Saving Money on Real Food at Costco
This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.
Warehouse stores can save you a lot of money. But in many cases, these big box stores focus their inventory on highly processed food. A three-pound box of Oreos might sound like a good deal at $9, but it’s not the best type of food to stock in your pantry. If you’re looking for a warehouse store that has a good inventory of organic, real food groceries, Costco is a great place for you to shop.
I recently joined Costco when they offered a Living Social deal with a discounted membership. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to join at first, so I asked my Facebook fans if there was enough real food at Costco to make it worth the trip. The response was overwhelming. People from all over the country chimed in to let me know about the many organic and minimally processed items they buy at Costco. At everyone’s urging, I took the plunge and joined Costco.
Based on the feedback from my readers, I compiled an extensive list of real food groceries that people are buying at Costco around the country. Inventories do vary, so you probably won’t find a Costco that carries all of these items. I analyzed the prices of over 50 real food items at my Costco by comparing them to the prices of similar items at other grocery stores here in Massachusetts. Almost all the items on this list are less expensive at Costco, and in many cases they cost dramatically less.
Here’s the bottom line: A family of four shopping for real food at Costco instead of a reasonably priced competitor grocery store can save $1,311.24 a year. Does that sound too good to be true? I did the math to prove it.
Saving Money on Real Food at Costco
I analyzed the prices of 53 real food items, and 48 of them were less expensive at Costco than at Trader Joe’s, Stop and Shop, or Amazon. First, I want to highlight a handful of the best real food deals I’ve found at Costco. By buying just these 12 items at Costco instead of at a competing grocery store, my family of four can save more than $600 per year. Following this section, you’ll find the link to the complete Costco Real Food Savings Chart. This valuable resource lists 48 items you’ll want to look for at Costco to save over $1,300 a year.
Organic Eggs
Organic eggs are the best kind of eggs to buy if you don’t have access to backyard chickens or eggs from a local farm. Organic eggs come from chickens that have free access to the outdoors and to organic, non-GMO feed. At Costco, organic eggs cost $3.50 a dozen, compared to $4.29 at Stop and Shop. My family goes through about 18 eggs per week, so we’ll save $61.62 per year buying organic eggs at Costco.
Milk
The price of milk is on the rise, and Costco has the most affordable price around on hormone-free conventional milk at $2.49 per gallon. It costs $3.79 a gallon at Trader Joe’s, for a difference of $1.30 per gallon. We go through about six gallons of milk each month, so we’ll save $93.60 per year by buying it at Costco. (Note: Unfortunately, organic milk costs $3.99 per half gallon at my Costco, which is even more than the $3.79 shelf price at Stop and Shop.)
Maple Syrup
We’re lucky to get maple syrup at a great price in Vermont when we visit my husband’s family, but the Costco price of maple syrup isn’t far behind what we pay at the little farm in Vermont. A quart of maple syrup at Costco costs $12.79, compared to $16.99 at Trader Joe’s. If you go through a quart of syrup each month, you’ll save $50.40 by buying it at Costco instead of Trader Joe’s.
Chia Seeds
These healthy seeds are becoming more and more popular. The cost difference per pound between Costco and Trader Joe’s is over $8.00. If you use a half pound of chia seeds per month, you’ll save $48.36 over the year by buying them at Costco.
Organic Coconut Oil
I bake with coconut oil a lot, and I was paying $11.98 a month for two 16-ounce containers at Trader Joe’s. This same quantity of coconut oil costs $9.60 at Costco. Over the course of a year, I’ll save $26.88 buying coconut oil at Costco.
Organic Olive Oil
Organic olive oil costs nearly twice as much at Stop and Shop as it costs at Costco. A 17-ounce container, which lasts us about a month, costs $6.63 at Stop and Shop. This quantity of olive oil costs $3.74 at Costco, for a savings of $2.89 per month. Over the course of a year, this is a savings of $34.68.
Butter
Kerrygold butter is a high-quality product that’s made from the milk of grass-fed cows in Ireland. If you go through a pound of Kerrygold butter each month, you’ll save $20.64 over the course of the year by buying it at Costco. The annual savings for a pound of Kirkland brand butter each month comes out to $12.48 when compared to the competitor’s price.
