Costco Membership Price 2026: Gold Star, Executive and Business

You need a paid membership to shop at a Costco warehouse. The fee is the price of entry, and it is also a big part of how Costco makes money. In the United States, about 50,000 people a month search for "Costco membership price". Below are the official 2026 prices, what each tier includes, the history of fee increases, and how renewal and refunds work.

Prices checked on October 16, 2026, on Costco's join page and membership terms at costco.com. The fee history comes from Costco's investor relations press releases.

Costco membership prices in 2026

Membership	Annual fee (U.S.)	Who it is for	Key extras
Gold Star	$65 + sales tax	Individuals and households	Free household card; shop all warehouses and costco.com
Business	$65 + sales tax	Business owners (resale and business purchases)	Free household card; Affiliates can be added for $65 each
Executive	$130 + sales tax	Upgrade for Gold Star or Business Members	2% annual Reward up to $1,250; early shopping hours; extra services benefits

Source: costco.com join page and Executive Rewards terms, checked October 16, 2026. Costco describes the Executive price as the $65 base membership plus a $65 Executive upgrade.

Costco's join page does not list a senior, student or military membership price. Anyone 16 or older can join, and all members pay the same three prices. Spread over a year, Gold Star and Business cost about $5.42 a month and Executive about $10.83 a month, before tax.

What you get with each Costco membership

Gold Star ($65)

Gold Star is the standard household membership. According to Costco's comparison table, it includes:

• access to more than 900 warehouses worldwide and to costco.com;
• two membership cards, one for you and one for a household member aged 16 or older at the same address;
• member-only pricing on Top Tier gasoline at more than 750 fuel stations;
• Costco Travel and the tire center benefits (installation, a five-year road hazard warranty, rotation, balancing and flat repairs at no extra charge);
• the 100% satisfaction guarantee on both membership and merchandise.

Nonmembers can still buy some items. Costco's Member Privileges page says that people without a membership can buy certain items online but pay 5% more than members. Prescription drugs and, in some states, alcohol may also be bought without a membership where the law requires it.

Business ($65)

The Business Membership costs the same as Gold Star and includes a household card. The main difference is that a Business Member can add Affiliates, such as employees or partners, for $65 each at a membership counter. Business Members can also file a resale certificate so that items bought for resale are not taxed. Costco limits each person to one Gold Star and one Business Membership.

Executive ($130)

The Executive tier adds three main benefits:

• 2% annual Reward on qualified Costco, costco.com and Costco Travel purchases, capped at $1,250 in any 12-month period. The Reward is issued about three months before your renewal date, on the renewal statement.
• Early shopping hours: from 9 to 10 a.m. Monday to Friday and Sunday, and from 9 to 9:30 a.m. on Saturday. See our Costco hours guide for the full schedule.
• Services extras: a $10 monthly credit on same-day delivery orders of $150 or more through SameDay.Costco.com (powered by Instacart), plus added value on some Costco Travel packages and services such as the Costco Auto Program.

In the U.S., some purchases do not earn the Reward. The Executive Rewards terms exclude gasoline, cigarettes and tobacco, Costco Shop Cards, postage stamps, cellphones and cellphone plans, food court purchases, membership fees, sales tax and shipping. Alcohol is excluded in some states and prescriptions in others, including Arkansas, New Jersey and New York. Only purchases by the Primary or Primary Household Cardholder count.

Household card, guests and other membership rules

Costco's Member Privileges and Conditions set out who can use a membership and how:

• Household card: Primary and Affiliate Members receive one additional card for one designated household member who is 16 or older and lives at the same address. The household member must have a photo taken for the card. There is no extra charge for this card.
• Guests: members may bring children and up to two guests into the warehouse, and are responsible for them. The Primary Member is also responsible for purchases made by any additional cardholders.
• No sharing: the card "is not transferable". You must scan it at the door and show it at checkout, and Costco says barcodes, photos or other copies are not acceptable.
• Photo ID: the card needs a clear full-face photo. If it has none, Costco accepts a passport or government-issued photo ID.
• Limits: one Gold Star and one Business Membership per person. Costco may treat businesses with the same or related ownership as a single business.
• Administrators: the Primary Member can name another current member as a Personal or Business Administrator who can update contact details, upgrade or renew the membership.

