Reply With QuoteIf you need fuel regularly then you could save quite a lot filling up there?
Apparently I can get standard membership through my employer for just shy of £34 (with a £10 online voucher for the first year).
Trouble is I don’t need or wish to buy 100 toilet rolls at the same time, but assume there is more appeal than just massive bulk buying?
For those who use Costco, is it worth it?
If you need fuel regularly then you could save quite a lot filling up there?
It's worth it for hot dogs and sheer weight of pizza alone.
Absolutely mate, lots of ‘stuff’ that you never knew you needed. Also, the volumes you need to buy are not as great as you might expect.Originally Posted by noTAGlove
I go there every couple of weeks and have been a member for about 10 or 12 years.
Depends how close it is to your house. I will only go in a weekday evening.
A lot of stuff is expensive so it’s important to focus on what you’ll buy regularly and the warehouse offers. We buy a lot of fruit and laundry stuff.
https://www.costco.co.uk/offers
Personally I would buy it for the first year and see how you get on.
Get all my fuel there plus their meat and burgers etc are excellent.
Loads of other stuff makes it a no brainier.
I go there but a lot of stuff is always the same and a lot isn't any cheaper than supermarkets when the have offers on, the deals they do on car tyres is good as for petrol unless you go mid week at our local one you will be sitting in an hours queue to save 2p a litre
- Fuel
- Croissants
- Meat (I get the Xmas Rib of beef there most years)
- Coffee beans
- Ground black pepper
- Lassagne
- Batteries
- Kitchen roll
- Bog roll
- Chicken thighs
- Salmon
- Blocks of cheddar
Are what I typically get from there..................
Their meat and food is very good.
We don't buy toilet rolls from them.
Started out with nothing. Still have most of it left.
I was investigating buying a palette load of pasta and they seem to limit quantities, do you need different type of ‘membership’ to buy a large quantity?
I buy there toilet rolls, they last twice as long and the quality is excellent. Black bin bags again excellent quality and well priced. There bottled water is like 3.50 for 24 bottles, so if having a party it’s a bargain. As others have said for meat and other frozen foods there are some good deals to be had. Their cakes are excellent value again for parties, otherwise if you eat them all you will soon be extremely fat.
Finally if you want say apple AirPods MacBooks etc. you can save money on things like that and TV’s. Plus they have excellent returns rules and long warranties.
I've just gone electric so no benefit for fuel, but they're apparently great for tyres.
Is there any way for a "regular civilian" to get a decent Costco membership? I checked the rules a while ago and I think it was an online-only one way back when.
Nearest is 17 miles away, I'll keep using our local butcher.
"Once is happenstance. Twice is coincidence. The third time it's enemy action."
'Populism, the last refuge of a Tory scoundrel'.
We went a few times some time back but didn't find any real savings over supermarkets worth going out of our way for TBH.
Cheers,
Neil.
Why not just use Google?
https://www.costco.co.uk/membership
I used to be a member but I lacked the willpower and bought way too much, and I couldn't resist their pizza - followed by another course of Ikea goodies from across the road. The Edinburgh store was a much more pleasant experience than the Glasgow one.
Not sure, never tried to order food from there.
Possibly some difference between a regular and an executive membership
If you call the warehouse they’re always helpful
I love Costco, possibly my favourite shop.
As someone said above, it’s a warehouse full of gear you never knew you needed.
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I've had a membership for years now. Normally it costs in with not that many visits. For example a load of dishwasher tablets tended to cover most of it. With the new fuel it costs in even quicker. Boxes of wine can be a lot cheaper as can their own brand spirits which tend to be good quality too. They do have an amazing returns policy as well. The downside is that it is easy to spend a load on stuff you did not really know you needed!
My local Costco has free EV charging points
Steve
Fuel saves me about £9 per tank. There are thirty pumps at my local so even if the queue is 50 cars deep, it does not take long to get fuel. Remember there's no shop to pop into at payment time and hold up the fuel queue
Beyond that, the savings are there and I think it's worth the 12 round-trip for me. You won't find tyres cheaper, even without an offer. And with an offer, tyres are materially cheaper. Loads of other stuff too. Some stuff is actually expensive and sometimes really expensive.
Overall, I quite enjoy it
Toilet paper compared to another brand is wider and larger diameter. Kirkland Kleenex is 3 ply and softer. Large variety of products
As mentioned. Gas, tires and members get a new vehicle discount (I think on the last)
$1.50 Canadian hotdog and drink
If you have kids. Eriemeats chicken nuggets. Like 50 in a box for $12.00 Canadian if sold there
It's £34. Worst thing is. Your out the £34 if you don't like it. You can also add a second person, so they have a card
I go a 4 times per year
Last. Check and see what CC's they accept. Mine doesn't take VISA, so I have to bring cash
Wild parties! ;)
How much can a palette hold?
It depends.
- Fuel and tyres
- Own brand batteries
- Part-baked bread
- Cakes
- Underwear/socks
- Toilet (and kitchen) roll cheap for the quality you get
- Meat isn't cheap but is good.
- Cheese, ham etc good value
- Electronics can turn up some good deals
They do have buy limits sometimes, especially on offers.
Shop regular items and the monthly offers. Plan any "specials" so that your spend doesn't get out of hand.
For what we buy, it's definitely saving money even with the annual membership fee. Avoid the weekend if you can.
