Using EBT at Costco, Sam's Club & BJ's: What You Can and Can't Buy

I spent close to a decade as a SNAP caseworker in Ohio, and one of the questions I got more than almost any other was some version of "can I use my EBT card at Costco?" For years the answer was no, then maybe, then yes-but-only-in-stores, and now in 2026 the answer is straightforward: yes, you can use EBT at all three major warehouse clubs — Costco, Sam's Club, and BJ's — both in-club and online in most states. The catch is that each chain has its own rules about membership, what counts as a SNAP-eligible item, and how you split payment at the register. This guide walks through what I learned walking families through it.

Before we get into the chain-by-chain details, the case for buying in bulk on SNAP is real. A 25-pound bag of rice at Costco runs about $0.06 per ounce. A 2-pound bag at a corner grocery runs about $0.12 per ounce. Same rice, half the price. The math holds for flour, beans, cooking oil, frozen chicken, eggs, canned tomatoes, peanut butter — most of the staples a household actually lives on. If your monthly SNAP benefit is $250 and you can stretch it to $350 of equivalent food by buying in bulk, that's not a marginal gain. That's another week of meals.

Which Wholesale Clubs Take EBT

All three of the major warehouse clubs — Costco, Sam's Club, and BJ's Wholesale Club — accept EBT for in-club SNAP purchases nationwide. That's the bottom line. Costco was first to roll it out and has it at every U.S. warehouse. Sam's Club accepts it at all clubs and has been expanding online EBT acceptance for curbside pickup. BJ's accepts it at all clubs and has been rolling out online EBT in select regions, mostly in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic.

What about smaller or regional warehouse clubs? Most of them either don't accept EBT or operate business-only and aren't open to individuals. Restaurant Depot, for example, is business-only — though it does occasionally open its doors to nonprofit food programs with the right documentation. Boxed, which used to operate as a standalone online warehouse club, now runs through Kohl's fulfillment and doesn't take EBT. For practical purposes, you're looking at Costco, Sam's Club, or BJ's.

The Membership Question (Yes, You Still Have to Pay It)

This is the thing that confuses everyone the first time. EBT does not waive the membership requirement. You need a paid membership to enter and shop at any of the three chains, even if you're paying for everything with EBT. The membership fee itself is not a SNAP-eligible purchase, so you'll need another form of payment for it.

The fee structures as of 2026: Costco Gold Star is $65 a year, Executive is $130 (with 2% cash back on most purchases that can earn back the upgrade fee if you spend enough). Sam's Club Club is $50, Plus is $110 (early shopping hours, some cash back). BJ's Inner Circle is $55, Perks is $110 (2% cash back). For most SNAP households, the basic membership pays for itself in the first two months of bulk grocery savings if you shop there regularly.

If the membership fee is a real stretch, look for new-member promotions. Costco occasionally runs Groupon deals. Sam's Club runs $15-to-$30-off promotions several times a year. BJ's frequently waives the upgrade fee to Perks for existing Inner Circle members. Some community organizations and credit unions also maintain group memberships that low-income households can borrow against. Ask your case manager if they know of one.

What You Can Buy with EBT

The SNAP-eligible items list is the same at wholesale clubs as it is at any other authorized retailer. SNAP covers foods meant for home preparation and consumption. The categories:

• Grains and starches: bulk rice, pasta, flour, cornmeal, oats, cereals, bread — including the big multipacks
• Produce: fresh fruits and vegetables, frozen fruit and veg, canned produce (added sugars don't make it ineligible)
• Protein: fresh and frozen meat, poultry, fish, eggs, canned tuna, dried beans, lentils, peanut butter, tofu
• Dairy: milk, cheese, yogurt, butter, eggs (worth mentioning twice because bulk eggs are usually the best per-egg price anywhere)
• Snacks and beverages: chips, crackers, popcorn, granola bars, juice, coffee, tea, soda, bottled water
• Cooking essentials: cooking oil, spices, baking mixes, sugar, salt — but not vitamins or supplements, which are always SNAP-ineligible regardless of how they're labeled
• Seeds and plants: fruit and vegetable seeds and starter plants that produce food

The best SNAP values at warehouse clubs tend to be the bulk dry goods — rice, beans, oats, flour — large-format cooking oil, family-pack frozen meats, eggs by the dozen-and-a-half, and multipacks of canned tomatoes or canned beans. Costco's rotisserie chicken, despite being cooked, is SNAP-eligible because it's sold cold at the bakery counter. The hot rotisserie chickens at the food court are not.

