If you pay for both Walmart+ and Sam’s Club Plus, Walmart says part of that money may be coming back to you.
Your Daily Dad Joke
What’s ET short for?
Because he’s got little legs.
Two memberships, one bill
The renewal charge shows up on your card, and you do the quick math in your head. Did I use that enough this year to make it worth it? Some years the answer is yes. Some years you’re not sure, and you let it ride, because canceling feels like one more thing to do.
That’s why I wanted to pass this along.
You may have seen a headline that Walmart is putting Walmart+ and Sam’s Club Plus together for $120 a year, which it says is almost $100 less than paying for the two separately. It started today.
Your first thought might be: is that a deal for me?
It depends on what you pay now. Here’s how Walmart’s announcement lays it out.
If you already pay for Sam’s Club Plus, Walmart says you can turn on Walmart+ at no extra cost.
If you pay for both today, Walmart says you link the two accounts, and most members are eligible for a prorated refund on Walmart+.
If you have the regular Sam’s Club membership, Walmart says it’s $60 more a year to move up to Plus, and Walmart+ comes with it. If you pay for Walmart+ by the year, it says it’s $22 more to add Sam’s Club Plus.
New members pay $120 a year. Fox Business reports there’s no monthly option and no free trial, so that’s $120 up front.
Here’s the part the headline left out. The “almost $100 less” only counts if you were going to pay for both anyway. By Walmart’s own numbers, if you only use Walmart+, the bundle costs you $22 more a year than you pay now. If you rarely use either one, $120 is still $120.
The perks come with fine print, too. According to Walmart’s announcement, free delivery needs a $35 order at Walmart and $50 at Sam’s Club. The streaming is the version with ads, Peacock or Paramount+, and you pick one. The gas discount is 10 cents a gallon at participating stations. And the 2% back in Sam’s Cash tops out at $750 a year.
I know. A membership has a funny way of making you feel like you should shop more to get your money’s worth. That’s the part I’d keep an eye on.
So here’s the one thing I’d do. If you pay for Sam’s Club Plus and Walmart+, link the two accounts in the Walmart or Sam’s Club app this week, and look for that refund on Walmart+. If you only have one of them, look at your last renewal charge and ask yourself whether you’d have bought the other one anyway. If the answer is no, the bundle isn’t a saving for you, and that’s fine.
Anyway, I wanted to make sure you heard about it before your next renewal comes around. If you’re paying twice for the same thing, you shouldn’t have to.
What’s one membership or subscription you pay for that’s worth every penny to you? Share it in the comments so we can all learn from it. I read every comment.
You don’t need every perk somebody wants to sell you. You need the ones you’ll actually use, and you’re allowed to decide which those are. I’ll see you tomorrow.
— Steve
Also on the site since yesterday: what to do when a debt collector calls your job, homeowners suing Unison over home equity agreements, and Damon Day’s $73 Instacart order that paid $10.67.
SEE A SCAM? SAY SOMETHING. If one has landed on you or someone you love, tell me at tips@getoutofdebt.org. The ones that can warn other people may show up here. Leave out account numbers and passwords.
If any of this was new to you, somebody you know hasn’t heard it either. It’s free at yourmoneyactually.com, and I don’t sell the list. The places I actually use for my own money, and what I get out of telling you, are on one page where they’ll always be.
This is what I’m telling friends like you over coffee. But remember, you do you.