Organic Chicken
There are several varieties of organic chicken available at my Costco. If a family eats two pounds of organic chicken breasts, two pounds of organic chicken thighs, and one whole organic chicken in a month, they’ll save $64.80 over the course of the year at Costco.
Organic Ground Beef
Organic ground beef is another high-quality meat option available at Costco. A family eating two pounds of Costco’s organic ground beef each month will save $66 over the course of the year.
Oats
I make lots of homemade granola, so we go through plenty of oats. A 42-ounce container of Quaker Oats costs $2.52 more at Stop and Shop than at Costco. Others have reported finding organic oats at Costco, but my store doesn’t carry them. A family that goes through 42 ounces of oats each month can save $30.24 by getting the oats at Costco.
Organic Canned Tomatoes
Canned tomatoes are great to have on hand for soups and sauces, and Costco sells them in BPA-free cans. These are significantly less expensive at Costco than at Stop and Shop, with a price difference of $2.80 for 28 ounces. A family that uses two 28-ounce cans of diced tomatoes each month will save $67.20 a year by buying the tomatoes at Costco.
Organic Canned Tomato Sauce
We go through a lot of tomato sauce in my house with all the pizza sauce, barbecue sauce, and chili we eat. This sauce does have a little added sugar in it, but we always add a bit of honey or maple syrup to our tomato sauce to cut the acidity of the tomatoes. A family that goes through one 15-ounce can of tomato sauce each week will save $50.40 by getting it at Costco.
By purchasing just these 12 items at Costco throughout the year, a family of four can save over $600.
. . .But that’s just the beginning!
In addition to these 12 money-savers at Costco, I’ve identified nearly 40 other items that will save you smaller amounts of money with each purchase. These smaller savings do add up, though. If you consistently buy the items on my detailed Costco shopping list throughout the year, you can save over $1,300 for a family of four.
Here’s my detailed Costco Real Food Savings Chart. You can enjoy this resource free of charge. If you’re interested in getting additional resources that will help to save you money on real food, please sign up for my weekly email updates in the box at the bottom of this post.
3/4/14 Update: I’ve added several more items to the list, and the savings total is now over $1,400 a year. It keeps getting better as I find more real food items on the shelves at Costco.
Other Notes about Costco
Sales and Coupons
The prices in my Costco shopping list are the regular shelf prices for these items. The deals get even sweeter when Costco offers sale prices and store coupons for real food and organic items. For example, last month I was able to buy 54 ounces of coconut oil for $12.99 instead of the regular price of $15.99. I bought four big containers, and in retrospect I wish I had bought even more. The coupon booklet also alerted me to Costco’s organic, whole grain spelt pretzels. This is the first time I’ve seen a package of pretzels with a real food ingredient list including just four ingredients: spelt flour, sunflower oil, sea salt, and baking soda. I stocked up on these as well, and they’re really good.
Stick to the Script
Despite all these great deals, there are a lot of highly processed items at Costco, too. I recommend shopping with a list and sticking to it. Impulse purchases at Costco place a bigger dent in your wallet than impulse purchases at a store that doesn’t sell food in bulk quantities. Before buying anything in bulk, evaluate whether you’ll use it up before it goes bad. For example, spices don’t keep forever, so you may be better off buying them in smaller quantities at Trader Joe’s. Also, the 10-pound bag of organic carrots is a great deal for $.79 per pound, but do you have room to store all those carrots? And is it realistic to think you’ll eat them all or take the time to freeze them before they spoil? If it is realistic, then go for it. But be sure to think before you put a big package of anything into your cart.
Costco is a great place to save money on high-quality, organic, real food groceries. The $55 membership fee pays for itself many times over as long as you shop with discipline. Look for the green shelf tags identifying organic items, and don’t even bother walking down the cookie aisle. Keep your eyes out for other real food items not found on my list, because I didn’t cover everything. There are several other types of nuts, frozen produce, and fresh produce that you may want to add to your shopping list.
Click here to access my full Costco Shopping List with over 50 real food items.
