For some, the happiest place on Earth is filled with princesses, fireworks, and thousands of people. However, in a conversation overheard by my older sister, a person she was passing by loudly exclaimed that people who think Disney is the happiest place on Earth must not have been to Costco. So, while some prefer overpriced mouse-shaped food items and standing in line with stormtroopers, others prefer $1.50 hot dogs and great deals. But I have to wonder, is Costco really the happiest place on Earth, or does its primary competitor, Sam’s Club, bring more joy to its shoppers?

I have been an avid shopper since my mom dragged me and my five toddler siblings to the store with her in 2010. We were quite the scene as she paraded us around Sam’s Club or Costco in one of those big shopping carts built for carpets or large pieces of furniture. Now that we’re older, some of my other siblings have chosen to stay home rather than explore the frozen aisle or hunt out the best samples. Even so, I have always remained a dedicated shopper. Over my years as a consumer, I have often debated the question of which is better, Costco or Sam’s Club. I like them both for different reasons, but they both have their bad qualities as well.

For starters, Costco is swarming with people. If you’re wondering what someone is doing in the middle of the day on Saturday, you should check Costco, because it seems that everyone and their entire family is there to shop. The parking lot is full, the aisles are crammed, and everyone is trying to get out of there as fast as they can. Shopping at Costco is very go, go, go! Sam’s Club doesn’t have the same overcrowding problem. Whenever I go shopping there, I have enough time and space to walk up and down every aisle as slowly or as fast as I like. 

In the Sam’s Club app, you can even scan your items as you walk through the store and pay directly in the app. This way, you don’t have to wait in a checkout line, which is very convenient and saves time. At Costco, the checkout lines are huge! They often span from the front of the store to the back of the store. I will say, the workers are efficient, so the line moves fairly quickly. But if you’re looking for a quick and easy “I have to grab one thing” shopping trip, Sam’s Club is definitely the place to go.

Both Sam’s Club and Costco have good food courts. At both warehouse stores, you have a variety of options. At Costco, you can choose between pizza, hot dogs, chicken bake, sandwiches, salads, smoothies and frozen yogurt. Sam’s Club has a similar menu that offers pizza, hot dogs, yogurt cup sundaes, and pretzels. When I was a child, my mom would often bribe me and my siblings with Sam’s Club cinnamon and sugar pretzels. But between the two food courts, Costco definitely has better pizza. Costco also had their hot dog and soda combo that is famous for only costing $1.50, which is a great deal.

Recently, Costco decided to make the switch from Pepsi to Coke products. This is huge for me because my family loves Diet Coke. This switch definitely makes Costco the better food court. Unfortunately, Costco only allows members to eat at their food court, while Sam’s Club allows anyone to enter and use their food court.

Another blow to Sam’s Club is that they barely have any samples. At Costco, there is practically a sample at the end of every aisle. Part of the experience when shopping at warehouses is getting a free snack every couple of feet. 

The Costco brand, Kirkland Signature, is also generally of a higher quality than Sam’s Club brand, Member’s Mark. One of my family’s favorite products is the Kirkland Signature sparkling water because it is cheap and pretty tasty. Costco is also overall really good with food. We love their prepared meals like street tacos, alfredo pasta and yakisoba noodles. That said, Sam’s Club has the better salad kits. Their kits are both cheaper, and you only have to buy one at a time instead of two that are packaged together.

At the end of the day, if I were tied down and told I could only have one of these warehouse stores for the rest of my life, then I would choose Costco. While I get a little annoyed every time I go to Costco because it is so busy, its products are usually higher quality, and they have really good ready-to-eat products. I don’t know if it’s the happiest place on Earth, but there is definitely a substantial amount of joy that I get from getting great deals and great-tasting food. So, although I would strongly recommend trying both Costco and Sam’s Club before you pick your favorite, for me, Costco is the happiest place on Earth.