We shopped at Sam's Club and BJ's to see which was a better warehouse store, and the winner was clear
Sam's Club was the first store I visited. An annual membership costs $45 for the standard plan and $100 for the premium plan. No one checked my membership upon entry. Without a membership, you can use a guest pass to shop, but there is a 10% service fee at most locations.
The tech department was right up front, with rows of TVs and computers for under $2,000.
There was a full mobile phone center in the tech department as well.
Also near the front of the store were a photo printing center, an optical center, and a hearing center. Non-members can use the optical and hearing centers, as well as the pharmacy that's offered at most locations.
Aisles of snacks stretched wall to wall, and everything was sold in bulk. Most of what was sold in the snack aisle cost $10 or less.
Produce was also sold in bulk at a low price point. A five-pound bag of clementines was just over $6.
Sam's Club was relatively organized. Aisles were labeled, and similar products were grouped together.
But it still had the "treasure hunt" element that warehouse clubs are known for. Random products were placed all over the store.
In the spacious center of the store, clothes were stacked surrounded by books and furniture sets. Most clothes and books were $20 or less.
Sam's Club also had a selection of high-end jewelry kept behind glass ...
... and it had a huge wall of gift cards being sold at discounted prices. For example, $50 gift cards to restaurants were being sold for under $40.
The lines at the register were pretty long, but Sam's Club has an app that allows customers to scan items as they go through the store and then pay through the app, skipping the long lines. Sam's Club also accepts returns for most items except for electronics and appliances, which have a 90-day limit.
Past the register was a food court selling $1.50 hot dogs, 89-cent sodas, and other unbelievably cheap meals. You don't need a membership to eat at the food court.
I went to BJ's next. An annual membership costs $55 for the standard plan and $110 for the premium plan. No one checked my membership upon entry at BJ's, either. Like at Sam's Club, non-members can use a guest pass to shop, but they'll be charged a 20% service fee at most locations.
Like at Sam's Club, the tech department was at the front of the store, and most products cost under $2,000. BJ's advertised its tech advisor program that offers free help to customers. Sam's Club offers this as well, but it was not advertised as clearly in the store.
In the same way that Sam's Club had a mobile center, BJ's had a mini Verizon store set up near its tech department.
BJ's, like Sam's Club, has optical, hearing, and photo centers, as well as a pharmacy.
Snacks were sold in bulk for around the same price as at Sam's Club, but there wasn't nearly as much variety. Prices on produce were comparable as well.
Making my way through the store, I noticed a lot of empty shelves.
The selection of gift cards and other items was noticeably smaller at BJ's than at Sam's Club, though the company carries a comparable selection online.
The store was organized pretty similarly to Sam's Club. Not everything was in the same place, but there were similar signs grouping products together.
There was still a treasure-hunt experience at BJ's, despite how organized the aisles were. The middle of the store sold books, clothes, furniture, and tons of other random products that didn't seem to fit anywhere.
BJ's had a self-checkout option that allowed customers to skip the line. Sam's Club had its scan-and-go app, but it did not have a self-checkout. BJ's returns policy isn't as lenient as Sam's Club's — it stops accepting returns on most items after about a year.
Rather than a full food court like Sam's Club had, BJ's had a Dunkin' Donuts kiosk with a few small tables set up next to it. Even though BJ's costs more to join annually, I found it didn't really offer any additional perks for the price. While the online selections may be comparable, Sam's Club had a better in-store experience and had more to offer.
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