Food Shopping at BJ's Wholesale Club
Updated: Aug 18, 2020
With a little know-how and savvy shopping skills, shopping at warehouse stores can save you money. These stores are a little different from other retailers as you will require a membership to shop there.
BJ’s Wholesale Club currently has two different memberships options, the cheaper one starting at $50, but you can often get it on special for $40 or $45. My household size is only 2, so I’m not sure if the money I save there is worth the cost of the membership. If you have a big family though, you very likely could. They often have 90-day free membership coupons available online or in the paper, so I use this opportunity to STOCK UP! The 90-day free membership may only be used once a year, so try to make the most of this opportunity.
The products available at BJ's Wholesale club will either be offered in bulk sized packaging, or regular-sized items bundled into multipacks. They carry everything your typical supermarket does including grocery, household, baby and pet products as well as beer. There is a bakery, a deli, and even a meat case stocked with a pretty good selection of meats and fish. In addition, you'll find clothing, books, appliances, electronics, patio furniture and tires.
To present an example, some of my favorite products (food-wise) offered at BJ’s include:
Polar Seltzer Water
Lifeway Kefir
Kashi Chocolate Almond Sea Salt with Chia Granola Bars
Carnation Instant Breakfast
Barilla Whole Grain Pasta
Smartfood Delight White Cheddar Popcorn
In my experience, I can save a lot of money buying the above items (and laundry products), but big boxes don’t always mean big savings. Comparing prices is sometimes necessary to make sure you’re getting a good deal. I often look up prices from other stores using the Target, Wegmans, or Walmart apps to make sure I don’t fill my giant cart with things I could have bought cheaper somewhere else.
One downside of buying at BJ’s is you are limited to what they have. They may carry your favorite brand of something, say salad dressing, but that doesn’t mean they’re going to have the flavor you like. There’s generally 1-2 flavors to choose from, or sometimes there’s a variety pack. You might get lucky though and find exactly what you were looking for.
Unlike Costco and Sam’s Club, BJ’s accepts manufacturers coupons. They also offer their own coupon booklet and circulars. What’s even better if you can use multiple manufacture’s coupons for some products and use a BJ’s coupon as well. For example, if you are buying a 3-pack of toothpaste, you can use up to 3 different manufacturer coupons as well as a BJ’s store coupon. Click here, for their coupon policy in its entirety.
All in all, I love this store and what it has to offer. A little bit of price comparing will go a long way shopping here.