Big Changes Are Coming To Costco In 2025

Travel to any of the Costco locations outside of the U.S., and you'll find some very different stores. You'll find wine sampling, unique items on food court menus, larger-than-life clothing sections, and even some fresh seafood sections. Pretty neat, right? Looking ahead, it seems as though there are going to be some big changes that will make U.S. Costco stores look a little different starting in 2025. Unfortunately, though, we're not going to be able to tell you that wine tastings are coming stateside.

We will, however, be able to tell you that Costco's plans for 2025 are something of a mixed bag of good and bad. Some of the proposed changes have been met with excitement, but others? Not so much.

While there's no doubt that the many benefits of shopping at Costco are going to keep a lot of customers coming back, there are some things that you'll need to be forewarned about. If all goes according to plans, there are going to be some big changes coming to the food court, to product lines, and perhaps most shocking of all, to one massive section that is going to be disappearing from the Costco store floor. Are any of the proposed changes going to be a dealbreaker for some of its customers, or will 2025 be a good year for Costco fans?

Perhaps surprisingly, Costco does not have a presence in all 50 U.S. states. As of this writing, there are still three states that don't have any Costco stores: Rhode Island, West Virginia, and Wyoming. A 2024 bid to bring a Costco to Rhode Island ended up falling through, so how are things shaping up as we begin 2025?

We know a few things about Costco's plans for expansion in 2025, but we should start by clarifying that the chain's fiscal year started September 1, 2024, and ends on August 31, 2025. So it is already four months into its operational plan for 2025. For its fiscal year, Costco is expected to open 19 new U.S. locations and 10 international stores. 

Seven new locations have already opened during the first quarter. The new stores that are next in line — and the first ones in 2025 — include two in California, with locations in Brentwood and Highland bringing the total number of California stores to 142. Texas is also getting two more stores — in Weatherford and Prosper — for a total of 45 stores. The two others that have been confirmed are Genesee County, Michigan (for a total of 18 stores in the state), and Sharon, Massachusetts. That will bring the total number of Massachusetts stores to eight. Although there has not been any confirmed movement on bringing Costco to the final three states, don't give up hope: Maine only opened its first store in 2023.

E-readers like Amazon's Kindle and other devices are getting more popular among readers, but if you look forward to picking up some new reading material as part of your regular trips to Costco, we have some bad news for you. Costco has announced that it's going to be getting rid of book sales.

There are some caveats here. As of this writing, Costco representatives say that books will still be stocked during the end-of-year holiday shopping rush, and several months after the initial announcement, Costco backtracked just a bit to say that books would be staying at around 100 locations. The decision to get rid of books in the overwhelming majority of locations seems to be a financial one. Company officials say books take up a lot of valuable space that could be used for more profitable merchandise. The book section also requires more effort from employees to maintain. It's also worth noting that this isn't entirely new: As of 2022, Alaska and Hawaii Costcos no longer carry books.

Some industry experts think the change represents the loss of one more avenue to get physical books into people's hands. Others suggest the move might drive more traffic to independent bookstores, which would be a great thing. Publishing industry analyst Thad McIlroy told USA Today, "It really meant a lot to the industry that Costco was a strong outlet ... It's a really tough time to be a publisher, regardless of your size. So having something like this kick you in the face when you're down is not a good thing."

There are plenty of discontinued Costco food court items that we'd like to see make a return, and in a way, there's a big one coming back in 2025. In 2013, customers found that Coca-Cola was out and Pepsi was suddenly in. Now, though, it seems as though Costco and Coca-Cola have come to a new agreement that will see another switch coming. 

What happened in the first place seems to be an interesting story: In a nutshell, the 2013 swap was made out of necessity. The chain is famous for its rotisserie chicken as well as its beloved $1.50 hot dog combo, which hasn't changed in price since 1985. If the cost of that hot dog and drink had risen with inflation, it would cost about $4.40 today. In order to keep the price the same, the more affordable Pepsi was swapped in. 

It's unclear just when food courts are going to see the change back to Coke, but with a new deal in place, it's possible there's going to be another consequence. It's no secret that many customers have taken to social media to complain that the soda fountains at Costco are pretty awful, notorious for dispensing soda that's too watery, too syrupy, or not carbonated enough. The hope is that maybe quality will improve with the switch, which might end up being a total win even for those who are part of the roughly one third of the population who prefers Pepsi.

