We usually go to Costco once every month or so. After a hectic summer, we realized that it had been over two and a half months since we last went. No wonder our list was so long!

I think Costco is well worth the $50 annual fee that they charge. We were approached about upgrading to their ‘Executive Level’ card, which is another $50 annually, but you get 2% refunded to you of most of your purchases at the end of the year (excluding things like alcohol, cigarettes, etc.). We declined, because I figure that for the extra $50 to be worth it, we’d have to spend about $2,500 annually before it started saving us money. I keep track of our purchases on a month by month basis and we’re well short of that.

Still, since Costco sells many big ticket items, such as computers, jewelry, and even caskets, it might be something to consider down the line.

Some of the things I know we saved money on were:

• Raisins – I eat oatmeal for breakfast, and since I don’t buy the individual packets, I add flavor to the plain oats by adding raisins. I have calculated that I get almost twice as many raisins at Costco versus buying them from the grocery store. Great deal!
• Graham crackers – These are among my favorite quick snacks. They sell them at Costco for about $1.85 per box. At the grocery store, the average price is $3.29, and occasionally they’re $2.50. Even at times I apply a coupon, I can never get the price below $2 per box. Great deal!
• Jet Dry – This is the stuff you put into the dishwasher to keep the glasses and plates from getting water spots. I must say that it works. Usually, a small bottle of this is pretty expensive at the grocery store. At Costco, they have a huge bottle for $10, and they had a coupon for $3.50 off. Another great deal!
• Dishwasher detergent – They sell a two pack of dishwasher detergent for a very cheap price, plus the bottles are bigger than the name brands. I don’t remember the exact calculation, but I know in the past this has been a tremendous value, and it’s very highly rated in Consumers Reports as well.
• Cheese – We bought a two pound block of cheddar cheese for $5.39. An eight ounce block at the grocery store is typically $3 or more. To get the same amount of cheese at the grocery store would cost around $12.

The only negatives:

• They were out of the Kirkland brand fabric softener. The price on this is normally another type that’s unbeatable, so we were hoping to stock up as we have maybe two weeks worth on hand right now.
• I was a little disappointed in was the cost of my razor cartridge refills. I use the Gillette Mach3 razors, and have always found their prices on refills to be between $1.50 – $1.75 per cartridge. The price yesterday worked out to $2 per razor, which I instantly knew was higher than normal. I did buy them, but it raised a red flag, and so I did a little research. I found an Amazon re-seller that, including shipping, would price out to about $1.55, which is a big savings. This pack of 20 will last me quite a few months, but I’ll definitely be shopping around next time as it looks like Costco may not be the bargain it once was for this item. (Note: I would return them but the Costco closest to us is closed for re-construction, so a drive back and forth just to return them would use more gas than I’d end up saving. Plus I’m almost out of razors!)

Even in spite of the two little negatives, it was a good shopping trip!

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