10 Costco Secrets Even Longtime Members Don't Know About
By Ben F. | 01/21/2025
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Last updated July 17, 2025
If you’re a regular at Costco, you get how satisfying it is to find a great deal.
The $1.50 hot dog and soda combo is iconic, but even longtime Costco shoppers overlook some of the best ways to stretch their budget.
Here are 10 tips that might not be as legendary as the hot dog, but are still pretty darn effective.
1. Get the most out of your Costco membership
Watch the price endings: Items ending in .99 are regular price. If you see .79, .89, or .49, Costco likely scored a manufacturer deal and passed the savings on to you. Prices ending in .88 or .00? That usually means a manager markdown to clear inventory – often items that won’t be restocked.
Look for the asterisk: A * in the top right corner of the price tag means the item is being discontinued. If it’s something you love, grab it before it’s gone for good.
Use the Costco Savings booklet: No coupons or clipping, just automatic discounts applied at checkout. All members get access, and the deals change every month.
Don’t forget Costco.com: Your local warehouse carries about 4,000 items, but Costco’s website has even more, and it often includes online-only deals you won’t find in store.
2. Make up to $483/game playing solitaire
Sounds nuts, obviously, but the idea of playing cash solitaire as a side gig has been around for years, and can be surprisingly lucrative (if you’re good enough, anyway).
The whole thing revolves around Solitaire Cash (a free iOS game).
The game itself is really simple: You play solitaire head-to-head against another real person. Whoever solves their deck the fastest wins real cash.
If you can get good at the game, it can be surprisingly lucrative: typically up to $80/game for the winner. Each game takes ~2 minutes, in my experience.
Download Solitaire Cash here.
3. Use your Costco member-only benefits
Movie nights for less: Some Costco warehouses and Costco.com offer discounted movie tickets – just show your membership and save.
Vacation deals that actually save you money: Costco Travel hooks members up with exclusive pricing on hotel stays, rental cars, cruises, and vacation packages. You can even grab discounted gift cards for things like theme parks and city tours.
Better value on tires than you’d think: When you buy tires from Costco, installation includes lifetime maintenance – pressure checks, balancing, rotations, and flat repairs. They also inflate with nitrogen instead of air, which holds pressure longer.
Unexpected partner discounts: Your membership could get you deals outside the warehouse too – like 25% off Budget Truck rentals and other partner perks you might not even know exist.
Costco Next = direct-from-brand discounts: With Costco Next, you can shop products straight from select suppliers, while still getting Costco-level pricing.
4. Don’t pay for home repairs until you do this
Picture this: your trusty furnace suddenly throws a tantrum in the dead of winter, leaving you shivering and facing a repair bill that could cost you way more than you anticipated.
If you had a home warranty, you could be covered the next time something breaks down. It’s like having a safety net for your home (think plumbing, electrical, appliances, etc).
If you don’t have one yet, Choice Home Warranty is one of the bigger companies out there.
Bonus: home warranty companies usually have qualified, pre-vetted maintenance and repair workers ready to get the job done (which is one less thing to worry about).
If you’re interested just enter your zip code here to find a home warranty plan. It could save you a bunch of money the next time something breaks down.
5. Turn your home’s value into extra funds
If you own your home but are low on funds, you might want to look into a HELOC (home equity line of credit). Instead of borrowing from your bank, you can essentially borrow from yourself (by tapping into your home's equity).
They may have lower interest rates and more flexible terms that a typical loan would.
Here’s a free page you can use to see how much you could access: link.
6. Get yourself a financial advisor
Most people don’t have one, and it’s typically a huge mistake.
Sure, you can manage things on your own if you want to, but most people don’t have the time to actually do things right. There are huge benefits to having somebody pay attention to your money all the time.
People with financial advisors tend to beat the market by ~3%/year (according to a 2019 Vanguard Study). That can make a huge difference over time.
But more important: a good advisor will handle ALL of the annoying retirement stuff & bizarro tax implications you would have never thought of
If you don’t know a financial advisor personally, use a comparison site (like Datalign) and find somebody near you that has good reviews.
Or if you want something easier, here’s a quiz you can fill out that can find an advisor/planner based on your reqs.
7. Get an adblocker
If you aren’t using an ad blocker yet, I am begging you to try one. I am not exaggerating when I say it will change your life.
A good ad blocker will eliminate virtually all of the ads you’d see on the internet.
No more YouTube ads, no more banner ads, no more pop-up ads, etc. It’s incredible.
Most people I know use Total Adblock (link here) – it’s $2.42/month, but there are plenty of solid options.
Ads also typically take a while to load, so using an ad blocker reduces loading times (typically by 50% or more). They also block ad tracking pixels to protect your privacy, which is nice.
Here’s a link to Total Adblock, if you’re interested.
8. Build a little game-testing side hustle (some people earn up to $350/day)
Apps like Freecash will pay you to test new iOS/Android games on your phone.
Some games pay as much as $350 to testers. Here are a few examples right now (from Freecash's homepage):
You don't need any kind of degree or any prior experience: all you really need is a smartphone (Android or IOS).
If you're scrolling on your phone anyway, why not get paid for it?
I've used Freecash in the past - it’s solid. They also gave me a $5 bonus instantly when I installed my first game, which was nice.
9. See if this company will pay off your credit card debt
If you’ve got $10k+ in unsecured debt (think credit cards, medical bills, etc), you could use a debt relief program and potentially reduce it by around 23% (on average).
Here’s how to quickly see if you qualify for debt relief:
Head to National Debt Relief’s site here
Answer the questions on the page
Find out if you qualify
Simple as that. You’ll likely end up paying less than you owed and could be debt free in 24-48 months.
Here’s a link to National Debt Relief.
10. Use these extra Costco tricks to save even more money
Get a chest freezer (if you have the space): It’s a game-changer. Use it to stockpile meat, frozen fruit, burritos, muffins—whatever you want to prep or grab on the fly. Most Costco staples freeze really well.
Team up with a friend or neighbor: Splitting bulk buys helps you save money and storage space. Perfect for smaller households that can’t go through a 10-pound block of cheese on their own.
Stock up when staples go on sale: Things like supplements, dry goods, and household basics often go on sale in cycles. When you see a deal, grab enough to hold you over until it rolls around again.
Don’t forget about your Executive membership perk: You can take the annual 2% reward as cash instead of applying it to your next Costco run. That way, you earn more toward your next reimbursement check—and get a little extra back in your pocket.
LendingTree
- Tap into your home equity for quick access to funds
- Potentially find lower interest rates and flexible repayment terms
- Use it like a credit card (for anything you want/need)
