Costco membership fees increase for first time since 2017

new York
CNN
—

It’ll soon be more expensive to get your foot in the door at Costco. But the good news is that your hot dog is still $1.50, at least for now.

Costco announced Wednesday that the retailer will raise membership fees by $5 to $65 per year in the United States and Canada. It’s the first time in seven years that Costco has raised membership fees.

Additionally, Costco’s Executive Membership rate will increase by $10 to $130 per year. But those members will soon be able to earn a maximum of $1,250 in rewards per year, up from $1,000 currently.

The company estimates that 52 million members will be affected, just over half of whom are executive members, Costco said.

Annual membership fees have been one of Costco’s biggest profit-generating areas, helping it offset expenses to keep its prices low. Last year, Costco earned $4.6 billion in revenue from membership fees, an 8% increase from 2022.

The price hikes also come as Costco, like streaming companies, has taken more steps to ensure fewer people take advantage of other customers’ subscriptions.

Costco’s hikes, which take effect Sept. 1, come more than two years after its main rivals, Sam’s Club and Amazon, raised their membership fees.

On Wednesday, Costco also reported that its net sales increased 7.4% for the five weeks ended July 7 compared with last year.

Costco shares jumped more than 2% in after-hours trading following the news.