Costco Vs Sam's Club: Who Has The Best Samples, According To Customers?

Let's be honest here: Between the fact that there never seems to be enough hours in the day for everything we need to do to the challenges we face with deciding what we're going to make for multiple meals, grocery shopping is a hassle. Even heading to stores like Costco and Sam's Club can be intimidating, even if we have a list of go-to items and standard buys. But there's a plus side, and that's the fact that there is something that makes shopping much more bearable: free samples.

Who doesn't love free samples? Those sample tables that you'll find throughout both Costco and Sam's Club are like an oasis in the desert, giving us just enough fuel to soldier on, keep shopping, and hopefully send us coasting through the inevitably long checkout lines so we can get home and get into comfy pants. There's also a good chance that you might get some serious dinner inspiration from samples, or discover your next must-buy purchase.

While there are perks to shopping at both stores, free samples is a big one. So, we asked: Which store has the biggest, best, and better selection of samples? While we did have big thoughts on this ourselves, we wanted to know what other customers on both sides of the fence had to say. So, we headed out to social media to do a lot of digging and come up with a definitive answer on which store comes out on top in the sample game.

When it comes to things like free samples, quantity and variety are definitely the name of the game. That, however, is where Sam's Club seems to be lacking, as a Reddit post dedicated to the question of samples put forward the question of why Sam's Club seemed to have so few in comparison to Costco. It turns out that it's a common complaint, with customers reporting that it's not unusual to head to Sam's and find samples dismally scarce. In some cases, inquiries with Sam's staff even led to the suggestion that the number of samples on offer depended on the day and even the weather conditions.

It's not just the stands with actual, live, human people handing out samples that seem to be lacking in Sam's, and let's take the Freeosk stations. Freeosk stations are found throughout Sam's Club stores, and it seems like it'd be a great way to hand out samples without needing to keep staff on hand. 

Redditors have a lot to say about these, too. The idea is that you scan your membership card, watch a short video clip, then get your sample. Customers report that the machines are so often out of samples that they've given up stopping at them at all, which defeats the entire purpose. Others complain that they've had machines give out products different than what was advertised, or that they just don't work.

When it comes to the chance to get some free staples, it turns out that not everyone's a fan. In one Reddit thread discussing the pros and cons of samples, some point out that they're there just to get in, get their groceries, and get out. Crowds around sample tables can make it incredibly difficult to maneuver through the store, especially when you're pushing a giant cart. Some suggested that fewer samples gave Sam's Club the advantage over Costco, but there's something else we'd like to take into account here, too. 

That's the average store size. Costco stores average around 146,000 square feet, and that average seems as though it's only increasing. In 2023, it was announced that one 134,000 square foot store in California had outgrown its footprint and was going to be moved to a larger location, and that location was going to be a whopping 22.5 acres (including a gas station). 

Sam's Club, on the other hand, tends to be smaller on average. According to official numbers, the average is 136,000 square feet, and Sam's hasn't seen the kind of expansion that Costco has. When a 160,000 square foot store was announced in 2023, it was the first new club opened since 2017. Simply put, larger stores mean more room not only for samples, but no matter how many samples there are, we'd argue that the easier it is to maneuver around them, the better.

Fans know that there are some serious benefits to buying wine at Costco, and the chain is notorious for putting just as much into making its liquor both affordable and as good as any of the name brands. That said, there are a few states that don't allow Costco to sell any alcohol at all, but for the most part, it's kind of a major thing the chain is known for. That's what makes it extra surprising that it's Sam's Club that's known as the one that gives out alcohol samples — with ID — while Costco doesn't.

Just when Sam's Club started handing out samples of alcohol isn't clear, with one Redditor noting that in 2023, it was something new at their local club. Plenty of others chimed in to say that their clubs had been doing it for years. In other Reddit threads, customers confirm that it's a Sam's-only perks that they're surprised Costco hasn't added to their sample rotation, which raises the very legit question of why it hasn't.

While we didn't find any definitive corporate answer, we did find plenty of speculation. In a nutshell, it likely comes down to the legalities of giving out samples of alcohol varying by state and existing separately from the legalities of selling it. Costco already has well established itself as a leader is the sale of store-brand alcohol and liquors, so perhaps navigating sample legalities just isn't worth it.

Getting concrete information about things like sample schedules is difficult, as it seems that both Costco and Sam's Club want to keep the mystery alive. However, Reddit exists, and some Redditors have discussed exactly when shoppers at each store can expect to find most samples being handed out.

Costco employees say that although precise times can vary by location, samples generally start at either 11 or 11:30 a.m. and end at either 4:30 or 5 p.m. They also add that if you're feeling lucky, you can try to hit the stores at the tail end of that window. Why? If the people handing out the samples have a lot of leftover product, you might just hit the jackpot. (Or, you might end up with nothing.) Other Redditors suggest samples are at the peak time around lunchtime, which also makes sense. 

Now, what about Sam's Club? When Sam's brought samples back in 2021, the official announcement noted samples were limited and in some cases, restricted to weekends. Although it seemed likely that hours and samples would increase as we moved farther away from COVID-19 protocols, fast forwarding to 2023 found Redditors who continued to suggest that samples are much more plentiful on the weekends. Customers also note that sample carts are more likely to be open later on weekends, so if you're a weekday shopper, you might find a sparse selection.

