Is Good Sam Club RV Membership Worth It?
Good Sam Club is one of the most popular RVing memberships in the US today. And Good Sam members have access to a variety of services and discounts, but is it really worth it?
After being full-time RVers for fiver years, we must admit we’ve been a member of Good Sam Club for almost all of that time.
However, the return on investment (and the constant junk mail offers) have made us think twice about renewing the service.
Let’s dive into the reasons why.
What is Good Sam Club?
Good Sam Club is an RV membership club. This membership club offers features such as RV campground discounts, discounts at stores like Camping World, and more.
There are a variety of other benefits including RV insurance, life and health insurance, and roadside assistance.
Good Sam Club RV Membership
Prices for a Good Sam Membership vary based on membership terms. A one-year membership is $29, a two-year membership is $50, and a three-year membership is $79.
Other benefits, like a mail service, insurance, and roadside assistance, are separate from the base membership and have additional costs.
5 Things to Consider is Good Sam is Worth It
Good Sam is a popular RV membership club used by thousands of RVers around the country. But it just isn’t something we use! Here’s why.
Many of The Best Benefits Cost Extra
All of the most useful benefits are not included in a typical Good Sam membership. The base membership gets you discounts at outdoor retailers, fuel savings, and discounts on campgrounds.
We have our own methods for saving money on the road, so it just doesn’t make sense for us to have the membership.
Pro Tip: We use Escapees RV Club for many of these services.
In Our Experience, They Send a TON of Junk Mail Marketing Material
Good Sam is notorious for loading up member’s physical mailboxes and email inboxes with tons of junk mail – at least during our membership experience.
They send a lot of marketing materials advertising other services, and it can be quite overwhelming. Especially if you get your mail sent to you on the road and have to pay for all that postage!
This seems like a marketing strategy straight out of the 1990s.
10% Off of Campgrounds Doesn’t Add Up To Much for Us
A Good Sam Club membership gives access to a network of participating campgrounds that knock 10% off their camping prices. But 10% doesn’t really add up to much!
If you know anything about us, you know that we prefer free camping. We’d probably rather do a quick overnight at a Walmart or Cracker Barrel over staying at a campground just to save 10%.
Pro Tip: If you’re looking for bigger campground discounts, check out Thousand Trails – the program is all about not campground fees beyond the initial membership plan.
We Prefer Online Shopping
One of the benefits of Good Sam Club is saving money when shopping at stores they own – like Camping World and Gander Outdoors.
In fact, if you shop at a physical Camping World location, the only way they will honor their online pricing is if you sign up for a Good Sam Membership. And, if you know anything about Camping World, their in-store prices can be higher than online retailers.
But forcing you to buy a $29 membership that you might not even use, just to honor their online prices? That is a bit much in our opinion.
The online shopping experience with Camping World isn’t really our thing, either. We much prefer Amazon, so this is just another reason we don’t need a Good Sam Membership.
It Just Doesn’t Fit Our RVing Style
Finally, the benefits of a Good Sam Membership just don’t fit our RVing style. We prefer boondocking and have our own methods for finding free and cheap camping.
We simply just don’t have much use for it. It can definitely be a helpful membership if it fits with your RVing lifestyle.
A Useful Membership, But Not For Everyone
Good Sam Club is one of the most popular and widely used RV memberships in the US. Although the membership is not expensive by any means, we personally don’t have use for it with the way we travel.
If discounts at Camping World, on fuel, and participating campgrounds sound good to you, then the $29/year might definitely be worth it!
If you’re considering a Good Sam membership, definitely do your research online and read reviews before making your final decision.
Discover the Best Free Camping Across the USA
To be honest with you, we hate paying for camping. There are so many free campsites in America (with complete privacy).
You should give it a try!
As a matter of fact, these free campsites are yours. Every time you pay federal taxes, you’re contributing to these lands.
Become a FREE CAMPING INSIDER and join the 100,000 campers that love to score the best site!
We’ll send you the 50 Best Free Campsites in the USA (one per state). Access the list by submitting your email below:
Also, those discounts on gasoline are for the big truck stops on the major freeways. I prefer to travel on the secondary roads so no discounts. I won’t be getting it again.
10% Off of Campgrounds. Is a bit bogus. We do not stay at commercial campgrounds generally. When we do. Here is what happens. Make reservation. Show up at campground office to pay. Ask how much? Offer my GOOD SAM CARD. “Oh that discount is already included in the price” Yeah Right!
We are Good Sam Club members and have been for many years. We do long 2+ months road trips across the states – East to West and down south. The 5 cents off per gallon and 8 cents off on diesel works for us. We also comparison shop on RV products we need – Good Sam price vs Amazon & Walmart and have found many times the Good Sam price, for an item on sale with the membership price, is cheaper – but you play the wait/sale game which may not work if you need something in a hurry. We always find nice, reasonably priced RV parks or county parks, which, with our “senior” status, usually has a much cheaper rate. Some have been Good Sam honored campgrounds and we have never had a problem with getting the extra 10% off. Visiting the National Parks is a no-brainer with our Senior Pass – free entry and 50% off campsite prices. In addition, upon 1st getting the Good Sam membership, we received a free year subscription to Trailer Life – and at the time as RV newbies, the information was priceless. Subscription renewal was at a discounted rate. So, we will continue to renew our Good Sam membership – it’s well worth it to us. But, everybody’s situation is different. As for the junk mail, I started returning it to them in their “postage paid” envelopes…hardly get any of their junk mail now.
Basically was forced into Good Sam membership by the insurance agent . Was told that I could not get Food Sam rate unless I bought membership. Considering who owns Camping World this is to be expected with having to buy a useless membership. I called Progressive direct and was given same insurance rates without membership. My advise Good Sam is a scam and a money grab for people unaware of sales tactics. Do your research first and don’t believe salesman in most transactions. I won’t patronize nor will I buy from Good Sam or Camping World . One price should fit all and not be membership driven.. One more thing that Good Sam tried to point out …If I use certain truck stops to buy fuel I would save money …what a joke. Truck stops are usually 30 cents higher than the mom and pop C store.
I agree 100%! We have also had a Good Sam membership since we set out on the road in 2019. When we renewed after a year we were buying stuff at Camping World and they offered the 3-year membership. It seemed like a deal but, just like you, we haven’t found much use for it. So we’ll likely let it lapse once we get to the end of our 3-year membership.
Have used Good Sam for a couple of years and for our purposes it paid for itself with the savings but as research other memberships I may drop it but just depends on what I find with other clubs and may drop KOA because during last years trip out of 21 stops only used them three times because of location and higher prices.