Costco is fondly known for many things a
food court with delicious snacks
private-label wines that rival
award-winning vintages and giant sized
packages of just about everything
but before you buy a Costco membership
keep watching to learn all you need to
know about joining the club here's a
secret that might just blow your mind
you don't need a membership to get in
the doors there are a few ways even
non-members can check out the fabled
aisles of savings the easiest way is
probably finding a buddy who's a member
and tagging along on their next shopping
trip technically only members can make
purchases but as long as your friend
lets you scan their member card at the
register you'll be able to pay for your
own thirty pack of toilet paper another
way to get in is to get a Costco cash
card this gift card lets you shop
without a membership using the value on
the card to pay for anything only
members can buy Costco cash cards so
again you'll have to know someone who is
a member to get the hook-up but once you
have that gift card in hand you can give
the store a real test-drive it doesn't
stop there though anyone can grab lunch
or dinner at the food court it's usually
located near the exit so just enter
through the exit or near customer
service to grab your favorite menu item
in some states liquor must legally be
available for sale to the public without
any membership restrictions in that case
even Costco non-members can shop
Costco's extensive liquor department
which occasionally even has its own
entrance there shoppers can find
name-brand spirits as well as the
company's private label Kirkland brand
offerings mostly in larger 1.75 liter
bottles non-members can take advantage
of some of Costco's health-related
services they can get I exam since the
optometrists are not employed by Costco
although they can't buy glasses
afterwards and in most states
non-members can fill prescriptions at
Costco pharmacies enjoying lower prices
on both human and pet medication however
prices on meds are even lower for club
members thanks to the Costco members
prescription program finally if you
really need a way to get your hands on
some of those great Costco only products
you can shop Costco calm or
via instacart although non-members pay
slightly higher prices and delivery fees
if you're getting a membership simply
because you want to save big bucks on
everything you buy know that some items
sold at Costco aren't much cheaper than
they would be at a traditional grocery
store you know we may not be as big and
fancy as some other stores but what's so
fancy about high prices this is why it's
a good idea to do a quick recon of the
store before you invest in a membership
make a list of some of your most
frequently purchased items and check the
prices at Costco then compare them to
what you normally pay you might find
that the savings aren't significant
enough to offset the annual membership
fee another thing to consider like any
warehouse club most of Costco's products
are sold in larger sized packages it
might be cheaper when you calculate the
price per ounce but for perishable items
if you can't eat it all before it goes
bad you're actually losing money we're
not saying a Costco membership doesn't
have its benefits but those benefits
vary based on what you regularly
purchase does the $60 price tag seem too
steep
occasionally Costco memberships can be
found at a discount or with a bonus for
new members in the form of a gift card
in 2018 a LivingSocial deal priced at
$60 included the membership a twenty
dollar Costco cash card and assorted
goodies ranging from a pack of batteries
to discounts on meat an online shopping
keep an eye on Groupon and LivingSocial
for these types of deals and be sure to
grab them when you see them we've also
seen savings like these through banks
and other organizations occasionally
there are even special deals offered for
teachers where they can get a coupon
booklet with a purchase of a new
membership the booklet is good for 60
dollars worth of merchandise offsetting
the initial investment if you prefer to
pay for your shopping with an American
Express MasterCard Discover Card or
Diners Club Card you're out of luck
Costco only accepts Visa Network cards
for credit card payments although you
can also pay with a debit card cash
check or EBT Costco had a longtime
relationship with American Express
starting in 1999 but discontinued that
partnership around 2016 which is when
Amex was
no longer accepted in the warehouse
stores while Amex customers might be
frustrated that they can't flash their
plastic at Costco Visa charges a lower
fee so hopefully those savings are
passed on to members the first thing you
need to know about Costco memberships is
that there are a few options the basic
membership is called the gold star
membership priced at $60 it's the
minimum you can spend to get in the door
and start throwing some of that Kirkland
brand goodness which is often 20%
cheaper than most other brands in the
store into your extra-large shopping
cart the gold star executive membership
is the other option for individuals it
costs twice as much as the gold star
membership but before you dismiss it
outright think about how much you might
spend at the store each year you get 2%
back on your purchases so if you spend
around $3,000 a year or $250 per month
that's enough to offset that extra $60
you spent on the higher priced annual
membership executive members also get
extra benefits on certain Costco
services finally if you own a business
Costco also offers business gold star
and business gold star executive
memberships the business memberships
