These Are The Absolute Worst Days And Times To Shop At Costco

I'm lucky. Usually, I can grocery shop during weekdays when even the most popular stores tend to be quiet. But it doesn't always work out like that. Sometimes life gets in the way and I end up in Walmart on a Saturday. Other times, I forget something important for Memorial Day or the Fourth of July. The last time it slipped my mind that we were one day out from a holiday, I arrived at Costco to lines that stretched all the way to the bakery section — seriously. As this was the only time in the week I had to shop, I had to grit my teeth, fight through the scrum, and reward myself afterward with the best of the Costco food court. That nightmare grocery run inspired an investigation into the worst days and times to shop at Costco, so we can all be more sensible in future as long as we remember what day it is.

As illustrated by my traumatic experience, the day before a holiday (particularly a holiday Costco closes for) will usually be very busy. Perhaps more surprisingly, the warehouse store also tends to be very busy the day after it was closed. It's no surprise that Black Friday is busy at a store that sells everything, but days like July 5 are some of the worst of the year to visit. Luckily, Costco doesn't close often, so this only applies to the day after New Year, Easter, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.

It's pretty much universally understood that weekends are bad at Costco. This is the only time many people have to do a big grocery shop –- they likely wouldn't be there when it's so crowded otherwise. Perhaps surprisingly, weekday evenings are also quite busy, with after work shoppers flooding in from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Mondays and Fridays can both be busy all day as families stock up for the weekend or refill the pantry for the work week. Mondays are worse than Fridays, however, as they're also restocking day at many stores. On Mondays, you might not be able to find the popular Kirkland products you usually rely on. In general, mornings are often busy during the week, as executive members use their new early shopping perk before groups of retirees and post school-drop-off parents come in for their groceries (this will vary somewhat by store). These are often quick stops, however, as people want to get on with their day. It might be a case of the store looking busy, but queues still move quickly.

New shopping hours for executive members had a positive effect on customer flow at Costco in 2025. With customers getting in and out early, there is now less traffic at many Costcos during busy hours. If you have open mornings and can afford $130 dollars a year, those 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. slots will be exceptionally quiet. If not, thank the early shoppers for freeing up the rest of the day.

Other quiet times are a little harder to hit. Insiders say Costco is almost empty after kick-off on Super Bowl Sunday, for example, but you have to time it well as the morning can be extremely busy. A slightly less limited (but still hard to plan for) tactic for avoiding crowds is shopping when it's raining. People don't want to go out when it's wet. If you don't mind driving in the rain, and aren't bothered by your groceries getting a little damp, then head to Costco on a gray day.

For something more regular and predictable, the best time to shop without crowds at Costco is Tuesday to Thursday, mid-morning to early afternoon. Exact foot-fall will vary by location, but you can look at the Popular Times graph and visit data for a specific Costco on Google Maps. Unfortunately, if you're in it for a free lunch, you'll be out of luck if you visit when it's really quiet. The best time to nab delicious Costco samples is basically whenever it's busy. But there's still those $1.50 hot dogs.