What Customers Hate About Shopping At Sam's Club

You can find plenty of people who absolutely love Sam's Club. Like Costco, Trader Joe's, and Aldi, Sam's Club isn't just any ol' grocery store. It has a fanbase and an almost cult-like following. From its food court hot dogs and pizza to its rotisserie chickens and Member's Mark products that you can't get anywhere else, aficionados find plenty of reasons to call this store their favorite.

However, for all the things shoppers love about Sam's Club, there are also plenty of critics who absolutely hate this store (which, by the way, is actually owned by Walmart). If they don't outright hate the chain, they can at least admit that it has its fair share of faults. For example, I've been a Sam's Club member for several years, and while I'm nowhere near giving up my membership, the shopping experience isn't always exactly pleasant. 

So, maybe you've yet to get a membership and you're considering it, or maybe you're weighing what Sam's Club does better than Costco. If you want to know all the bad and ugly (because we're not discussing the good here), these are the top things that customers hate about shopping at Sam's Club that you'll want to know about before you make your decision.

People recommend shopping at Sam's Club because you can get good deals there. You can indeed find good prices at the warehouse club, and some Sam's Club items even come in under $10. These include highly rated products like the Member's Mark Greek yogurt and the Member's Mark BBQ baked beans with brisket. However, if you're just on an average grocery run and you're not buying in bulk or searching for specialty Member's Mark items, you may find that shopping at Sam's Club actually ends up costing you more than you'd spend elsewhere.

Dissatisfied customers on Reddit noted that they could find basic items at other stores — like Walmart, Aldi, and even Amazon — for better deals. The consensus is that some Sam's Club groceries aren't worth the price, including fresh meats, milk, and toilet paper. Other items that Reddit users have noted are more expensive at Sam's Club include fresh produce, cheese, napkins, and paper plates.

Sam's Club Scan & Go app seems pretty simple and convenient, especially for those who don't like waiting in line to check out with a cashier or going through the bother of the self-checkout. Here's how the app works. When you get to the store and start shopping, you open it up and begin scanning items' barcodes as you place them in your cart. Once you have everything you need, you can pay for your items in-app before leaving the store. Plus, throughout Sam's Club, you'll see price tags that list significant savings for customers using the Scan & Go app. However, if you don't use the app, you can't get the deals — and that just doesn't seem fair. 

Personally, I don't want to download yet another app on my phone and scan items as I go. What if I miss something or decide that I don't want something toward the end of my shopping trip? However, it can be infuriating to see that other members are getting substantial savings just because they're using the app. 

Additionally, Sam's Club members on Reddit complain of frequent issues with Scan & Go. For example, the app may charge customers a different (and higher) price than what is listed on the tag. In other cases, the app may charge too little, and then shoppers are flagged down by employees who think they didn't pay for everything they're leaving with.

As any Sam's Club member will tell you — myself included — it can be way too easy to overspend when you walk into one of these bulk stores. You've been told that buying in bulk is such a good deal! And you can save so much money! And they have things that you can't find anywhere else! And all that combines to make the perfect storm for overspending. 

I can't count the number of times I've walked into Sam's Club for one or two items and left with a full cart. You go in for one thing, like bulk paper towels, and then you realize that, yes, you do actually need 20 pounds of french fries. You'll eat them eventually, right? And those sweaters they have for just $15? Such a steal! 

This isn't a shopping issue unique to Sam's Club, but it is nonetheless one that people complain about. Plus, the average customer typically doesn't take the time to compare prices. Buying wholesale is not always a better deal, and you might end up spending more simply under the allure of bulk purchases. As a Sam's Club member on Reddit said, "I went in for ice cream ... I left with $150 worth of stuff. I didn't need a $20 chicken pot pie but that's what walked into my cart."

Quick — don't make eye contact. Too late. The store employee has noticed you, and now they're making a beeline toward your cart, and they're going to do their absolute best to convince you to sign up for a credit card or a new phone plan. You'll shake your head and nod politely, but all the while, you'll be screaming inside, trying to find an avenue of escape without being entirely rude.

While we can't blame the store employees for these situations — it's just their job, after all — it's worth noting that some Sam's Club shopping experiences do come with plenty of near-constant upsell pitches. As one Reddit user described, "First you walk in and immediately have either AT&T or Verizon people push whatever down your throat, not even a few feet after that there's a new stand on the cleaning supply aisle that tries to flag you down for something, then you get by the water and there's someone trying to sell you filters and then you go to the checkout and there is someone trying to sell you credit cards."

As such, if these types of experiences are a major annoyance for you, you may want to skip Sam's Club. Check out some of the other best grocery stores for budget shoppers instead. 

A lot of shoppers rave about the food courts at stores like Sam's Club and Costco. The menus are relatively simple, but the eats are very budget-friendly, and the hot dogs, pizza, and parfaits have gained a following. Fans will argue over whether Costco or Sam's Club has cheaper pizza and which truly has a superior hot dog. In some cases, members will even renew their annual Sam's Club membership just for the Café. While at one point both Sam's Club and Costco allowed non-members to come in and order food, that is no longer the case. 

However, in addition to this inconvenience, another problem shoppers have with Sam's Club is that the Café can be really short-staffed. For example, one purported employee on Reddit mentioned that it's sometimes only two people working behind the counter. If one of them goes on break, the line can get long, and customers can get impatient. In another thread full of gripes on the understaffed food courts, a reported former team lead at Sam's Club commented, "The headcounts they provide are never enough people to get the work done that needs to be done ... So it's a skeleton crew [even] when it's fully staffed." 

At many Sam's Clubs, you'll notice that the normal checkout section is mostly self-checkout lanes and some signage for the Scan & Go app. It appears that the brand is really pushing for customers to choose one of those two options instead of going through staffed lanes, which are few and far between. 