Is the Executive upgrade worth it? The math

The upgrade costs $65 a year. A 2% Reward covers that cost once your qualifying spending reaches $3,250 a year. Above that, the upgrade pays you money back, until the Reward cap.

The arithmetic is short:

• Break-even: $65 upgrade fee ÷ 0.02 = $3,250 of qualifying spending a year. Divided by 12, that is about $271 a month.
• Cap: $1,250 maximum Reward ÷ 0.02 = $62,500 of qualifying spending a year, or about $5,208 a month. Spending above that earns nothing extra.
• Net gain at any spend level: (qualifying spend × 0.02) − $65. For example, $8,000 × 0.02 = $160, minus $65 = $95 ahead.

Qualifying annual spend	2% Reward	Net gain after $65 upgrade
$2,000 ($167/month)	$40	-$25
$3,250 ($271/month)	$65	$0 (break-even)
$5,000 ($417/month)	$100	$35
$10,000 ($833/month)	$200	$135
$20,000 ($1,667/month)	$400	$335
$62,500 and above	$1,250 (cap)	$1,185

Calculation by 77.today based on the $65 upgrade fee and the 2% rate and $1,250 cap in Costco's Executive Rewards terms. It excludes sales tax and purchases that do not qualify.

The upgrade fee is prorated. If you upgrade partway through your membership year, you pay only for the months that remain, but purchases made before the upgrade do not earn the Reward. With six months left, for example, the prorated fee would be about $65 × 6 ÷ 12 = $32.50, and your break-even for that half-year is $32.50 ÷ 0.02 = $1,625. To receive the Reward, you must still be a paid Executive Member at the end of the membership year. Costco's terms also state plainly that "the Reward is not guaranteed to be equal to or greater than the Executive upgrade fee paid."

Two things the table leaves out. First, the Reward is calculated on pre-tax purchases, less refunds, so returns reduce it. Second, Executive Members also get a $10 monthly credit on same-day delivery orders of $150 or more through SameDay.Costco.com. That credit has value only if you already order that way, so we do not count it in the break-even.

How the 2% Reward is paid and spent

Costco issues the Reward about three months before your renewal date, on the renewal statement, and it reflects what you have earned up to that date. The certificate is mailed with the renewal notice to the Primary Member. In the U.S., it can be spent on most merchandise at the front-end registers of Costco warehouses. It cannot be used at self-checkout, at gas stations, at food courts, on costco.com, on services such as travel and auto, as a credit card payment, or exchanged for cash. Purchases made in U.S. and Canadian warehouses and on Costco's U.S. and Canadian websites by U.S. and Canadian residents count toward the Reward, as do completed Costco Travel bookings.

Costco membership fee history

Effective date	Gold Star / Business	Executive	2% Reward cap
November 1, 2011	$50 to $55	$100 to $110	$500 to $750
June 1, 2017	$55 to $60	$110 to $120	$750 to $1,000
September 1, 2024	$60 to $65	$120 to $130	$1,000 to $1,250
October 16, 2026 (current)	$65	$130	$1,250

Sources: Costco press releases of October 5, 2011, March 2, 2017 and July 10, 2024, and the Costco Form 10-K reports for fiscal 2013 and 2017.

In percentage terms, each increase has been modest: the Gold Star fee rose 10% in 2011 ($5 on $50), about 9.1% in 2017 ($5 on $55) and about 8.3% in 2024 ($5 on $60). The Executive fee rose by $10 each time. Costco's fiscal 2013 annual report adds that the 2011 increase applied to new members from November 1, 2011 and to renewing members from January 1, 2012, in the U.S. and Canada.

Costco announced the latest increase on July 10, 2024, together with its June sales results. The company said the change would affect about 52 million memberships, a little over half of them Executive. The new fees applied in the United States and Canada. Members who renewed on or after September 1, 2024 paid the new price. Costco's Member Privileges page confirms the rule: "All renewals will be assessed at the membership fee in effect on the date the membership fee is paid."

As of October 16, 2026, Costco has not announced another increase. Its last two increases came seven years apart. We will update this page if Costco publishes a new fee.

Costco membership prices outside the U.S.

