‘I abandoned my membership completely,’ cries Sam’s Club shopper after Plus members set to see huge price hike

A SAM’S Club member has complained about price increases expected later this summer.

They criticized the warehouse retailer for updating benefits included in certain plans, resulting in more costs for some.

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Shoppers can sign up for the basic Club membership for $50 per year or upgrade to the Plus membership for $110, which comes with additional benefits, according to Sam’s Club website.

Club and Plus include same-day delivery, instant savings opportunities, fuel discounts, bonus offers and an additional free membership for a second person in the buyer’s household, among other perks.

Interested shoppers can pay more for the exclusive offers that come with Plus instead of Club, including pharmacy and optical discounts, early shopping hours, and – most notably – free shipping and curbside pickup on all orders.

Although free shipping and curbside pickup will no longer be permanent as of August 19th.

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Shipping and curbside pickup costs will be increased to an $8 charge if minimum order value is not met.

“Starting August 19th, Sam’s Club perks have changed for Sam’s Club Plus members,” the frustrated shopper wrote in a publish to Facebook earlier this month.

“I’m paying $110 for Plus because I can get orders for free with no minimum purchase.”

“I will now have to pay a flat $8 shipping fee if I don’t spend $50 or more,” the member said.

They continued to note that Club memberships would also see a change, with free curbside pickup being offered on orders of $45 or more.

“Otherwise there is a $4 charge for a withdrawal under $45,” the member noted.

“Before the change, a person with a regular subscription had to pay $4 each time they picked up.”

“Looks like I’ll be switching to regular membership,” they added.

Others were equally dissatisfied with the change.

“I completely abandoned my subscription,” commented one customer in the same thread.

Membership and store cards offered by major retailers

Here’s a breakdown of store cards offered to customers from various retailers and their benefits

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Costco:

• Gold Star Membership: $60 per year, shop at all Costco stores and online with two additional cards for your family.
• Executive Member: $120 per year, 2% annual rewards, discounts and additional benefits on Costco services, shop online and in-store and get two additional cards for home use.
• Sign up for a Costco Membership here

Sam’s Club:

• Club membership: $50 Per Year, Bonus Offers, Same Day Delivery, Instant Savings, Sam’s Club Mastercard, Members Only Fuel Savings, Tire & Battery Center, Free Membership and Complimentary Memberships.
• More membership: $110 per year, all the benefits of Club membership plus Sam’s Cash, free shipping, free curbside pickup, advance purchases, and pharmacy and optical discounts.
• Sign up for Sam’s Club membership here

Target:

• Target Circle: A free rewards program that allows users to earn 1% in Target Circle Earnings rewards when a qualifying purchase is made, access personalized deals and offers, receive a birthday gift, and earn a vote to help direct how Target helps your community .
• Target Circle Card: A credit, debit or reloadable card that offers users 5% off in-store and online, as well as exclusive offers, free two-day shipping and an additional 30-day return window. Formerly Target RedCard.
• Sign up for Target circle here

Walmart:

• Walmart+: $12.95 per month or $98 per year with 30-day free trial. It offers members free delivery, free shipping with no minimum spend, fuel savings, Paramount+ subscription, car, Walmart+ travel, home drop-off, mobile scan and store entry, and early access to offers and product launches.
• Sign up for Walmart+ here

SPEED SHOPPING

Sam’s Club members were recently pleased with the warehouse retailer’s Scan & Go feature.

Similar to Walmart’s feature of the same name, it allows customers to scan merchandise using the Sam’s Club mobile app and generate a single barcode for all items in their cart.

They then take this barcode to the checkout area and quickly scan it before leaving.

It became so popular that some Costco customers vowed to ditch their subscriptions in favor of Sam’s Club.

A Costco insider recently argued that Sam’s was “better” for several reasons and debated going back.

Another Costco customer criticized the chain for being a “zoo” full of shoppers amid Sam’s Club’s Scan & Go solution for an efficient shopping experience.