If You Let Costco Card Expire Do You Have to Pay Initial Fee Again
Don't Purchase A Costco Membership Until You lot Read This
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Groucho Marx famously declared that he didn't care to vest to any club that would accept him as a member ... but we're willing to bet that he'd retrieve differently about a Costco Wholesale membership.
Costco has grown to have a cult following since it kickoff opened in 1983 in Seattle. Back and then, archival photos evidence private memberships cost $30, plus $fifteen for a spouse (quite a deal compared to today's prices!), simply anyone who's shopped at the warehouse club recently will recognize the same industrial shelving, oversized packages, cement floors, and crowds of eager shoppers scoring crawly deals.
Today, Costco has nearly 800 stores beyond the globe and is fondly known for its food court with the $1.l hot dog and soda combo, its private-label wines that rival honour-wining vintages, and its giant-sized packages of merely nearly everything. Even Mr. Marx might agree that this is ane membership investment that can pay off large-time... and anyone tin join if they have $60 for the basic fee.
But before you head to your nearest Costco to get your card, read on to larn all yous need to know about joining the gild.
You can check out the store for free before you invest
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Here'due south a secret that but might blow your mind: You don't need a membership to become in the doors. In that location are a few ways fifty-fifty nonmembers tin check out the fabled aisles of savings. The easiest way is probably finding a buddy who's a fellow member and tagging along on their next shopping trip. Technically, simply members tin can make purchases, just as long as your friend lets yous scan her member card at the register, y'all'll be able to pay for your own 30-pack of toilet paper.
Another way to go far is to go a Costco Cash card. This gift carte du jour lets you shop without a membership, using the value on the card to pay for your gallon-sized bottle of maple syrup and your three-pound sack of lemons. Only members can buy Costco Greenbacks cards, so, again, yous'll have to know someone who is a member to get the hookup. But one time you have that gift card in paw, you lot tin give the store a existent test drive — and fifty-fifty take some of those must-have bulk items abode with you.
Know that not everything is a deal at Costco
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If you're getting a membership simply because yous want to save big bucks on everything you buy, know that some items sold at Costco are non much cheaper than if you bought them in a traditional grocery shop. Certain cheeses and organic milk, for example, don't seem to exist that great of a bargain compared to buying them at your local supermarket. In a comparison test, i study shows that certain produce, fresh chicken, and coffee were too cheaper at a regular store.
This is why information technology's a good idea to practise a quick recon of the shop before you lot invest in a membership. Make a list of some of your most frequently purchased items and check the prices at Costco, then compare them to what you normally pay.
Another thing to consider: Like any warehouse club, most of Costco's products are sold only in larger-sized packages. It might be cheaper when you calculate the toll per ounce, but for perishable items, if you tin can't swallow it all before it goes bad, you lot're actually losing money (not to mention wasting nutrient!). We're non saying a Costco membership doesn't have information technology'south benefits, but those benefits vary based on what you regularly purchase.
You tin can sometimes get a membership at a disbelieve
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Does the $60 toll tag seem too steep? Occasionally, Costco memberships can be establish at a discount or with a bonus for new members, in the form of a souvenir card. In 2018, a Living Social bargain, priced at $60, included the membership, a $20 Costco Cash Menu (hey, you could give it to a friend who wants to check out the store without a membership!), and assorted goodies ranging from a packet of batteries, to discounts on meat and online shopping.
Keep an eye on Groupon and Living Social for these types of deals, and be sure to catch them when you lot run across them, equally they're oft in express quantities. We've also seen savings like these through banks and other organizations. And occasionally there are even special deals offered for teachers, where they tin can get a coupon booklet with the purchase of a new membership. The booklet is adept for $60 worth of merchandise, offsetting your initial investment.
If y'all're not to antsy to start spending at Costco, being patient could gain you a cheaper membership — or at to the lowest degree a cheaper bill on your first shopping trip.
