Sam's gap week means Costco and BJ's are your plays: June 2–8 warehouse scorecard

Sam's Club's Instant Savings Book expired May 31. The June edition doesn't start until June 10. That nine-day gap is this week's defining fact — it compresses your useful shopping options to two chains, and it happens to land while Costco is running out the clock on its most deal-dense coupon book of the spring.

The situation isn't a problem; it's an opportunity to be deliberate. Costco's May 11–June 7 book has 80+ active member-only deals in their final week. 1 BJ's has three tire promotions, a BOGO eyeglasses deal, and over $100 in digital coupons clippable right now. 2 Sam's, meanwhile, is best used this week not for product savings but for its membership promo — new or lapsed members can join for $25 through June 15. 3

Headline picks — top 5 cross-chain comparisons

Item	Sam's Club	Costco	BJ's	Winner
Tires (set of 4)	No active promo this week	Michelin: $80 off (expires June 7)	Cooper/Kelly: B3G1 free; Goodyear/Michelin: $160 off + install	BJ's by $80
Whole chicken (per lb)	Rotisserie under $5 (everyday price)	Kirkland fresh whole, $0.99/lb	No confirmed promo	Costco ($0.99/lb raw)
Paper towels	Member's Mark 15-roll: $24.98 (~$1.66/roll)	Kirkland 12-roll: $23.99 (~$2.00/roll)	Berkley Jensen 12-ct: $2 coupon (expires June 4)	Sam's unit price; BJ's with coupon stacked
Samsung OLED TV (55")	No confirmed promo	$999.99 (with Allstate 5-yr warranty included)	Free tank of gas with $399+ TV purchase (through June 14)	Costco for TV value; BJ's for gas bundle
Membership entry price	$25 Club (new members, through June 15)	$65 Gold Star (no current promo)	$14 via StackSocial (new members)	BJ's lowest raw entry; Sam's lowest if Plus math checks out

Pick 1 — Tires: BJ's wins by $80 minimum. BJ's Tire Center's Wow Days promotion has three concurrent deals: buy-3-get-1-free on Cooper Endeavor and Kelly tires, $160 off Goodyear (select models), and $160 off Michelin (select models). 2 Costco's Michelin deal is $80 off any set of four, running through June 7. 1 BJ's also layers 3× back in rewards on all tire purchases. If you need rubber before July, BJ's is the stop.

BJ's Wow Days Buy 3 Get 1 FREE tire promotion banner — BJ's Wow Days: B3G1 on Cooper and Kelly Endeavor, plus $160 off Goodyear and Michelin. 2

Pick 2 — Whole chicken: Costco at $0.99/lb is hard to beat. Kirkland Signature Fresh Whole Young Chicken is listed at $0.99/lb (Item 33825/47234) in Costco's June 1–7 weekly insider page. 4 Reddit user u/momlongerwalk confirmed the price in-app. 5 Sam's rotisserie chicken runs under $5 — cooked and ready — which is a different category entirely. Both are worthwhile; they don't directly compete.

Kirkland Signature Fresh Whole Young Chicken — $0.99/lb at Costco through June 7 — Costco's Kirkland Signature whole chicken at $0.99/lb, valid June 1–7 (or while supplies last). 4

Pick 3 — Paper towels: Sam's on unit price, BJ's with a coupon stack. Sam's Member's Mark 15-roll runs $24.98 (~$1.66/roll) vs Costco's Kirkland 12-roll at $23.99 (~$2.00/roll). 6 BJ's has a $2 digital coupon on Berkley Jensen 12-ct paper towels that expires June 4 — clip it in the BJ's app before the window closes. 7 BJ's also has a $10 coupon on two Bounty or Charmin packs through June 15, stackable with manufacturer coupons — that's the unique BJ's angle neither Costco nor Sam's can match. 7

Pick 4 — 55" OLED TV: Costco's $999.99 package includes five years of warranty. The Samsung S90F 55" OLED (Item 9555091) is $999.99 through June 7, including an Allstate 3-year protection plan stacked on Samsung's 2-year — five years total. 1 BJ's counters with a free tank of gas when you spend $399+ on select TVs through June 14. 8 If you need a 55" OLED, Costco wins on value. If you're in the market for a lower-tier TV and drive a lot, BJ's gas promo is worth the math.

