Costco is a great spot to score bulk deals on interesting foods, home goods, alcohol, and more — but not everything at this big box store is worth the buy.
Save money at Costco the next time you’re there by knowing which products other shoppers have consistently pointed out as bad and not worth it, like these 15 items.
Editor’s note: Prices are subject to change and may vary by location.
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Kevin's Natural Foods Roasted Garlic Chicken
Price: $16.99
There’s no brand drawing more wide disgruntlement from customers than Kevin’s Natural Foods frozen items. People largely agree that these products are always disappointing, no matter how you choose to cook them.
The roasted garlic chicken is constantly brought up as a disappointment in both flavor and texture.
Kirkland Signature Toilet Paper
Price: $23.49
While toilet paper is one of the top sold products at Costco, that doesn’t make it high quality. Some customers complain about how much it pills and shreds, leaving a mess in its wake, and some plumbers even suggest avoiding this two-ply paper if you want to keep your home’s pipes clean.
Kirkland Signature Original Spiced Rum
Price: $13.99
People who have tried the Kirkland Signature Original Spiced Rum are not fans. They reference liquid smoke, hand sanitizer, and other chemicals when describing the smell and taste.
It’s no longer widely available, making fans wonder if they’re planning a new and improved product rollout.
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Avocados from Peru
Price: Varies
An array of customers online go on and on about how the window of time that these avocados are good is super short and that they go bad and become liquefied practically overnight.
Avocados from Mexico and California are generally regarded as better, so skip the Peruvian option.
Kirkland Signature Platinum Performance UltraShine Dishwasher Detergent Pacs
Price: $13.99
When each load of dishes only costs twelve cents in automatic dishwasher detergent, doing the dishes isn’t so bad — unless you have to do them twice.
While the lemon citrus scent of the Kirkland dishwasher detergent pacs is pleasing, most customers note residue left on their utensils and plastic items. This is an item that is rumored to be replacing stock with an improved formulation.
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Kirkland Signature Burnt Ends Beef Brisket
Price: $27.18
If you’re looking for affordable, authentic barbecue, wander far, far away from Kirkland’s burnt ends. For almost $30, it’s a surprisingly small amount of high-quality product.
The meat comes out to about $16.99 per pound, and you can find far better at a lower price at local butchers almost anywhere.
Food Court Fountain Drinks
Price: varies
While the Costco food court sells more hot dogs than ballparks do, not everyone is a fan of the fountain drinks that come with them.
People complain that the employees are inconsistent with the level of flavor syrup in each batch, the dispensers pour too much foam, and the machines appear dirty more often than not.
Kirkland Signature Pepperoni Pizza
Price: $15.99
Costco sells so many incredible fresh take-and-bake and frozen pizza options from so many name brands that settling for their in-house option seems like a bad idea.
The thin crust should be endearing, but it tastes like cardboard, and the pepperoni is almost flavorless. People who do purchase them tend to add their own ingredients to make them palatable.
Kirkland AA/AAA Batteries
Price: $18.19
It's hard to pass up a giant pack of batteries when each one costs less than 40 cents, but according to many disappointed customers, the 12-year shelf life promised by the Kirkland brand doesn’t seem accurate — they allege they’ve often been left with dead remote controllers at the worst moments.
If you don’t want a battery meltdown, avoid the AA and AAA batteries.
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Bananas
Price: varies
Rarely is there a group large enough to justify a bulk banana purchase. Plus, the quality of their bananas seems to be consistently off.
The color of the bananas somehow doesn’t indicate ripeness – green bananas are somehow ready – and they go bad very quickly.
Kirkland Signature Organic Unsweetened Almond Beverage
Price: $9.69
Costco frequenters are not fans of the Kirkland Signature shelf-stable almond milk, which tastes funky whether it's vanilla or unsweetened.
While these liquids taste better once refrigerated, the amount of grainy sediment that gathers at the bottom is really unappealing.
Kirkland Signature Whole Milk
Price: $5.29
Kirkland Signature milk is more expensive than the regional median in many markets, one of the main pain points for Costco shoppers.
The opaque plastic containers are a real turnoff for some customers, and the milk jug has a unique shape to it that makes it difficult to fit into the fridge.
Michelin Guardian+ Beam Wiper Blades
Price: $10.99
If you want a bargain on a windshield wiper blade, consider other budget-friendly options you can find at Costco, like Rain-X and Bosch.
Michelin’s Guardian+ wiper blades are widely complained about in online forums for how noisy they are and the streaks they leave on your windshield.
Kirkland Signature Butter Chicken with Naan
Price: $18.72
For about $7.49 per pound, you can grab a stack of naan and butter chicken, but the simple dish is not as budget-friendly as other items.
Customers claim the chicken sauce is runny, the flavor of the buttered chicken is too salty, and the dish is overall just bland.
Cocktail Cucumbers
Price: $7.99
Cucumbers can be eaten on their own, in a salad, or dipped in a variety of sweet, salty, and spicy sauces, but they need to stay fresh longer than 24 hours in order to enjoy them, and this large bag almost always forms fuzzy mold overnight, no matter how you store them.
Bottom line
Costco is usually a great spot for quality items at a discount, but not everything is a winner. Keep more money in your wallet by avoiding these items that seem to fall flat.
Save even more money by making sure you always shop with a list so you don’t go over budget with unnecessary purchases.
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FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.
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