Is Costco’s New Executive Membership Worth the Price? We Tested It.

Other Costco stores in the New York City area are located in Brooklyn and Queens.

Costco’s revamped executive membership, which costs $130 a year, includes an exclusive hour of shopping on weekday mornings. The stores open at 9 a.m. on weekdays and Sundays for executive members and 10 a.m. for Gold Star and business members.

I normally have to circle the garage a few times to find parking, but arriving an hour earlier than the general public meant that there were plenty of open spots.

As we stood at the entrance, we joked about pushing past each other to get inside first. Clearly, there was no need to jostle for a better spot in line.

When I shopped at Costco in June, I encountered the usual long line outside the store.

Costco executive members get an extra hour of shopping in the morning on weekdays and Sundays, and an extra half hour on Saturdays.

In addition to extra shopping hours, Costco’s executive membership includes a $10 monthly credit on orders of $150 or more when ordered via Instacart or Costco’s same-day delivery service and an annual 2% reward of up to $1,250 on purchases.

When the line outside the store gets extra long, I’ve seen Costco employees scan people’s membership cards while they wait to allow everyone to enter the store faster. With a smaller crowd, there was no need, so I scanned my card myself.

The aisles were wide open without the usual crowds, and it felt much quieter without the usual sounds of rattling carts and conversation among shoppers and employees.

This earlier hour of store access also seemed well-suited for those who need a more sensory-friendly shopping experience.

Costco’s rotisserie chickens retail for $4.99 each and are known to fly off the shelves.

Because the refrigerated section is a smaller room, I’ve found it can take some extra maneuvering to reach the items inside when the store gets busy.

Only one or two checkout aisles were open for the early hour of shopping, and self-checkout was closed, but I didn’t have to wait at all before loading my items on the conveyor belt.

At the Manhattan location where I usually shop, the food court is almost always full of customers waiting for their orders. If I’d wanted to start my day with a $2.99 cold brew mocha freeze or $2.99 smoothie, it would have been a quick pitstop.

I finished my grocery shopping before the opening rush with the added perks of more plentiful parking, less crowded aisles, and shorter checkout lines — all before the store even opened to other members. To me, that’s worth the extra $65 per year.