Here are some of my popular money-saving posts:
Once a Month Shopping at Trader Joe’s
Non-GMO Shopping at Whole Foods
Saving Money with a Farm Share
Couponing for Real Food
How to Meal Plan
If you’re a Costco shopper, I’d love to hear in the comments about what other real food items you purchase at Costco. I’ll look for them the next time I go shopping!
This comparison is really great however have you done a comparison between Costco and using on-line shopping like Azure Standard or Amazon? I see many other whole food blogger shopping this way. I’m still trying to decide where to buy and what kind of oils to use!!!
Thanks, Debbie. I haven’t done a comparison between Costco and online stores. It’s a great suggestion though!
As someone with a gluten and dairy allergy I have found that our Costco continues to get more and more items that fit this. Gluten free bread which can cost $4-8 depending on where you go is always cheaper at costco. They are now selling gluten free flour and dairy free milk options. Love the organics and produce as well.
That’s great to hear, Andrea. I have seen almond flour and dairy-free milk at my Costco. I haven’t seen the Udi’s bread, but I heard it’s starting to pop up at Costco too.
If you buy your organic milk at TJ’s vs Costcoyou could save $104. 1gl/wk.
Jim, that’s one of the few items I found to be more expensive at Costco. It sounds like your Trader Joe’s has a much better price.
AnneMarie,
I regularly buy Organic milk from TJ’s, WFoods, Publix & Kroger for $5-6/gal, here in ATL. Costco has dropped the ball on this item given that they want $8/gal and make you buy a bulk pack of 1.5G for MORE money?!!? Even their tomatoes are more expensive.
There used to be a time when I had full confidence in C that I was getting the best deal… but not anymore. I do not understand the “membership pricing, buying in bulk and paying higher than retail $$” business model that seems to be creeping up on my beloved Costco. That said, there are some good deals to be had – if you are vigilant and can calculate on your feet.
Awesome post! So glad I have a Costco membership. My favorites are the coconut oil, almond butter, & BPA-free organic tomatoes. I can’t seem to find organic chicken at my Costco though – wish there was. And isn’t Vermont maple syrup the best? 🙂 I’m happy to have family who make it, so my fridge is always stocked.
Thanks,Lauren! You’re very lucky to have maple syrup in the family. That’s great. We get it at Shadow Cross Farm in Colchester when we’re in the area.
Why push people to buy organic this and that? It’s not any better than conventional, but cost at least 30% more. It just doesn’t make sense if you’re on a budget. I’m not on a budget, and I avoid that organic scam like the plague. Don’t buy into the whole organic thing, they use killer pesticides and fertilizer just like everyone else.
In this price comparison, I provide both organic and conventional items. There’s a wide variety of beliefs on the benefits of organic food, and everyone needs to make an informed choice about what makes sense for them.
GMO. Though big agricultural wont admit it is deadly. The independent research has proven it. Organic is the easiest way to avoid GMOs. That is a large part of it for me. I try very hard to keep those pisions out of my children
Organic does not necessarily mean non-GMO. You state this in your description of Organic eggs…..just being picky. Readers should know there is a difference when looking at food labels.
Shay, the USDA Organic label prohibits the use of GMO’s. Check out this information from the USDA for details: http://blogs.usda.gov/2013/05/17/organic-101-can-gmos-be-used-in-organic-products/
There is one big problem with this comparison though. You’re only comparing the prices to a high priced store like Trader Joe’s. The savings aren’t going to be as significant if someone did their shopping at either Walmart or a local grocery store. Anyone that solely sticks to stores such as Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods is just burning money as is.
$3.50/dozen eggs is incredibly high. There really isn’t an excuse to pay more than $2.00/dozen. $2.49 for a gallon of milk isn’t crazy high, but it can be found for between $0.75-$1.00 cheaper when watching the local ads.
Thanks for looking at this so carefully, Curtis. Where I live, Trader Joe’s has some of the best prices around. I used the cheapest price I could find at Trader Joe’s or my local grocery store (Stop and Shop) for my comparison prices. I purposely didn’t include Whole Foods, which has higher prices for many of these items. I wish I lived where you do – I’ve never seen milk for less than $2.49 or organic eggs for less than $3.49.
