10 'Unwritten Rules' of Costco That Every Shopper Should Know

Shop at Costco long enough and you become a wise, battle-worn warehouse warrior — someone who knows exactly when and how to plan a trip through the cluttered maze of bulk goods. On Reddit, Costco's savviest veterans have shared their "unwritten rules" and "no. 1" shopping tips, passing along their insights to other members, new and old. Not already a Costco member? You can apply here.

Related: Sam's Club Versus Costco: Redditors Compare the Warehouse Giants

Want to avoid the crowds? Frequent Costco during the weekly football game when the warehouse is a "ghost town." If you're shopping during the offseason, then going an hour or two before closing on a weekday is also a good bet, Redditors say.

Related: I Shopped at Costco for the First Time and This Is What I Learned

Go ahead and indulge your impulse-buying habits at Costco, Redditors say, especially when it comes to seasonal or limited-stock items. "If you see an item that looks appealing and isn’t normally stocked, buy it the first time you see it," one top comment reads. "Waiting for the next trip typically results in regret as you may never see it in stock again."

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

Pay attention to Costco's prices. Price tags ending in .97 indicate that an item is on sale, while prices that end in .49, .79, or .89 mean that Costco received a special deal from the manufacturer. And be sure to buy up products that are on their way out, which employees note with an asterisk on the price sign.

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Unless you like crowds, long lines, and mobbed parking lots, you're better off avoiding weekends at Costco. The exception, Redditors say, is if you live somewhere where folks go to church on Sunday.

Steer clear of Costco if your stomach is grumbling, or, at the very least, fill up with a $1.50 hot dog before you start shopping. Studies have shown that hungry shoppers spend more money, even on non-food products.

While it's hardly a universal opinion, one top-rated comment warned shoppers that veggies and produce from Costco go bad quickly. Their advice? Either store them properly or shop for fresh goods elsewhere.

Costco devotees know that the warehouse store's in-house Kirkland brand is (almost) always synonymous with quality. Superfans regularly praise Kirkland French vodka, coffee, and batteries.

To avoid traffic jams and to make employees' lives easier, be sure to have your Costco card out when you enter, checkout, and leave. "Don't arrive to the door and start digging through your purse, or fumbling with your wallet holding up everyone else," one commenter writes.

Don't forget about two of Costco's most beloved money-saving perks: its inflation-proof food court and low-priced gas stations. The hot dog and soda combo costs just $1.50 — a constant since 1985 — and gas is so cheap that it'll likely make up for your annual membership fee.

While some Redditors recommend adopting a "life's too short" mindset while shopping at Costco, others prefer a more organized, frugal approach. "My rule is to make a list and stick to it. If I see something I like, I add it to the list for next time," a Costco veteran shares. Another Redditor-approved money-saving strategy is to purchase only what you can carry without a cart.