Costco made major headlines in 2024 when it raised its membership fees for the first time in years. It seems as though the hike was only the first part of the wholesale club's plans to change how membership works. In late 2024, it was announced that membership card scanners were going to be installed at store entrances. The idea was that only members would be allowed inside (along with guests who came with them), and officials stressed that a photo ID would also be required for entry. 

In other words, if you're one of the many people who share a membership among a group of friends, neighbors, or coworkers, you're going to be out of luck. The practice of membership sharing has been on the rise since in recent years, and official statements from Costco say that the change is being done to ensure only members receive the club's benefits. They also suggest that it might help get people through the checkout lines faster: Everyone's already shown their membership cards by that point.

Scanners started being installed in 2024, with promises that more would be coming over the following months. Just when they're going to be showing up at various warehouses isn't clear, but you've been warned. And yes, Costco has confirmed that memberships will be needed to purchase items at its food courts, too.

In late 2024, Costco customers started noticing something different at the food courts in some clubs. Some of the regular tables were being replaced with high tables that could only be used while standing. It seems as though this change is slowly being rolled out to more and more clubs, and it's likely to continue into 2025. 

The idea seems to be a space-saving one, as we all know that Costco's food courts can get pretty crowded. But it's possible this is one idea that seems better on paper than in reality. As more customers find themselves faced with standing-only tables, more problems are becoming apparent.

Some Redditors note that standing tables have simply become another place for garbage to be piled, while others complain that the taller tables are useless if you have younger kids. Others have raised concerns about accessibility, and although it seems as though not all tables are going to be replaced in all food courts, the switch has been enough to ruffle some feathers. It's worth mentioning, though, that many customers like the change, saying that standing tables take up less space at crowded food courts, making it easier to move around, and are useful when grabbing a quick hot dog before continuing on your way.

When it comes to the warehouse chain's bakery items, muffins are such a fan favorite that copycat recipes for Costco's chocolate muffins are out there for when the craving strikes but you're not quite ready to make a trip to the store. Looking ahead to 2025, though, it seems that there's going to be a big change made to the chain's muffins. (Copycat Costco almond poppy seed muffin recipe at the ready!)

The change was explained in a Reddit post showing a sign posted at a Costco location. The sign indicated that the store now would be offering muffins in eight-packs in lieu of the old practice of selling two six-packs that allowed you to mix and match flavors. The post also noted that new muffins would be a smaller size. Redditors quickly did the math to find the new muffins would be 58% more expensive when comparing the price per ounce. It goes without saying that especially in the wider landscape of rising food costs, this wasn't received well.

Food labels are complicated, and in the last days of 2024, the Food and Drug Administration made updates to its labeling requirements that mean there's the potential for sweeping changes that include Costco's Kirkland Signature products. In a nutshell, certain standards must now be met in order for a product to be labeled as "healthy." Some things — like sodium, sugar, and saturated fats — have new limits imposed on foods that can be promoted as healthy, while there are other guidelines on how foods bearing the "healthy" label need to be made from certain ingredients like fruits, vegetables, or dairy. 

Changes are likely coming over the course of the next three years, and it's speculated that Costco (along with other retailers that offer house brand products) will be overhauling some items to comply with new guidelines. While that might sound like it's an unconditional win that's going to make it easier for customers to make food choices based on ingredients and nutrition, there could be an unintended side effect.

Although it's too early to tell just what these changes are going to mean, some experts have raised concerns that the new label guidelines haven't addressed the traditionally higher cost of healthy food. Will the necessity of changing established products to meet federal guidelines lead to increased prices? Possibly.

Costco can be pretty secretive about new products, leaving it to faithful customers to find something new and then alert fellow shoppers. In the last month of 2024, that's exactly what happened when customers found that bottles of a Kirkland Signature branded cognac had hit the shelves. Some shoppers almost immediately started lauding the product as being better than Hennessy, so we're keeping our fingers crossed for more pleasant surprises in the coming year.

At the time of this writing at the start of the new year, Costco shoppers have already started spotting new products on the shelves. That includes Nutrius Body Mist, an iHome smart mirror, Hobie polarized sunglasses, Bridgestone Premium Golf Bags, and Staheekum boots. 

We'd also say that it's a safe bet that many more products are going to be announced over the course of the year ... or they might just show up at a warehouse near you. Just look at past years: In 2023, Costco added a number of bakery items, and in 2024, fans were pleasantly surprised to find that Costco had become one of the retailers selling Whataburger ketchup. There's no telling what the new year will bring.