Yahoo Finance Aussie’s ‘smart’ hack to avoid $65 Costco fee
The member-only megastore is known for selling supermarket items in bulk.
A savvy shopper has shared her little-known hack to shop at Costco without forking out the annual membership fee.
The bulk-buying supermarket currently charges $65 per year for its Gold Star Membership. This allows customers to enter and shop at any Costco worldwide.
But one Aussie shopper revealed non-members could still enter the store and buy whatever they wanted by using a gift card hack.
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“If a Costco member purchases gift cards, these can be given to non-members who are able to enter the store and spend the card on whatever they like,” the shopper shared on the popular Markdown Addicts Facebook group.
“It's a good way for people who want to go and have a look and purchase a few things without the membership fees. [It] also makes a fun gift for non-members as they get the gift card and the novelty of the Costco shopping experience.”
According to Costco’s website, gift cards can be purchased in store by a current member and gifted to non-members.
The gift cards can be loaded with amounts between $25 and $999.99 and have no expiration date.
The only catch is the gift cards cannot be used for online purchases or to purchase petrol at a Costco fuel station.
‘Great idea’
Aussies took to the comments to share their own experiences with the hack, with many noting that you could pay the difference at the register if you exceeded the gift card amount.
“I went Friday… my mum got me a $25 voucher. My shopping was $146 and I paid the difference on my card,” one shopper shared.
“Yep, I bought one for my friend [who] spent like $315 on a $50 card and paid the rest,” another said.
“I do this all the time. Never had any issues using a gift card,” a third shopper wrote.
Other shoppers hadn’t heard of the hack before, with one user calling it “smart” and another saying it was a “great idea”.
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