You lot can only pay at Costco via these methods
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If you adopt to pay for your shopping with an American Express, MasterCard, Discover Menu, or Diner's Society Card, y'all're out of luck. Costco only accepts Visa network cards for credit card payments. Yous can too pay via debit bill of fare, cash, bank check or EBT.
Costco had a longtime relationship with American Express starting in 1999, but discontinued that partnership effectually 2016, which is when AmEx was no longer accepted in the warehouse stores, and Visa was phased in. While AmEx customers might exist frustrated that they can't flash their plastic at Costco, Visa charges a lower fee ... and then hopefully those savings are passed onto members.
And then, when you head to the store, make certain your debit card is loaded up or your Visa has plenty of balance bachelor simply in instance some of Costco'due south less conventional offerings catch your middle: a digital piano, perhaps?
Springing for the executive membership might be worth information technology
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here are a few options for Costco memberships. The basic membership is called the Gold Star membership. Priced at $sixty, it's the minimum you can spend to go far the door and start throwing some of that Kirkland-brand goodness –which is often 20 percent cheaper than most other brands in the shop — into your actress-big shopping cart.
The Gold Star Executive membership is the other option for individuals. It costs twice every bit much equally the Gold Star membership, only before you dismiss it outright, think virtually how much you might spend at the store each year. Because y'all get 2 percent back on your purchases (in the form of a Costco gift certificate to spend in the store), spending effectually $3000 a year (that's $250/calendar month) is enough to offset that extra $lx y'all spent on the higher-priced almanac membership. Executive members likewise get extra benefits on certain Costco services, also.
If y'all think you'll be a true Costco fan, the Costco credit card offers even more benefits
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When Costco discontinued its same AmEx partnership, it speedily aligned with Citi to offer an official Costco credit carte. The Costco Anywhere credit card can be used not just at Costco (and it works in place of your membership menu), but anywhere else that accepts Visa, too.
And at that place are enough of perks and rebates, too, such as a per centum dorsum for just about everything you purchase with it, ranging from 4 percent back for certain gas purchases to i percentage back for everything else. Co-ordinate to a review, these rebates are college than the original American Express Costco carte.
You need a membership to get the Costco Anywhere card, but if you program to utilize for the credit card, just spring for the bones Gilded Star membership, since purchases with the card will get you that same 2 pct back you get with the Executive level membership.
The reward gets paid out every year in the form of a certificate, which you tin can redeem for greenbacks at a Costco shop, or utilise in the store towards more stuff... perhaps even a bundle of Costco's number-one selling item: toilet paper.
If you're not happy with your membership, you can always get a refund
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Allow's say you've weighed the pros and cons, and finally purchased a membership. But possibly you rapidly detect that the store is too far away to make information technology worth the long drive, yous're having trouble storing all the giant packages in your small-scale house, or you lot but accept grown weary of fighting the complimentary-sample-hungry crowds when yous're just trying to get to the checkout with your bottle of Kirkland wine.
According to the visitor, if you're dissatisfied with your membership, they'll refund the fee in full at any time. No questions asked. Information technology's not even unheard of to purchase and return a Costco membership in a single day!
So, go ahead and care for yourself to that Costco membership. What have you got to lose? Only, peradventure, a wearing apparel size if you stock up on some of Costco's priced-to-sell exercise equipment!
You tin can share your membership
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With a Gold Star or Executive membership, you can go a second carte du jour for some other fellow member of your household; they just demand to live at the same address as you practise. These household members get their own photo ID membership card, and can apply it to enter the shop and brand purchases on their own — you don't even need to be with them.
In addition to their boosted household member, business organisation members can also add members for $60 each (which, since membership costs $60 in the first place, isn't much of a deal!).
And, since shopping is usually more fun with a buddy, know that you lot can always bring up to two guests with you every time you store. It's a great way to introduce Costco to potential new members ... and to have an actress hand or ii to load upward all your bargains into the back of your SUV.