We have had membership for a few years now and though we don’t go that often we find the membership is worthwhile. The meat is good quality and decent size cuts unlike the supermarket rubbish.
I have never found the alcohol worth buying though, nearly always cheaper in the supermarket.
One problem is we always seem to spend £300+ when we go!
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We go once a month. Save a fortune.
Best Regards - Peter
I'd hate to be with you when you're on your own.
We go probably once a month, easily save the money providing you buy carefully.
I've been a member since the first one in the UK opened in Watford in 1993.....jeez, 30 years ago!!
As long as you know your prices the savings can be huge on most (but not all) stuff they sell. Plus the quality of what they sell and their customer service is beyond reproach too.
Highly recommended!
We go once a month. Spend a fortune.
Started out with nothing. Still have most of it left.
This is going to sound a little evasive, but I roughly equate a pallet load of boxes as the size of the loading area on my car. Not the most accurate way of measuring. But practical.
Might be different limits for trade and normal members - as shops can easily justify a pallet of cooking oil or whatever…….
Kitchen foil and clingfilm are very good.
Car shampoo also good value
Washing powder (Kirkland brand) very good value and comes in handy tubs
I echo these sentiments and have also been a member since the first warehouse opened in Watford.
I returned to the Watford warehouse recently and their fuel forecourt was like nothing I’ve seen before, unbelievably large and yet still large numbers of vehicles queueing up for fuel.
Like others have said it’s great for some stuff but you have to know what represents good value to you personally as not everything does.
Their customer service is fantastic, though returns policies have changed quite considerably over the years on their electrical products.
You used to be able to just pop a defective item on a trolley and return for a full refund no questions asked, they now only offer this for 90 days after which you have to call the manufacturer for a warranty repair. That said a 5 year warranty included in the price for items like TV’s is not to be scoffed at.
Pallet loads and bulk buy quantities are often limited but this is at the discretion of each warehouse manager and it’s always worthwhile having a chat with the manager to negotiate whatever it is you are after.
Executive membership doesn’t actually make any difference in this scenario in my experience and simply offers cash-back on annual spend at the end of the membership year.
Personally the whole Costco experience was far better when it was largely a trade warehouse, however opening up membership to practically everyone as they now have, still hasn’t made me give up my membership.
One thing i only learnt last week is that Costco Online and Costco warehouses are two completely different entities and pricing varies.
As another poster has sensibly recommended, try it for a year and see if it works for you.
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I use the Edinburgh and Southampton stores - and most of the customers are the doddery old parents of Bob the builder and Pete the plumber - who shuffle around and hoover up the samples - then don’t know what the hell they want………………..
This. Though I do save a bit on fuel and occasionally on various "stuff".
There must be easier options when you want a break from the A7 ?!
7kW free chargers in Sunbury, my nearest branch.
Any likelihood I can just leave my car there all day and cycle home? If so, where do I sign.
i've been a member for years and pop in once or twice a month.
load up on.....
fresh chicken
salmon
toilet & kitchen roll
fruit
dog chews
bacon
mixed nuts
shower gel
coffee
tea bags
kitchen foil & cellophane
coke zero
milk & butter
pasta sauces
hummus
eggs
mini cheddars
random other stuff such as underwear (although had to return some Armani pants as their idea of XL didn't meet my idea of XL - straight refund without receipt)
give it a try
even filled up the sports car with super unleaded last week; usually drive an EV so fuel isn't used often
We are there at least once a month, more in bbq season.
Don’t think we have left without spending £100 more than planned. First time will be the worst as you just keep adding to the trolley.
Sirloins, fillets are good value, but way better ones out there if you want to buy proper flavoursome meats with breed / heritage; bit like Farmison butchers, you know the cut but from a variety of breeds.
Non food stuff as mentioned is great value, and even a household of 2 the loo rolls, dishwasher tabs, washing tabs etc are not too big. Cannot remember the brand (not their own Kirkland one) of kitchen roll, but it’s the stuff that sticks to meat when you dry it, so don’t buy 4 huge rolls and get frustrated like I did.
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This. I've looked into Costco a number of times and every time come to the conclusion it looks shite.
No-brainer. Just avoid Saturday and Sunday afternoons!
Don't need your receipt usually, as all purchases are registered to your account. So they cam immediately see when and where you bought something.
Tyres are cheap there
Yes this
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I use Reading, just back from cali and used my vard there as well. Works WW
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I used to have membership for a couple of years but did not renew as got fed up with having stocks of items at home. I always felt I could buy better from the supermarket and not over buy.
I didn’t find the tyres cheaper overall.
I was a member for about 10yrs. If I went in, I'd end up spending 200 quid on stuff I never needed and didn't go in for so I binned it off.
If I need anything now that's a great deal, my pals membership suits.
Do you have a dog? I'm looking for something (with fewer calories than jelly beans or Skittles) to chew on during the day, so just wondering !
I found Costco exceptionally helpful for providing large car parks in which to conduct watch sales and purchases. The Liverpool Costco has served me well over the years.
What say you Greg
Hear hear Ken
Having done the whole Macro and Costco membership thing over the years it's a fallacy. People buy loads of stuff (in bulk) that they ordinarily would not buy on a normal shopping trip.
I support my local butcher and veg shops for fresh stuff and hit Aldi for the washing/dishwasher/cleaning stuff, much better and I avoid the 20 mile drive to the nearest Costco.
When you look long into an abyss, the abyss looks long into you.........
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