• dan@upvote.au
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    2 days ago

    Costco’s good even if you don’t need bulk stuff.

    • Not all the food is bulk sizes.
    • Their appliances have no extra/hidden fees for delivery, setup, and basic parts like the hoses for a washing machine. Some of the appliance stores near me advertise lower prices, but they add so many fees that it ends up more expensive.
    • They have a fantastic return policy.
    • Costco Travel have some great flight + hotel packages, all with extras of some sort (eg free breakfast, late checkout, waived parking or resort fee, Costco gift card, etc). I’ve gone on some trips where the flight + hotel package through Costco was cheaper than just booking the hotel by itself (essentially getting a free flight).
    • Where I live in California at least, Costco Gas is often at least $0.40/gallon cheaper than nearby gas stations.
    • orgrinrt@lemmy.world
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      1 day ago

      I’ve no knowledge of US stores and all that, but as a general rule, I’d be extremely suspicious of anyone offering so much cheaper gas as a rule. Also, free flights? There’s something rotten almost always, when the deals sound almost too good. There are no free lunches (in capitalist societies at least).

      • dan@upvote.au
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        16 hours ago

        They have membership fees (like someone else said), and also have lower margins than other stores. I think their margin per item is around 14-15%, compared to supermarkets which are over 20%.