Sam’s Club is a membership-only American chain of wholesale retail stores with 600 locations nationwide, helping it earn a 2020 revenue of $64 billion.
However, Sam’s Club isn’t the only wholesale retail store in America, as it has quite a few competitors. If you’re wondering which companies compete with Sam’s Club, you’re in the right place! I’ve researched the matter in-depth, so you don’t have to!
Sam’s Club Competitors In 2024
The top Sam’s Club competitor is Costco because it’s a similar wholesale retail chain where you can buy almost anything in bulk as of 2024. BJ’s Wholesale competes with Sam’s Club as another wholesale retailer. Also, chain retail stores such as Target compete with Sam’s Club, although it doesn’t have quite as low of prices or as much selection.
Do you want to know more about the Sam’s Club competitors, such as how many stores they have nationwide? I’ll tell you all about that and more, so keep reading!
1. Costco
Costco is undoubtedly the biggest competitor to Sam’s Club since it’s a wholesale retail club where you also have to pay a fee to become a member and shop there.
Furthermore, Costco offers nearly identical products in its stores, including electronics, tools, clothing, accessories, pet products, groceries, and outdoor furnishings.
Currently, there are 571 Costco locations throughout the United States, and in 2020, revenue topped 2.14 billion!
2. BJ’s Wholesale
Much like Sam’s Club, BJ’s Wholesale is a wholesale retailer that offers lower-priced products and has everything, including electronics, toys, pet products, household items, and food.
However, BJ’s Wholesale doesn’t have quite the selection of products and variety that Sam’s Club does, but it’s on average a little cheaper than Sam’s Club.
So, with more than 200 locations throughout 17 states and 2020 revenue of $13.191 billion, it’s a true competitor to Sam’s Club.
3. Target
Target is a competitor to Sam’s Club since it has an enormous selection of products, including electronics, toys, lawn and garden, household accessories, outdoor furniture, and clothing.
Additionally, it’s the eighth-largest retail company in the United States, giving Sam’s Club a run for its money because Target goes after the same customers.
In 2020, Target’s revenue was $93 billion, and it’s become successful in the eCommerce market. However, Target still operates more than 1,900 stores in the United States.
4. Lowe’s
Lowe’s is a competitor to Sam’s Club since it offers lawn and garden items, tools, equipment, lighting fixtures, lumber, paint, and other home improvement and household items.
In 2020, Lowe’s had annual revenue of $72.48 billion, proving it’s one of America’s top home improvement stores with 1,728 locations nationwide.
5. Rakuten
Rakuten is an online eCommerce website that specializes in electronics and office supplies, making it a competitor to Sam’s Club in those categories.
Also, the company was founded in Japan, but it has a location in California to bring the eCommerce giant into the American market and offer low prices.
Further, Rakuten earned 1.46 trillion Japanese yen in 2020, making it one of the leading eCommerce websites in the world.
6. IKEA
IKEA is similar to Sam’s Club in that it has a warehouse-like layout of its stores. That said, IKEA is known for selling home furnishings, including furniture and decor.
Additionally, IKEA sells bedroom, kitchen, and living room items at relatively low prices.
Currently, there are about 50 IKEA stores in the United States, and IKEA made $4.7 billion in sales during 2020.
7. Sears
Sears is a nationwide department store that sells clothes, toys, mattresses, home furnishings, kitchen products, tools, and much more.
With that, Sears competes with Sam’s Club in those categories and offers reasonable prices, which helped generate a 2020 revenue of .26 billion.
However, Sears has struggled the past decade, and there are only 530 stores left in the United States.
8. Aldi
Aldi is one of the most well-known discount supermarket chains where you can get household items and groceries for very low prices, so it’s a competitor to Sam’s Club in that category.
Also, there are over 2,100 stores in the United States, and it’s estimated that Aldi’s revenue is about $15 billion.
9. Ollie’s Bargain Outlet
If you’re looking for a good deal, Ollie’s Bargain Outlet is the place to go because it’s a discount chain that carries a ton of products, including housewares, groceries, books, rugs, and more!
That said, the stores are similar to Sam’s Club in layout, and it’s a closeout store, so you’re going to get better prices there than at Sam’s Club, where the premise is buying in bulk.
On top of that, Ollie’s Bargain Outlet made $1.809 billion in net sales for 2020 from its 430 locations in the United States.
10. Office Depot
Office Depot is an office supply retail company in the United States that competes with Sam’s Club in the electronics and office supplies category.
At Office Depot, you can find a lot of household office supplies, including printers, computers, tablets, home security systems, televisions, office furniture, and more.
Furthermore, there are 1,089 Office Depot locations throughout the United States, and in 2020, revenue amounted to .7 billion.
11. Radio Shack
Radio Shack is a household name for electronics and office supplies in America, and it competes with Sam’s Club in those categories.
Additionally, you can find various products at Radio Shack, including computers, televisions, antennas, headphones, and equipment needed to run all of your household electronics.
Moreover, Radio Shack made $20 million in revenue for 2020, which isn’t bad considering there are only 400 stores left of this once leading electronic retailer.
If you want to know more, you can also read our posts on what is Sam’s Club, the biggest Sam’s Club competitors, and Sam’s Club facts & statistics.
Conclusion
Sam’s Club’s main competitor is Costco since the stores are similar in layout and use the same business model of being a wholesale retail store.
Furthermore, Costco and Sam’s Club both require you to purchase a membership to shop, and they both offer bulk inventory at low prices.
However, other stores also compete with Sam’s Club, including BJ’s Wholesale, another wholesale retailer, and Ollie’s Bargain Bin, a closeout retail store that’s similar.
Additionally, stores like Target, Sears, IKEA, and Target are competitors to Sam’s Club since they carry a multitude of products at reasonable prices.