I have never had the hot dog! Gotta here more about what makes the hot dog such a draw (besides $1.50) I don’t drink soda - can I just pay $1 then?? 
Does Sam’s have a food court? It’s very rare that I/we purchase anything from the food court. When teenagers would accompany me they sometimes would get a frozen something drink or ice cream/yogurt.
It’s a quarter pound monster that’s twice as big as the bun. We make it a point to stop at Costco for lunch on road trips because it saves money and fills you up.
Sams has food court too. Frankly since we do not eat usually hot dogs (they have to be pork free with casing not from pork and no nitrates/nitrite and no antibiotics- so these are too many NOs for food court 
and we do not drink soda too for healthy reasons ), I can’t compare. Ice-cream is good at both 
and at Costco portion is for 2 people…
We never stop there for lunch unless we are on the road. On the road we usually get sushi or ready to eat salad ( both are not from food court) and sometimes pizza and Ice-cream with kids 
We are going to Costco for similar reasons - Nitrate/nitrite free Turkey Bacon disappears by pound a day in my house. Same with European cheeses.
Both Sams and Costco have cheeses (Sams usually cheaper), but only Costco has 2 types of Turkey Bacon that we eat.
Making an impromptu trip to Costco. Do they have insulated bags to purchase? Forgot my cooler
Not sure, but I can almost promise you’ll leave with $150 worth of other things 
Just drove by the Costco
Gas was 3.53. Other gas stations 3.53
ours does! Not cold ones but insulated - back by like the paper products and cleaning products.
Thanks!
I have one from there, but I am not sure they have them in stock all the time…
Thecrazycouponlady.com has updated comparison about Sam’s vs Costco
Our Costco is usually 20-40 cents cheaper per gallon for gas. I have a list of supplies including trash bags, toilet paper, detergent that are just so much cheaper than anywhere else. And where else can you buy a pumpkin pie that’s close to 4 pounds for $6.00? Great for the holidays.
I don’t go to either because neither one is nearby. I did belong to BJ’s; it was much closer than either Sam’s Club or Costco. Once we became empty nesters, I just didn’t shop there as often. I’d usually go and stock up on cleaning supplies (dish soap, laundry detergent, toilet paper, etc.) That being said, we have a local grocery store chain here in MA (Market Basket) that has great prices on all the cleaning items. I now go there every few months to buy cleaning products. For food items, I go to Whole Foods or an organic farm stand in season. There’s also a health food store and a specialty food market in the area where I also shop.
@Bromfield2, Market Basket (at least the one near us, which is near Costco) has high quality stuff as well.
We have also bought TVs (with the extended warranty) and LED bulbs and clothes at Costco. Most of my dress shirts are from there.
And, I’ve apparently imparted my love of Costco to my kids. ShawD and ShawSon both shop there regularly. At ShawSon’s wedding, his wife said, “I can’t believe that the kindest man I’ve ever met is also the most brilliant. I can’t believe that the most brilliant man I’ve ever met is also the most romantic. And I can’t believe that the most romantic man I’ve ever met buys all his clothes at Costco.”
Yikes! I filled up at Costco in LA County yesterday and it was $5.35/gallon!
Our Costco is usually pretty close to Arco, but much cheaper than other gas stations.
Went to Sam’s because membership expires in 2 days. Wanted to see if there were any “musts.” I bought a few groceries but nothing worth us renewing our membership unless they have sone deal where they are basically giving you a free membership.
We are 5 minutes from Costco and if I really need Sam’s Club, I have relatives who are members.
I will admit Sam’s has a lot of books — Costco has shrunken its book section.
I don’t buy a lot of perishable items at either store. TP, tissues, soap both laundry and dish soap etc. are a good buy. I’ll buy individually frozen salmon filets at either store though Costco is 3 lbs vs 2.5 at Sam’s. I think the cost per lb is similar and I haven’t really noticed a major difference in quality. I really like the size of the filets. I will also buy things that won’t spoil quickly such as vanilla, maple syrup and occasionally honey at warehouse stores. We have a small freezer so occasionally I buy pork loin when it’s on sale and slice it into packages for two and usually keep one for a pork roast, freeze them then get them out when I need them.
I have one of each about 2.5 miles away from me. Which one I go to depends on where I am. Since they are fairly close they seem to keep their gas about $.20 per gallon cheaper than the surrounding stations. One time that they are especially good bargains for gas is when gas costs spike at the local stations. They usually keep their prices stable for the day and I’ve gotten gas as much as $.50 per gallon cheaper.
Unfortunately for me, none of the nearby Sam’s/Costco stores have a gas station. If Sam’s builds one, I would become a Sam’s convert. It would put the expensive Valero station across the street into next year’s “Spirit Halloween” store
Team Costco. Went this morning as I had to take my brother to the dentist and it’s near there. Somehow I always spend about $100, get a chicken, some berries (today strawberries and raspberries), something frozen (today a rice and chicken thing, often potstickers), something from the bakery .
Today’s something different was a box of Lay’s chips because we give them out for Halloween rather than candy. Now the trick is to get them to last until Halloween.
Yeah, I can come into Costco for dishwasher pods, and come out with $150 worth of stuff plus a hotdog. I never have that problem at Sam’s for some reason.