11 Sam's Club Shopping Tips That Will Save You Money In 2026

Sam's Club can be a great place to save money. That said, if you approach it wrong, you can end up spending more than you would have done, so it's important to exercise some caution. We've come up with 11 handy Sam's Club shopping tips that will save you money this year. Whether you're a newbie who needs a Sam's Club beginner's guide or an old hand, you're bound to learn something useful to help save you some serious dollars.

Like its main competitor, Costco, there's a charge to be part of Sam's Club. This means you're starting at a loss, so you have to be careful to buy products that actually save you money. That said, there are other perks that make it worth your while and save you cash, so if you're only buying groceries at Sam's Club, you're making a mistake. Once you're familiar with all the ways you can save, it's easy to make the chain work for you.

Perhaps you're already a Sam's Club member, and you're looking to make your money go further, or perhaps you're trying to figure out whether it's worth your while to sign up. Whatever your story, these tips won't only save you money but could change the way you approach the store, relying on it for more than just food.

As of May 1, 2026, Sam's Club membership costs $60 for a standard Club membership or $120 for a Plus membership. This is up from $50 for Club membership and $110 for Plus. When you're trying to save money, it might seem to make sense to buy the cheapest membership possible, but you might end up saving more with the higher tier due to its cashback offer.

Sam's Club Plus membership gives you 2% on all in-store Sam's Club purchases. It's worth noting that it doesn't apply to delivery orders, so if you mostly shop online, a Plus membership may not be as worthwhile. You can get up to $500 in cashback per year, so if you're a big spender, you'll easily cover your membership cost. However, if you're shopping for one or two, you might not find it worth your while. Spending $3,000 in-store a year, or $250 a month, will give you $60 in annual cashback, which makes up the difference between the two membership tiers. Anything beyond that and the cashback is pure profit, so it can pay to upgrade your Sam's Club membership.

That's before you even consider what the membership is worth in terms of savings and other perks. The membership pays for itself quickly, and then you're just in the savings zone. Other Plus perks that might make it worth your while include free delivery from the store, entry to stores up to an hour before non-Plus members, and early access to sales.

Sam's Club stocks a range of both name-brand products and private-label products, with the latter sold under the name Member's Mark. If you're not used to reaching for the generic options, you might be reluctant to try them. But you can save lots of extra cash by choosing Member's Mark products over name brands. Once you try it, you might realize it's not always the lesser option.

There are some Sam's Club copycats that are better than the real thing. Folks rave about Member's Mark coffee beans, and they're available with significant savings over name brands. Then, snack foods like chips and animal crackers are often just as good as their name-brand counterparts. People often talk about the paper products, like kitchen towels and toilet paper, as big money savers with no loss of quality. Member's Mark olive oil is another fan favorite, and a nice chance to save some cash at times when olive oil prices are surging.

Plus, it's not just that many Member's Mark products are of high quality, but Sam's Club has also committed to making them more sustainable. This means you can feel good about your eco credentials, as well as save money. So, when you're shopping at Sam's Club, it only makes sense to choose Member's Mark, as it's cheaper and often isn't even a downgrade. What's not to love about that?

No warehouse club, supermarket, or local grocery store is the cheapest for every product. One thing that Sam's Club does better than Costco is that it often has lower prices on products. However, there will still be those items that are cheaper at Costco or at Aldi. So, if you have time for comparisons, it's best to focus on the products with big savings, especially if you shop in more than one place, so you can pick up the things on your list that are cheaper elsewhere. What you should avoid doing (even though it's tempting) is buying things you wouldn't normally buy just because they're great value.

Some of the Sam's Club products with the biggest savings include diapers, which can be around $20 cheaper for a jumbo box than elsewhere, and pet food, which could save you $30 per 38-pound bag. Coffee beans, allergy medication, vitamins, dishwasher pods, and cheese are all notably cheaper, as well — and this is just the tip of the iceberg.

