These days, everyone’s on the lookout for good shopping deals, and discount warehouse retailers like Sam’s Club are a great option.
Unfortunately, you need a membership to shop in-store at Sam’s Club. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t still ways to save.
Sam’s Club occasionally offers a temporary guest membership or an “invitation to shop” so that non-members can enjoy its famous discounts. The only catch is that you can only use the guest pass to shop online, and you’ll have to pay a 10% fee for your order.
Here are five ways to make your guest membership go farther.
1. Look for better deals first
While Sam’s Club often has great prices, don’t assume you’re getting a great deal. Buying items you can get for the same price or cheaper elsewhere would waste your online guest pass.
Since you’re shopping online at Sam’s Club anyway, opening a few browser tabs to compare prices won’t be hard. But to find even more savings, download a cash back app to earn rewards for online purchases. For example, you can earn up to 10% cash back on online purchases through Rakuten.
2. Shop for furniture
One of the best ways to use your online guest pass is to buy a big-ticket item like furniture. Consumer Reports ranks Sam’s Club among the top six online furniture retailers, placing it ahead of Pottery Barn and Wayfair in overall satisfaction.
I found a living room furniture set on the Sam’s Club website for $2,999.00, a $500 discount off its usual price. However, you’ll likely need to pay for delivery.
3. Book a vacation
I’m going on a beach vacation in a few weeks, and I’m always surprised at how much rising costs continue to eat into my vacation budget. If you want to stretch your budget, consider booking a vacation on Sam’s Club’s website.
Sam’s Club says you can save up to 60% on hotel prices and 25% on car rentals. I also found a 30% savings on a five-day/five-night vacation package to Universal Studios.
4. Buy event tickets
Grocery prices aren’t the only cost that have skyrocketed over the past couple of years. Pollstar data shows that ticket prices for live concerts are up 27% compared to 2019.
Thankfully, you can save on buying certain event tickets at Sam’s Club — some are up to 50% off and all are 100% guaranteed. I found tickets to Cirque du Soleil that were more than 20% off and Yankees baseball tickets that were 50% off.
5. Shop in-store with a member
While Sam’s Club no longer offers guest passes for in-store shopping, each member is allowed to bring up to two guests per visit.
You technically won’t be able to purchase anything yourself, but you can shop with Sam’s Club members, and they can buy the items. This can be a great way to save some money as long as you have a friend who’s a member, and is willing to bring you along on their next Sam’s Club run.
If you’re interested in saving money and haven’t tried a Sam’s Club membership yet, using a guest membership to make a few online purchases first is a good way to try it. And if you score a big-ticket item at a huge discount, you can enjoy the savings for years to come.
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