Costco Products That Superfans Quit Buying Thanks to Inflation

Costco superfans on the r/Costco Reddit forum are loyal to the warehouse club giant, but they also hold no punches if they feel like they're getting ripped off. In one recent thread, u/datalife07 asked their fellow shoppers what products they stopped purchasing at Costco because of price increases, and in an age of record inflation, people had a lot of answers. Sometimes, Costco isn't always the cheapest, according to these customers. 

Related: Costco Superfans Share Products They 'Regret' Passing Up

The giant, crave-worthy chicken pot pies from the deli are super popular and feed a big family. But the price has gone up at least a dollar per pound over the last year, and that's a bridge too far for some customers. "Chicken pot pies went from $16 to $30," says u/OCR10. "Not buying those any more."

Related: Prepared Meals at Costco That'll Feed Your Whole Family

Crazy Cuisine Mandarin Orange Chicken is a freezer staple for many families, especially since it comes in a 4-pound box. A few years ago, you could get it for around $14, but according to some Redditors, it's almost $18 now, a pretty hefty jump. "I’ve always preferred the Trader Joe’s one over the Costco ones," says u/ngod87, reminding us that there are other options. 

Shoppers noticed a big increase in Kirkland Signature coffee prices recently, and many have stopped buying it. "The KS ground coffee price about doubled," says one commenter, while another says they "just drink instant and get unlimited at work." And it's not just ground coffee, either. "The canned cold brew used to be $8.99 and it’s now $15.99." Other brands have gone up in price too, including the Dunkin' coffee which "used to be $17 and now it’s like $23!"

"Organic milk now is $12.83 for 3 half gallons," says u/big_top_hat. "Wegmans sells 1 gallon for $6. Costco price isn’t even close. It’s a shame because for many years I never even had to compare prices, Costco was just always the cheapest." Another user agrees: "Costco’s milk is the most expensive near me. $1.48 more per gallon than Walmart and $1.26 more than Aldi, last time I compared."

Some dips are off the menu for some Costco customers, which is quite inconvenient with holiday entertaining coming up. "I was hankering for spinach artichoke dip today and it was $9.49 today!!" says u/jessiebeex. "I swear it was in the $6 range a while back, so I passed." But another user looks on the bright side: "This inflation will hopefully help me shed more pounds than dollars, due to price increases I’ve been passing up on a lot of things lately."

Freshly made products in the bakery have gone up in price, and many users are really feeling the pinch when it comes to those massive, sugar-filled muffins. "Now that the muffins went up to $10, it’s harder to justify buying them on a whim," says one commenter. The higher price tag was one shopper's sign that they weren't getting good value, especially since they could just make muffins themselves. 

Related: Sam's Club vs Costco: Who Has the Best Bakery?

It's not just food for humans that's increasing in price, of course. One commenter calls out Blue Buffalo dog food specifically for its high price, and others agree. "We went back to the Kirkland brand," says u/Specific_Albatross61. "$50 dollars a bag is ridiculous." But at least they're not paying almost $60, like another user.

For some people, Kraft just won't do. Annie's is a great alternative to the blue box, but it's gone up in price so much that you have to be a dedicated organic product purchaser to stick with it. According to u/hexlandus, the 12-box pack has gone from about $10 to $17. 

Fresh beef, especially pricey steaks and roasts, are being skipped at Costco for sales elsewhere. "We’ve started to buy beef at other stores," says u/macnerd. "Some Costco steaks are approaching $13/pound though today we found some for $9. But the local Food King is pretty constantly $8/pound and I must not be that finicky because the quality is close enough."

Costco's Just Bare frozen breaded chicken is well-known as a Chick-fil-A clone in both nugget and filet form. The packages used to be $14.99, but then they increased to $19.99. Costco recently announced that they've lowered the price to $17.99, but that's still too much of an overall increase from pre-pandemic prices. "It's a few bucks but it'll add up if you're smashing through them," says u/sarina800.