Student and members of the armed forces can get extra perks with memberships
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Are you in college, or do you lot someone who is? A Costco membership can aid budget-challenged students with well-priced beer, Cheerios, frozen pizzas, microwave popcorn, and other staples of college life. And you can save fifty-fifty more past buying your membership through UniDays, where you are eligible for a $20 Costco card (that'll buy y'all a lot of ramen noodles!). Of grade, your other option is to wait until yous go home to visit your parents, and convince them to take you shopping with their ain membership... perchance you'll get lucky and they'll even pay for your stuff!
Veterans and active members of the military are rewarded for their service to the land with a special promotion of their own. New Costco members who sign upwardly still pay $threescore for their basic membership, but they'll get that $60 back in the grade of a booklet full of coupons for free and deeply discounted items.
You don't need a membership for all of Costco'south services
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Y'all don't necessarily need to exist a member to savour all of Costco'due south many benefits. Anyone can grab lunch or dinner at the food court. It'south commonly located near the get out, then just enter through the exit or near customer service to grab your favorite carte du jour item.
In some states, liquor must legally be bachelor for sale to the public, without whatever membership restrictions. In that case, even Costco nonmembers can shop Costco's extensive liquor department — some even have their ain entrances — where you can detect name-brand spirits as well as the company's private-label Kirkland brand offerings.
Finally, nonmembers can take reward of some of Costco'southward health-related services. They can go eye exams, since the optometrists are not employed by Costco (but they tin't buy spectacles). And, in most states, nonmembers can fill up prescriptions at Costco pharmacies, enjoying lower prices on both human and pet medication. One report ranks prices on Costco medications second-everyman among a range of other pharmacies.Information technology's important to note, though, that prices on meds are fifty-fifty lower for club members, thanks to the Costco Members Prescription Program.
And if you actually need a mode to get your easily on some of those groovy Costco-merely products, you can shop Costco.com or via Instacart, just nonmembers pay slightly higher prices, too as commitment fees, if applicative.
Your Costco membership gets yous into any store in the globe
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That's correct, while visiting a Costco might exist the last thing on your itinerary while yous're traveling internationally, tucking your membership bill of fare into your fanny pack could come in handy. You could replace a broken suitcase, grab a couple of cheap beach towels, or buy a few outfits if your luggage got lost by the airlines. Or maybe you lot're but missing the gustatory modality of Costco'south cheap and delicious hot dogs from the food courtroom.
There are more than 200 Costco locations exterior of the U.Due south. as of 2019, and the company has an aggressive growth program in Europe. And while the European Costco locations sell a lot of similar products to their American counterparts, you might be able to score some locally produced foods or other merchandise. (And actually the similarities in selections may have their perks: 1 homesick American in Paris found that Costco was a nifty place to stock upwardly on hard-to-observe items from dwelling house, similar marshmallows and pumpkin pie)
Make the most of your membership with other services
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Your Costco membership nets yous way more than just the opportunity to buy bulk groceries. If you buy a membership, await across the crawly deals in the grocery aisles and see what else Costco has to offer in the way of services.
Like to travel? As a Costco member, you take access to its exclusive travel service, which offers negotiated rates on vacation packages, cruises, hotels, and fifty-fifty rental cars. And the company recently inverse its policy so that Executive members go 2 percent dorsum on travel purchases after the trip has been completed.
Costco services also extend to savings that aren't quite as glamorous as travel. You can get special member pricing on new or used cars. More than than 1 meg Costco members have bought cars through Costco in the past five years (as of February 2019), with discounts being estimated at around $1000 off a more traditional car-buying avenue.
There are also savings on domicile repair services, appliances, insurance, and fifty-fifty smaller services like check printing or photograph developing. Costco'due south automotive departments are an affordable place to buy new tires and machine batteries.
Finally, you tin even get prescription glasses or contacts in Costco's optical department, which are staffed with opticians and optometrists to get eye exams (and aye, they take many forms of insurance).
