Is This the Best $10 Deal at Costco? Redditors Think So, and We Agree

"$9.95, Are you out of your mind?!" begins a Reddit thread full of Costco superfans. If you racked your brain trying to guess the $10 deal they're talking about, you'd probably think about rotisserie chickens, frozen seafood, giant containers of peanut butter pretzels, or one of the retailer's many prepared meals. But the can't-miss steal everyone is talking about is the whole takeout pizza from Costco's food court. 

Yes, you can order whole pizzas, and I've seen plenty of people walk out carrying one (or a few!) of the big cardboard pizza boxes in the past. While I've eaten a ton of delicious slices on Costco runs, I've never picked up a whole pie, so I decided to give it a go and see if the deal lives up to the hype.

How to order a Costco pizza

After I did some shopping, I headed to the food court ordering kiosks. I wasn't sure if the whole pizza would be available on the touchscreen as an option, but it was. I could choose from pepperoni, cheese, or half pepperoni and half cheese. I chose the pepperoni option for $9.95, and my total came to $10.50 after tax.

As I was ordering, the computer gave me a warning pop-up that wait times varied for whole pizzas. I figured that would be the case, but it was a weeknight so it wasn't too crowded, and there weren't many people waiting for food court items. The wait time turned out to be about 15 minutes, which I thought was pretty fast and efficient. A couple other people also got whole pizzas while I was waiting for mine.

Can you order a Costco pizza over the phone?

When I was waiting for my pizza, I noticed a big sign on the wall above the food court's fountain soda dispenser that said you could call ahead with your whole pizza order, just like other pizza places. While the phone number will be specific to your location, most Costco food courts take phone orders for whole pizzas, and it's definitely best to call ahead if you want a number of pizzas to feed the entire Little League team.

When I was ordering my pizza at the kiosk, a pop-up window asked if I was picking up an order that I had called in ahead of time. So if you order over the phone, you still have to pay for your pizza at a food court kiosk. 

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Is Costco pizza any good?

The pizza I got was fresh and hot out of the oven — so much so that we had to wait a minute for it to cool off before grabbing a slice. It hadn't sat under a heat lamp like the slices do, so it wasn't at all dried out like they sometimes get. 

I love any kind of cheap pizza and a good deal, so Costco's $10 pizza is a huge winner in my book. Is it the best pizza you've ever had? Definitely not, but it's still pretty good, with a bubbly crust, lots of pepperoni, and plenty of golden brown cheese. Lots of people add their own favorite toppings, though I only added some hot pepper flakes at home. No matter how you slice it, it's a great value.

Lots of Costco fans on Reddit agree. "I’m a broke person. This pizza right here is the number one reason why I got a membership," said u/zwingo. "I can spend $11 and have dinner for three nights straight off of it. I get one almost weekly. Like you said it’s not the best pizza, but it’s a pizza I can afford. Especially considering the same amount from any other place is $30+ in my area."

How much is Costco pizza?

A whole Costco pizza costs $9.95 plus applicable tax, whether you order a pepperoni, cheese, or half pepperoni half cheese pizza. An individual slice is $1.99.

The whole pizza is an 18-inch pie, which is bigger than most chain's large size, so it's pretty huge and comes in a very big pizza box. It's cut into 12 pieces, so the slices are smaller than the individual slices you can buy. That's a good thing, because smaller slices are easier to eat and dole out.

Can you order a Costco pizza without a membership?

You don't need a Costco membership to buy items at the food court. The ordering and payment kiosk doesn't require you to swipe your membership card to make your purchase. 

That said, many food courts are inside near the checkouts, and stores require you to show a membership card to get in the door, especially now that Costco is cracking down on membership sharing. Some Redditors report that they have had to show their card to use the food court. If someone stops you, you may be able to tell them you're there just for the food court, or one of the other services that don't require a membership, like the pharmacy.