What to buy at Costco???

[Villanelle]

We were gifted a Costco membership for Christmas.  We are a 2-adult household.  We briefly had a membership about 15 years ago but rarely used it and didn't renew.

But now we have a membership for at least the next year. Ours has gas and we plan to compare prices and see if there is a savings compared to the cheap(est) station nearby, and if that is worth the lines.  (I've already been told to go when Costco is closed but gas is open as waits are shorter.)

What else is a great deal at Costco?  is there anything you've found is generally not cheaper there?  Any favorite Costco-brand items we should check out?  Or other advice for a new Costco shopper?  We plan to go this weekend to activate the membership.

[GuitarStv]

Milk, cream, cheese, yogurt, butter are often substantially cheaper.  Same with eggs.  Spices can be cheaper.  Rice, flour, oats, lentils, and chickpeas are much cheaper if you use large quantities of them.  If you drink coffee like my wife, usually there are coffee beans on sale for less than you can get at the grocery stores.

[MaybeBabyMustache]

I find that Costco is typically lower on most prices at a standard store, but not if you can buy the items on sale at a standard store. YMMV. We aren't big sale shoppers due to time, so Costco works well for us. Here's what we typically buy:

-Oils, nuts, spices
-Rotisserie chicken
-Chicken/ground beef. We package it when we get home, into much smaller sizes
-Medication, vitamins
-Wine/alcohol (depending on where you live)
-Paper products
-Any item you use in large quantities (produce may be a stretch for a family of two, unless there's something you eat a lot of)
-Frozen berries

Unrelated to the store itself, but also good deals to be found - Costco Travel!

[Dicey]

There was a recent-ish thread on this topic, but a Google search only turned up this pre-pandemic one. Still, it might be helpful.

https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/share-your-badassity/using-costco-correctly/

[turketron]

In addition to a lot of what's already been mentioned:

medication (both prescription and OTC, also pet meds)
dog food
car tires
baby stuff - diapers, formula, etc are all very cheap compared to anywhere else
LED bulbs are regularly on sale for really good deals

[Catbert]

As a two person household your available storage will drive a lot of buying decisions.  Do you have storage for 24 large rolls of TP?  Do you have enough refrigerator space to buy 4# of butter and 3 cans of whipped cream?  Do you have a separate deep freeze to keep a large bag of frozen veggies?

Personally I don't buy fresh veggies (packages are too large for two people and I don't like the quality since I live where good fresh veggies are available year round).  I have limited freezer space so I don't buy much frozen food there. 

[Archipelago]

We are a 2-person household and definitely get enough value out of the membership. We primarily shop at Aldi, but get value out of Costco by buying:

• Teddy's all-natural peanut butter. We use 2 jars/month and save at least $2.50 per jar buying from Costco, so PB alone covers our annual membership)
• Taco seasoning. We'd use 3 packets/month which would be about $36 in packets, but Costco has one container of seasoning for $6 or $7 which is good for the whole year. It also happens to taste better than packets.
• We bought 2 car batteries for $160 and they're Interstate batteries which are top shelf batteries. Another supplier or dealer would cost $200 or more for basic batteries.
• Gas (only some stores)
• OTC allergy relief medication and nasal spray
• $5 Rotisserie chicken
• Honey
• Kirkland branded Prosecco for $7/bottle which easily tastes better to us than a $15 bottle
• Wine & liquor (not every store)
• Eggs - paid $3.20/dozen the other day when most other stores are at least $5/dozen.
• Laundry detergent. Recently bought a big thing of ALL detergent for $8.50 when it was on sale
• Chocolate acai blueberries are tasty but not always available at each store.
• Olive oil
• Meat and fish
• Toilet paper

These are the things I can think off the top of my head. There are definitely more.

[Dicey]

I posted the link above without looking at it. I see I have a list of tips on page 2. I will modify one of them here rather than necropost there. I just learned that Costco requires you to make a purchase with your rebate check now. You can literally buy a hot dog and they will give you cash back for the rest.

Last week, I took my 98-year-old friend there to cash her rebate check. I convinced her to buy her hearing aids there last year and she wanted to cancel her membership and cash her $28 check. I was miffed that they wanted her to jump through hoops, so I went to the manager's desk and they cashed it out with no problem. Then I remembered that they have a savings guarantee with the Executive Membership for the first year. Back we went to Member Service, where she received another $32 in cash, then closed out her membership. She saved thousands on her hearing aids and I can pick up anything she needs there in the future.

