Comments on: Costco Executive Membership: Is It Worth It?

By: Sarah

Sarah — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 21:35:35 +0000

The Costco executive membership and even the regular Costco membership fee is worth it. With executive you get your money back if you’re dissatisfied for any reason. I highly recommend getting the American Express Costco credit card to get your membership fee waived. Plus you get some nice cashback with your Costco purchases. If you live close to a Costco location and can get your gas, tires, and everything else from there, it’s a win win! I’ve been doing it for years

By: Big Papa

Big Papa — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 20:25:38 +0000

Okay then but is the executive card worth investing in or not. Yes I shop maybe 20 times year but could tell you how much I spend. Well I guess stick with what I have and enjoy it I guess.

By: Dave

Dave — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 16:13:12 +0000

If you are a gold member executive membership is a win-win. If you do not get $50 back in savings in a given year. Take the check to customer service and they will give you the difference and downgrade you to gold. You can then re-up for executive. Since there is no downside (except savings account the interest on the $50), you might as well get all the executive benefits.

By: Barbara

Barbara — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 00:39:56 +0000

I gave up my membership (the $50 Gold Membership) primarily because I like to go to these bunker-shopping stores when they open, so I can get in and get out. When I arrived at 10:00 a.m. which is the stated opening time, I was told that I had to wait til 11:00 a.m. because the earlier opening time was for executive membership only (it would’ve been nice if it had been posted on their website). Given the location of this particular Costo (Marina del Rey) and how bottlenecked the traffic becomes as the day proceeds, I dropped my membership. I refuse to pay an additional $50 in order to be able to shop an hour earlier. Now I go to Smart & Final which is Costco for single people. Elitism doesn’t always work in the vendor’s favor.

By: Chop Sui

Chop Sui — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 00:04:29 +0000

At my costco the head memberships offered to refund the difference. So if you only get 30 bucks rebate he will refund you an additional 20 so it only costs you 50 no matter what. But, you can easily get the limit if you know a few friends or college buddies who want to buy a new TV or computer my gf racked up 900 for me when she bought a new laptop…lol

By: Stephanie

Stephanie — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 16:55:06 +0000

If you are a single person or a young couple, consider goin halfers with another couple or someone you know who may be interested. You can get good deals, split the cost and save money that way!

By: Laura

Laura — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 23:46:24 +0000

I thought it would be useful to see if we really did save money with our Costco executive membership. Surprisingly most of our savings wasn’t from our food purchases. We saved half on our car insurance.

I have noticed that Costco’s gasoline has been 12-15 cents cheaper a gallon then other gas stations around my area.

By: SurlyTrader

SurlyTrader — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 14:57:10 +0000

This card deal is like a lot of others and the answer most likely is: it depends. The cards with the fees usually depend on how often you use them. E.G. if you have an american express blue card, it’s fantastic once you are over the $6,500 point barrier, but before that a lot of other cards are better.

I’m of the opinion that it is usually better if you can juggle multiple cards – Use a Citi Forward card for 5% back on Dining, Movies, Music, Books & games. Use a Chase Rewards or Discover card for 5% back on Gas. Use a Chase rewards or other comparable card for 5% back on supermarkets and drugstores. Then customize a capital one card for 3 miles back on travel. It gets complicated, but you can usually maximize your points that way.

By: Dvr surveillance

Dvr surveillance — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 05:23:38 +0000

I think the premium membership is worth of money. Let’s say if you buy 4 set of tires, 1 laptop or desktop, that costs almost covers the difference.

By: Julie Lender

Julie Lender — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 10:41:29 +0000

Very insightful article. Is Costco really a money-saving option? That is still up for debate.

By: ChrissyO

ChrissyO — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 20:17:07 +0000

With a hubby and 2 very young children (with another on the way) at home, I love my Costco membership. I too started out with the goldstar package and eventually got talked into by my upselling Costco customer service rep into upgrading for the executive membership plan. Costco keeps track of all of your membership spending habits and lets you know when you are renewing your plan whether it makes sense for you to upgrade.

The executive plan is an additional $50 more than the already $50 entry level plan, but I think the 2% reward on all Costco purchases is worth it. I know based on the amounts of money I spend on baby formula, diapers, and baby wipes alone – the savings are definitely worth the money. I haven’t tried out the other executive level benefits, but I hear they are pretty good

By: Tifa

Tifa — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 04:43:12 +0000

Costco membership (whether the white card or the Executive Membership black card) is a rip off if you wouldn’t ordinarily shop in bulk otherwise. It doesn’t make sense for every single person out there to shop at Costco or other Walmart style warehouses…even for the extra cost per unit savings. It only makes financial sense to pay for a Costco membership if you shop a lot or highly prefer to stock the cabinets in advance.

I’m currently a graduating college student. I prefer the location convenience of grocery shopping at my local supermarket rather than drive out of my way to find a Costco store (which are not always located in easily accessible places). Besides, as a student, I don’t have much of a need to buy products in massive bulk anyway.

By: Sandy

Sandy — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 01:41:09 +0000

Considering that most AmEx cards already give you 1% cash back/reward, the value added of this membership is 1%. If your goal of this card is to recoop your membership fee, black card members need to spend over $5,000 while white card members also need to spend over $5,000. So, it’s probably worth it to uprade if you spend over $5,000 a year. If it’s less than that, you’re better off with the white card. Also, there are a few cards that will give you 2% cash back (Am Ex Fidelity and Charles Schwab). Given that I’m don’t have a family, it’s probably still more economical for me to stay with the basic gold membership.