Anonymous wrote:Do you need things like tires, batteries, lightbulbs, contact lenses or glasses, towels, rugs & runners, bulk alcohol, a 12 pack of croissants. . . then yeah, you need costco in your life.

Yeah, it's shockingly easy to make your $50 membership cost back at Costco. I just got my renewal statement in the mail last week and did some quick calculations to see if it had been worth it the past year and found out I had saved enough to pay for my membership 3 times over with beer purchases alone.

Do you need things like tires, batteries, lightbulbs, contact lenses or glasses, towels, rugs & runners, bulk alcohol, a 12 pack of croissants. . . then yeah, you need costco in your life.

We've found that appliances are generally cheaper at Costco -- not a huge discount but enough to cover the membership cost.

For example I just looked at a high-end LG fridge - their price $5999, Best Buy's price $6299, Lowe's $6999 for the same model.

Also Costco automatically extends the warranty for a second year, and if you are buying an extended warranty, the prices for those are significantly discounted.

Their selection is limited so if you have narrow specifications you may not find what you need. But the extra warranty year and Costco's customer service are terrific.

I love Costco but wouldn't join for a single purchase. The thing about Costco--and some people don't realize this--is that they don't try to sell crap. They try to sell good or excellent stuff at a deal. The specials rotate on a seasonal basis so they sell furniture and rugs in January, etc. Tires are on special a couple times a year. They also don't have a massive selection. If you want cheap, I guess go to Home Depot? If you want a massive selection, go to an appliance store. By an large, I have been extremely satisfied with my Costco purchases over the years but it only works if you are not a label snob (I wear Fuggs, not Uggs), have room to stock up, have a family, and can shop during the week. If I had to shop on weekends, I would have stopped going years ago.

I was looking @ dishwashers recently. Costco won, but only because they didn't charge premium for upgraded trim of the same model. Like HD and other retailers charged $100+ more for the trim with top control panel vs front control panel. Costco priced them the same.

I recently did fridge and stove shopping.

I got the best deal at an appliance store. I did not want fancy - I wanted a workhorse that was not going to break.

I purchased a Kitchenaid Fridge. I heard from more than 1 sales person not to purchase the water / ice dispenser unit in the door - that it will absolutely break right when it goes out of warranty. The design with the water dispenser in side the refrig is not as convenient for everyone - just sharing this POV.

We looked at Costco for a furnace and the difference in price was insanely high. They tried to give us all these rebates (costco cards to spend at costco) but the price even after getting "money back" was thousands higher. And teh salespeople were terrible. Not answering technical questions, calling us multiple times wondering why we weren't buying their furnace.

I realize furnaces are a bit more involved than fridges and stoves, but the whole experiences has me leery about any savings there. I'm an otherwise happy costco shopper, so I'd check on prices as a data point. Do you have friends that could look for you? Or maybe you can just call and ask?

I'm not sure whether to get a Costco membership. I'm guessing it's not worth it for us in terms of pantry/grocery savings, but maybe it would be if we also buy appliances there? We need a new fridge and a new stove and I want good quality, eg higher-end LG, Samsung or GE. I can't see the prices on the Costco website because I'm not a member. Would those kind of purchases be significantly cheaper than at BestBuy or Lowes?