Does Costco Sell Individual Gallons Of Milk?

A Costco membership comes with plenty of benefits, including lower prices when buying groceries in bulk. However, shoppers sometimes wish they could find individually packaged versions of items they won't use as quickly. For some lucky Costco members, that might be possible — at least for milk. As one such customer shared on Reddit, they were able to find single gallons of milk, priced at $3.89, for sale at their local Costco. Based on the comments, this development isn't necessarily new, but it may be limited.

One commenter states, "Every Costco in MN and WI that I've been to has had gallons of milk," while another person writes, "They've always sold 1 gallon milk at my Costco." Many other commenters have had the opposite experience, with one claiming, "I've never seen this at any of the Costco's [sic] near me." It appears that the availability of individual milk gallons can vary by Costco location. 

Whether you pick up individual gallons or buy in bulk, purchasing milk from Costco makes a lot of sense because it often has a longer shelf life due to the efficient way milk is shipped to the store and subsequently stored — as well as the high volume of sales that results in steady product turnover. Still, if you find that you can't make it through a bulk purchase of milk from Costco before it goes bad, even with the longer shelf-life, you may be in the market for individual gallons.

If it seems odd that a retail store would offer mostly bulk goods to shoppers, it helps to consider Costco's history. Costco actually started out as a wholesaler that worked with small businesses, at which point it was called Price Club. Eventually, the business began using the consumer membership model that it employs today but continued to provide items in bulk, unlike other retailers. Selling goods in bulk enables the chain to maintain affordable prices, while also offering shoppers convenience since they can easily stock up on commonly used household items. But is bulk buying really that convenient? 

When it comes to the classic mistakes people make when shopping at Costco, buying large quantities of perishable items without considering their shelf-life is a biggie. In fact, this exact issue was raised in the Reddit thread discussing the existence of single milk gallons in the store. As stated by a commenter, "I buy a lot of things from Costco but I can't buy the milk because I can never finish 2 gallons in my family."

To find out whether your nearest Costco sells individual gallons of milk, your best bet is to contact that location directly, as it isn't easy to tell which locations keep them in stock. You can also visit Costco's Same-Day website to search for specific products to have them delivered, if available.