Sam’s Club built its US following on Scan & Go (no checkout line), Plus-member fuel discounts, and curbside pickup on bulk grocery. Where it loses members is the recurring annual fee, the upsell pressure to upgrade Club to Plus, a non-grocery selection that thins out compared to Costco, and item-level pricing that doesn’t always beat the local Walmart on the same SKU. These Sam’s Club alternatives keep the bulk-shopping value while changing the membership math, the store experience, or both.
We picked seven, mixing the obvious warehouse rival, an East Coast regional, two no-membership big-box options, two grocery specialists, and the catch-all online catalog.
Quick comparison
| App | Best for | Membership |
|---|---|---|
| Costco | Best warehouse swap | $65 Gold Star or $130 Executive |
| BJ’s Wholesale | East Coast warehouse | $55 Club or $110 Plus |
| Walmart | No-membership bulk | Free, Walmart+ optional |
| Amazon Shopping | Online subscribe-and-save | Free, Prime optional |
| Target | Non-grocery essentials | Free, Circle 360 optional |
| Aldi | Cheap weekly grocery | Free |
| Kroger | Loyalty fuel savings | Free, Boost optional |
Why people leave Sam’s Club
Membership fees keep climbing. Club went up first, then Plus, with little change to the on-shelf assortment. Members who joined for Scan & Go feel the per-trip math get worse each renewal.
Plus upgrade pressure is constant. The app and the checkout flow nudge Club members toward Plus on every visit. The 2% Cashback Reward exists, but the breakeven only works for heavy spenders.
Non-grocery catalog is thinner than Costco. Electronics, tires, optical, and the famous treasure-hunt aisle exist, but the selection depth and price-per-trip “wow” lags Costco in most categories.
SamsClub.com pricing isn’t always best. Members regularly find the same name-brand item cheaper at Walmart.com without the membership wrapper. The pricing engine doesn’t reconcile.
App and Scan & Go bugs surface. Scan & Go is the headline feature, and when it fails (wrong store detected, payment hang, exit-door receipt scan rejected), the recovery is slower than just standing in a normal checkout line.
The best Sam’s Club alternatives on Android
1. Costco, best warehouse swap
Costco is the obvious head-to-head, with a deeper non-grocery treasure-hunt assortment, a stronger Kirkland Signature private label, and a return policy widely considered the most forgiving in retail. The app handles digital membership card, gas pump scanner, and Same-Day-by-Instacart delivery. Executive members get 2% back on most purchases up to $1,250 per year.
Where it falls short: Costco doesn’t have Scan & Go. The lines on a Saturday at 1 pm are the cost of admission. Membership starts higher than Sam’s, and the lower tier excludes the cashback.
Pricing: $65 per year Gold Star, $130 per year Executive. Free app.
Switching from Sam’s Club: time the transition with your Sam’s renewal date. Apply your last Sam’s run to fill the freezer, then start Costco fresh.
Bottom line: the right swap if you’ll trade Scan & Go for a wider treasure-hunt aisle and a better return desk.
2. BJ’s Wholesale, best East Coast warehouse with paper coupons
BJ’s Wholesale is the third major warehouse club, concentrated in the 21 East Coast and Mid-Atlantic states. The distinguishing feature is paper-coupon stacking: BJ’s accepts manufacturer coupons on top of its members-only coupons, which Costco and Sam’s don’t. The app handles BJ’s Express Pay (their Scan & Go equivalent), digital coupons, and tire-shop scheduling.
Where it falls short: SKU breadth and store footprint are narrower than Costco or Sam’s. The membership is cheaper, but the per-trip price advantage isn’t always there.
Pricing: $55 per year Club, $110 per year Club+. Free app.
Switching from Sam’s Club: worth the trial if you already clip manufacturer coupons. The coupon stacking is the unique value.
Bottom line: the East Coast option for shoppers who like the membership model but also want to stack coupons.
3. Walmart, best no-membership bulk for value shoppers
Walmart is the no-membership baseline. Many of Sam’s Club’s grocery SKUs are sold at Walmart at within a few cents per ounce of Sam’s, no $50-and-up annual fee required. The app handles same-day delivery, store-pickup, and Walmart Pay. Walmart+ ($98 per year) layers on free delivery, member-only gas discounts, and Paramount+ streaming.
Where it falls short: Walmart doesn’t sell true warehouse-sized packs of everything. For paper goods and snacks, Sam’s still ships bigger units per dollar.
Pricing: free app, no membership required. Walmart+ optional at $12.95 per month or $98 per year.
Switching from Sam’s Club: drop Sam’s, keep Walmart for weekly essentials, and use Costco or BJ’s for the true bulk trip every six weeks.
Bottom line: the right call if the warehouse-club membership math no longer earns back the annual fee.
4. Amazon Shopping, best for online subscribe-and-save bulk
Amazon Shopping handles bulk through Subscribe & Save, with up to 15% off on five-or-more recurring grocery and household items per month. Prime adds two-day delivery, Prime Pantry-style basket discounts, and Prime Day promotions. The catalog is the broadest in this list by an order of magnitude.
