One of our 20+ ways to save money on groceries is to buy in bulk (when it makes sense).
For money expert Clark Howard, Costco is one of his favorite stores to shop in bulk and save. (To save even more, he uses his Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi, to get 2% cash back in the store and up to 4% cash back on eligible items — including gas and EV charging purchases for the first $7,000 per year and then 1% thereafter!)
Popular Items To Buy in Bulk
Though there is no denying that Clark loves Costco, what he loves most is a good deal. So, we asked Clark’s savvy online fans what — and where — they love to buy in bulk. First, we’ll look at a list from Clark’s Facebook community. Then we’ll consider a list of the best bulk items cited by Clark’s online Community.
In most cases, we linked to the stores’ specialty brands: Kirkland Signature for Costco, Member’s Mark for Sam’s Club and Wellsley Farms and Berkley Jensen for BJ’s.
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Gerry from Washington says, “Kirkland brand virgin olive oil, great price and quality.”
- Costco: Kirkland Signature Extra Virgin Italian Olive Oil, (2 liter)
- Sam’s Club: Member’s Mark Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil (2 liter)
- BJ’s: Wellsley Farms Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil (2 liter)
Toilet Paper and Paper Towels
Judy from Missouri says she buys paper products in bulk from Costco. “Toilet paper, paper towels, napkins. Higher quality for close to the same price as Walmart/Target.”
Todd from Georgia says about Costco’s toilet paper: “The 30-pack lasts forever and it is so much cheaper than buying smaller packs in the grocery stores.”
Larry from Georgia says: “Kirkland paper towels because they’re always the cheapest, while similar in quality to higher-priced name brand.”
User tekwrite from our Community: “Paper plates and plastic cups! My wife calls them “Apocalypse Plates”!”
User Socaldancer from our Community: “Paper towels, toilet paper, shower or bath gel, certain toiletries that are normally more expensive, bottled water, dish detergent, laundry detergent, compostable bags, dish sponges. All of these have a long shelf life and will not spoil unlike food items that eventually need to be refrigerated.”
- Costco: Charmin Ultra Strong Bath Tissue, 2-Ply, 220 sheets (30 rolls)
- Sam’s Club: Charmin Ultra Strong Toilet Paper, 231 sheets (32 rolls)
- BJ’s: Charmin Ultra Strong Large Roll Toilet Paper, 2-Ply, 220-sheets, (30 rolls)
Tuna
Don from South Carolina loves tuna from Costco: “A great price and the can size is larger than the grocery stores, also paper towels & T paper.”
- Costco: Kirkland Signature Albacore Solid White Tuna, (7 oz., 8-ct.)
- Sam’s Club: Member’s Mark Solid White Albacore Tuna (5 oz., 8 pk.)
- BJ’s: Bumble Bee Premium Albacore Tuna in Water, (5 oz., 4 pk.)
Meat
Elizabeth from Pennsylvania says, “Meat: I have a large freezer. I purchase meat in bulk and put it in the freezer.”
David from Georgia says this of Costco’s New York Strip Steaks: “They are about an inch and a half thick and lean and mean. My wife and I can split one and a pack will last about five weeks.”
- Costco: Rastelli USDA Choice Black Angus NY CC Strip Steak
- Sam’s Club: Member’s Mark Prime Whole Beef Strip Loin
- BJ’s: Wellsley Farms Strip Loin Steak
Cat Litter
Hans from Arkansas says, “Good quality cat food and cat litter. I always keep at least a six-month supply of cat food (kibble and wet) and cat litter. If I run low on cash, I know that my cats will be covered for a short time.”
- Costco: Scoop Away Complete Performance, Scented Cat Litter, (42 lbs.)
- Sam’s Club: Fresh Step Non-Clumping Premium Clay Cat Litter (40 lbs.)
- BJ’s: Berkley Jensen Multi-Cat Scoopable Cat Litter (40 lbs.)
Oatmeal
Jim from North Carolina on what he buys in bulk from Costco: “Quaker Old Fashion Oatmeal because of its quality and value.”
- Costco: Quaker Oats Old Fashioned Oatmeal (10 lbs.)
- Sam’s Club: Quaker Quick 1-Minute Oats (5 lb., 2 pk.)
- BJ’s: Quaker Quick 1-Minute Oats (5 lb., 2 pk.)
Raw Almonds
Bob from Connecticut says, “Raw almonds. A 3-lb package at Costco is around $4/lb. Eat them raw or roast them and experiment with different seasonings.”
- Costco: Kirkland Signature Supreme Whole Almonds, (3 lbs.)
- Sam’s Club: Member’s Mark Natural Whole Almonds (3 lbs.)
- BJ’s: Wellsley Farms Whole Almonds, (3 lbs.)
What Does Clark’s Community Buy in Bulk?
Here are some of the top responses from Clark’s Community:
- Dry Goods: “Wheat, because it makes the best flour for bread and its shelf life is over 25 years. Sugar, because it’s used for lots of things and has a long shelf life Batteries, because I hate to run out of them.” – user H200h; “We buy 25 lb bags of AP flour at Costco. It’s fine enough for most cakes and we add about a teaspoon of gluten per cup of flour for most bread recipes. Great savings over buying the 2 and 5 lb bags in the grocery store.” – user Phil
- Postage Stamps: “Nobody mentioned it but forever stamps… personally I don’t use many but I guess that is a bulk purchase. I made the mistake of deciding to get a pack for future use and did not look closely at them. When I got home I found they were Christmas elves. I decided to trade them for a series a bit more useful throughout the year.” – user Lavarock
- Pet Food: “My mom and dad buy the Costco cat food we normally get 2 bags at a time of it, I like buying english muffins because you get 18 in a pack and it’s way cheaper then buying 6 at a time.” – user Joseph
- Spices: “We frequently purchase large jars/bags of frequently used dried herbs and spices on Amazon. For many items, it’s possible to get 5-10 times or more of the product, for about twice or three times the price of the tiny supermarket containers.” – user geezerpk
How To Shop in Bulk and Save
If you don’t want to shop in person, you can buy in bulk online at Costco, Sam’s Club or BJ’s Wholesale Club and compare prices to see if you can lower your grocery bill. When bulk-shopping you’ll want to pay particular attention to the unit price, which tells you how much product you’re getting based on the unit of measurement on the box or label.
Clark says, “I started talking to my kids around the third grade about unit pricing because I wanted them to understand the tricks. I wanted them to know when something’s a deal and when it’s not.”
Final Thoughts
Take it from Clark, Team Clark and Clark’s readers: Buying in bulk can be a great way to save on the items you want and need.
Aside from the prices for merchandise at wholesale clubs, you’ll also want to keep in mind what you pay in membership fees, which can help you determine whether shopping at Sam’s Club, BJ’s or Costco is worth it.
What are your favorite items to buy in bulk? Tell us in our Clark.com Community!
