None — Buying in bulk at stores like Sam's Club and Costco can save consumers a significant amount of money, but experts said it's important to know what to buy in order to save.
Channel 11's Robin Taylor visited Pittsburgh's most popular warehouse stores to find out the best and worst items to purchase in bulk.
Taylor reported that prices at warehouse stores aren't always the lowest. Staples like milk, butter and choice cuts of meat are typically less expensive than at grocery stores. Fresh fruits and vegetables are also considered a good buy.
"Strawberries today, it's a big container of strawberries, and they're like $3. You can't beat that," said Cindy Zurchin of Sewickley.
Taylor learned that prescription drugs are another good buy at Sam's Club and Costco because they're usually 50 percent less than at the pharmacy.
Bargains on electronics, with generous return policies, make purchasing televisions and computers at warehouse stores a good idea, Taylor reported.
Where consumers run into trouble, Taylor reported, is buying items that will go bad. According to experts the four worst items to buy at warehouse stores are:
1. Supersized bags of food, like potato chips. It's not a deal if the food goes to waste. Taylor said you should watch the size of the items you buy and be careful buying a brand of item you're not familiar with.
2. Items that will go bad before their expiration date.
"If I know I'm going to be making a lot of salads, I will definitely buy my lettuce here. But if I know we're just going to be eating salad once that week, I know it's not a good deal if I buy it and use it once," said Zurchin.
3. Paper products. Taylor said many paper products are often more expensive at warehouse stores. Taylor compared prices at Sam's Club and Walmart and found that toilet paper was a few cents cheaper at Walmart and paper towels were nearly a $1 less per roll.
4. Mulitpacks also can deceive the consumer into believing they are getting a good deal, Taylor reported. She found that a multipack of Softsoap at Sam's Club was $0.76 cheaper per bottle at Walmart.
Taylor also said that customers should be careful of buying items that are "coupon-rich" because oftentimes combining store sales with coupons can beat the warehouse price.
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