The opportunities are not widely advertised, and in the case of Walmart-owned Sam’s Club the offer will expire in the coming weeks.
Author’s Note
This article is based on corporate postings and accredited media reports. Linked information within this article is attributed to the following outlets: Wikipedia.org and KTLA.com.
Introduction
Costco and the Walmart-owned Sam’s Club are two of the largest membership-only warehouse clubs in the country.
Wikipedia features comprehensive overviews of both entities:
Costco Wholesale Corporation (doing business as Costco Wholesale and also known simply as Costco), is an American multinational corporation which operates a chain of membership-only big-box retail stores. In 2021, Costco was ranked #10 on the Fortune 500 rankings of the largest United States corporations by total revenue... As of August 2022, Costco has 834 warehouses worldwide.
Sam's West, Inc. (doing business as Sam’s Club) is an American chain of membership-only retail warehouse club owned and operated by Walmart Inc., founded in 1983 and named after Walmart founder Sam Walton as Sam’s Wholesale Club... As of April 30, 2022, Sam's Club operates 600 membership warehouse clubs in the United States in 44 states, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Recently, news broke of hacks offered by both companies that would allow one to shop at Costco without a membership, while purchasing a Sam’s Club membership for effectively no cost.
Let us explore further.
Costco and Sam’s Club, 2022
On August 19, KTLA.com published “How to Get ‘Free’ Sam’s Club, Costco Memberships.” The article elaborated upon the hacks both companies have laid out for their consumers.
As excerpted from the article: Costco doesn’t offer free memberships, but there are several ways you can still save. If you have a friend with a Costco membership, ask them to buy you a Costco Shop Card. It’ll be mailed to you with a zero balance, but you can add money to it. While you have to be a member to buy a Costco Shop Card, you don’t have to have a membership to use it in stores or online.
The article also states to watch Groupon, as once or twice a year a Costco deal will be offered. Those offers are typically $60 for a one-year-membership, which includes a $40 Costco Shop Card and a coupon for $40 off $250. Both bonuses can be used at once.
The KTLA article, as with many media outlets throughout the country, also discusses Sam’s Club in this regard: Sam’s Club has a deal through September 11 that will basically get you a free 1-year membership. The membership cost is $45 for one year, however, members will get $45 in instant savings when they spend that amount or more on qualifying purchases. The purchases must be made on one transaction within the first 60 days of membership, Sam’s Club says.
The article furthers if $45 is too much money, Sam’s Club has another offer. A customer can buy a one-year membership for $14.99. The same membership normally costs $55 a year. If a membership is purchased before August 31, the customer will also receive a $10 Sam’s Club e-gift card. After factoring this in, membership will cost $4.99.
Conclusion
In this period of high inflation, I hope the hacks presented here are of help to those who may need some help shopping at these membership-only clubs.
Thank you for reading.
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