Sure, bemoaning the lack of staffed checkout counters may seem like a Boomer complaint. However, if you're purchasing a large amount of items — as many Sam's Club shoppers do — it can be annoying to do all the work on your own. You have to take the items from the cart, scan them, put them in a different cart, etc., without any help. At least with a cashier, they're assisting with over half the process. 

I've also noticed that whenever you use a self-checkout lane at Sam's Club, it's a real pain trying to flag down an associate to assist if you do need any help (like if the system can't recognize an item you're trying to scan). The lack of staffed checkout lanes has dissuaded some members from going to the store, and instead, they're choosing an alternative with more employees.

It's no secret that if you're not a member at Sam's Club, you're not really going to be able to do all that much. Shopping? Forget about it. Grabbing a bite from the food court? Guess again. If you go in on a day when someone's standing at the door actively checking for membership cards, then the best you're going to get is a pointed demand to either make your way over to the membership counter or leave the store completely. This makes things tricky when you actually do have a legitimate reason to be in the store as a non-member.

For example, one Redditor detailed their experience trying to return an item to Sam's Club as a non-member (the item had been a gift). After successfully returning it and receiving a gift receipt, they tried to use the voucher to make a few purchases. Customer service told this individual they couldn't buy anything because they weren't a member. According to the post, after some pushback, a manager said, "tough luck" –– the customer would have to give the gift receipt to an actual member to make any purchases. Many Sam's Club Redditors on the thread upheld the exclusionary attitude and did not seem surprised to hear about the situation.

If you're a shopper who really likes to support companies that you feel match your personal values, and if employee rights and treatment are one of those things that you care about, you might want to reconsider shopping at Sam's Club. A Reddit poster who was considering a Sam's Club membership asked employees outright about their experiences in 2024. The poster wanted a membership, but only if they could affirm that the company treated its workers fairly. Unfortunately, the overwhelming response from other commenters was negative. 

Yes, some noted that things can really vary by management and location. However, by and large, the experience pales in comparison to what employees might enjoy at other stores. "We get paid less than Costco and are often understaffed compared to them, meaning more work for less people," one purported employee commented. Another Redditor noted that they'd worked at Sam's Club decades ago and loved it — and then recently returned and found it was starkly different. Employees reported dangerous working conditions, harassment, injuries, and poor benefits.

If you don't normally shop at Sam's Club, you might not know where everything is or be able to navigate the warehouse as effectively as someone who goes regularly. I stop by maybe once per month, and even then, I find myself walking down countless aisles just to find a single item. When the store becomes crowded, this process becomes infinitely more annoying. 

Given Sam's Club's popularity, locations can get really packed, especially at certain times of the day and week. Redditors shared that weekends and holidays are some of the worst times to shop. In contrast, the least-crowded days seem to be Tuesdays and Wednesdays. For fewer crowds, customers also recommended visiting the store as soon as it opens or after lunch. Unfortunately, this is when many of us are busy at work and don't have any spare time for shopping.

Keep in mind, it's not just the stores that are crowded. The parking lots get pretty hectic, too. When you have hordes of customers running around the lot with their carts of bulk purchases, the parking lot can become a stress-inducing nightmare.

Remember how we said the food at Sam's Club Cafés basically has its own following, with customers flocking there for affordable and tasty hot dogs, pizza, and other treats? Well, not everyone thinks that the eats are worth the hype — at least not anymore. According to some, the food court offerings at Sam's Club have gone way downhill, so if you were considering buying into a membership specifically for the Café, you may be pretty disappointed.

A 2024 Reddit thread on the topic didn't hold back any punches. "The pizza is so greasy, I only eat it if I'm starving at this point," one commenter wrote. Another Redditor mentioned they noticed a decrease in quality after Sam's Club switched from serving Nathan's hot dogs to Member's Mark. "The hot dogs taste like warmed up Vienna sausages, and I mean that as an insult," they said.  Meanwhile, one commenter linked the downgrades to Sam's Club's consistently reported understaffing. If there aren't enough people to work, employees may cut corners or get overwhelmed, resulting in a subpar dining experience.

Who doesn't love a good coupon? While they may not carry the same weight that they once did (if you recall, there used to be entire television shows revolving around couponing and the amazing, jaw-dropping deals that extreme couponers could score), sometimes you just want to pull out a little slip of paper that translates to getting a great deal.

However, if you had even the slightest hope of using your coupons at Sam's Club, you're going to be out of luck. Perhaps the most frustrating issue is that the warehouse club does not accept manufacturer or competitor coupons. Instead, Sam's Club pushes its Instant Savings program as an alternative (no clipping, the store says! As if that was ever a problem with couponing anyway). The Instant Savings program simply advertises discounts on Sam's Club-picked products that are applied at checkout. It's just like buying on-sale items at any store, and nothing really special.

Let's face it. We really don't need everything in bulk. Some items can be nice to buy wholesale, like products that won't spoil or that you use consistently. (I personally love the convenience of buying paper products and drinks in bulk). However, unless you're a big family, you're probably not going to need your average groceries in bulk form. In fact, stocking up on your essentials in mass can just add to your household's food waste.

For example, many shoppers on Reddit mentioned that you really shouldn't buy your produce at Sam's Club. With so many of us having issues simply eating a normal amount of fruits and veggies before they go bad, buying in excess just doesn't make sense. "Often you can't get a good look at all of them so the middle is already rotted," shared one customer. "I normally have to toss nearly half every time I buy anything aside from limes."

Additionally, certain bulk items — like raw meat — have to be frozen unless you eat them right away. That means spending extra time portioning things out and keeping them in your freezer, potentially taking up valuable space.