Costco Comparison

I went to Costco and I was extremely overwhelmed to say the least. (Sidenote: I have not been in a Costco for like 15 years and I haven't been in a Sam's Club for 8!) My kids thought this was "the best store ever" because of the large amounts of samples they inhaled! All in all, it is a good store and one I think I can find deals at. I am going to do some comparisons every week or so, just to get a ball park on where things sit. I am going to ignore the membership fee (which I thought was reasonable at $100/yr because I am sure I spend at least $100 a year on coupons from the paper...I live in a "rural" area and the paper deals just aren't there. I am working on something though, I will share with you soon!) Three items that I caught the prices of and remembered recent sale prices for.

24 pack $6.99, the lowest I have seen these lately is $3 a box, plus catalina $4 when you spend $12, so it averages out to $2 for a box of 6 or $8 for 24. Costco is the better deal here.
Canned veggies, $9.59 for 12 or 80 cents each (S&W brand). Right now canned veggies are 39 cents at Albertsons for Green Giant, which I think is considered a more "expensive brand". I regularly see canned veggies go on sale for around 50 cents anyway. I would have to give this to the grocery store. (By the way, you can still get a rain check through today, if your store is out of the fabulous veggie deal!)

Milk, this one is tricky. Costco $3.96 for 2 gallons. I like the taste of Kirkland milk, but the jug is horrible. I am constantly dribbling down the side. Is there a trick I don't know? Last week Rite Aid had Umpqua milk on sale for $1.99/gallon and this week Fred Meyer had Mountain Dairy milk on sale for $1.99/gallon. So, I think this deal is basically a wash. However, I don't know if I will be buying the milk again just because of the jug?

I will compare more each week as I explore. I still didn't find the "diapers" and I really curious about that price!