There’s a reason so many people love shopping at Costco. Not only can you save money on essentials like groceries, but you can also find certain items at Costco that you can’t find anywhere else.
But if you’re not careful, you might find yourself wasting money at Costco instead of saving it. If you’ve fallen into that trap, here are some steps you can take to avoid wasting money.
1. Buy Kirkland Signature products instead of branded products
Kirkland is Costco’s signature private label, and you’ll find the Kirkland label on a variety of products, ranging from groceries to cleaning supplies to clothing.
You may tend to stock up on the national brands you know and love. And you may find that these items are cheaper in bulk at Costco than at your local supermarket or big box store.
However, you should know that you will get a big discount when you purchase Kirkland Signature products. Costco prices its Kirkland line so that it at least 20% cheaper than well-known competitors.
In other words, a $10 item with a familiar label might cost $8 or less at Costco if you buy the Kirkland version. Over time, the savings there can really add up.
And if you’re worried about quality, don’t worry. Costco’s Kirkland line of products has a great reputation. Plus, Costco guarantees your complete satisfaction with every item you purchase, so if you’re not happy with a Kirkland purchase, you should generally have no problem returning it and getting your money back.
2. Explore the store in its entirety every time you shop
Shopping at Costco can be a bit of an adventure. The more aisles you browse, the more hidden treasures you can discover.
But exploring Costco in its entirety could also mean you’re making a lot of impulse purchases, so if you’re known to overspend at Costco for this reason, it’s time to break that cycle.
You can do this by making a shopping list each time you go shopping and resolving to avoid the aisles that don’t have the items on the list. Better yet, bring a shopping buddy with you to help you avoid those aisles.
3. Acceptance of free samples
A great benefit of shopping at Costco is that you can enjoy free samples. And since you get to try things more than once, you can sometimes get enough food for a free meal.
But there’s a downside to sampling these tasty samples: you’ll be tempted to put food in your cart that you didn’t originally intend to buy. Not only can this increase your bill, but you also run the risk of wasting money by throwing food away.
It’s one thing to enjoy a tasty bite of edamame dumplings while shopping at Costco. It’s another thing to bring home a box of 72 of them that you and your family may or may not eat. So be cautious about accepting food samples at Costco if you’ve been known to lead to extra spending and wasteful purchases in the past.
The point of a Costco membership is to save money—not the opposite. These changes could help you stop wasting money and make the most of your membership.
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