Costco online prices vs warehouse prices

Why the prices can be different

Costco's online catalogue and its physical warehouses are related shopping channels, but the final price can reflect different costs and promotions. An online price may include delivery. A warehouse may have local stock conditions, a manager reduction or an ending price that is not represented on the national website.

This means a price collected from the website should never be silently labelled as a local warehouse price. CostCutTen shows national online offers to every shopper and labels them as online, every time.

The one price that is local: fuel

Costco publishes its forecourt prices per warehouse, so the app can show the petrol and diesel prices for the warehouse you choose. Twenty-two of the 29 UK warehouses have a forecourt; if yours does not, the app offers the three nearest that do, with the distance to each.

The app shows when it last checked. Costco does not publish when it last changed a price, so treat the pump price as current but not guaranteed to the minute.

What the app does not do yet

CostCutTen does not yet collect shelf prices from warehouses or compare Costco against other retailers. Where a feature is not built, the app shows a plain message instead of an estimate. Shelf-price reports and market comparisons are planned, and will be labelled separately from online prices when they arrive.

How to use the online number

Use the online price to shortlist products before travelling, and save the ones you want to inspect. At the warehouse, check the physical shelf label against the saved price. The app is a reference point for the trip, not a promise about the ticket.