Costco'south aisles aren't labeled ... on purpose
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Earlier you purchase a Costco membership, you lot'll probably want to know what the shopping experience is like. To put it succinctly, a visit to the warehouse store volition require a lot of walking.
One sneaky pull a fast one on Costco uses to become shoppers to spend more money is omitting labels from its aisles. Non merely that, the store volition frequently move certain staple items to different areas of the edifice. This ensures that customers never really know exactly where they're going. In turn, they're forced to cover every corner of the shop and walk downward every aisle.
Costco isn't trying to help you lot go your steps in. Instead, it's trying to get you lot to see as many items as possible in hopes that when you lay your optics on the 24-count package of Cup Noodles or jumbo tub of Nutella, you'll decide you can't alive without it. Next thing you know, y'all have things in your cart y'all never expected to buy and Costco but got a little scrap richer.
Costco is the country's largest seller of wine
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If asked to proper noun the biggest wine retailer in the country, it would likely take you quite a few guesses to finally land on Costco. And withal information technology's true: Costco is the largest seller of wine in the United States, totaling more than $1.5 billion in annual sales. This accounts for half of the visitor's yearly alcohol sales.
The secret to Costco's success in hawking wine is the same information technology uses for all of its other products — selling it for significantly less than its competitors. According to Delish, the wholesaler marks upward wine for roughly 14 per centum. Other retailers bump up the price by up to 50 percent. Merely even though it's known for its depression prices, Costco doesn't just deal in the cheap stuff. Believe it or not, the wholesale giant imports more than high-end French wines than anyone else in the globe.
Costco is one of the country's largest pizza chains
Perusing the vastness that is a Costco warehouse is sure to brand y'all work up an ambition. But fright not, the visitor has y'all covered.
Although information technology is non your typical fast food joint, with more than than 550 locations in the Usa, Costco is one of the largest pizza chains in the country. For reference, that's more than stores than well-established pizza places such every bit Cicis, Chuck E. Cheese's, and Modernistic Pizza, and most twice as many locations as Sbarro.
The store sells a slice for less than $2.00. (The aforementioned cost applies, regardless of your option of topping). And if you don't think yous're getting a good slice for that price, think again. Costco's pizza has a strong following as the shop doesn't cut corners. According to Southern Living, a cheese pizza includes two full pounds of cheese, and a pepperoni pie is adorned with precisely sixty slices. As for freshness, a Costco supervisor claims that, "A pizza slice that doesn't sell within the hour gets thrown out and replaced."
A Costco membership might just be worth information technology for the chicken alone
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Let'southward be honest: there are nights where we might not know what'south going on the dinner table, much less how information technology's going to go there. Fast food and pizza might be a viable option, only they're not always the healthiest. That's where Costco comes in.
If y'all're on the fence nigh getting a Costco membership — and you lot also just happen to be feeding a family unit on a busy schedule — here's some literal food for thought. Costco's rotisserie chickens are insanely popular. According to Fortune, Costco sells nigh $60 1000000 rotisserie chickens a twelvemonth. They might just make getting a membership worthwhile.
For starters, the list of ingredients and seasonings is filled with some of the to the lowest degree controversial ingredients you might see on the dinner table. Mashed previously found that while in that location's a decent amount of sodium in these succulent birds, there's not as much as you lot might expect: 460 milligrams per serving. That's definitely non as much every bit you might go if you lot took a swing through the McDonald'southward drive-thru for dinner, where a McChicken contains 560 milligrams of sodium. Costco's rotisserie chickens are delicious, versatile, and picking one up means that with just a bag of frozen veg from the freezer, y'all can put a meal on the tabular array chop-chop — and it won't taste like regret.
It could save pet owners a ton of money
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If your household includes a furry family fellow member, you lot might desire to stop hesitating about that Costco membership and become ahead and take the plunge.
Anyone who's had cats and dogs knows how expensive medications can exist, from pills prescribed by a vet right down to regular treatments like heartworm pills. You lot should know that Costco's chemist's doesn't just cater to humans, they also have a broad range of pet meds that could brand your membership worth information technology for their prices alone.
