded credit card that comes with an array of perks you can redeem while shopping. All three warehouse chains have their own version of a rewards credit card, with some slight variations.

The Costco Anywhere Visa by Citi comes in individual and business varieties, with rewards like 5% rewards on gas at Costco, 3% on restaurants, and 2% on Costco purchases. With a paid Costco membership, there is no annual fee on the Costco Anywhere Visa.

The Sam's Club MasterCard boasts similar perks, including 5% back in Sam's Cash on gas anywhere Mastercard is accepted. Plus Members earn 3% back in Sam's Cash on Sam's Club purchases, with Club Members earning 1% back. With no annual fee, it's a solid credit card to consider if most of your shopping is done at Sam's Club.

Not to be outdone, the BJ's One MasterCard and One+ MasterCard offer similar benefits to cardholders. Members can earn 3% to 5% back in rewards on most BJ's purchases, with 10 to 15 cents off gas at BJ's every day.

Receipt Checking Process

Checking your receipt at the door is part of the warehouse shopping experience and one that members have come to expect. Last year, however, Sam's Club shook up the business model by introducing new technology that automatically verifies if all shopping cart items appear on the receipt. This is a major change from its competitors, Costco and BJ's, which still have employees at the exit door manually checking shopping carts.

This process is not entirely human-free, as Sam's Club employees are still on standby to verify that the receipt matches what the AI-powered arches scan. Sam's Club is rolling these cart-checking changes out in phases nationwide.

Number of Locations

Costco: According to Costco's website, there are currently over 600 warehouses across 47 states and Washington, D.C., as well as hundreds of international locations, which members can access regardless of their country of origin. International Costcos can be found in countries such as Taiwan, Japan, Australia, France, Mexico, and Canada.

Sam's Club: The Walmart website notes that there are almost 600 warehouse locations across the United States and Puerto Rico. Sam's Club operates in 44 states.

BJ's: BJ's is by far the smallest of the three warehouse chains in terms of total store count. There are over 200 BJ's stores across 20 states, all located along the eastern seaboard. If you live on the East Coast, it may be worth it to look into a BJ's membership. Otherwise, your main options for a warehouse club membership are between Costco and Sam's Club.

Average Sticker Price

Figuring out which club offers the lowest prices on groceries can be tricky—though some news outlets have attempted to figure it out.

This past March, The News & Observer compared the prices of 60 items at Costco, Sam's Club, and BJ's warehouses in Raleigh, N.C., and found Sam's Club to have the lowest prices and highest quantity of items. The publication reported that it didn't use "true receipt amounts," as it didn't include sales tax or store discounts when comparing prices. These findings aligned with the conclusions from an October 2023 study conducted by the AARP.

When weighing the warehouse clubs against each other, it's important to note that Costco often charges more for products purchased online than it does in-store. Costco also sells more organic products than its competitors, which could mean some items will ring up higher than they would at Sam's Club or BJ's.

So, really, the only way to know for sure is to shop around on your own. It may be worth signing up for a free trial membership at Sam's Club to compare with Costco. Costco doesn't offer free trials, but it does extend its money-back guarantee to its memberships. So, if you sign up for a Costco membership and aren't satisfied, you can cancel for a full refund.

For non-food items, one unique benefit about BJ's is that is that it accepts manufacturer coupons, which neither Costco or Sam's Club will do. That can add up to even more savings on already-low prices.

Food Court

Costco: One aspect of a Costco membership that customers enjoy is access to the warehouse's food court. The Costco food court sells a number of low-cost items like its famous $1.50 hot dog and soda combo and $1.99 slice of pizza. The menu is regularly changing, with Costco replacing its Pepsi products with Coca-Cola products this year.6254a4d1642c605c54bf1cab17d50f1e

Sam's Club: The Walmart-owned warehouses include cafes that sell a variety of pizza slices, hot dogs, pretzels, and a pizza-pretzel hybrid. For dessert, members can buy frozen yogurt cups and sundaes. Though there are slight menu differences, the offerings at Sam's Club and Costco are largely the same. One major difference, however, is that Sam's Club cafes are open to all, while Costco's food courts are reserved for members and their guests only.

BJ's: BJ's warehouses used to offer food courts, too, but those have been discontinued. Instead, BJ's locations have featured Dunkin' kiosks since 2016. So, while you cannot get a cheap slice of pizza, you can at least sip on some iced coffee—something that Costco and Sam's Club food courts do not offer, though Costco does have frozen coffee drinks.

Variety of grocery and non-grocery items

No matter which warehouse you choose, you can find most, if not all, of your weekly groceries there. All three chains sell their products in bulk quantities, meaning you will have a lot more food to store in your cabinets and refrigerator when you return home. All three clubs also carry their own store brands, offering more savings over name-brand goods.

There are some differences between the three chains, however. For starters, if you are looking for the widest selection of organic products, stick with Costco. If you just want sheer volume and the most amount of options possible, look into a BJ's membership. It may seem like Costco sells everything under the sun, but it actually carries far fewer items than its competitors, offering about 4,000 SKUs (stock keeping units—aka items). Meanwhile, BJ's states that it offers more than 7,000 SKUs. Sam's Club's SKU information isn't readily available on its website, though the The Motley Fool reported that it carries between 6,000 and 7,000 products.

Online shopping

Costco: Online shopping is available at costco.com. In fact, even non-members can purchase items online, including groceries. However, non-members will pay a 5% surcharge on their purchases. Members and non-members alike can have their groceries ordered online and delivered via Instacart. Costco.com offers same-day delivery on all groceries with a $35 minimum spend. Curbside pickup is not available at most warehouse locations.

Sam's Club: Sam's Club members can shop online for groceries and other items you would find in the warehouses. Same-day delivery for groceries is available for members only. Curbside pickup is also available for members. The in-store shopping experience is also made easier through technology, thanks to the Sam's Club Scan & Go feature in its app.

BJ's: Online shopping is available for BJ's members. The warehouse's 1-day non-member shopping pass also extends online, allowing customers to make purchases on BJs.com without a membership card. When ordering groceries online, BJ's offers both same-day delivery and curbside pickup. BJ's also offers ExpressPay in its warehouse locations, making the in-store checkout experience far quicker.

Payment options

Costco: Costco only accepts Visa credit cards in addition to cash, most debit cards, Costco Shop cards, personal and business checks from Costco members, traveler's checks, EBT cards, and mobile payments. Additionally, the retailer's health services accept FSA/HSA Visa or MasterCard debit cards.

Sam's Club: The Walmart-owned warehouse club accepts all major credit cards from U.S. accounts, including American Express, MasterCard, and Discover. The retailer also accepts cash and checks, Sam's Cash, SNAP or EBT, Walmart credit cards, and prepaid credit cards.

BJ's: BJ's accepts Mastercard, Visa, American Express, and Discover Network for both digital and in-person purchases. Customers can also pay via cash, check, and debit card when shopping in-club.