Do you need a costco membership to shop there

Costco doesn't offer trial periods, but there's a free—and legal—way to shop at warehouses without buying a membership.

We're often looking for the best deals on everything, from affordable groceries to deeply discounted cookware—and Costco usually has amazing bulk discounts. There’s just one caveat: Costco requires a membership card for all purchases, and the $60 plus in annual fees can often be a turnoff for shoppers who are trying to save money.

But while researching the best deals on kitchen appliances this month—Costco sells everything from fridges to dishwashers—I stumbled upon a little-known stipulation within the terms and conditions agreement of Costco's gift card, known as Costco Cash. Either the wholesale retailer has been trying to hide this from shoppers, or it's just a very well-kept secret, but the rules say that non-members are welcome to use Costco Cash at checkout for any purchase. No Costco card necessary!

Stay up to date on what healthy means now.

Sign up for our daily newsletter for more great articles and delicious, healthy recipes.

I reached out to the customer service team at Costco to confirm: Could I, someone who isn’t a member at Costco, come into the store, load up my cart, and then pay with Costco Cash? Team members confirmed that I could. Even better? Non-members can also redeem Costco Cash gift cards online, so you don’t even have to leave the couch to shop Costco's best deals. So, in theory, you can purchase anything from refrigerators, to bulk ingredients, to items from Costco's signature private label brand, Kirkland, without being a member.

The only caveat is that Costco Cash must be purchased and reloaded by an actual Costco member. So you'll have to find your Costco card-holding friend and beg them to pick one up for you the next time they head to stores… but what are friends for if not to help you save membership fees?!

You can load a Costco Cash gift card with any amount up to $1,000, and the card can be reloaded by a Costco member when you run out.

When you buy through our links, Insider may earn an affiliate commission. Learn more.

• There are two ways to shop at Costco without a membership: Costco.com and Instacart.
• Both methods deliver your order to your home but come with additional fees and surcharges.
• With the added fees, you may find it's more cost-effective to join Costco, which starts at $60.

Why should you pay to become a Costco member when you can get in the door at so many other stores for free? You may think buying a Costco membership is equally silly after we outline how to use Instacart and Costco.com to shop at the major retailer without a membership.

However, using these services comes with an added cost, and in the long run, you may save money by simply buying a Costco membership. Below, we will show you how to shop without becoming a member and when it might be better to join.

You can shop at Costco without a membership using Instacart

Non-members can order from Costco using Instacart if there is a store in their range. The product range includes about 2,000 items, such as electronics, household items, nonperishable foods, health and beauty, alcohol, fresh and frozen foods, and some big and bulky items, including mattresses and office chairs.

While you don't need to be a member to use this service, the prices are lower if you enter your membership number. Whether you have a membership or not, you will still need to pay Instacart service and delivery fees, but you can have the items delivered to you in as little as two hours.

You can shop on Costco.com without a membership

Costco.com is also available to non-members, but you will be assessed a 5% surcharge on your order. Also, there are some items that are only available to members, so non-members can't access everything that's available. This includes vacuums and many large appliances, like refrigerators, washing machines, and HVAC equipment.

Costco.com charges members and non-members a shipping and handling fee for many items, a fee you don't have to pay if you're shopping as a member in-store. Browsing the site, some of the items that incur a shipping charge are beverages, vacuums, and paper products.

Looking around Costco.com, the selection is different from Instacart. For instance, you can't get popular fresh items like eggs, rotisserie chicken, and steaks on Costco.com, but they are available on Instacart. On Costco.com, you can get some larger items, like entertainment centers, sofas, and generators, that aren't available from Instacart.

Non-members who receive a Costco gift card (known as the Costco Shop Card) can also shop in-store and on Costco.com without joining.

Price comparisons on popular Costco items

I polled members of two large Costco Facebook groups about their favorite products. Then I compared the prices of the products for non-members versus members using Instacart, Costco.com, and in-store member prices.

This is the price of each item in my area (Lansing/East Lansing, Michigan) at the time of this writing (October 2022):

Instacart's non-member prices came in lower than Costco's non-member prices. And with a Costco membership, you save $22.79 on Instacart, making it a less expensive option than Costco.com. After three Instacart orders like this in a year, a Costco membership would pay for itself. Yet, if you're a member, you would save another $11.71 by going to the store yourself rather than using Instacart.

Costco membership fees start at $60

When considering how much more it costs non-members to buy Costco products, you might want to consider paying the $60 annual fee for a Gold Star membership. This membership will unlock savings on Instacart and Costco.com, while also allowing you to shop in-store. I make Costco trips a family event. We take our time going up and down the aisles, filling up on the plentiful food samples.

Costco also has an Executive membership that costs $120 annually and comes with a 2% in-store refund on qualifying purchases along with other benefits. 

Whichever membership you choose, you can cancel anytime and get a full refund if you are dissatisfied.

The bottom line

While you can use Instacart and Costco.com to shop at Costco without a membership, it tends to cost more. If there are specific items you want from Costco, evaluate how much extra they cost without a membership. You may find you actually save more if you just join.

James Brains

Home & Kitchen Reporter, Insider Reviews

James is a Home & Kitchen Reporter for Insider Reviews, where he specializes in sleep, HVAC, and kitchen appliances.  He has tested more than 30 mattresses from startups like Casper and legacy brands like Tempur-Pedic, using his background in experimental psychology to develop objective tests and evaluate comfort, support, motion transfer, and more. He authors our guide to the best mattresses.  In addition to being Insider Reviews' mattress expert, James has extensively covered robot vacuums, air conditioners, air purifiers, and more within the HVAC space. He's tested more than 20 robot vacs from brands like iRobot and Roborock over the years and is no stranger to keeping his house at a chilly 60 degrees Fahrenheit for weeks on end all in the name of testing air conditioners. He's a multifaceted writer who has covered everything from health and fitness to consumer technology. His mission is to help people get the most value for their money by guiding them in making informed buying decisions. James is currently based in Lansing, Michigan, where he lives in "The Barn Mansion," a three-story Dutch colonial home, with his wife, two sons, two cats, and a rambunctious rat terrier.  When James isn't testing products and writing for Insider, he's helping to run a popular local Facebook group, Lansing Foodies. See below for some of his work: The best mattress for every type of sleeper in 2021, according to our rigorous testing The 6 best robot vacuums we tested in 2021 The 6 best air conditioners we tested in 2021 The best Instant Pots and electric pressure cookers we tested in 2021 10 grilling essentials that chefs and pitmasters swear by for making the best BBQ The 5 best mattress toppers we tested in 2021 Contact info: Learn more about how our team of experts tests and reviews products at Insider here. Learn more about how we test kitchen products.

Read more Read less