Costco runs separate websites for its other markets, and each sets its own fee in local currency. These are the prices published on the official sites on October 16, 2026:

Country (official site)	Gold Star	Executive	Business	Business Executive
Canada (costco.ca)	C$65 + tax	C$130 + tax	Not shown on the personal join page	Not shown on the personal join page
United Kingdom (costco.co.uk)	£42 (£35 ex VAT)	£84 (£70 ex VAT)	£30 (£25 ex VAT)	£78 (£65 ex VAT)
Australia (costco.com.au)	A$65	A$130	A$65	A$130

A few differences stand out. In the UK, the Business Membership is cheaper than Gold Star, and the Executive tier is split into Gold Star Executive and Business Executive at different prices. In Australia, Business Membership requires business registration, and both Business tiers can add up to six additional cardholders at A$65 each. Every Australian tier includes an additional household card. Costco Canada lists a CIBC Costco Mastercard offer of $65 back for new Executive Members who are approved for the card.

Your card works abroad too: Costco says a membership card is valid at any Costco warehouse worldwide. Each country publishes its own Executive terms, so the U.S. rules above apply to U.S. memberships.

Renewal rules

• Term: the fee covers one 12-month period from the date the Primary Cardholder joined.
• Due date: renewal fees are due by the last day of the month in which your membership expires. You can pay online, by mail or at any warehouse.
• Auto renewal: Costco can charge the fee to a Visa credit or debit card or a Mastercard debit card on the first day of your renewal month. To stop it, cancel at least 72 hours before that day.
• Late renewal: if you renew within two months after expiry, the new year runs from the old expiry date. If you renew later than that, the new year runs from the renewal date.
• Overdue fees: if you are not on auto renewal, any overdue fee is added to your first warehouse purchase after the membership expires.

Refund and cancellation policy

Costco's Member Privileges and Conditions promise "a risk-free 100% satisfaction guarantee on both your membership and merchandise", with limited exceptions. In practice, you can cancel and ask for your membership fee back. The Executive Rewards terms add one condition: if you cancel or downgrade an Executive Membership, any 2% Reward already issued or earned is subtracted from the refund of the upgrade fee. Executive-only benefits also stop.

To cancel, go to a membership counter or contact the Member Service Center at 1-800-774-2678.

A worked example shows how the Executive deduction works. Suppose you paid $130 for Executive and have earned $40 in Reward when you cancel. Your $65 upgrade fee refund is reduced by the $40, so you would get $25 back on the upgrade part, plus the base membership refund under the satisfaction guarantee. If your earned Reward were larger than $65, the upgrade refund would be zero and the excess Reward would be forfeited, according to Costco's terms.

Current sign-up offers on costco.com

On October 16, 2026, Costco's join page showed an online offer for new members who set up auto renewal on an eligible card. It gives a $40 Digital Costco Shop Card with an Executive Membership or a $20 Shop Card with a Gold Star Membership. The offer is open only to people who have not held a Costco membership of any kind in the last 18 months. The same page lists a $65 Digital Costco Shop Card for new Executive Members who are approved for the Costco Anywhere Visa Card by Citi. Offers change often, so check the terms before you join. We have not verified deals from third-party sites.

The join page also has a "Costco Membership Promotions" section with sign-up links for college students, teachers and faculty, health workers, first responders, government employees and military members. These links go to verification services (UNiDAYS and SheerID), and the offer details are shown only after verification, so we cannot confirm their amounts. Costco's own pages do not list a $15 or $30 membership price. If you see such a price elsewhere, it comes from a third party, not Costco, so read its terms before paying.

Bottom line

A Costco membership costs $65 a year for Gold Star or Business and $130 a year for Executive, plus sales tax where it applies. These prices took effect on September 1, 2024, and are still current on October 16, 2026. The Executive upgrade pays for itself once your qualifying spending passes $3,250 a year, and the Reward stops growing at $62,500. In Canada and Australia, the fees are 65 and 130 in local dollars, while the UK charges £42 for Gold Star. The satisfaction guarantee means you can get your fee back if Costco does not suit you.

Cover photo: Costco Wholesale warehouse in St. Louis Park, Minnesota, by Tony Webster, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Photo: Tony Webster / CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons