Experiences After Letting Costco Membership Expire

Parent Cafe
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It’s been ~9 months since I started the How Much Do You Save With Costco Per Year? thread. The thread has been closed, so I’ll post updates here.

After reviewing savings and related thread discussion, I decided to stock up during the month my membership expired, let my membership expire, then see how things go… most likely rejoining in a few months when supplies ran low. My results were different than expectations.

I purchased Costco KS9 hearing aids in 2020. One of the hearing aids broke while my membership expired. Fortunately hearing aid services were still offered without an active membership. Costco gave me a temp on the next business following the event, then repaired the hearing aid for a total charge of $52.99. The hearing aid works better now than it has in years. It was probably partially clogged and/or benefited from the updated parts (the part of hearing aid that goes in ear was fully replaced). They also give me more than a year’s supply of filters as well as other hearing aid supplies, and encouraged me to make an appointment for tuning. I expect I’ll want a Costco membership in a year I buy new hearing aids, but it seems I won’t need an active membership to maintain my existing hearing aids.

When I started running low on the items I buy at Costco, I stocked up using Instacart. Instacart gave me a 40% off sticker price coupon, which I stacked with 15% off Instacart gift cards (started a thread about this during BF). The result was being able to stock up on items I buy at Costco at ~25% below Costco in-store sticker prices. I also saved on gas and time by not having to drive to the store. It appears that I also don’t need a membership to stock up on items I regularly buy at Costco. The 40% off coupon was only available if purchased via Instacart (not offered on sameday . costco . com), so it’s also not clear that I’d save more buying Costco items with a Costco membership than without.

I’ve been getting gas when I happen to drive by a station offering a lower price. These are often Indian casinos, which are able offer lower prices due to CA tax exemptions. As such the places I’ve been stopping for gas have lower prices than my area Costco, as well as far shorter lines. I’m also not losing out much on gas savings.

In short I haven’t missed my membership or experienced any notable negatives from not being a member. My net food expense for 2025 was 14% below 2024, largely due to relying more on Instacart instead and other grocery delivery services, similar to discussion above. My overall spending has decreased, without the Costco membership. My revised plan is to continue without a Costco membership for now. I’ll rejoin when either I want to make a large one-time purchase, such as getting new hearing aids; or I am non-member for enough months to be eligible for the steep membership discounts – sometimes offsetting >100% of membership cost.

The closest thing to a negative was choosing to buy paper towels at Aldi instead of Costco. My experience is Costco “advanced” Bounty paper towels are superior to regular Bounty sold at other supermarkets and far superior the Aldi imitation (green ones, not blue). They are thicker, more absorbent, stronger, and larger size. While the Aldi paper towels are cheaper, they aren’t a better value. I won’t make that mistake again.

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That’s interesting but I will say the result won’t be the same for everyone. I live 40 minutes from Costco so it is a drive to get there. However, Instacart doesn’t come to my town and the two grocery stores we have here always have higher prices. And no Indian casinos around here either. I also (and this is a bit pathetic) consider a trip to Costco as part of our entertainment experience. I know, pretty sad. I’m glad your experiment worked for you and good to know that you can keep your hearing aids functioning. They are on my list to buy this year…at Costco

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I shop at Costco because my values align with their company values and I avoid shopping at other stores where my values are not in alignment with the corporate values.

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If you are assuming Instacart doesn’t deliver, you might be surprised. I’ve seen Instacart drivers posting about driving far longer distances than that. An example is below. For my Costco order earlier today, I chose to order from the Costco Business Center that is ~30 minutes away, rather than the nearer Costco Wholesale warehouse. I can also order from Sam’s Club, which is more than 1 hour away.

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Costco is the closest grocery store for us unless we want to pay megabuck$$ at the chichi market that is a bit closer. I don’t have the time to chase pennies elsewhere. One stop shop and done for the week. And it is nice seeing faces of employees who are still working there since the day we began our membership 35 years ago.

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I needed new eyeglasses this year– bought the cheapest frames they sell with my deluxe progressive prescription and all the trimmings– and the glasses are AMAZING compared with my last pair from Warby Parker. Amazing. And by far cheaper than any other comparable eyeglasses.

I don’t enjoy shopping at Costco, but I just ran the math on keeping my aging Honda for another year (need new tires) vs. trading it in, and the numbers don’t lie. Buy the tires at Costco (relatively new Costco battery) and get on with life in my fully paid for, cheap to insure, perfectly safe old car.

So the hassle of saving two dollars on shampoo never appeals to me. But these big ticket items– wow. And the upright freezer that I bought last year to replace the old chest freezer– can’t believe I waited for so many years. Cheap to purchase, cheap to run, the Costco reviews claim it will go forever if you’re careful about ice build up (which I am).

Hearing aids will be next- unfortunately….

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You do you @Data10 ! Sounds like not having Costco in your life - at the moment - is doable. Though you did really like that good customer service on your hearing aids!