Pick 5 — Membership price: BJ's $14 is the lowest raw entry, Sam's $25 is best if you'll use the Plus perks. StackSocial is offering a 1-year BJ's Club Card for $14 (regular $60) plus $0.20/gal off BJ's gas for new members. 9 Sam's has the Club tier at $25 (58% off the new $60 regular price) and Plus at $55 (54% off $120) through June 15. 3 Note: Sam's raised both tiers by $10 on May 1, 2026 — the first increase since 2022. 10

Category-by-category comparison

Category	Costco	Sam's Club	BJ's	Edge
Food	Chicken $0.99/lb; Amylu chicken burgers $10.99 ($4 off); Oikos yogurt 18-pk ($4.50 off); S.Pellegrino 24-pk ($5.75 off)	Rotisserie under $5 (everyday); Memorial Day kitchen deals through June 3; everyday staples competitive on unit price	Wellsley Farms/Berkley Jensen 30+ digital coupons active; $75 spend = up to $50 back through June 15	Costco for featured promos; BJ's for store-brand digital coupon stacking
Household	Glad Press'n Seal 3-roll $9.99 ($3 off); Dyson Ball Animal 3+ ($110 off); BISSELL Little Green $79.99 ($20 off)	Everyday unit price wins: paper towels $1.66/roll, detergent 7.6¢/oz, olive oil 25.7¢/oz, eggs $0.31/egg	$2 off Berkley Jensen paper towels (expires June 4); $10 off 2 Bounty/Charmin through June 15; double coupon stacking available	Sam's on everyday unit price; BJ's on coupon-stacked specifics
Electronics	HP OmniBook 7 Flip 16" ($1,199.99, $300 off); Samsung S90F 55" OLED $999.99; Samsung soundbar $299.99 ($200 off); Midea 12k BTU portable AC $379.99 ($110 off)	No active Instant Savings this week; Memorial Day kitchen appliances through June 3	Free gas tank with TV $399+ through June 14	Costco (final week of major electronics discounts)
Tires	Michelin: $80 off any set of 4 (through June 7)	No confirmed promo	B3G1 Cooper/Kelly; $160 off Goodyear; $160 off Michelin; 3× rewards	BJ's by a wide margin
Travel	21 active packages; Caribbean heavy; multiple deadlines June 2–6 (JW Marriott San Antonio June 4, Antigua resorts June 14)	Portal blocked by Cloudflare — specific deals unconfirmed this cycle	Travel portal exists; specific deals not accessible	Costco (21 verified packages, several expiring this week)
Gas	~20¢/gal below local market; Citi Anywhere Visa adds 5% cashback	10–30¢/gal below local averages at 500+ fuel centers	5–10¢/gal base; BJ's One Mastercard holders up to 15¢/gal total; $0.20/gal for StackSocial new members	Costco for flat discount simplicity; BJ's competitive for card holders

A note on everyday staples. The "Costco always cheapest" assumption falls apart on household basics. A May 2026 unit-price comparison across five staple categories found Sam's Club wins four of five: paper towels ($1.66/roll vs $2.00), laundry detergent (7.6¢/oz vs 9.2¢/oz), olive oil (25.7¢/oz vs 31.1¢/oz), and eggs ($0.31/egg vs $0.38/egg). Costco wins toilet paper on square-footage math (1.75¢/sq ft vs 1.97¢/sq ft). 6 This gap week is not the moment to assume Sam's is disadvantaged on staples — its everyday pricing holds.

Sam's Club ISB June cover — family poolside picnic with food and drinks — Sam's Club June 10–July 5 Instant Savings Book cover — active in eight days. 11

BJ's double coupon stacking. This is BJ's structural edge that neither competitor offers. BJ's allows a manufacturer coupon and a BJ's digital coupon to apply to the same item simultaneously. A YouTube reviewer posting May 30, 2026, confirmed active double coupons on eggs, Nature Valley bars, Drumstick ice cream, and Country Crock plant butter. 12 The BJ's CEO, in Q1 2026 earnings, framed the private-label and coupon strategy bluntly: "The time to play offense is now." 13 Private-label brands Berkley Jensen and Wellsley Farms account for roughly 27% of non-gasoline BJ's sales. If you're in the eastern US and near a BJ's, this is the week the coupons expire — don't leave them unclipped.

