Costco, like Walt Disney World, never offers deep discounts on membership (or, in Disney’s case, theme park ticket prices). You may see discounts for select groups, such as Disney World military passes or its agreement with the National Association of Educators, but these offers are very limited.
For both companies, the basic cost to get in the door, so to speak, is the same for everyone.
Former Costco CFO Richard Galanti has made it clear that the warehouse club will never lower its membership prices.
“Well, for us, there’s really no change. I mean, we do a few promotional things every year. But the biggest thing we’re not doing is pretty much reducing our membership. Some of the things in the brochure that you can sign up for a membership and you’ll get a certain number of coupons related to things,” he said during the chain’s third quarter2023.
Costco currently charges $65 for a one-year Gold Star membership and $130 for an Executive membership. The more expensive membership comes with longer shopping hours and 2% cash back on most purchases up to $1,250 annually.
While Costco won’t sell memberships at a discounted price, they rarely offer extra perks to get people to join. The chain currently has a promotion with Groupon where new members can receive a gift card along with 12 months of membership.
“Become a new Costco member, unlock exclusive savings on groceries, electronics, gas and more — and be rewarded with a $40 or $60 digital Costco Shop Card to spend online or in store,” Groupon said on its website.
Eligible individuals receive a $40 Gift Card with a Gold Star Membership and a $60 Digital Costco Shop Card when paying for an Executive Membership.
There are some caveats to the offer.
“Valid only for new members and those whose previous memberships (primary and affiliate) have expired for at least 18 months or more. Not valid for renewal or upgrade of an existing membership,” Groupon said.
Plus, if you want to take advantage, you only have until the end of 2025 to do so. Offer expires at midnight on December 31st.
Current Costco CFO Gary Millerchip talked about the chain’s membership during his 2026 Q1 earnings call.
“We reported membership fee income of $1.329 billion, an increase of $163 million or 14% year-over-year. Adjusting for FX, the increase was also 14%. Growth in US and Canadian membership fees since last September accounted for slightly less than half of the increase in member income,” he said.
Costco increased its Gold Star Membership from $60 to $65 and Gold Star Membership from $120 to $160 on September 1st.
“Excluding the increase in membership fee and FX, membership revenue increased by 7.3% year-on-year. This was driven by continued growth in our membership base and increased upgrades from Gold Star to Executive membership,” he said.
Millerchip shared some additional numbers about the chain’s membership and renewal rates.
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At the end of the first quarter, we had 39.7 million paid director members, up 9.1% from last year.
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We ended the quarter with 81.4 million total paid members, up 5.2% year-over-year, and 105.9 million cardholders, up 5.1% year-over-year.
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In terms of renewal rates, at the end of Q1, our renewal rate in the US and Canada was 92.2%. And the worldwide rate came in at 89.7%, both down 10 basis points from last quarter.
“This slight decline was due to factors discussed last quarter and reflects growth in new online members as a percentage of our total base, renewing at a slightly lower rate than in-store signups. The decline was less than anticipated due to the early success of targeted communications to expiring members,” Millerchip said.
Joining Costco means paying admission to its warehouse clubs, which offer merchandise at lower margins than other retailers do.
“In 2024, Costco earned $4.8 billion from membership fees alone, representing just 2% of total revenue. However, these fees contributed 65% of the company’s net operating income,” wrote Arthnova’s Aditya Badola. “This paradox reveals a truth that most companies miss: sustainable profits come not from selling products, but from building relationships valuable enough that customers will pay for the privilege of buying from you.”
Costco CEO Ron Vachris recognizes the importance of selling memberships.
More retail:
“The biggest item we sell is the membership card,” Ron Vachris told Fortune.
As a Costco member and retail reporter for most of the past 30 years, it’s clear that the retailer doesn’t need incentives to get people to join. If you live near a Costco, or at least close enough to visit semi-regularly, the values add up quickly enough to make it an easy decision.
As a new member on a tight budget, I bought a few household products in bulk. The savings and peace of mind knowing I wouldn’t have to restock for months made joining an obvious choice.
In a broad sense, only members can shop at Costco, but the chain offers a selection of items for delivery through Instacart and Uber Eats. This is a controversial choice, even though the warehouse club could charge higher prices for non-members.
GlobalData CEO Neil Saunders supports this strategy.
“With grocery volumes under pressure, Costco wants to make sure it broadens its audience and captures as much share as possible. The partnerships with Instacart and Uber allow it to do that. They also make up for Costco’s weak online presence, which is somewhat lacking,” he wrote on RetailWire.
He noted that customers are not getting the full Costco experience.
“The problem is that third-party app shopping doesn’t give consumers access to the great Costco prices found in stores. The ranges can also be more limited, and you don’t get the full in-store experience with tasting and bargain hunting. For these reasons, these partnerships are incremental rather than a threat to traditional subscriptions,” he added.
Not everyone agrees.
“Here’s the thing: I pay for my Costco membership. Why should I continue to do so if non-members can get similar (albeit lesser) benefits without joining?” posted fellow Brain Trust member Georganne Bender.
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This story was originally published by TheStreet on December 28, 2025, where it first appeared in the Retail section. Add TheStreet as a favorite source by clicking here.