Walmart goes on offense to win the subscription space, offering new bundle for one price

As many Americans say they're strapped by subscription fatigue, Walmart is looking to make its offerings more enticing by combining Walmart+ and Sam's Club Plus for $120 a year, plus tax.

The all-in-one offering announced Tuesday is only available annually, with no monthly option or trial. If you were to purchase each offer separately, Walmart+ costs $98 plus tax per year, or $12.95 plus tax per month, and its wholesale membership, Sam's Club Plus, costs $120 a year. A basic club membership runs $60.

Walmart ( WMT ) posted its slowest US same-store sales growth last quarter since Q4 of 2020, at 2.6%. Now the retailer is hoping it can recapture share it may have lost to others like Target ( TGT ), Amazon ( AMZN ), Costco ( COST ), and BJ's ( BJ ).

"We're giving people a reason to expect more from their memberships … we're raising expectations for what a membership can deliver: more money in their pockets and more time to call their own," Walmart CEO John Furner said in a release.

Here's how Walmart's subscription bundle compares with competitors:

Target Circle 360 is $4.99 per month or $49 per year. Amazon Prime costs $140 a year.

A standard Costco membership runs $65 a year, whereas the executive membership costs $130. For a standard BJ's membership, it's $60 per year or $120 for BJ's Club+.

The membership model is a sizeable opportunity for Walmart, per Bank of America analyst Christopher Nardone, who said in a recent note, "Walmart+ members spend approximately 4x more compared to non-members."

He added that advertising, marketplace growth, and global membership remain healthy and reaffirmed confidence "that the broader flywheel to improve longer-term profitability remains intact. "

He added, "These businesses give Walmart an advantage to navigate the challenging pricing and supply chain environment in the near term, but longer-term continued execution across these businesses should help improve longer-term profitability versus today's levels."

Deutsche Bank analyst Krisztina Katai recently upgraded the stock to a Buy rating from Neutral, citing that "the current inflationary environment should reinforce Walmart's value proposition and support accelerated share gains."

All employees will now get both memberships to Walmart and Sam's Club as part of their benefits. Last week, the company announced plans to cover over 250 medications, including insulin and inhalers for $0 and GLP-1s for diabetes.

Brooke DiPalma is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on X at @ BrookeDiPalma or email her at bdipalma@yahoofinance.com.