The move aligns Costco with rival Sam’s Club, which has long offered exclusive early morning shopping hours for its premium members.
WASHINGTON — Costco will soon be launching earlier shopping hours exclusively for its executive members.
Starting June 30, those who pay for the higher-tier membership will be given early access to shop from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. local time on weekdays and Sundays, and from 9 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. on Saturdays.
The change, which is limited to U.S. stores, means executive members will get to shop earlier than when most – but not all – of the stores have typically been open. Some Costco locations, including all of the ones in California’s Bay Area, already open at 9 a.m. Monday through Saturday.
Costco confirmed that the U.S. warehouses that currently open at 9 a.m. will begin on June 30 reserving that time for executive members only.
“All members will be welcome to shop starting at 10 a.m. Monday through Friday and Sunday, and at 9:30 a.m. Saturday,” Costco said in a response to a comment on Instagram.
Costco Saturday hours extended for all
As part of the change, Costco said that all U.S. warehouses will now be open an extra hour on Saturdays, closing at 7 p.m. for all members.
According to company data, executive members make up 73% of Costco’s sales despite representing a little less than half of their 79.6 million memberships.
The move aligns Costco with rival Sam’s Club, which has long offered exclusive early morning shopping hours for its premium plus members.
Last year, Costco raised the price of its memberships for the first time since 2017. The cost for a Gold Star membership, the basic tier, increased from $60 to $65. Executive memberships, the higher-tier plan, increased from $120 to $130.