They will pry my Costco card out of my cold, dead hands.

[MaybeBabyMustache]

@Dicey - depends on the size of your rebate, I believe. Over a certain dollar value, they will direct deposit it back to your bank account. But, maybe I'm confusing the credit card vs the rebate.

[GilesMM]

There have been endless threads on this topic plus many web sites.

Best deal are roast chicken and cafe hot dogs. Everything else is variable. Produce and meat are vast quantities at high prices. Processed foods are most of the rest. Some folks like the booze.


Go have a look and see what you like. Fill a massive cart!

[Dicey]

@Dicey - depends on the size of your rebate, I believe. Over a certain dollar value, they will direct deposit it back to your bank account. But, maybe I'm confusing the credit card vs the rebate.

The warehouse says it's because of a "new law". From previous conversations with my Costco brother, the IRS has hinted at making the rebates taxable. Some businesses get six-figure rebates, so the IRS's interest is understandable. I suspect this new policy isn't a "new law" at all, but a way to make the rebates less interesting to the IRS. I'll ask him next time we chat. (He's working crazy early shifts right now, which he loves, but I have to be super careful when I call him so I don't wake him up.)

[Dicey]

There have been endless threads on this topic plus many web sites.

You are correct, but your answer isn't particularly helpful to the OP.

[Metalcat]

Clothes:
I'm not even kidding. I don't know about your costco, but ours has really high quality, made in Canada clothing items that last FOREVER. On rare occasions I can find merino wool items for around $20. I've worn the same few pairs of their Lululemon knock-off leggings literally almost every day for the past many years and they still look practically new.

I would say that clothes are by far the best value at Costco.

Food:
Bell peppers, avocados, cucumbers, feta, frozen fish fillets, pesto, White Linen marinara sauce, almonds, organic diced tomatoes, Better than Bouillon, artichoke hearts, avocado oil, chicken cilantro wontons

The main benefit on food is the food quality and the price. You can often find cheaper elsewhere, but the quality will be much lower. Best quality bell peppers I've ever found, consistently. And their pesto is the shit.

Pet supplies:
Kirkland brand pet food is actually fairly well rated even compared to premium brands. Kitty litter and pee pads are significantly cheaper than even amazon.

Personal care:
Pronamel toothpaste, L'Oreal Regenerist face cream, Uremol moisturizer.

You can sometimes find these at better prices on sale, but the above are specific brands that rarely go on sale.

[GilesMM]

There have been endless threads on this topic plus many web sites.

You are correct, but your answer isn't particularly helpful to the OP.

It is if she searches for and reads them.

[dandarc]

Gas, clothes (to the extent you're going to buy these new), frozen pizza for us. Their 20 pack of single-serve hummus (can beat on per-ounce price at grocery store sometimes, but not in the single-serves). Mary's Gone Crackers were an insane deal compared to any of the grocery stores around us (and of course our costco hasn't had them for like a year).

The bulk-size nuts for sure - like sometimes 60% lower than the grocery store (which is typically publix for us). We do use a fair amount of our limited freezer space to keep a bag of frozen veg and a bag of frozen berries on hand.

Pretty much any Kirkland liquor is going to be very good value for money, assuming your tastes do not run super specific. I'm pissed ours stopped carrying the Kirkland Session IPA in favor of more expensive variety packs of non-Kirkland brands, although that was probably good for my overall physical health. We also have a small Costco so we don't get as much variety as places with the bigger stores.

Anyway, you do have to weigh ability to store vs. price savings, but there's usually enough that if you can work Costco into your routine the membership pays off.

[Dicey]

There have been endless threads on this topic plus many web sites.

You are correct, but your answer isn't particularly helpful to the OP.

It is if she searches for and reads them.

Sure, but in the same amount of time, I found a previous thread and linked it here. I could have said something similar, but I greatly appreciate that this is not an "RFM" kind of place. I'm willing to make a bit of effort to help keep it so. There are certain posters who ask endless things they should just Google first, but the OP isn't one of them.

[AMandM]

I wonder how much the answer varies geographically. At my local Costco, many staples are more expensive than at my local Aldi, including milk, TP, flour, sugar, and bread.

