Costco is not always the best option: which supermarkets have lower prices and no membership fee

Costco is not the only place with the best products and best prices. Where else can you buy everything you need in times of crisis? Seattle Times.

Photo: IStock

A certain group of Costco fans have their own rituals as they make their way through the store space, they want to grab a hot dog, stock up on Kirkland Signature vodka, grab a grilled chicken, feast on sample stands, pick up a couple of packs of Authentic Motor City Pizza Co. Double Pepperoni and a pack of toilet paper. But with food prices on the rise, many shoppers are looking for the best deals on budget items without looking to save on Parmigiano-Reggiano, let alone add a flat-screen TV to their big cart.

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Even before the skyrocketing inflation, the cost of living in Seattle was one of the highest in the United States. Now, the cost of groceries at grocery stores in the area has risen 13,5% since June 2021, with jumps ranging from 8,4% for bread and cereal to 21,3% for dairy, according to the CPI. Two items in supermarkets topped the list of foods with the highest prices in Seattle - above gasoline - margarine rose 46,7% and potatoes rose 38,6% from the first quarter of 2021 to the quarter of 2022, according to cost-of-living index data.

If you're just trying to survive, does it make sense to buy groceries at Costco?

A recent Seattle grocery store comparison of six staples—bread, milk, rice, beans, ground beef, and peanut butter—suggests the $60 annual Costco membership is more of a lifestyle choice than a savings.

The results show that the other two local contenders for affordable products are − Grocery outlet и US Foods CHEF'STORE (formerly Cash&Carry) - Offers membership-free daily pricing that fluctuates around Costco prices at several Puget Sound locations. This potentially shortens your trips and saves time and gas.

Comparison of food prices in different supermarkets

Bread

• Costco $2,62 (9 grains)
• Grocery Outlet $2,99 ​​(Franz)
• US Foods CHEF'STORE $3,29 (Franz)
• Safeway $5,49 (Franz)
• Whole Foods $4,49 (365 non-organic)

Milk

• Costco $3,40/gallon (Kirkland)
• Grocery Outlet $3,79/gallon (Farm fresh)
• US Foods CHEF'STORE $3,55/gallon (Darigold)
• Safeway $4,09/gallon (Lucerna)
• Whole Foods $4,29/gallon (365 non-organic)

rice

• Costco $54/25lb (Kirkland)
• Grocery Outlet $0,50/10lb (Roberts A1)
• US Foods CHEF'STORE $0,60/ 25lb (Fiesta)
• Safeway $0,76/20lb (Signature Select)
• Whole Foods $0,96/5 lb (365 non-organic)

beans

• Costco $06/oz SW
• Grocery Outlet $05/oz (Teasdale)
• US Foods CHEF'STORE $09/oz (Teasdale)
• Safeway $08/oz (Signature Select)
• Whole Foods $07/oz (365 non-organic)

Ground beef

• Costco $4,79/lb (House brand)
• Grocery Outlet $4,33/lb (All Natural)
• US Foods CHEF'STORE $4,55/lb (Star Ranch Angus)
• Safeway $6,49/lb (House brand)
• Whole Foods $7,00/lb (House brand)

Peanut butter

• Costco $14/80 oz (Adams Creamy)
• Grocery Outlet $0,16/16oz (jif creamy)
• US Foods CHEF'STORE $0,15/40oz (jif crunchy)
• Safeway $0,18/40oz (jif creamy)
• Whole Foods $0,11/36oz ((365 non-organic)

If you've never been to the store, Grocery Outlet, known to fans as Groc Out, it's worth saying that it's like a regular supermarket that accidentally went out of order. At 428 stores - most on the West Coast, all accepting SNAP/EBT - the shelves are stocked with a wide variety of products, promotional items from brand name and private label suppliers at bargain prices. At the same time, everyday items like those on the list are usually purchased for the convenience of customers, and the company aims to sell them "at or below the lowest price in town," according to promotional material.

According to the comparison, currently Grocery Outlet is doing quite well with the prices of basic products, while the overall shopping experience can be like a treasure hunt. One type of salted fish of an unknown brand may be surrounded by numerous types of Goldfish crackers, with varieties similar to X-Treme Flavor Goldfish: The Goldfishening. Brand name dishwashing detergent appears in experimental scents you've never seen before and never will again. The grocery store can practically pay you to take home 300 boxes of Biscoff cookies that are perilously close to their expiration date, but they actually stay perfectly good, like so many other things, for a very long time.

Meanwhile, at the end of the season, there are plenty of unusual items, such as solar-powered garden items, flip-flops or frog sculptures, which signal goodbye to summer here. And the Groc Out concept seems to be working, with a spokesperson noting that sales are up 15,7% in the second quarter of 2022 as 25 new stores opened last year with 28 more planned for next year.

CHEF'STORE is much better known by its former name: Cash&Carry. This chain opened in 1955 in Oregon City, Oregon. She started with a single store filled with palletized products with prices written in bold pen. It is now a wholesale warehouse for one of the largest food distributors in the country, open to the public with no membership fees; however, SNAP/EBT is not accepted.

The atmosphere of CHEF'STORE is reminiscent of a more spartan mini-Costco - high shelves with plastic-wrapped stacks of goods at the top and almost no decor. Here, real chefs and restaurateurs shop, who carry their goods on large carts. Some aisles are reserved for countless takeout containers, cocktail umbrellas, cups, duct tape, pots, pans, plastic wrap, plastic gloves, giant jugs of cleaning products.

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As with Costco and Grocery Outlet, CHEF'STORE doesn't offer much choice in terms of brands. However, compared to Costco, checkout lines tend to be much shorter. You can also buy in bulk even more than Costco—for example, instead of one, buy a full case of 30-ounce cans of Teasdale pinto beans for $27,66. As with Grocery Outlet, CHEF'STORE is also in expansion mode, albeit on a smaller scale. The company does not provide detailed financial figures, but with four new CHEF'STORE stores added soon, there will be 87 in 13 states.

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