If you love shopping at Costco as much as I do, chances are you’ve been asked to upgrade to the Costco Executive Membership.
I never thought we spent enough money at Costco to justify paying the additional membership fee. However, with a growing family to support, lately we’ve been spending a lot more money there.
Related: How To Save Money On Groceries
I checked our recent credit card statements and our average Costco bill is $350 per month, about half our monthly grocery budget. After our last trip to Costco, I took the Executive Membership brochure home to see if upgrading was worth the extra cost.
Costco Executive Membership
Executive Members receive a 2% reward on most of their annual Costco purchases, up to a maximum of $750 per year. Here’s how the rewards are calculated based on spending:
| Monthly spending | Annual spending | Annual reward |
| $200 | $2,400 | $48 |
| $400 | $4,800 | $96 |
| $600 | $7,200 | $144 |
| $800 | $9,600 | $192 |
| $1,000 | $12,000 | $240 |
| $2,100 | $25,200 | $504 |
| $3,125 | $37,500 | $750 (maximum) |
You’ll earn rewards with most purchases at Costco, however there are a few exceptions including gas, alcohol, tobacco, pharmaceuticals and membership fees.
Your reward coupons are mailed to you along with your annual renewal notice. You can redeem the coupons toward most Costco products, except for the ones mentioned above.
Executive Membership Fee
The Executive Membership upgrade fee is an additional $55 for Business or Gold Star Members. This amount is pro-rated based on the number of months remaining on your current membership. At your next renewal, you’re billed a total of $110 plus taxes for the Executive Membership.
You can upgrade to the Executive Membership by stopping by the membership counter at Costco, or by calling their toll-free number at 1-800-463-3783.
Additional Benefits
New members can earn 1,500 Aeroplan miles when they sign-up for the Costco Executive Membership. You can also take advantage of the following membership perks:
- Low rates on residential long distance, home phone and internet through Primus Canada
- Save up to 25% on car rentals with AVIS or Budget
- Emergency Roadside assistance
- Real Estate program – cash rebates and savings for every purchase, sale, legal closing and home inspection
- Competitive mortgage rates
- Preferred rates on home and auto insurance
- Preferred rates on life and health insurance plans
Final Thoughts
After crunching the numbers, if we upgrade to the Executive Membership we should be able to get an annual rebate of $84 based on our annual spending at Costco. Since the Executive Membership costs $110 a year, our total membership fee would be about $26 once we cash in the rebate. That’s less than half the cost of the regular membership.
Saving $30 a year isn’t anything to get excited about, but some of the additional benefits might be worthwhile. Plus, if we don’t earn enough of a rebate to cover the cost of the upgrade ($55), Costco will refund us the difference.
It seems like a no-brainer for us to upgrade to the Executive Membership the next time we go to Costco. Of course, it’s important that we don’t use the rebate as an excuse to waste money buying things we don’t need.
Do you shop at Costco? Is the Executive Membership worth buying?