Costco Pharmacies can transfer and fill your pet'due south medications the same way they fill man ones, and that includes things like NexGard (for flea and tick prevention) and Interceptor (for protection against heartworm and internal parasites).
Couple that with the fact that Costco also has a Fellow member Prescription Programme that allows members to get anywhere from 2 to twoscore percent off their prescription drugs, and that could add up to some serious savings. Before you get your membership, get your prescriptions organized, and start saving immediately.
There have been changes at Costco due to COVID-nineteen
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Before you sign upwardly for your annual membership fee, you should also consider the changes that the store has fabricated in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, per Costco.
Many updates are but for the protection of staff and customers alike. Confront masks are mandatory for adults, and those who are exempt from wearing face masks considering of medical atmospheric condition are required to wear a face shield. Social distancing measures are in place, and there are limits on the quantities of certain products that you can purchase.
There are another rules in identify that — depending on how and when you lot shop — might make yous think twice about a membership. If your work schedule restricts your shopping hours, you should know that Costco has implemented Special Operating Hours on weekdays in many of its locations. (That'south typically between 9 and 10 a.m., only can vary based on location.) During those hours, but members threescore years or older — or those who are immunocompromised, or are disabled — will exist allowed into the store. No guests will be immune to accompany them, and in some locations, that means only one person per carte will exist allowed into the store.
There are besides special measures in place for starting time responders and healthcare workers: with proper ID, they will exist given priority access to the store. (Except in Massachusetts, where state regulations forbid these workers from shopping during senior-only hours.)
How much online shopping will you be doing at Costco?
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If y'all've spotted a few good deals on the Costco website and yous're wondering if a membership is worth it, here's the deal.
Anyone tin shop online at Costco.com without a membership, but in that location's a catch. When yous cheque out, you'll be charged a v percent surcharge, in addition to any aircraft fees that you might accumulate (via Costco Client Service). Besides, when Business Insider did some comparison shopping, they found that the prices listed on the website were as much as twenty per centum higher than in-store prices. (The idea, they say, is that it's likely an attempt to get people to head to the store and shop in person, where they're more than likely to be tempted by impulse buys.)
So, what's the bottom line? The New York Times did the math, and institute the cutoff: If you're going to be spending $1200 or more on the Costco website, then it's worth it to go a member. If you're under that number — and but shop in that location online — then the membership fee isn't worth information technology.
Buying in bulk at Costco can cost yous more
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Getting a membership at Costco to buy in majority might seem similar a no-brainer. You become more, and even if the upwardly-front cost is more, you're going to save coin in the long run, right? Mayhap not.
Some seemingly safety bulk buys will really go bad way faster than you lot might call back, so if you're eyeing a Costco membership for the bulk deals, you might want to appraise what you're actually going to be buying.
MoneyCrashers says that dark-brown rice, for example, only has a shelf life of six months. Seriously! Even oatmeal only lasts for well-nigh a year, while those numberless of seeds and nuts yous're stockpiling for down-the-road blistering projects should be used inside 6 months of their expiration date, too. Other products that have a shorter shelf life? Olive oil, all-purpose flour, and most spices (via The Rest).
Simply what near things you're not going to eat? Household cleaning products, detergents, soaps, and skincare products are great majority buys, right? Not so fast. Researchers accept found that when information technology comes to cleaning products, they only keep their oomph for a maximum of a year. And those skincare products? The longer they sit down around, the more probable they are to become contaminated with bacteria that you're and then introducing to your skin. Opened containers should be used within the yr, and that sheds a whole new lite on whether or not that behemothic tub of peel cream is worth it.
Costco takes their store brands very seriously
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Every household has its unique habits, and for some, that ways a reliance on proper noun brands. We all know that person who has to take Starbucks coffee, who swears Duracell batteries last longer than whatsoever other kind, or who believes that the only real tuna fish sandwich is the 1 made with Bumble Bee tuna.