I love food, I love shopping for food, I love making food. Costco is entertainment for me. I spend little $ on actually entertainment so nobody is gonna take away my Costco card!! :laughing:.
Like @BunsenBurner mentioned it’s often a “one and done” for me for the week - maybe combined with a farmers market run or o de every 6 weeks or so, an Aldi run.

I ADORE my Costco. :grinning_face:

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I don’t think it’s pathetic, I am the same way but about Trader Joe’s :slight_smile:

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This is the primary reason we got our membership a year and a half ago. Nearest one is over 50 miles away. But it’s something to do on the weekends. Protein powder is cheap. And we always seem to buy their clothes. And jackets. I got the most perfect coat for our Xmas market cruises. It’s a men’s coat, but I’m a perfect medium sized man. H got the XL version and we were marchers - for $25 each!

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I bought my first eyeglasses in the past year. Being new to glasses, I compared and tried a variety of options, including Costco. My favorite turned out to be the least expensive. I bought 2 pairs of glasses for $10 ($5 each) at Zenni. Net cost after shipping and related fees was $19.85 or ~$10 per pair, without insurance.

It’s amazing how much markup there is on eyeglasses, with the Luxottica monopoly. A podcast I listen to mentioned as high as 1000% markup. The owner of Warby Parker was interviewed. He mentioned that he wanted to sell their glasses with less markup. However, marketing told him that they would sell more glasses with more markup, up to their default of $95, as buyers would assume a lower priced product with less markup is inferior, being used to paying so much more on Luxottica models.

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35 years! I didn’t know Costco has been around that long.

Costco is my primary grocery store and for at least the past few years my only clothing store.

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I typically need 3-4 adjustments to my glasses. Not just getting used to a new prescription, but getting them fitted so they are comfortable for reading in bed, working at a computer for hours a day, exercise, etc. Warby Parker tried but gave up (they admitted that the frames were falling off my face when I looked down- as you do if you’re sending a text) and despite the “guarantees” the glasses never fit properly (they apologized but did not offer a refund nor offer to provide a new, better fitting pair.)

Dropping in at Costco and having the optical team say “just sit down, we won’t let you leave until they are perfect” was really a balm. And they ARE perfect (both the sunglasses and the regulars). They don’t slip when my face gets sweaty or I have sunscreen on, they don’t irritate the back of my ears at the end of a long day; Makeup on the nose piece slides right off with a quick rinse…. just perfect.

I don’t know if I’d be able to buy glasses online- who fits them to you? Who refits them if the ear piece isn’t comfortable? And who figures out how to fit the progressives so that you aren’t constantly having to move your head???

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lol I posted about Costco being my entertainment before seeing your post. :raising_hands:t3:

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My DIL’s father went to visit son and DIL, and their visit to Costco may have been enjoyed by him more than their visit to the fancy restaurant they took him too, no kidding.

The only way I “measure” my value at Costco is to hope my refunds or store credits or whatever offset my “executive” membership cost. I think I upgraded bc I was planning to buy some big ticket items, so was worth it to get more bonus bucks. Now I should probably go back to regular membership, but my son gets many lunches from Costco, and he loves being able to go in early in the morning/when it’s less crowded.

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My husband worked for Costco for 10 years before he retired. They treat their employees well and pay them well. That’s why they have a low staff turnover.

We love Costco. The closet one is 45 minutes away. We have Trader’s Joe, a mile from home, Aldi 3 miles from home, Wegman’s 5 miles from home, etc., etc. We still enjoy going to Costco at least once a month to shop and check things out. My husband likes to wander around to see what’s new. Like others said, it’s entertainment for us, too.

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There is no shortage of independent opticians who will adjust fit for glasses that were purchased elsewhere. Even places like Walmart will adjust fit for glasses that were not purchased in the store. Google says Costco will as well.

However, I used a different approach. As I mentioned, this was my first time wearing glasses. I do not have severe vision loss or a complex prescription – basic glasses work fine. I learned the hard way that the bigger issue is comfort and function.

After several contacts and attempts to sell me eyeglasses, I eventually bought heavily marked up glasses from the optometrist who tested my vision. The glasses looked stylish, but I found them uncomfortable to wear for long periods. The optometrist tried to make some adjustments, but it was still uncomfortable. The optometrist couldn’t fit them in a way that made them wearable, so I returned them.

Learning from that experience, I took note of what I liked and disliked about the glasses. I considered exactly what measurements I wanted in what areas of the glasses to be most comfortable. I considered what material would be most comfortable. I considered what lens shape would offer the best field of vision. I then ordered 2 pairs from Zenni that met that criteria, which I thought would go over best with me. Given the $10 price, I could have ordered more than 2. I found that the online process that lists specific numerical measurements and allowed searching hundreds of options according to those measurements to be particularly helpful, which wouldn’t be as straightforward in a physical store.