Where our household saves the most money:
Car tires and batteries
Hearing aids
Nuts
Butter
Frozen veg
Nice cheese (if you can eat 2 lbs of it before it goes bad!)
Wine and liquor
Gasoline
Car rentals

[chemistk]

Generally, looking at the deals that will come and go throughout the year, one could justify most of the essentials that Costco sells. We were gifted a membership 4 years ago and have not looked back. I won't call out any specifics, because I would agree with much of what has already been said.

I work in CPG (consumer packaged goods), with the Quality and Regulatory folks. I can confidently say that Costco has some of the highest, if not THE highest, product quality and safety standards (from food, to clothes, to electronics...pretty much all categories) in the world. The decision to make a Kirkland version of a product is equally about their profits as it is about their dissatisfaction with the offerings in that category from name-brand manufacturers.

Moreover, Costco treats their employees very well. They are usually well staffed and they pay store workers well, with good benefits.

If you like to eat pizza, you literally cannot beat the price on food court pizza. Even if we didn't have 3 kids, I'd gladly take home a $10 pie and store it for a few days' worth of food.

The trick is to get a sense of what will be helpful for you to buy in bulk. You can easily walk in and walk out having spent $900 without understanding where that money went. Consider your personal wants and needs - if you like single ply toilet paper (I'm being serious here), then it doesn't make sense to get the Kirkland version. If you're fine with the grocery-brand full sugar peanut butter, you'll have little use for the comparatively more expensive organic no sugar version.

You might not initially think that Costco's prices are good when you go in, if your baseline is rice and beans and walmart jeans. There's nothing wrong with having that mindset if that's your style/preference. Costco is going to typically have at minimum 'good' to 'very good' offerings in a particular category. Use that as your anchor when you go in and adjust your expectations accordingly.

[GuitarStv]

if you like single ply toilet paper (I'm being serious here), then it doesn't make sense to get the Kirkland version

It never makes sense to buy single ply TP!  Single ply TP is available for free in any decent sized mall, most fast food places, gas stations, libraries, courthouses, museums, etc.  You just need a one time purchase of a backpack.  :P

[englishteacheralex]

Use your freezer to get the max benefit of buying in bulk! Shredded cheese freezes great!

Even when I was single in a studio apartment I loved Costco. Now we have an executive membership and get a couple hundred dollar refund every year. But I'm in a slightly weird situation because I am now in a family of four living in Hawaii, and Costco is pretty much the only affordable grocery option on island. We probably buy about 75% of our groceries from Costco, not to mention mattresses, furniture, car rentals, discounted restaurant gift cards, discounted airline gift cards, contact lenses, photo prints...

OH NO Costco is cancelling its photo print shop! This is devastating news because I got so many prints from them. Christmas cards, too. Now what am I going to do?

[Villanelle]

Clothes:
I'm not even kidding. I don't know about your costco, but ours has really high quality, made in Canada clothing items that last FOREVER. On rare occasions I can find merino wool items for around $20. I've worn the same few pairs of their Lululemon knock-off leggings literally almost every day for the past many years and they still look practically new.

I would say that clothes are by far the best value at Costco.

Food:
Bell peppers, avocados, cucumbers, feta, frozen fish fillets, pesto, White Linen marinara sauce, almonds, organic diced tomatoes, Better than Bouillon, artichoke hearts, avocado oil, chicken cilantro wontons

The main benefit on food is the food quality and the price. You can often find cheaper elsewhere, but the quality will be much lower. Best quality bell peppers I've ever found, consistently. And their pesto is the shit.

Pet supplies:
Kirkland brand pet food is actually fairly well rated even compared to premium brands. Kitty litter and pee pads are significantly cheaper than even amazon.

Personal care:
Pronamel toothpaste, L'Oreal Regenerist face cream, Uremol moisturizer.

You can sometimes find these at better prices on sale, but the above are specific brands that rarely go on sale.

Interesting that you mention clothes.  We went to the local Costco when family was in town, and I was pretty impressed with the clothing, especially the quality for price, and particularly for men's clothing.  DH is the opposite of a dandy and really just wants plain clothing that wears well, and it seems like that's exactly what Costco had.

