A major change at Costco is now in full effect. The retail giant has updated its hours, but only for its higher-level executive members.
As of August 31, executive members now get exclusive early access to warehouses across the country. Stores will open at 9am on weekdays and Sundays—one hour before the doors open for everyone else—for this top-tier membership. On Saturdays, executive members can enjoy a 30-minute head start, with early entry at 9am instead of 9:30.
The shift technically started back on June 30, when Costco first rolled out the new hours. But until now, there was a grace period, meaning Gold Star and Business members could still slip in early without much hassle. That leniency has ended. Moving forward, if you don’t have an executive membership, you’ll be waiting outside until regular opening times.
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The updated times reserved exclusively for executive members are Monday–Friday 9-10am; Saturday 9-9:30am and Sunday 9-10am.
Regular hours remain unchanged after those windows. Costco also extended Saturday closing times for everyone, bumping the warehouse shutdown to 7pm starting July 5.
Executive membership costs $130 per year, compared to the $60 standard Gold Star option. In exchange, members get all the usual Costco benefits plus extras like a 2-percent annual reward on purchases, discounts on Costco services and now, coveted early shopping access.
For frequent Costco shoppers, especially those who dread battling weekend crowds, the new perk could be worth the upgrade. Less congestion in the aisles, shorter checkout lines and first dibs on popular items give Executive members a real edge.
Costco clearly hopes this move nudges more people toward its pricier membership tier. Considering how fast warehouses fill up, those extra quiet minutes in the morning could feel like the ultimate luxury.