Cherry-picker's route

Primary stop this week: Costco. The May 11–June 7 book is in its final days. The deals worth the trip:

HP OmniBook 7 Flip 16" 2-in-1 (Intel Core Ultra 7, 32GB RAM, 1TB SSD): $1,199.99 ($300 off, expires June 7, limit 2) 1. ⚠️ All households: This is a laptop; size and quantity are not a factor.
Samsung S90F 55" OLED TV: $999.99 (5-year warranty bundle, expires June 7, limit 10) 1.
Samsung Q-Series Soundbar (HW-Q60CF, 3.1.2ch): $299.99 ($200 off, expires June 7, limit 10) 1.
Kirkland Signature Fresh Whole Young Chicken: $0.99/lb (Item 33825/47234, June 1–7, while supplies last) 4. ⚠️ 1–2 person household: Buy one bird; this is a perishable. Skip the impulse to grab four.
Midea 12k BTU Portable AC: $379.99 ($110 off, expires June 7, limit 5) 1. ✅ 1–2 person household: Portable AC is a single-unit purchase by nature.
Costco Travel — act before June 4. The JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country deal (daily $100 resort credit, up to $400 value) expires June 4. Antigua's five resorts ($200 Instant Savings each) expire June 14. 14

Secondary stop: BJ's (for tires or eastern-US shoppers). Open the BJ's app before you go. Clip the Berkley Jensen paper towel coupon (expires June 4) and the $10 Bounty/Charmin coupon (through June 15) — over $100 in Wellsley Farms/Berkley Jensen digital coupon savings requires active in-app clipping. 15

Sam's Club: skip product shopping this week; consider the membership. No ISB is active. For everyday grocery needs — rotisserie chicken under $5, Half & Half at $1.87, On the Border tortilla chips at $4.48 — Sam's unit pricing holds up year-round, not just during ISB cycles. 16 If you've been thinking about joining, the $25 Club / $55 Plus window closes June 15. 3

Membership math

Tier	Annual fee	Reward structure	Break-even annual spend
Costco Gold Star	$65	None	—
Costco Executive	$130	2% cashback (max $1,250/yr)	$3,250 to cover the $65 upgrade premium
Sam's Club	$60 (raised from $50 on May 1)	None	—
Sam's Plus	$120 (raised from $110 on May 1)	2% Sam's Cash (cap raised to $750/yr)	$3,000 to cover the $60 upgrade premium
BJ's Club Card	$60 (raised from $55 on Jan 1, 2025)	None	—
BJ's Club+	$120 (raised from $110 on Jan 1, 2025)	2% back; 5¢/gal gas discount	$3,000 to cover the $60 upgrade premium

Membership fee data from 17 and 18.

Sam's Plus cashback cap went up, but Costco still has the ceiling. Sam's raised its Sam's Cash cap from $500 to $750 per year when it hiked Plus pricing to $120. That's real money — but Costco Executive's 2% cashback runs up to $1,250/year, a $500 annual advantage for heavy spenders. The upgrade premium break-even is nearly identical at all three chains ($3,000–$3,250 in annual spend) — the tiebreaker is which chain you spend that money at.

ID.me discounts cut the Sam's entry price further. Students, military, veterans, teachers, seniors 55+, first responders, and nurses can get Sam's Club base membership for $20 via ID.me verification. BJ's offers $25 Club card membership year-round to military, teachers, first responders, students, and government employees. 17 Costco has no equivalent identity-based discount tier.

The $8 Sam's membership is coming — but not yet. Sam's will offer an $8 annual Club membership for new members from June 17 through June 26, in-person only. 19 The Krazy Coupon Lady notes that $8 is the lowest the Club membership has gone since 2022. 10 If you can wait 15 days and get to a store, that beats the current $25 online promo.

Next-week preview

Three calendar events converge in the next eight days:

June 7 (Sunday): Costco's May 11–June 7 book expires. All 80+ deals — the Samsung OLED, HP OmniBook, soundbar, Michelin tires ($80 off), Dyson vacuum ($110 off), and Midea ACs — go away. New book starts June 8. A Canadian forum scan of the incoming book drew the reaction "Mostly bleh deals for me" from one RedFlagDeals user. 20 US-specific items will differ, but manage expectations for the first week of the new cycle.

June 10 (Tuesday): Sam's June ISB activates. The June 10–July 5 Instant Savings Book drops on Tuesday — same day as this column. The cover imagery shows a family poolside with food and drinks, suggesting a summer entertaining and outdoor theme covering July 4th weekend. 11 Full item list wasn't extractable from the image-only scan; check the Sam's Club app or Hip2Save Tuesday morning for the confirmed deal list.

BJ's June coupon book: still missing. No community source — Reddit, TikTok, YouTube, deal blogs — has spotted a BJ's June coupon book as of June 2. The May Red Hot Summer event ended Memorial Day. The BJ's app shows some digital coupons with June expiration dates, but whether a separate printed book is coming is unconfirmed. Keep an eye on r/BJsWholesaleClub.

Cover image: Costco Warehouse Savings page — final week of the May 11–June 7 book.