What You Can't Buy

The ineligible list is the same everywhere, but at warehouse clubs it's especially tempting because the household-goods prices are usually as good as the food prices. The things you can't buy with EBT:

• Membership fees — pay separately
• Hot prepared foods — food court pizza, hot dogs, hot rotisserie chickens off the warmer
• Alcohol — beer, wine, spirits
• Tobacco and vape products
• Vitamins, supplements, OTC medications — anything with a "Supplement Facts" label instead of "Nutrition Facts"
• Paper products and cleaning supplies — paper towels, toilet paper, dish soap, laundry detergent
• Pet food and pet supplies
• Hygiene items — toothpaste, shampoo, soap, deodorant
• Electronics, clothing, and home goods

Pet food is the one that surprises people the most. A 30-pound bag of dog food at Sam's Club is cheaper than almost anywhere else, but you can't use EBT for it. SNAP is food assistance for humans, full stop. Plan to split your payment at the register.

How to Split Payment at the Register

Split payment is the key to a smooth warehouse club checkout. Almost every cart has both SNAP-eligible food and SNAP-ineligible household goods, which means you'll usually pay with two forms of payment: EBT first for the eligible items, then a debit card, credit card, or cash for the rest. The procedure:

1. Load everything onto the belt in any order. The register sorts eligible from ineligible automatically — you don't need to group items.
2. Tell the cashier you're using EBT for part of the purchase. The cashier hits the right key on the register to start an EBT transaction.
3. Swipe or insert your EBT card. Enter your PIN.
4. Approve the EBT amount. The register will show you the SNAP-eligible total. Approve it. The EBT card gets charged only for that amount.
5. Pay the remaining balance with your second form of payment. Debit cards, credit cards, cash, and Costco Shop Cards all work. (Sam's Club also accepts Walmart gift cards. Costco does not accept Visa credit cards in-club — only Visa debit, Mastercard credit, or cash.)

If the EBT transaction fails — usually because you don't have enough benefits loaded — you can still complete the purchase with your other form of payment. The cashier can void the EBT transaction and re-run it as a single payment. Be patient with cashiers who don't run EBT transactions often. The procedure varies a little between registers and clubs, and even experienced cashiers sometimes need a second try.

Online Orders — Costco.com, SamsClub.com, BJ's

All three chains now support online EBT payment for SNAP-eligible items in most U.S. states. The standard fulfillment method is curbside pickup at your local club. Here's where each chain stands in 2026:

Costco. Costco.com accepts EBT for SNAP-eligible items in all 50 states and D.C., for both delivery and curbside pickup (where available). Online prices for SNAP-eligible items match in-club prices, and most bulk grocery items are listed online. Costco also offers two-day delivery on non-perishables, which is free for orders over $75 in most ZIP codes.

Sam's Club. SamsClub.com accepts EBT for SNAP-eligible items in most states with curbside pickup. In-club EBT works at all clubs. Same-day delivery from Sam's Club is fulfilled by Instacart, which separately accepts EBT in many states but charges a delivery fee and a small service fee on top.

BJ's Wholesale Club. BJ's has been rolling out online EBT in select regions, primarily the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic. Check the BJ's website or your state EBT mobile app to confirm whether online EBT is supported at your local club. In-club EBT works at all clubs.

Costco vs. Sam's Club vs. BJ's — Which One for You?

The right club depends on where you live, what you buy most, and whether online ordering matters to you. Costco has the strongest organic and prepared-food selection, accepts EBT online nationwide, and tends to have the best prices on bulk staples like rice, flour, and cooking oil. Sam's Club has the lowest membership price, the most extensive curbside pickup network, and good prices on family-pack meat. BJ's is the only club that accepts manufacturer coupons (which can stack with EBT to lower your out-of-pocket total) and has the largest footprint on the East Coast.

One thing I used to tell families when I was still caseworking: try a club once before committing to a membership. Most Costco locations will let you walk in with a member as a guest on your first visit so you can compare prices to your regular grocery. Sam's Club runs a "free shopping pass" promotion a couple of times a year that lets non-members in for a day with a small surcharge at checkout. BJ's periodically offers a free 60-day trial membership. Use one of those to confirm the bulk math actually works for your household before you pay for a year.

If you've never belonged to a warehouse club, treat the membership as an investment. Most SNAP households I worked with who shopped regularly at a wholesale club saved enough in the first two months to cover the entire year's membership fee. Use our SNAP eligibility calculator to estimate your monthly benefit, then plan your first club trip around bulk staples that will last the full month — rice, beans, flour, oil, frozen meat, eggs, canned tomatoes. That's the shopping list that makes the membership worth it.

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