How to Shop at Costco Without a Membership: Options

How to Shop at Costco Without a Membership: Options

If you need a prescription, want to place an online order, or are considering a Costco Shop Card, there are legitimate ways to shop at Costco without a membership. The practical answer depends on what you want to buy. Pharmacy purchases and Costco.com orders are clearly addressed in Costco’s policies. Shop Cards can be used online by nonmembers, but Costco’s own policies conflict on whether a nonmember can enter a warehouse to use one.

That uncertainty matters before making a special trip. Costco does not offer free shopping passes, and its current customer-service policy says nonmembers may buy prescriptions at a Costco pharmacy with cash, debit, a Shop Card, or a Visa card. The same policy says shoppers must be paid members to enter the warehouse and purchase other items. Costco

How to shop at Costco without a membership

Use this quick guide to match the option to your situation:

Option What you can buy What you need Extra cost Main limitation Costco pharmacy Prescriptions Cash, debit, a Shop Card, or a Visa card No nonmember surcharge is listed for prescriptions This does not establish general warehouse shopping access Costco.com Eligible online merchandise and prescription drugs A Costco.com account and payment method A 5% surcharge over member prices, except on prescription drugs Delivery charges and item availability may still affect the total Costco Shop Card online Merchandise or a membership A Shop Card purchased by a Costco member No separate nonmember surcharge is stated for Shop Card use Only members can purchase the card Shop Card at a warehouse Costco says nonmembers may use Shop Cards at Costco locations A physical or digital Shop Card No separate surcharge is stated A separate Costco policy says paid membership is required to enter for other purchases, so call first

The first two options are the cleanest choices. If the goal is a single online purchase, the 5% surcharge may be simpler than joining. If the goal is regular warehouse shopping, check whether someone in the household qualifies for a card before trying a workaround.

Start with the purchase you actually need

1. Buy a prescription through Costco pharmacy

Nonmembers may purchase prescriptions from a Costco pharmacy using cash, debit, a Costco Shop Card, or a Visa card, according to Costco’s customer-service policy. This exception is for prescriptions, not a general invitation to shop for groceries, household supplies, or other warehouse merchandise.

Because Costco separately says paid members must enter the warehouse to purchase other items, do not treat pharmacy access as proof that a nonmember can walk through the warehouse and browse. If the prescription requires an in-person visit, contact the local pharmacy or warehouse before going so the location can explain where to go.

2. Place the order on Costco.com

A nonmember can order through Costco.com, but Costco charges a 5% surcharge over the posted member price, except for prescription drugs. Costco’s nonmember policy explains that the surcharge supports the company’s membership-based pricing model.

For a one-time purchase, calculate the surcharge before deciding whether a membership makes sense. At a 5% surcharge, the surcharge on $1,300 of eligible purchases would equal $65. That is a comparison using the $65 Gold Star membership price reported in 2024, not a promise that the current membership price has remained unchanged. Delivery fees, the products available online, and the value of shopping in a warehouse can change the result for a particular household.

A member should not simply give a nonmember their membership number. Costco’s instructions for removing the surcharge apply to a member’s own Costco.com account. The member must open Account Details, enter their 12-digit membership number, and save it before completing the order. Costco says the surcharge will be removed when those steps are completed before checkout. Costco

If a member already placed an order without linking the membership, Costco says the member can contact the company with the membership number and order number so the surcharge can be reviewed. That is a fix for the member’s account, not a way to turn a nonmember account into a member account.

Use a Costco Shop Card carefully

A Shop Card is the most useful option for a nonmember who wants to buy Costco merchandise, especially online. There is one important catch: only a Costco member can purchase a Shop Card at a warehouse or through Costco.com. A member can purchase a digital card and forward the email to another person, according to Costco’s Shop Card FAQ. Costco’s Shop Card policy

Once available, a physical or digital Shop Card may be used toward merchandise or a membership. Costco says nonmembers may use Shop Cards at Costco locations in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico, as well as online. The online portion is straightforward. A nonmember can use the card as payment on Costco.com without entering a membership number.