But, if you don't normally drink much coffee at home, buying a big bag of beans and suddenly starting is only going to increase your grocery bill. Of course, grocery prices fluctuate all the time, so what was a great deal might cost less elsewhere. Comparing prices between stores can save you more, but it is impractical for a lot of people.

Before you start your shop, it's well worth swinging by the Sam's Club food court, officially known as the cafe. It's a great way to save on eating out. So, if you might have gone to get food elsewhere afterward, this is your chance to save some cash. Shopping with a full stomach might also keep you from making impulse buys that can seem more tempting when you're hungry.

The Sam's Club food court can rival Costco in terms of cheapness. Its hot dog and soda combo is priced the same as Costco's at just $1.50. That's likely a loss leader to draw people in, so depending on the quality of the ingredients chosen, you might not spend much less than that per dog and soda to make it at home. A large slice of pizza and a soda is just $2.50, or you can buy a full 16-inch pie for less than $9.

What you'll wish you knew about the Sam's Club food court is how great the value is. It might have fewer food options than Costco, but what it does have goes a long way for very little money. Plus, grabbing food before, rather than after, you shop adds another layer of money saving on top, especially if you're an impulse purchaser who isn't great at sticking to a grocery list.

When it comes to warehouse shopping, buying in bulk will often save you a lot of cash. Sam's Club often comes out on top for savings when considering which warehouse store is the cheapest, so it makes sense to go there to buy in bulk. You can buy huge cases of everything from cookies and canned fruit to wine and laundry detergent. In many cases, that makes sense, but only buy in bulk if you'll actually eat the food or use up the products. If you buy in bulk and end up discarding half, you're ultimately wasting money rather than saving it.

Some of the best things to buy in bulk to save money at Sam's Club include rice (which works out roughly $0.43 per pound when bought in bulk) and dried pinto beans (around $0.75 per pound). But if you don't tend to cook from scratch, there are also great deals on canned veggies, snacks, and shredded cheese.

Some bulk goods last a long time, so even if you're part of a small household or live alone, they'll keep until you need them. But some folks get tempted by bulk prices on perishables, telling themselves they'll preserve them somehow, only to let them go to waste. So, be realistic about your bulk buys. Will you actually use everything up, or will you ultimately save by buying in smaller, more manageable quantities?

You might not think gift cards offer much of a chance to save money. After all, it's fair to assume that a $10 gift card costs $10. While this is usually the case, you can find some amazing discounts on gift cards at Sam's Club. And, if you play your cards right (pun intended), you can end up saving on your everyday expenditure.

You can save as much as 25% on gift cards, meaning a $20 gift card could cost as little as $15 or a $50 gift card just $37.50. But, just like with buying in bulk or choosing the products with the lowest prices, you're only actually saving money if you would have bought the gift card at its full price. For instance, if you're planning to order in from Domino's after your grocery trip and you can pick up a discounted voucher, that's a saving. Or, if you had budgeted $20 for a birthday gift but can pick up a $15 voucher as a present, that's a $5 saving.

What can happen, however, is that you see a discounted voucher and are tempted by the prospect of paying less for more, so you pick it up. While that voucher was cheaper than it would have been at full price, if it had been full price, you wouldn't have bought it. This is one of the ways stores extract more money from you, so stay mindful and only buy gift cards you actually need.

One of the major benefits of Sam's Club membership that can end up saving you a lot of money is access to lower gas prices. Members can fill their cars with fuel from Sam's Club gas stations, and they're usually significantly cheaper than others in the area. By fueling up every time you shop at Sam's Club, you could end up making big savings.

As drivers know all too well, fuel prices fluctuate. Gas also costs more or less depending on the region, so there's no fixed amount that it costs at Sam's Club or a definite amount of savings. However, fuel can cost anywhere between $0.05 and $0.25 less per gallon compared to local gas stations that aren't part of a warehouse club. These chains can afford to buy in bulk, which helps bring you lower costs, and lower fuel prices act as an incentive for customers to come and shop there. So, Sam's Club might not be making much money on fuel, but it is on memberships, which offset the reduction.

