Saving money is probably one of the main reasons you shop at Sam’s Club. You pay the membership fee, you buy in bulk and that saves money, right? Sure, but there are a few hacks that could be saving you even more on your next haul. We asked ChatGPT which hacks could save you at least $100 per month and there were a few strokes of genius.
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Avoid Splurging on Fresh Produce
Its first suggestion? Skip most of the fresh produce. If you’ve ever had to throw out a bulk purchase of strawberries, grapes or oranges that went bad before your family could eat them all, you know it almost feels like throwing away a pile of cash. Instead of buying bulk produce with a short lifespan, ChatGPT suggests sticking to fruits and vegetables with a long shelf life.
“Only buy long-lasting bulk produce (apples, carrots, potatoes) at Sam’s and leave short-lifers (berries, lettuce) for a regular grocery trip,” ChatGPT wrote.
Its suggestion isn’t a bad one. According to a 2024 report by Instacart, a family of four spends between $990 to $1,690 per month on groceries. The average of that is $1,340 each month. The USDA estimated that food waste makes up 30% to 40% of the food supply, with the majority of food waste being from produce. Let’s say that 20% of the food you waste each month is produce. That’s $268 of your monthly food budget. By preserving your food, freezing or just buying produce in smaller portions, you may be able to reduce that waste. Reducing your produce waste by even half would save you over $130 in this scenario.
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Stack Savings With a Sam’s Club Mastercard
The next hack ChatGPT shared to save big at Sam’s Club is getting the Sam’s Club Mastercard. ChatGPT neglected to caution against holding a balance on this card which could easily accrue heavy interest charges that take a chunk out of your budget. However, if you’re paying it in full each month, the rewards are going straight to your pockets. Plus Members with the Sam’s Club Mastercard earn 5% back at Sam’s Club. You’ll also earn 5% back at gas stations on up to $6,000 each year (then 1%), 3% on dining and 1% on everything else. Plus, there’s no annual fee to cut into your rewards. In comparison, other credit cards often exclude warehouse stores like Sam’s Club and Costco from higher-earning grocery rewards categories.
If we use the same average monthly grocery bill of $1,340 and pay with the Sam’s Club Mastercard each time to earn 5% Sam’s cash back, you’d earn $67 in rewards each month from groceries alone. That doesn’t count the money you might spend on gas or dining which could boost your rewards balance beyond the $100 mark.
Auditing Your ‘Fun’ Purchases
As soon as you step foot inside of Sam’s you’re greeted with seasonal displays, electronics, home goods and deals you seemingly can’t live without. Every time you add a non-essential item to your cart, your bill goes higher. So it makes sense why ChatGPT suggested to audit those types of purchases. You don’t have to skip out on the impulse buys altogether, but you may have to limit them if you want to save.
“Create a strict list and limit yourself to one non-essential item per trip,” ChatGPT explained. “Even cutting just two impulse buys a month — say, a $40 Bluetooth speaker and a $30 oversized throw — nets $70 in savings.”
By combining this hack with the other savings methods, you could easily save $100 on your next Sam’s trip.
Leverage the Pharmacy and Optical Departments
If you have a prescription that isn’t being filled at Sam’s Club, you might essentially be donating money to CVS or whichever pharmacy you’re currently using. If you’ve been paying out of pocket, have a chronic health condition or have a high-deductible plan, you stand to save a lot by switching over to Sam’s. There are often $4 generics, free select prescriptions and optical discounts. ChatGPT estimated that middle-class families could save $50 to $100 in a single pharmacy trip.
However, you’ll likely see lower savings if you have private insurance or don’t get prescriptions very often. The Health Policy Institute at Georgetown University estimated that the average adult spends about $177 out-of-pocket annually for prescriptions, with prices increasing substantially with older age. For example, those aged 65 to 79 spent an average of $456 out of pocket each year.
With a few adjustments to your shopping, these Sam’s Club hacks could cut your next grocery bill down significantly. Overall, ChatGPT has some great suggestions for your budget, but it may not always show you the full picture or steer you away from the pitfalls of trying these for yourself.
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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: The ChatGPT Sam’s Club Hacks That Could Save the Middle Class $100 or More Monthly
