> People rave about the low prices, but I can only assume that is some kind of collective delusion. Where I live, the grocery stores across the street always have better prices on meat and dairy, usually fruit and veg too.
You can get better prices at the grocery, but the quality is generally lower and the price isn't always lower. For example, chicken breasts are $3/lb at costco, individually packaged for freezing and high quality. Sure, I can often get breasts at the market in the bulk pack for $2/lb or less, but they're more water-logged, not ready-packed for the freezer, and don't taste as good. I happily pay somewhat more for the convenience and quality at a still low price. To get that level of quality at the grocery, I'm up at $6/lb for organic, name brand chicken. That's Costco's approach, especially with their in-house Kirkland Signature products: very high quality, and reasonable, sustainable prices.
> For the non-food things they sell, you can usually get the same exact thing on Amazon at the same price, without having to drive anywhere or wait in line for the receipt-checking security theatre.
Sometimes this is true, and sometimes you get the Amazon item and it's actually hidden lower-quality; the stitching on clothing is worse, the colors don't pop as much, etc. For fungible products that have a single SKU (books, electronics, kitchenware, most dry goods), Amazon is great, but when there's an opportunity for hidden quality drops and cost-downs, Costco has a buyer on-staff ensuring that the manufacturer doesn't cut corners. Amazon is rife with corner-cutting.
You can get better prices at the grocery, but the quality is generally lower and the price isn't always lower. For example, chicken breasts are $3/lb at costco, individually packaged for freezing and high quality. Sure, I can often get breasts at the market in the bulk pack for $2/lb or less, but they're more water-logged, not ready-packed for the freezer, and don't taste as good. I happily pay somewhat more for the convenience and quality at a still low price. To get that level of quality at the grocery, I'm up at $6/lb for organic, name brand chicken. That's Costco's approach, especially with their in-house Kirkland Signature products: very high quality, and reasonable, sustainable prices.
> For the non-food things they sell, you can usually get the same exact thing on Amazon at the same price, without having to drive anywhere or wait in line for the receipt-checking security theatre.
Sometimes this is true, and sometimes you get the Amazon item and it's actually hidden lower-quality; the stitching on clothing is worse, the colors don't pop as much, etc. For fungible products that have a single SKU (books, electronics, kitchenware, most dry goods), Amazon is great, but when there's an opportunity for hidden quality drops and cost-downs, Costco has a buyer on-staff ensuring that the manufacturer doesn't cut corners. Amazon is rife with corner-cutting.