And I grabbed a huge jar of artichoke hearts.  I couldn't wait until DH and I go back and activate our membership.  I was pretty excited about those, though my family assures me the are a regular item.

I also need to price compare their senior-blend dog food with what I get from Amazon with the subscribe and save discount, and see which is better and if it is worth trying the switch and seeing how my girls do on it.  Actually, as I type that, I realize I may be able to put an ask on my local Buy Nothing group for some of the food to try it out.  It wouldn't let me do a gradual blend, but I could feed for a couple days and see if there are any tummy symptoms, before buying a whole bag.  If the prices are right. 

There have been endless threads on this topic plus many web sites.

You are correct, but your answer isn't particularly helpful to the OP.

Yes, I did search these boards before posting and only found old threads, but that may be because the search function here isn't great.  I also clicked on a couple of those websites, but it seemed like pretty spendy advice.  Like I could get a 100: TV for 15% less than at other stores.  Hard pass, Costco.  So I thought I'd get more appropriate advice here, but I guess that's annoying to some people.
 

[geekette]

I have another annoying to some question. I will be getting a $100+ rebate, but let my membership lapse and don’t intend to renew any time soon. Do I have to have a membership to cash in the rebate? Can I go with a friend who has one?

[Metalcat]

I have another annoying to some question. I will be getting a $100+ rebate, but let my membership lapse and don’t intend to renew any time soon. Do I have to have a membership to cash in the rebate? Can I go with a friend who has one?

You can ship at Costco without a membership if you have a gift card, so I would assume the cashback reward would be the same. But I'm curious, because I'm not sure.

[kina]

@geekette, because I was about to let my membership lapse, I looked into the rebate policy. The answer I found was that to cash the rebate, you need to be a current member. I renewed but plan on cancelling my membership after receiving and cashing my check. I will probably sign up again in about 14 months. (My DD and I stocked up about a years worth of stuff that we buy regularly.

If you want to cash that check, you may have to renew, cash the check, and then cancel.

@Villanelle, I may have missed it on someone else's list but honey is something we always find priced lower at Costco.

[Tester]

For a while we stopped buying fruit as we could not consume it before it went bad.

What we constantly buy:
Avocado, strawberries, raspberries, mixed greens, mushrooms, eggs, frozen vegetables, smoked salmon, fish fingers, dinos, Argentinian red shrimp (11usd/pound?????), nuts, TP, paper towels, chicken breast, ground beef and ground turkey, apples, bananas, pomegranate (awesome price and quality when they have them), sardines, canned tuna, kalamata olives, artichoke hearts, olive and avocado oil...

Cheese is also cheaper than other places (Bellavitano for example) but lately we are not buying anymore as we are trying to reduce our calories intake.

I also love that I can find smoked whitefish at my store when in season.

[iluvzbeach]

I am a huge fan of Costco. In fact, when making a cross-country move one of my requirements was that there be a Costco nearby. Oh, and Trader Joe’s. Costco is where we buy most of the stuff we buy, whether it be clothes, gas, tires, food, alcohol, mattresses, electronics, household goods, health & beauty, etc. We have an executive membership & the Costco Visa. Our rebates every year more than cover the cost for the membership. When I receive my rebate this year, I’ll be waiting for the fancy KitchenAid mixer to go on sale and then it will be my gift to myself.

[rosarugosa]

We are also a two-person household. Our regular Costco purchases include: EVOO, Vermont Coffee Company beans, single serve avocado cups, ground cinnamon, 3M sticky lint rollers, and paper towels.
I haven't seen eyeglasses mentioned in this thread, but they are a great value and they even replaced a pair for me free because they just weren't comfortable and I couldn't wear them.
Their prescription prices are excellent.
Sanders chocolate covered caramels are amazingly delicious and an amazing deal at Costco, but you likely won't thank me for that information.

[Freedomin5]

We buy the Kirkland brand raw honey and mixed nuts. We also buy spices.

Everyone was Ecstatic when Costco opened its first store in Shanghai in 2019. Seriously, my company chartered a bus and hosted field trips to Costco for employees.

[GuitarStv]

Use your freezer to get the max benefit of buying in bulk! Shredded cheese freezes great!

So does unshredded mozzarella and cheddar cheese.

