Whether you are in debt or just trying to make ends meet, it makes sense to find ways to stretch your dollar. Many of the grocery stores offer club member cards so you can get discounts or earn points to get free groceries. They don’t usually cost and you can easily have a number of cards. It’s a way for the grocery stores to compete to get your business and you to save money.
Costco, on the other hand charges for their membership as they claim to have the lowest prices which is especially ideal for bulk buyers, large families and businesses You can’t enter and buy from a costco store without showing your membership card. They even have a gas station on their lots that you can get discounted gas using your membership card.
There are three types of membership, gold star, business & executive. If a person regularly shops at Costco or does a few bulk purchases during the course of the year, the gold star membership at $60 will certainly pay for itself. But it is the executive membership that at $120 for one year is steeper in price which offers an enticing 2% reward (up to $1000 per year) on most of your purchases. They tend to promote this one more, as you can see why, since is higher in price and offering a cash reward to it to make it appealing.
In order for the executive membership to pay for itself you would need to spend $6,000 over the year. Which with regular grocery shopping and other purchases, isn’t a whole lot, taking into consideration that the savings you receive when comparing say to Walmart.
You receive your 2% rewards approximately 2 months before your membership renewal. You can use the rebate you receive to either get cash or buy products in the store. The good thing about this is if you take the cash and it’s $120 or more, then it pays for your membership and therefore is free. If it’s $240, then it paid for both your first and second year. That would mean savings on your purchases would be an added bonus as the membership is free.
The executive membership also offers discounts on services and has exclusive offers with additional discounts. Some of which are car rentals, auto & home insurance and home phone & internet. With Costco’s buying power they are able to get deals with large companies for their members.
Just think, even if you regularly fill gas at Costco’s gas station, that alone could easily pay for your membership with the discount you receive. You also can give discount on tires.
By any means Costco is no fancy store as is a warehouse. It definitely is good for bulk buying but also you can get some great deals overall. For saving money, a Costco membership is an ideal option to consider.
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