Sometimes you leave Costco and feel like you nailed the savings of the century. Other times it can feel like you don’t know where your money went — and that’s usually because you’re buying fresh food.
What dry food and pantry staples last the longest at Costco? I poured through tons of online reviews, Reddit threads, and more to find some of the best and smartest Costco products you can buy. Here are 10 of the most recommended Costco pantry staples I saw over and over again.
Chicken Stock
$11.99 for 192 oz
If you accidentally threw the bones of your rotisserie chicken away (or you’re just feeling too lazy to make your own), these prices make it easy to stock up on stock. It’s about 6 cents an ounce here, and at Walmart, you’re looking at 9 cents an ounce for an inferior product.
Pasta
$7.99 for 8 lbs
Costco’s pasta deals are basically what a store like Costco is for. You can score 8 pounds of dry Barilla pasta, for example, for eight bucks, which comes out to something like 65 servings (or far more, if it’s a side dish). That’s a really cheap plate of food.
Coffee
$23.99 for 3 lbs
Dry coffee is cheap at Costco. Depending on how you make your coffee, you could be looking at 60 to 70 cups of coffee from a $24 container.
Olive Oil
$22.49 for 3 L
The best thing about Kirkland’s olive oil isn’t the price, which is great compared to nearly every other retailer that sells olive oil. This stuff is high-quality, Italian olive oil, and you may not do better for a price like this.
Pure Vanilla Extract
$13.99 for 16 oz
Vanilla extract is crazy expensive. 16 ounces will usually run you something like $35 or more anywhere else except Costco, but this place is special. If you bake, this Costco pantry staple is a godsend.
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Cereal
Prices Vary
If you’ve got a hungry family of cereal eaters (or you’re me), you go through a ton of cereal, fast. Costco’s got great deals on most name-brand cereal, selling mondo, 27-ounce boxes in two packs for around $10.
Rice
Prices Vary
Though not all Costcos sell dried beans, you can always find affordable rice in bulk, like jasmine rice at $28 per 25 pounds and basmati rice at $25 per 20 pounds.
Spices
Prices Vary
Spices are oddly enough one of the most expensive things you can buy. All of those nice spices in the grocery store with the matching branding? Those things are pricey. You can stock up in bulk at Costco for cheap, especially with deals like two-packs of cinnamon and black pepper.
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Honey
$14.79 for 5 lbs
You can bring home five pounds of Kirkland wildflower honey for under $15 here. That’s big, compared to places like Target where a 12 ounce bottle of honey is almost $4 alone.
Pet Food
Prices Vary
Your pet has to eat, too! Costco’s dog and cat food deals are hefty, and thanks to the bulk, you won’t need to stock up any time soon after you buy it. You can find some Kirkland dog food, for instance, for a dollar a pound.
More Costco stories on Cheapism
- 15 Early Black Friday Finds at Costco You Don’t Want to Miss — Black Friday is around the corner, but at Costco it’s already underway.
- Costco’s $1.50 Hot Dog Combo, AriZona Iced Tea, and Other Cheap, Inflation-Resistant Grocery Favorites — Here are seven inflation-proof groceries that have thankfully stayed relatively affordable while many other grocery prices have skyrocketed.
- 10 Discontinued Costco Food Court Items That Fans Miss the Most — Costco items have come and gone, leaving devoted fans pining for nostalgic food court faves.