[Dicey]

Two Costco tips: their amazing pesto freezes easily. Just chuck the whole container in the freezer. When @lhamo tipped us off to a great sale, I bought a dozen and they kept beautifully. Alas, when I finally ran out, the price had almost doubled. Still worth it. I recently needed a small amount for an appetizer and decided to try Trader Joe's, because I was there. They sell two kinds, one fresh, one jarred. They were more expensive and tasted vastly inferior. The jarred version even contained...wait for ir...potatoes!

If you love Costco's salted mixed nuts but want a bit less salt, buy one salted and one unsalted. Dump them in a big bowl, stir well, then refill each container. You won't taste any difference. It is a lot if you don't eat nuts regularly, but I have a friend who likes them the same way, so I buy two, mix them up, then take one to her, which she repays me for.

I recently tried the Sam's Club Mixed Nuts because I was shopping for an event and didn't have time to shop both places. They were okay, but the nuts, especially the cashews, were smaller. As mentioned above, Costco quality is amazing. Sure, you can occasionally find a "better" price on something elsewhere, but the quality is different. Case in point: We were at Home Depot and they had a "Spend $75, Get $15 off Instantly" deal on cleaning products. We were going to buy some things for our kid's new place anyway, so we went for it. The Cascade DW pods had 54 in the container. On the next trip to Costco, I noticed the Costco container was the same size, same price, but it contained 95 pods. Oof!

[SweatingInAR]

You can shop at Costco without a membership if you have a gift card...

I used this trick to "Extend" my membership! Right before it expired, I bought 8x $25 gift cards. $25 was the smallest amount I could order online at the time. You only have to start the transaction with the gift card, then you can finish with a (Visa only) credit card. Therefore I could go in for 8 trips. Sometimes I would even get two trips out of a $25 card if I only ran in to buy coffee beans, a rotisserie chicken, and a bag of tortilla chips.

I would order gift cards online even with a membership in-good-standing if my Chase or Discover 5% cash back category was warehouse clubs.

If you're only going in for a few things, you can traverse the store in half the time without a cart. Grab a cardboard box off the shelf if you can't hold all the items in your hands.

[We be free if we try]

We are a 2 person household that eats almost exclusively organic. Their organic stuff, to the extent it’s available, is a deal, though we have to be careful to only buy what we can consume. (Assume all organic): EVOO, avocado oil, meat, fish, produce, pastured eggs, oat milk (the best I’ve found), almond milk, nuts and occasionally grains and snacks. If you’re buying mostly high-end food, it helps a lot.

[dcheesi]

Two Costco tips: their amazing pesto freezes easily. Just chuck the whole container in the freezer. When @lhamo tipped us off to a great sale, I bought a dozen and they kept beautifully. Alas, when I finally ran out, the price had almost doubled. Still worth it. I recently needed a small amount for an appetizer and decided to try Trader Joe's, because I was there. They sell two kinds, one fresh, one jarred. They were more expensive and tasted vastly inferior. The jarred version even contained...wait for ir...potatoes!

If you love Costco's salted mixed nuts but want a bit less salt, buy one salted and one unsalted. Dump them in a big bowl, stir well, then refill each container. You won't taste any difference. It is a lot if you don't eat nuts regularly, but I have a friend who likes them the same way, so I buy two, mix them up, then take one to her, which she repays me for.

I recently tried the Sam's Club Mixed Nuts because I was shopping for an event and didn't have time to shop both places. They were okay, but the nuts, especially the cashews, were smaller. As mentioned above, Costco quality is amazing. Sure, you can occasionally find a "better" price on something elsewhere, but the quality is different. Case in point: We were at Home Depot and they had a "Spend $75, Get $15 off Instantly" deal on cleaning products. We were going to buy some things for our kid's new place anyway, so we went for it. The Cascade DW pods had 54 in the container. On the next trip to Costco, I noticed the Costco container was the same size, same price, but it contained 95 pods. Oof!

Mixed nuts also freeze quite well. I actually eat a handful in the morning, right out of the freezer; gives 'em a little extra crunch!

[iluvzbeach]

Speaking of nuts at Costco...DH & I really like their cashews but we prefer unsalted.  They used to sell unsalted but over the past few years I've only been able to find organic, raw, unsalted cashews.  So, we started buying those to roast on our own and man are they good.  We roast half the large container at one time by very lightly mixing the cashews in a tablespoon or less of olive oil and spreading on a cookie sheet, tossing in the oven for about 14 minutes, then doing the other half of the container and throw all the roasted cashews back in the container.  Once done, we have the most delicious roasted cashews as a snack for the next few months.