If your love of name brands is making you remember twice near a Costco membership, you should know that yous might not accept to worry.
Sure, you'll be going to Costco and stocking upward on Kirkland products, but you should know that non only does Costco take the quality of their products very seriously, but some of them might be the exact same thing you get under brand name labels. That Kirkland brand coffee? Read the small print, and you'll see that it boasts "Custom roasted past Starbucks." Yahoo! Finance says that their batteries are really made by Duracell, and their tuna? Yes, it's Bumble Bee. And those are just a few examples of the proper name brands that industry products for Costco.
Even if you tin't observe your favorite name brands hiding nether another label, you should besides know thatMashed institute a ton of products — from olive oil and animal crackers to vodka — that Costco and Kirkland just does better.
If y'all dear sales and coupons, information technology might not be worth information technology
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At that place'due south something satisfying about scoring a deal, especially when information technology's on something you use all the time. And coupons? Somehow — in an historic period when many newspapers and magazines take gone completely digital — coupons are nonetheless a thing. And it'southward kind of understandable: Shows similar TLC's Farthermost Couponing make it seem like anyone who's dedicated enough could get their shopping for costless (via Money Crashers).
While not anybody goes to those extremes, those who dearest hunting downward sales and clipping coupons for the thrill of savings might notice Costco isn't a skilful fit for them.
When Business Insider did some comparison shopping, they institute that if you're already hunting for the best deals, ownership what's on sale at regular grocery stores, and clipping coupons, you're probably not going to save any coin with a Costco membership. Break things downward into their "per unit of measurement" cost, and you'll notice that grocery store chains oftentimes have amend deals on the stuff yous buy all the time — particularly if you lot wait to stock up when things go on sale. Factor in the added bonus of being able to purchase smaller sizes that volition stay fresh longer, and bargain-hunters will discover they might want to skip getting that Costco membership.
Figure out how shut you live to Costco
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Costco has such a cult following that at a glance, it might seem like getting a membership for a once-a-month trip could be an adventurous way to shake upwards your shopping habits. Simply according to Business organisation Insider, finding out where the closest Costco is to your habitation — or work — goes a long mode in telling you whether or not a membership is going to exist worth information technology.
While in that location'south drive time, gas, and vesture on your car to consider, there's as well the question of motivation. If there'due south not a Costco that's conveniently located for you, the chances of you taking time out of your busy schedule to become significantly decreases.
It sounds similar it shouldn't exist a big bargain, only expect at information technology this mode: They say that Costco only has 527 stores located in the Usa and Puerto Rico. Consider the fact that at the same fourth dimension Walmart boasted 4,769, and information technology'south pretty clear which one might be more than convenient.
Let's put it this way: When is the last fourth dimension you opted for getting up off the couch to put in a DVD over the convenience of just turning on Netflix? Choosing the more user-friendly shopping option works in pretty much the same way.
Don't forget to weigh your options
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If y'all're thinking about a Costco membership, you should know that not all warehouse stores were created equal. The best one for y'all depends on your own individual needs, so doing some research is key.
What exactly do we mean? For example, CNBC compared shopping online at Costco with shopping online at BJ's. Of the 26 products they compared, BJ's was a clear winner in 18 of them, which suggests that if you're an online shopper, yous might want to check out BJ's instead. Not just are they by and large cheaper, just they besides accept coupons — Costco doesn't.
On the other hand, Investopedia says that when they compared Costco and Sam's Club, they plant that Costco had a wider variety of shop-brand products that were ultimately cheaper. Just, Sam's Club offered more choices when it came to name brands. Still, recent shop closures mean that people who in one case had like shooting fish in a barrel access to a Sam's Society might not have one effectually the corner anymore.
Lesser line? Do some comparison shopping before you commit, and brand sure you're going to brand the most out of a membership.
If You Let Costco Card Expire Do You Have to Pay Initial Fee Again
Source: https://www.mashed.com/155771/dont-buy-a-costco-membership-until-you-read-this/