cost the same as individual memberships
but you can buy items for resale and
purchase additional member cards for
your account what's more special Costco
business center locations stocks
specialized items like vending machine
snacks janitorial supplies office
equipment electronics and commercial
equipment when Costco discontinued its
Amex partnership it quickly aligned with
Citi to offer an official Costco credit
card the Costco anywhere credit card can
be used not only at Costco but anywhere
else that accepts Visa too and there are
plenty of perks and rebates such as a
percentage back for just about
everything you buy which ranges from 4%
back for certain gas purchases to 1%
back for everything else you need a
membership to get the Costco anywhere
card but if you plan to apply for the
credit card just spring for the basic
gold star membership since purchases
with the card will get you that same 2%
back you get with the executive level
membership the reward gets paid out
every year in the form of a certificate
which you can redeem for cash at a
Costco store or use in the store towards
more stuff
let's say you've waived the pros and
cons and finally purchased a membership
but maybe you discover that the store is
too far away to make it worth the long
drive or you're having trouble storing
all the giant packages in your small
house or maybe you've just grown weary
of fighting the hungry crowds when
you're just trying to get to the
checkout with your bottle of Kirkland
wine according to the company if you're
dissatisfied with your membership
they'll refund the fee in full at any
time
no questions asked it's not even unheard
of to buy and return a Costco membership
in a single day so go ahead and treat
yourself to that Costco membership what
have you got to lose with a gold star or
executive membership you can get a
second card for another member of your
household they just need to live at the
same address as you do these household
members get their own photo ID
membership card and can use it to enter
the store and make purchases on their
own in addition to their additional
household member business members can
also add members for $60 each and since
shopping is usually more fun with a
buddy know that you can always bring up
to two guests with you every time you
shop it's a great way to introduce
Costco to potential new members and have
an extra hand or two to load up all your
bargains into the back of your SUV are
you in college or do you know someone
who is a Costco membership can help
budget challenge students with well
priced beer Cheerios frozen pizzas
microwave popcorn and other staples of
college life depending on the Costco you
might find togas too and you can save
even more by buying your membership
through uni days where you are eligible
for a $20.00 Costco card of course your
other option is to wait until you go
home to visit your parents and convince
them to take you shopping with their own
membership maybe you'll get lucky and
they'll even pay for your stuff veterans
and active members of the military are
rewarded for their service to the
country with a special promotion of
their own new Costco members who sign up
still pay $60 for their basic membership
but they'll get that $60 back in the
form of a booklet full of coupons for
free and deeply discounted items while
visiting a Costco might be the last
thing on your itinerary while you're
traveling internationally
tucking your membership card into your
vacation bag could come in handy you
could replace a broken suitcase grab a
couple of cheap beach towels or buy a
few outfits if your luggage got lost by
the airlines or maybe you're just
missing the taste of Costco's cheap and
delicious hotdogs from the food court
there are more than 200 Costco locations
outside of the US as of 2019 and the
company has an aggressive growth plan in
Europe and while the European Costco
locations sell a lot of similar products
to their American counterparts you might
be able to score some locally produced
foods or other merchandise you know a
funny thing about Europe is what it's a
little differences I mean they got the
same over there they got just there it's
a little different your Costco
membership Nets you way more than just
the opportunity to buy a 30 pack of your
favorite granola bar or eat too many of
the free samples if you buy a membership
look beyond the awesome deals in the
grocery aisles and see what else Costco
has to offer in the way of services like
to travel as a Costco member you have
access to its exclusive travel service
which offers negotiated rates on
vacation packages cruises hotels and
rental cars even better the company
recently changed its policy so that
executive members get two percent back
on travel purchases after the trip has
been completed
Costco services also extend to savings
that aren't quite as glamorous as travel
you can get special member pricing on
new or used cars
as of February 2019 1 million Costco
members have bought cars through Costco
in the past five years with prices being
estimated at around one thousand dollars
cheaper than a more traditional car
buying Avenue there are also savings on
home repair services appliances
insurance and even smaller services like
cheque printing or photo developing Plus
Costco's automotive departments are an
affordable place to buy new tires and
car batteries
finally you can even get prescription
glasses or contacts in Costco's optical
department which are staffed with
opticians and optometrists to get eye
exams the discounts are i opening check
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