To the person who mentioned the Sanders chocolate covered caramels, OMG those are amazing.  We buy them only when they are on sale (a heck of a deal) and try to keep our hands out of them as much as possible.  Easier said than done.

[Dicey]

Speaking of nuts at Costco...DH & I really like their cashews but we prefer unsalted.  They used to sell unsalted but over the past few years I've only been able to find organic, raw, unsalted cashews.  So, we started buying those to roast on our own and man are they good.  We roast half the large container at one time by very lightly mixing the cashews in a tablespoon or less of olive oil and spreading on a cookie sheet, tossing in the oven for about 14 minutes, then doing the other half of the container and throw all the roasted cashews back in the container.  Once done, we have the most delicious roasted cashews as a snack for the next few months.

To the person who mentioned the Sanders chocolate covered caramels, OMG those are amazing.  We buy them only when they are on sale (a heck of a deal) and try to keep our hands out of them as much as possible.  Easier said than done.

What temperature?

[iluvzbeach]

Speaking of nuts at Costco...DH & I really like their cashews but we prefer unsalted.  They used to sell unsalted but over the past few years I've only been able to find organic, raw, unsalted cashews.  So, we started buying those to roast on our own and man are they good.  We roast half the large container at one time by very lightly mixing the cashews in a tablespoon or less of olive oil and spreading on a cookie sheet, tossing in the oven for about 14 minutes, then doing the other half of the container and throw all the roasted cashews back in the container.  Once done, we have the most delicious roasted cashews as a snack for the next few months.

To the person who mentioned the Sanders chocolate covered caramels, OMG those are amazing.  We buy them only when they are on sale (a heck of a deal) and try to keep our hands out of them as much as possible.  Easier said than done.

What temperature?

350° and we flip them over, as best we can, about halfway through. They are so good fresh out of the oven.

[LD_TAndK]

If you're diligent I'm sure you can save money by getting a costco membership... I think most end up falling for grocery inflation, buying more luxury type groceries because Costco makes them appealing in bulk and as a "good deal". Frozen berries, fancy nuts, cheeses, coffee etc. If I stick to walmart, aldi, H-mart I can beat costco's prices on my normal diet.

A bit irritated about their transparency, costco requires a member login to check their tire prices online. Are they significantly less? I also can't see their grocery prices, so I can't plan ahead and price compare. Their model feels like I have to submit to playing their game.

[Dicey]

If you're diligent I'm sure you can save money by getting a costco membership... I think most end up falling for grocery inflation, buying more luxury type groceries because Costco makes them appealing in bulk and as a "good deal". Frozen berries, fancy nuts, cheeses, coffee etc. If I stick to walmart, aldi, H-mart I can beat costco's prices on my normal diet.

A bit irritated about their transparency, costco requires a member login to check their tire prices online. Are they significantly less? I also can't see their grocery prices, so I can't plan ahead and price compare. Their model feels like I have to submit to playing their game.

Costco membership is totally voluntary. Don't like the way they operate? Don't join. Easy. As to "playing their game" you think no one else has one? At least Costco doesn't sell my info to third parties or bombard me with targeted marketing. I rather like their "transparency" in that regard.

I shop at Costco with a list and I buy ingredients. Works great. Since Costco carries far fewer items than a typical retailer, one could also agree there is less temptation.

[chemistk]

A bit irritated about their transparency, costco requires a member login to check their tire prices online. Are they significantly less? I also can't see their grocery prices, so I can't plan ahead and price compare. Their model feels like I have to submit to playing their game.

Typically, their tire prices are not the BEST deal you can get, but they're very good. They will run specials throughout the year for certain brands - they only stock 5 or 6 different brands, and only 2 or 3 from each, so a more limited selection. You have to be in the market for those particular brands, and that's not always the best way to shop for tires. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the tires Costco stocks tend to be more geared toward SUV/Van/Truck tires, since most of the Costco crowd drives a larger vehicle. Usually, the pickings are slim for smaller cars.