After receiving I compared and tested the 2 eyeglasses, decided on the one I liked best, then returned the other. After making an adjustment myself, the fit is close enough to my ideal to not want to mess with it further. It’s not a solution for everyone, but it works for me.

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Interesting. I like Costco for some grocery items, but the biggest limitation for me is that Costco is NOT a “one and done” grocery store. It’s more a grocery store for a small handful of specific items.

For example, my Costco order earlier today included 10lb Old Fashioned Quaker Oats. I prefer Quaker oats to almost all supermarket brands, and I prefer old fashioned to quick oats; so this is the product I want. Costco has a far better price per 1lb than anyone else, and oatmeal lasts years, so no risk of spoiling. Costco is my first choice for buying oatmeal, by a wide margin. As such, I get Quaker Oats almost every time I order from Costco.

However, as one and done grocery store, Costco falls short of my needs, perhaps more so than any other grocer. For example, I plan to place another grocery order on Thursday, in spite of shopping at Costco earlier today. Some of the items I chose to order from the other grocer instead of Costco include the following. I realize that other Costco have different items and different package sizes. Many of these are specific to my particular Costco

  • Milk – Costco only sells in 2 gallon containers. I can’t finish 1 gallon before spoiling, let alone 2 gallons
  • Lactose Free Milk – Not sold at Costco
  • Ice Cream – Costco only sells one flavor – vanilla. It only comes in 1 gallon package, and it’s overpriced. Not what I want.
  • Brown Rice – Only comes in 12lb package, and it’s overpriced (organic). Prefer to buy elsewhere
  • Dried Beans – No longer sold? Or maybe the huge package of pinto beans they used to sell is out of stock. Either way, I don’t like pinto beans, so I’d prefer to buy elsewhere.
  • Frozen Brussels Sprouts – Not sold at Costco
  • Apples – Only sold in 4+ lb bags, and they are overpriced (organic).
  • Bran Flakes Cereal – Not sold at Costco
  • Sports Drinks Zero – Only sold in bulk packaging, not flavors I want, overpriced

I could continue, but I think this is enough to see the issue. Selection is limited. Bulk size is limiting. Prices are higher than alternatives on many items, in some cases because only premium/organic is sold. I’m sure I could survive on only Costco groceries, but I’d have a better experience if I did the bulk of my grocery shopping elsewhere.

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I became a member at Costco when there was but one warehouse & there were limits on who could join.

We buy too much there for us to give up a membership for any length of time. The closest warehouse is 6-ish miles away, so it’s easy to get there. My contacts are cheaper there than anywhere else — a yearly buy. I moved my prescriptions there a couple of years back when the locally-owned drugstore was bought out (and now closed), and the cost is lower. H switched when he went on Medicare — analysis showed he’d save a lot buying there.

H buys meat and vacuum seals and freezes it. Butter goes in the fridge and freezer, San Pellegrino by the case, Apple juice, paper products, etc. The regular grocery store runs are for milk, chicken, and veggies.

I’ve never used instacart. I will say that I hate hate hate trying to get around their shoppers with their big carts when I’m there.

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I’m about a once a month costco shopper, if that. I don’t really like their fruits and veggies as they come in bulk, and I’d rather have more variety (except bananas, I buy bananas at every store I go to). But I like buying things and the next time I buy other things. Sort of similar to Data10’s reasons for not buying some things that only come in bulk.

I just got my new glasses there and love them. In 2024 I had Aetna insurance and couldn’t use Costco and hated the glasses from a Myeyedr. because their lab broke my costco frames and they didn’t have anything close, and the lenses were $500 and I’d had to pay $200 of that. They refunded my money, shaved down the lenses to fit in the broken (repaired by an independent tech) and I got sunglasses instead, but the repaired glasses were never right. I didn’t realize how bad they were until I got my new glasses. I love my new glasses and if I had paid full price at Costco, it would have been $220 (my insurance paid all but $40 for 2025). I think even if I have to pay OOP I’ll just keep going to Costco.

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My last purchase included:

  1. Ground turkey 2-pack
  2. 4 filets mignon
  3. Pack of 4 cartons of 2% mik
  4. 24 eggs
  5. Several jars of instant Nestle coffee
  6. Parmesan
  7. 3-pack cukes
  8. 2 pounds of tomatoes
  9. Pack of asparagus
  10. 2 2-lb packages of strawberries
  11. 2 pounds of blueberries
  12. Bell peppers
  13. Pita bread
  14. 5 pounds of apples
  15. Chocolate covered filberts (a rare treat!)
  16. Psyllium husk capsules

I stopped at TJ to get stuff like beets, cabbage, shredded carrots, herbs, and packages of lettuce that I can’t find at Costco. Also picked a couple of containers of yogurt at the chichi grocery because it is reasonably priced there and we like the kind.

The two of us eat through the majority of that in a week. Milk lasts a couple of weeks and can be stored longer since it is pasteurized and sealed.