Another option for saving money on fuel is to use a Sam's Club credit card. This gives you 5% cashback on fuel purchases annually, up to $6,000, and then 1% on purchases over that amount. If you drive a lot, this could rack up a lot of cashback over the year, and the offer is valid at any gas station.

Sam's Club's pharmacy is known for having great prices. In a country where prescription costs can be through the roof, heading to Sam's Club for medication is often a great way to save money. All Sam's Club members (and even non-members) can use the pharmacy and save money, but Plus members have access to even more money-saving benefits.

The pharmacy has great prices on meds, and can sometimes even be cheaper than going through insurance. If you're unsure, the staff there can talk you through your options and help you work out what will cost you less. You can also get reduced prices on pet medications, which might cut some costs compared to getting the prescription filled by your veterinarian.

And, if you're a Plus member, you have even more benefits. Sam's Club has a list of more than 600 generic drugs that cost $10 or under for a 30-day supply for folks with the higher membership tier. There are also 10 treatments that are totally free to Plus members: amlodipine, donepezil, escitalopram, finasteride, lisinopril, metformin, montelukast, pioglitazone, sertraline, and vitamin D2 50,000 IU (with the exception of Arizona, California, and Minnesota, where free prescriptions are restricted and the cost is $2 per month). What's more, these Plus benefits can be extended to members' families.

You can save even more on the listed price of certain items by using the Sam's Club Instant Savings program. It's effectively like using coupons but without the hassle of clipping them out. Rather, these savings are loaded to your membership card, so they'll automatically come off the price of your groceries at checkout.

Using coupons is a great money-saving grocery hack, but like most warehouse chains, Sam's Club doesn't accept manufacturer or competitor coupons. This is because the prices are already so low. However, the Instant Savings program is a similar basic concept, saving you money on everyday items. Some Instant Savings are available across the board, but members also have access to their own savings. These are given out based on a range of variables, such as your location.

You can access your own range of savings via the Sam's Club app or online on the Sam's Club website. You don't have to do anything special to load them onto your account — they're just there. But it's a good idea to check them out to see if there are any useful savings available to you before you shop.

As a Sam's Club member, you have access to free curbside pickup, whether you're Club or Plus tier. This is meant as a convenient option. Don't have time to wander around the store? Just place your order online and come by to collect it. The surprising benefit is that it can save you money by avoiding impulse purchases.

So, how does it work? Using the Sam's Club app or website, add items to your cart as you would for home delivery, but choose curbside pickup at checkout. Staff in your local store gather everything for you, ready for your slot. When you get to the store, you park in one of the designated curbside spaces. Then you check in through the app, which alerts the team that you're there. Finally, a team member brings your shopping straight to your car and loads it into your trunk. It's really that simple.

It might be convenient, but perhaps you're wondering how it saves you money. Well, most people don't stick 100% to their grocery list when shopping. It's common to pick up items on impulse that you didn't really need, and by the time you get to the checkout, it feels like it's too late to change your mind. But with curbside pickup, there's no such temptation, so you'll usually end up spending less.

Getting a personalized cake made at a bakery can cost an arm and a leg. Of course, bakers have spent years perfecting their craft, and their skills are worth the money, but that doesn't mean everyone can afford it. Rather than spending big on a custom cake, you can get a more affordable option made at Sam's Club.

There are so many options for custom cakes. You can get sheet cakes, layer cakes, tiered cakes, cookie cakes, and cupcakes. There's a range of customization options, so there's something suitable for everything from kids' birthday parties to weddings. There are also custom character options, including the likes of Bluey and Hello Kitty, plus various styles of decoration, from fun to elegant.

When it comes to flavors, you can choose between chocolate and vanilla. You also have some freedom with the flavors of the icing (either whipped or buttercream) and the ability to request a custom message on the cake. Prices vary, but most single-layer cakes cost under $20, while tiered wedding-style cakes are under $60.