If Costco happens to have a particular tire on sale that you would be interested in anyway, the price is nearly unbeatable. We went this route for a very specific tire for our Odyssey, partly because Michelin was only stocking it at Costco, but also because it was the best deal for that specific kind of tire at the time we needed to buy it (old tires had some cracking and one was punctured near the sidewall).

The biggest benefits to getting tires at Costco aren't the tires themselves, but what's included - installation is about $26/tire out the door, which is hard to match unless you go to a sketchy installation shop. They ONLY do tires and batteries, so their techs are very, very good at installation. They offer free rotations and nitrogen fills for the life of the tire, and like everything, have a road hazard warranty exceeds the manufacturer's. You can have your tires rotated, balanced, or repaired at any Costco tire center.

WRT to grocery prices, there's little point in trying to see the prices online. If you want to get a sense for what prices are, you can check out instacart or other delivery options for a ballpark, or ask someone with a Costco membership to look at a particular price (I'm sure many Costco members in this thread would do so if asked!).

[slappy]

If you're diligent I'm sure you can save money by getting a costco membership... I think most end up falling for grocery inflation, buying more luxury type groceries because Costco makes them appealing in bulk and as a "good deal". Frozen berries, fancy nuts, cheeses, coffee etc. If I stick to walmart, aldi, H-mart I can beat costco's prices on my normal diet.

A bit irritated about their transparency, costco requires a member login to check their tire prices online. Are they significantly less? I also can't see their grocery prices, so I can't plan ahead and price compare. Their model feels like I have to submit to playing their game.

This is exactly how I feel. I find it extremely annoying that I can't see the prices online. Costco is a bit of a drive for me, and I haven't found anything that is worth buying there.

[slappy]

WRT to grocery prices, there's little point in trying to see the prices online. If you want to get a sense for what prices are, you can check out instacart or other delivery options for a ballpark, or ask someone with a Costco membership to look at a particular price (I'm sure many Costco members in this thread would do so if asked!).

When I had a membership, I don't think it was an option to look up the prices online for grocery items. Maybe someone who has a current membership can confirm. I know the website does show some prices, but they are significantly higher than actual in store prices.

My strategy when i had a membership was to find the item number and call to ask the price. However, one time I did that and was given an incorrect price and it kind of ruined my day. haha. I made arrangements to pick up the items for myself and two others based on the price, and bundled my errands around the Costco location, only to find out the price was the same as it was at BJs, which was much closer to me.

[dandarc]

If you're diligent I'm sure you can save money by getting a costco membership... I think most end up falling for grocery inflation, buying more luxury type groceries because Costco makes them appealing in bulk and as a "good deal". Frozen berries, fancy nuts, cheeses, coffee etc. If I stick to walmart, aldi, H-mart I can beat costco's prices on my normal diet.

A bit irritated about their transparency, costco requires a member login to check their tire prices online. Are they significantly less? I also can't see their grocery prices, so I can't plan ahead and price compare. Their model feels like I have to submit to playing their game.

This is exactly how I feel. I find it extremely annoying that I can't see the prices online. Costco is a bit of a drive for me, and I haven't found anything that is worth buying there.

My recent experience - exact same set of 4 tires, installed was 5-10% less at Costco than the Toyota Dealer. But Costco had run-flats available while the dealer did not, and for some reason I decided I wanted those, so I went with Costco. They also include free rotation and balance at Costco for any tires they install. Kinda similar deal to the appliances - most likely going to get a good but not great price, but with delivery, installation, and haul-away are included, in addition to Costco's usually somewhat better warranty, is overall a fairly good deal. If they have what you're looking for.

[Cranky]

We buy coffee there - there are 5 adults in my house and we slurp down multiple pots of coffee/day. Costco has the cheapest fairly decent beans I've found.

Otherwise, fresh garlic, olive oil, fireplace logs, seltzer water, and men's pants. Pretty much the only clothing I buy new is my dh's pants.

[Villanelle]

So much great information, everyone.  If our weekend doesn't get too crazy, we plan to go this weekend to activate our membership.

Is there a time that is better than others to visit?  I'm guessing mid-day (but not lunch time, so maybe 11a or 2p?), mid-week?   Any tips here would be much appreciated, as the long lines and crazy parking lot are one of the main detractors to Costco, in my mind.

