It's not in your head: Costco has gotten more crowded

Tech Insider : Business
Shopping carts in the check-out line at a Costco store in Teterboro, New Jersey.
Costco store visits have surged, while other major retailers have remained flat.

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Walmart's warehouse club ratchets up pressure on Costco with a new member perk

Tech Insider : Business
A Sam's Club sign hangs on the wall of a store on July 07, 2025 in Miami, Florida.

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These Sam's Club items basically make a $60 membership pay for itself. We did the math.

Tech Insider : Business
The scan and go exit gateway at a Sam's Club in Wisconsin.
Sam's Club offers a unique option to scan items on a mobile app and walk out of the store without stopping for a receipt check.

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Sam's Club is hiking its membership fee to $60 — but it's still less than Costco

Tech Insider : Business
The scan and go exit gateway at a Sam's Club in Wisconsin.
Sam's Club is investing heavily in tech to boost the value of its membership.

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How Costco became the king of bulk buying, starting out by selling only to businesses out of an old airplane hangar

Tech Insider : Business, Style
Costco shopper
Sales at Costco rocketed from zero to $3 billion in less than six years.

STR New / Reuters

Sundays are for Sam's Club, as the chain starts opening earlier than Costco

Tech Insider : Business
A Sam's Club sign hangs on the wall of a store on July 07, 2025 in Miami, Florida.
Sam's Club is expanding hours after "overwhelming feedback" from members.

Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Costco plans to open new locations at a quicker pace as it tackles busy warehouses

Tech Insider : Business
Employees push shopping carts outside a Costco Wholesale warehouse store in Hawthorne, California.
Costco CEO Ron Vachris says the company continues to see "significant opportunities for expansion, both domestically and internationally."

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Costco is getting a traffic boost from opening early for executive members

Tech Insider : Business
Costco shoppers wait to enter a warehouse.
Costco shoppers wait as the door opens at 9 a.m. for executive members.

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Sam's Club just opened its first new location in 7 years. It doesn't have any checkout lanes.

Tech Insider
A man pushes a shopping cart with a giant teddy bear through a blue metal entryway in a store.
Sam's Club CEO Chris Nicholas rolls his shopping cart through one of the company's AI-powered exits.

Dominick Reuter/Business Insider

Costco's members are getting younger as millennial and Gen Z shoppers flock to wholesale clubs

Tech Insider
A Costco Wholesale store in Colchester, Vermont, on November 13, 2023.
Costco added roughly 2.5 million Millennial and Gen Z household memberships last year.

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