(1) always check around, but sometimes Costco ends up being the cheapest way to rent a car in another city
(2) if you use their home improvement services you get a healthy rebate on your Costo card. I forget the percentage but we ended up going thru them for a heater & A/C replacement. Costco doesn’t actually do the work, they contract to a local company (and it might be different companies if you shop at a few Costco locations). We got several quotes, the one from the Costo affiliate was competitive on the face and much better after the rebate
(3) if you have friends that want to give Costco a try without first joining just buy them a gift certificate. Even $5 gets them into the store, then they can pay for the total at the checkout counter
(4) for just about any appliance purchase its worth checking if Costo carries the same or similar item. I’ve found they had better prices on a printer, a blender, etc.
(5) they are crowded on the weekend, but not when the doors open at 9am. I get there before 9am to buy gas (good prices on that too!) then if I know what I’m looking for I’m at the checkout counter in a jiffy and never a line.
“(2) if you use their home improvement services you get a healthy rebate on your Costo card. I forget the percentage but we ended up going thru them for a heater & A/C replacement. Costco doesn’t actually do the work, they contract to a local company (and it might be different companies if you shop at a few Costco locations). We got several quotes, the one from the Costo affiliate was competitive on the face and much better after the rebate.”
Ditto. We used Costco contractors to replace carpets and countertops in our new to us house. The payment shows up as a Costco online purchase and and is entitled to 2% executive rebate in addition to 1% Costco visa rebate and cashback.
I just booked a car rental for an upcoming trip. Since it is the first one I’ve booked since becoming a Costco member, while checking prices online, I checked on Costco as well. Costco was 45% MORE expensive than the discount I received from Budget through my USAA membership.
(3) if you have friends that want to give Costco a try without first joining just buy them a gift certificate. Even $5 gets them into the store, then they can pay for the total at the checkout counter
You can, but there is a % added on to the price - I think 5%.
I’ve had good luck with Costco rentals (usually get Budget, to get the free additional driver)…unless it’s a fairly soon rental. I always book our annual vacation about 8 months in advance. Then I re-visit about three months out and also about two weeks out.
Quite frequently, the rate goes down a bit and I just cancel and re-book. Just did last week and save $30 on a rental for a November wedding.
And with my Executive membership, I get 2% back (unlike Gold membership)…
I do like the way Costco’s site gives the bottom line cost. Some other sites look like a good deal, until closer looks reveals that tax/fees not always included.
This being said, H just found a much better deal on a three week rental thru AAA.
Don’t discount the Costco car rental forever. Most every time (not all, but most) I’ve booked they have beat other companies. Also appreciate the free extra driver, frequent upgrades, etc.
@doschicos USAA has a car rental discount?? (We have USAA insurance…)
Most of the time, the Costco rental price has been the same as the price I get logging into Avis Preferred. RecentlyI made a reservation and added the code from the Costco popup box and saved maybe ten bucks more, on a very expensive rental.
USAA not only has a good deal on rentals (and automatic coverage for family members driving the car), they don’t charge extra for drivers under 25, IIRC.
hmm… I’m positive that I have never paid a fee to Avis for having my spouse drive the rental car. (and I’m not about to have my teen drive it.) But I should definitely explore how to go about getting a discount on the rental cost.
@evergreen5 Yes and it saves us $ regularly. And it is true about no extra charge for USAA members under 25 so if you have a college student who wants to rent, that can be a real money saver.
On USAA, instead of using their rental car tool, use the links they provide that take you directly to the car rental websites. For some reason, that seems to give you better rates. They have a relationship with Avis, Budget, Enterprise and Hertz but I always find Avis uncompetitive with the others.
The other good thing is the rental car employees tend not to hassle you with buying extra insurance because they know you are covered by USAA.
The Costco car rental rates fluctuate dramatically but it is super easy to reserve and then cancel your original reservation if you find a lower rate. For our trip to Hawaii this summer, my original rate was about $980 for 9 days. I would go back to check rates periodically and ended up rebooking about 5 or 6 times. But currently, I have a reservation for an intermediate car for $460, which I call a great deal for 9 days.
Costco also includes a free spouse second driver. You can also get that from Hertz if you sign up for Hertz gold, and it’s free to sign up.
I recently booked a rental car and Costco was the cheapest option. I checked USAA, but their site doesn’t make it easy to look at everything at once. I have to book again for June, so we’ll see. I always check Costco, SW, and USAA.
@greenwitch, what is SW. As I mentioned earlier, autoslash is a website that a) looks across lots of car rental deals including Costco (it asks what groups you are members of); and b) keeps checking for reduced rates after you have signed up for a rental. It asks if you are AAA, AARP, USAA, BJs, Costco members, so it finds rates available through various routes.
I also like autoslash. With my last 2 car rentals,they’ve notified me when the price went down (significantly) & I didn’t have to keep searching for that. Autoslash did all the work for me; all I had to do was book the cheaper reservation.
Kirkland House Blend coffee, organic olive oil, raw almonds, Quaker Oats, raisins, peanuts, Kind Bars, All Free & Clear detergent, Cascade Complete dishwasher tabs, Kirkland paper towels, ink cartridges, batteries, and Sonicare toothbrush heads are our regular staples at Costco. We live far from ours, too, so we don’t go frequently. We need special diet cat food now, but the Kirkland cat and dog foods tend to be really high quality.