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How Costco Liquor Prices Compare to Sam’s Club

Costco is well known for its great prices, and their liquor store is no different. Costco liquor offers deeply discounted prices compared to local liquor store prices on both beer and hard alcohol. But Costco isn’t the only discount warehouse that sells liquor. How do Costco liquor prices compare to Sam’s Club?

To find out, I visited both my local Costco and Sam’s Club and gathered price comparison info on beer, hard liquor and wine.

Note: All prices are from Costco and Sam’s Club in Rochester, MN.  Prices may vary by location.

Costco Liquor Prices Compared

Costco and Sam’s Club sell a variety of brands of beer.  Below is a comparison of some of the brands sold by both warehouses.

Both retail giants also sell hard liquors. The below chart compares some popular hard liquors sold by both.

Both Costco and Sam’s Club have a nice selection of wine, however, the products they carry are almost completely different. At the time I did my research, I could only find two wines offered by both retailers.

Costco Liquor Prices, Analyzed

While there are products cheaper at one or the other, Costco and Sam’s Club have almost identical prices for most products sold by both. The real story here is if you can find a beer, hard liquor at either warehouse liquor store it’s likely a great deal.

Shopping at Costco or Sam’s Club liquor stores do have some drawbacks compared to local liquor stores:

• Limited Variety – Warehouse liquor stores carry only the most popular brands and types of alcoholic beverages. If you’re looking for a specific bottle of wine, a craft beer, or a less popular type of liquor, it likely won’t be found there.
• Bulk Only – Liquor stores at Costco and Sam’s club typically carry liquor only in 1.75-liter bottles. If a smaller bottle of a product is desired, visit a local full-service liquor store.
• No Specialty Ordering – What’s in stock at a warehouse liquor store is what they’ve got. At a local liquor store, you can almost always ask them to special order something and they can have it delivered by their local distributor within a few days.
• Rotating Stock: Just because you find a product at a warehouse store, doesn’t mean it will be there the next time you want it.

Readers, where do you prefer to purchase alcohol? Do the results of this price comparison surprise you?

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Check out our other excellent articles on CleverDude: 

• Is Costco Beer Cheaper?
• Save Big At Costco Liquor Stores
• Beer vs Liquor: An Alcohol Price Per Ounce Comparison

Brock Kernin

Brock is a software engineer by day and personal finance blogger at night. He is a fitness junkie and enjoys grilling and smoking meat. Married with two children,  Brock strives to improve his skills as a husband and father, and is always on the lookout to stretch his family’s budget as far as he can.