It really depends on where you live. Here the cheapest milk around in a grocery store is 3.59, Costco is still cheaper. Organic eggs are 4.50, again Costco is cheaper. Wish I lived where Curtis is….though food prices generally are tied to income and cost of living….
I wonder how much of this is comparable to what Sam’s Club offers. Unfortunately, that is all I have locally.
Stacy, I’m not sure about Sam’s Club, but I think you’ll be able to find some similar price differences there.
Whenever I click on the links it goes to facebook but it says page not found?
Kristina, it only works on a regular computer, not a mobile device. If you can’t access the link from your computer, send me your email address and I’ll send you the link. You can email me at annemarie@realfoodrealdeals.com.
I’m so glad someone is finally showing people how they can eat REAL food AND shop at Costco!!! I’ve been telling everyone.. even single people I know and they look at me like I’m nuts… Thanks for the share! 🙂
Thanks, Brittany! I agree, there are lots of things at Costco that single people can use. We only have four people in my family, but I still love stocking up.
I love the organic chicken broth in a box of 6 cartons. Also almond milk and coconut water! My Costco does carry whole organic chickens, I keep asking them to do the deli roasted chickens organic but I dont think there are enough requests 🙂
Mani, I love the chicken broth too. I’ll put in a request for organic rotisserie chickens, too. That’s a great idea, and I’d be willing to pay a few dollars more for organic.
I wish we had a Costco. The closest one is about an hour away. My parents are member so when they come home from their mountain house I give them a list. This ,ist will help me out, thanks! Milk is what kills us since we go through 4-5 gallons a week!
I know, the milk prices are getting crazier and crazier. It sounds like you have a good system with your parents!
This post turned out fantastic. Love the comparison. Can’t wait to show my husband how much we are saving, even if it’s just on Kerrygold Butter alone :).
Thanks, Kristin! I think you probably go through more Kerrygold butter than the average family, so you can update the math! 🙂
Wow! This is AWESOME!! Savings really does add up. 😉
Thanks, Jordan!
Not all Costco’s carry these items. My store has most of these items but does not carry organic chicken. When I asked about it they said, we tried it but it did not sell. 🙁
You’re right, Diana – most Costco stores don’t carry all of these items. That’s too bad that the chicken didn’t sell in your store.
I LOVE this analysis! I shop at Costco and have found for things you regularly buy, and use, you can save money. The challenge is not offsetting these savings by buying things you do not need. 🙂
So true, Laura! A few impulse purchases can add up so quickly. That’s the big challenge at Costco.
Do you buy conventional milk instead of organic? I am curious about that.
I love to get coconut oil and organic brown rice as well from Costco! We joined about 6 months ago and we love it!
Holly, we don’t consistently buy organic milk. I’d like to make the switch, but I’m deterred by the exorbitant price of organic. I’m going to keep looking around to find an affordable source.
Ok I didn’t know if it was a different reason other than price. I can completely understand the part about the price!!!! Thank you so much for putting this list together!
Holly, I do make sure the milk is hormone-free and antibiotic free. Fortunately, most of the conventional milk on the shelves these days does fit those categories.
There’s been published, proven science that hormones added to cows don’t show up in the milk.
RICES is right – it even says on the carton that there is no difference between milk from cows that are given rBST compared to cows that are not. Also, all milk in the grocery store is antibiotic free. Cows on organic farms may never be given antibiotics whereas cows on conventional farms can be given antibiotics if they are sick. When a cow that is sick (and giving antibiotics) is milked, the farmer diverts the milk from the rest and discards it immediately. Before milk from that cow can go back in with the rest, it must be tested by the farmer to ensure it is free of antibiotics. Even before the milk leaves the farm, the milk is tested for antibiotics by the milk processor. And before the milk is unloaded from the trucks at the processors, it is tested again. There are several more quality checks while it is being bottled or made into other dairy products to make sure it is of the highest quality for everyone to eat. Therefore, no matter which type of dairy products you choose at the grocery story, all of them are safe (and yummy!) to eat.