When I went with my family, I did feel that it would be easy to succumb to temptation.  There were many items--like fancy cheese or a cuddly blanket--that I wouldn't consider otherwise, but that called to me from the shelves, so I'll need to be careful.  Oh, look at this nice sweatshirt I don't need, and that set of hand towels that match my kitchen !

Their price on dog pill pockets, which we use daily, was cheaper than Amazon's subscribe and save.  I haven't opened the Costco bag yet, but assuming my girls like them, that will be a savings.  they didn't seem to have any of the supplements/meds we give our dogs, but maybe I need to look more closely.  (Flea and tick, a daily liver-health supplement, and a daily joint thing--not condroitin.)

[turketron]

Is there a time that is better than others to visit?  I'm guessing mid-day (but not lunch time, so maybe 11a or 2p?), mid-week?   Any tips here would be much appreciated, as the long lines and crazy parking lot are one of the main detractors to Costco, in my mind.

Yeah, the best time I've found is like 10:30am on a Tuesday, usually there's no lines then. Weekends are busy, for our location Saturdays are the worst (anecdotally, I think that's the day that all the people from small towns like an hour outside our city come in and stock up for the month) but Sunday mornings aren't too terrible.

Their price on dog pill pockets, which we use daily, was cheaper than Amazon's subscribe and save.  I haven't opened the Costco bag yet, but assuming my girls like them, that will be a savings.  they didn't seem to have any of the supplements/meds we give our dogs, but maybe I need to look more closely.  (Flea and tick, a daily liver-health supplement, and a daily joint thing--not condroitin.)

You should be able to check prescription prices on costco.com, not sure on the other OTC supplements as we don't give our pets any. In our location (upper midwest) Frontline isn't available mid-winter, so we stock up in the spring/summer. 

[grantmeaname]

If you have to go on the weekend, it helps to be there right when it opens. It gets mad at 11:30 or so.

[englishteacheralex]

The Costco we go to the most is the busiest one in the nation (Costco at Iwilei). It's hard to overstate the popularity of Costco in Hawaii, so there almost isn't a time when it isn't packed with people.

HOWEVER, the checkout lines move really fast. Once you have a sense of where things are (yes, they move things a lot, but typically I can find everything pretty quickly), you can still shop efficiently and get out faster than you'd think. Parking can be a challenge, but I usually just suck it up and park quite far away and hike in.

If you're aiming for a time with fewer people, yes, mid mornings and afternoons on weekdays are the ticket. I write this post mainly to encourage you to not worry too much about the busy-ness factor if you can only get there on Saturdays.

[ixtap]

Our Costco has fewer people at certain times, but they are the least efficient shoppers. I went Tuesday and it was a zoo. This one middle age guy seemed to be there to help his parents, but he would be pushing the cart, then leave it in the middle and stand mid way between the cart and what he wanted to stare at. Once he turned to look at me, then went back to looking at the produce, without moving. People parked 3/4's across the aisle while they talked on their phones. Three people backed into me while I was standing still. Might as well have gone to Trader Joe's.

[Villanelle]

The Costco we go to the most is the busiest one in the nation (Costco at Iwilei). It's hard to overstate the popularity of Costco in Hawaii, so there almost isn't a time when it isn't packed with people.

HOWEVER, the checkout lines move really fast. Once you have a sense of where things are (yes, they move things a lot, but typically I can find everything pretty quickly), you can still shop efficiently and get out faster than you'd think. Parking can be a challenge, but I usually just suck it up and park quite far away and hike in.

If you're aiming for a time with fewer people, yes, mid mornings and afternoons on weekdays are the ticket. I write this post mainly to encourage you to not worry too much about the busy-ness factor if you can only get there on Saturdays.

I'm a veeeeeery part-time freelance writer, so I can go pretty much whenever, though I prefer to keep my morning open when I can.  So I'm very much able to go based on the ebbs and flows of their traffic. Weekday afternoons work quite well. Thanks for the info! 

[SweatingInAR]

Google maps shows a "popular times" indicator for most stores. It even gives a live estimate. Pull up the point of interest on your phone app or web browser and scroll down. It will be a set of vertical blue bars.

I like to think that the best time in a suburban area is a bit before and during elementary school pickup. If I miss that window, I do have great success going in 30-45 minutes before closing!