So, here's the thing: Whether you're getting samples from Costco, Sam's Club, or any other store, you want to know that cleanliness is key and the foods you're eating are safe. Fortunately, this is one place where Costco and Sam's Club are neck-and-neck, because not only do both follow strict hygiene rules, but customers at both are regularly shamed on Reddit for ignoring the ideas of basic courtesy and decency.

Samples at both stores are overseen by separate entities: that's Tastes & Tips at Sam's Club and Club Demonstration Services for Costco. Specifics are difficult to pinpoint, but those who give out samples (who are sometimes reluctant to say who they work for) have posted on Reddit to say that yes, there are very specific guidelines they need to follow in terms of cleanliness and hygiene. That includes things like following health codes, throwing away entire trays of products if customers pick something up and put it back, and sanitizing trays.

In our journey through countless social media and Reddit posts on our quest to find out how customers really feel about the samples on offer from Sam's Club and Costco, we noticed a trend that leaned much farther in the direction of Costco. We found a ton of people who either referred to just how full they'd feel after shopping at Costco and stopping for all the samples, and we also found a lot of people on social media who made it a point to eat entire meals there. Some TikTok influencers have done multiple videos on how you can make a well-rounded meal from samples alone, and these videos have millions of views.

Others have pointed out that when you get creative with combining Costco's samples and the food court, you end up with some seriously impressive offerings. One Redditor combined samples of chili, kimchi, and mozzarella sticks with a hot dog, and that's some MacGyver-level lunch-making. It's also worth mentioning that when we here at Mashed put Costco's hot dogs head-to-head with Sam's Club, there was a clear winner: Costco.

While there are a ton of social media posts that praise Costco for having samples that can equate to a full meal, those kind of posts just aren't there for Sam's. If you're hoping to consolidate shopping and your lunch hour, there's only one place that's going to reliably let you do just that: Costco.

We've all been there, just trying to get everything on the list and get out of the store when we realize we missed something important and need to double back. That might take you right past a station that's offering something downright delicious, but should you stop again? Will you get the same response at Costco and Sam's Club if you go back for seconds or even thirds?

That depends, and we'll take Sam's Club first. Some Redditors who claim to be employees giving out samples say that they can't limit how many each customer takes. The mere existence of the question proved pretty controversial, though, with plenty of Redditors chiming in to say that it was a sorry state of things that it needed to be asked in the first place. Perhaps that's the main takeaway here? 

Now, what about Costco? It's Costco's policy that no, there's no limit on samples. In a hilarious Reddit thread, one person claiming to give out samples at Costco noted that the personal record they had for giving out a number of samples to the same person was 12, and they added that the customer was a known serial sampler. In another thread, another Redditor answering questions as a Costco sample person confirmed that not only did they not usually notice if someone came around for seconds, but that if you want to grab a sample for you and another person you're shopping with, that's absolutely fine.

When it comes to the products that you might be sampling at Costco and Sam's Club, it's the chain's own store brands that are obviously going to be unique to each. When we here at Mashed took a look at how 14 store brands stacked up against each other, Costco's Kirkland Signature took the top spot for a consistent ability to combine affordability and quality across a shocking array of products. Sam's Club was way down at number 8 with Member's Mark, and although there is some serious potential there, the two aren't yet neck-and-neck competitors.

We're not the only ones who think so, and when we started sifting through the opinions of Redditors, we found that many gave Costco the edge for the sheer number of products, coupled with what some consumers saw as a more well-run store-brand system overall. Others note that as far as freshly-prepared foods and baked goods, they found Kirkland to be far superior, while Sam's Club got points from some for snack food offerings as well as produce. Many point out that both store brands are redefining ideas of what store brands can be, and offer low-cost yet quality alternatives to name brands.

From there, we can deduce that customers are overall happier with store-brand samples from Costco. Costco has variety, quality, affordability, and legions of fans who are willing to say that.

There's a lot to love about both Costco and Sam's Club. The benefits of shopping at Costco range from a generous refund policy to price guarantees and phenomenal deals on alcohol, but there's a reason that we also say one of the perks of Costco are the free samples. We're going to have to call this one in favor of Costco for a few reasons, including a greater variety of samples that are on offer at any given time, and the superiority of the chain's store-brand product samples. There's also ease to consider: Stores that tend to be larger mean that there's not as many worries about congestion or getting in the way of others while standing in line. Seriously, Sam's, what gives with all the complaints about empty or malfunctioning Freeosk stations?

Sure, Sam's has some advantages, like those delicious pizza pretzels. But as far as samples go, it seems as though devoted members of both clubs have suggested that there's only one winner — and that's the chain where countless customers say they can walk away feeling like they've had a full meal while getting their shopping done. Sorry, Sam's.

In order to decide who has the best offerings when it comes to samples, we did a few things. We started with coming up with a list of points that we wanted to compare the two chains on, including the quality of offerings, the time frames that customers could rely on getting a decent amount of samples, and whether or not they were reliably available. Then — and in addition to some personal experience shopping at both chains — we headed to Reddit and social media to see what customers had to say about both Costco and Sam's on all the points we were interested in learning more about.