Where it falls short: Subscribe & Save unit pricing isn’t always better than warehouse-club. Third-party sellers on commodity grocery can mean inconsistent packaging or expiration dates.
Pricing: free app. Prime is $14.99 per month or $139 per year.
Switching from Sam’s Club: rebuild the Sam’s recurring basket as a Subscribe & Save bundle. Compare unit pricing carefully before each renewal.
Bottom line: the right pick for someone who wants bulk delivered, not picked up, and doesn’t mind the per-item price comparison work.
5. Target, best for non-grocery essentials with no membership
Target is the no-membership stop for non-grocery essentials: clothes, home, beauty, baby, electronics, and the kind of household goods Sam’s stocks in larger formats. Target Circle (the free loyalty program) layers on personalized offers, and Drive Up curbside pickup is competitive with Sam’s curbside. The 5% discount with a Target Circle Card is a steady win.
Where it falls short: Target is not a warehouse club. Grocery sizes are normal-supermarket. Paper goods and snacks won’t replace a Sam’s run.
Pricing: free app, no membership. Target Circle 360 optional at $99 per year for unlimited same-day delivery.
Switching from Sam’s Club: move the non-grocery half of your Sam’s basket here, keep a smaller warehouse-club for the actual bulk.
Bottom line: the right pick when you joined Sam’s for the non-grocery aisle and didn’t really use the bulk pallets.
6. Aldi, best for cheap weekly grocery without the membership
Aldi wins the per-trip grocery bill, often by 20 to 40 percent against the major chains. The catch is a small SKU count (mostly private label), no membership, no loyalty program, and a 25-cent cart deposit that comes back when you return the cart. The US app handles weekly ads, in-store pickup, and Instacart-fulfilled delivery.
Where it falls short: Aldi doesn’t carry true bulk sizes. The store experience is no-frills, with limited brand choice if you’re loyal to a specific name brand.
Pricing: free app, no membership required.
Switching from Sam’s Club: use Aldi for the weekly fresh-and-frozen list, and run a quarterly warehouse-club trip for the paper goods and freezer fill.
Bottom line: the right swap if you renewed Sam’s mainly to “save on groceries” and the grocery list is mostly produce, dairy, and pantry.
7. Kroger, best for loyalty fuel savings and personalized digital coupons
Kroger runs the largest US loyalty-rewards program, with personalized digital coupons every week and fuel points that stack at Kroger-owned gas stations or Shell. The app handles coupon clipping, weekly ads, and pickup or delivery from any Kroger-family banner (Fred Meyer, Ralphs, King Soopers, Smith’s, Harris Teeter, etc.). Boost members get free delivery and double fuel points.
Where it falls short: Kroger isn’t bulk. Per-unit pricing on packaged goods is normal supermarket, not warehouse-club.
Pricing: free app. Boost membership $59 per year (delivery) or $99 per year (premium).
Switching from Sam’s Club: add the fuel-points play. A weekly Kroger basket can build enough fuel discount over a quarter to offset much of a fuel station price gap.
Bottom line: the right pick when fuel savings and a personalized digital coupon stack matter more than pallet-sized cereal.
How to choose
Pick Costco if you want a warehouse club and the wider treasure-hunt assortment justifies the line. Pick BJ’s Wholesale if you live on the East Coast and you stack manufacturer coupons. Pick Walmart if the math on a $50-plus annual membership no longer works and you just want similar pricing without the fee.
Pick Amazon Shopping for bulk you’d rather have shipped on a schedule than pick up in a cart. Pick Target if you joined Sam’s for the non-grocery aisle and rarely walked out with a 48-pack of anything.
Pick Aldi if your weekly trip is mostly produce, dairy, and pantry, and the brand on the box doesn’t matter. Pick Kroger if you’re a heavy driver and the fuel-points compound will swing a few hundred dollars a year.
Stay on Sam’s Club if you use Scan & Go every week, you fill up regularly at the members-only fuel pump, and the Plus tier 2% Cashback covers more than your membership fee. The Scan & Go reliability complaints aside, the time saved on checkout is real for active members.
FAQ
Is Costco cheaper than Sam’s Club? On overlapping SKUs, prices are typically within a few percent of each other. Costco wins on Kirkland Signature private label depth; Sam’s wins on Member’s Mark on a few specific categories.
Can I shop at Sam’s Club without a membership? Online ordering with a 10% surcharge is available to non-members, but in-club shopping requires a membership or a guest pass.
What is the cheapest warehouse club membership? BJ’s Club at $55 per year is the lowest among the big three.
Does Walmart have warehouse-sized bulk packs? Walmart sells larger pack sizes than a typical supermarket, but not the same pallet-sized formats as the warehouse clubs. The gap shows up most on paper goods, snacks, and pet food.
Is Aldi better than Sam’s Club for grocery? For weekly produce, dairy, and pantry shopping, Aldi typically beats Sam’s per-trip. For freezer fills and bulk paper, Sam’s still wins.
Can I keep Plus member fuel discounts at a different chain? No. The fuel discount is tied to the Sam’s Club brand. Kroger Fuel Points and Costco Gas are independent rewards systems.