The warehouse portion is less settled than that wording suggests.

Costco’s Shop Card policy says nonmembers may use the card at any Costco location. But Costco’s separate customer-service page says, “you must be a paid member to enter the warehouse and purchase any other items.” The two published statements do not explain how they work together. The available policy information also does not establish whether every warehouse handles a nonmember with a Shop Card the same way.

That makes the safest process fairly simple:

1. Ask a Costco member to purchase the Shop Card. Nonmembers cannot purchase one directly.
2. Choose a digital card if the purchase is online. Costco says digital cards are sent by email, and the email can be forwarded to the recipient.
3. Use the card on Costco.com when possible. This avoids the warehouse-entry question.
4. Call the local membership counter before visiting in person. Ask specifically how that warehouse handles a nonmember carrying a Shop Card.
5. Do not assume the card guarantees entry. Costco’s own policies point in different directions.

Shop Cards also come with practical limits. Costco says they are nonrefundable, transactions are final, and lost or stolen cards cannot be replaced. Physical cards are processed the following business day and generally arrive by USPS in seven to 10 business days, although delivery is not guaranteed. Digital cards are usually fulfilled within two hours but may take one to two business days to process. Costco

That timing makes a digital card more useful for an online order than a last-minute warehouse visit. A Shop Card also cannot be used as payment for Same-day Delivery powered by Instacart. Check the email and spam folder if the digital card does not appear, particularly when the order is time-sensitive.

Check whether someone in the household qualifies for a card

For couples and shared households, the simplest answer may be a real household membership card rather than a nonmember workaround.

A Gold Star membership includes one primary member and one free household member who is over 16 and lives at the same address. The primary member chooses who receives the second card and can change that person through Account Details or at the local membership counter. Costco

This is different from borrowing a card. The household member is added as a cardholder and can shop under their own membership identification. That avoids the entrance problem created by trying to use another person’s card.

A Business membership works differently. Its primary member can add more than one person for an additional fee, while the Gold Star membership includes one free household card. That distinction may matter for a household or business deciding whether another cardholder is worth the cost.

Before choosing the online surcharge, compare the expected purchases with the membership price available when joining. Using the $65 Gold Star figure reported by NPR in 2024, the arithmetic is $65 divided by 5%, or $1,300 in eligible purchases. That is only a break-even illustration. It does not account for delivery charges, product selection, warehouse access, or any changes to Costco’s membership pricing.

Why sharing someone else’s card is no longer a reliable plan

Costco began requiring members to scan physical or digital membership cards at warehouse entrances during the rollout announced in 2024. Members whose cards do not include a photo may also need to show valid photo identification, and guests can enter with an active member. NPR

Costco executive Richard Galanti told MarketWatch, as reported by NPR, that the change was intended to prevent nonmembers from using another member’s card to shop. The issue emerged after Costco introduced self-checkout lines. Enforcement had also relaxed during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, when people asked others to shop for them to avoid going outside.

That background explains why casually borrowing a card is a poor plan now. It does not resolve the separate Shop Card conflict, and it should not be used to promise that every nonmember will be admitted to a warehouse.

NPR reported in 2024 that Costco had 128 million members and $4.6 billion in membership-fee revenue. Those figures describe the company at the time of that report, not Costco’s membership total or fee revenue as of this week. They do help explain why Costco protects access to its membership program closely.

Choose the option that fits your trip

For prescriptions, use the Costco pharmacy route and confirm the local process before visiting. For a one-time online purchase, accept the 5% nonmember surcharge and compare the final total with the available membership price.

If a household member is over 16, lives at the same address, and can receive the free household card, use that legitimate membership option instead of sharing credentials. If a Costco member is willing to purchase a Shop Card, use it online when possible. For in-person shopping, call the local membership counter first and ask how the warehouse applies the conflicting policies.

Costco’s entrance checks made casual card sharing harder, but they did not eliminate every nonmember purchase path. The safest approach is to choose the clearly supported option, treat warehouse Shop Card access as unresolved, and confirm local handling before spending time on a trip.