Big Family Food: Have Grocery Prices Gone Up at Sam’s?

There’s so much talk about high grocery costs! So have grocery prices gone up at Sam’s also?

I had just made a run to our local grocery store – the one I try to support if at all possible. But they aren’t a chain so their prices are often higher than most other stores. Their sales are good though, and I like to support them since they are local, so I go there when I can. (Read here to get some great tips and recipes to help keep food costs down!)

One particular day recently though, I came home so discouraged. It seemed that everything everyone had been saying about grocery prices going up was very true. Everything I needed at the store that day seemed to have doubled in price. Ouch, that can really add up. And because we go through so much food at our house, I just couldn’t justify putting many “convenience foods” (Like bagels, hashbrowns, frozen fruit, yogurt…) into my cart.

I stuck to the very basics, came home with very few groceries, and tried to think creatively about how I could stay within our grocery budget while still recognizing that my cooking/baking time is very, very limited.

(Ha, “came home with very few groceries” was still a cart full. I had planned to get much more for our family that day, that’s all.) ;)

A few days later, I was able to head out of town to Sam’s to try to really stock up on items we needed. I took our 6-year-old with me for a much-needed one-on-one outing. She was BEAMING the entire time we were out! (And chatting. And chatting, and chatting. I’m learning that girls are different than boys, ha!)

Have Grocery Prices Gone Up at Sam’s?

My fear was that Sam’s grocery prices were going to be just as hiked up as they had been at our small grocery store.

I was getting low on just about all of our staples, plus I always need fresh produce. So I decided not to hold back while shopping that day. I was hoping to get enough food to last us at least two weeks. Maybe?? But I was also hoping to avoid going broke.

The only carts available that day were the flats, which I knew I would need. But I also don’t like how difficult it is to get everything onto a flat without stuff falling out. So I took the advice left by JJ on this post, and I grabbed boxes at the front of the store. Instead of just putting items onto the flat, I loaded them into the big boxes that sat on the flat. Worked like a charm!!!

After check out, the boxes filled the back of our Transit, but they sure did stack up nicely!

Then, of course, unloading it and putting it all away once we got home was the fun challenge.

What I got:

• Big bag of apples
• Big bag of pears
• Big bag of nectarines
• Bananas
• 1 container of mixed greens
• 2 containers of spinach
• Container of blueberries
• Container of strawberries
• Container of kiwi
• Asparagus
• Big bag of petite baby carrots
• 2 large bags of Fritos
• 2 large bags of tortilla chips
• Case of peaches
• Case of mandarine oranges
• Case of Rotel
• Case of refried beans
• Box of beef hotdogs
• Box of orange chicken
• Box of cheese curds
• Bag of chicken nuggets
• Pack of lime juice bottles
• Coffee creamer
• 1/2 & 1/2
• Big bag of tator tots
• Turkey lunch meat
• Ham lunch meat
• White queso
• Sliced colby jack cheese
• Shredded colby jack cheese
• Box of avocado mash cups
• Double bag of plain bagels
• 2 large bags of frozen fruit
• A few clothing items we needed

Total for food: $367

I was AMAZED and grateful that I got so much food for less than $400!

While grocery prices have gone up here and there, I didn’t find that the prices at Sam’s were shocking by any means.

Are Sam’s and Costco still going to save us money?

Absolutely.

Yes, prices have gone up somewhat because that’s what’s happening right now. But the savings I experienced at Sam’s that day was significant compared to what I’d found at a regular grocery store. Plus, overall prices were still extremely reasonable at Sam’s.

Next time I go to Costco I’ll do a similar comparison to see if the savings are still there. :)

What have you experienced with grocery prices where you shop? Are they going up?

P.S. Read this post to get great tips and recipes for help in keeping food costs down!