The Most Overpriced Frozen Entrees At Costco, According To Customers

The Costco freezer aisle offers an overwhelming variety of frozen entrees that provide shoppers with convenient and quick meals at bulk prices. Many customers confess to stocking these items for emergency meals on a busy weeknight or for their regular dinner rotation. While many Costco frozen entrees get high paise, like Kirkland Signature Cauliflower Crust Pizza and Kirkland Signature Italian Sausage and Beef Lasagna, others have garnered very poor reviews.

Customers posting about disappointing frozen products on Costco's website and Reddit mention entrees that used to be good, but are no longer worth it since the recipe seems to have changed and is now made with lower quality ingredients or simply unappealing. While some products are polarizing, with customers reporting they love and purchase an item regularly and others saying they couldn't even finish the box, other Costco entrees seem to be unanimously loathed. 

We've compiled a list of the frozen entrees most discussed as not being worth the price, to help shoppers make the most informed decision when searching for low-cost and low-effort entrees. Here are the most overpriced entrees at Costco, according to customers.

To compile this list, I scoured Costco's website and Reddit for customer opinions on frozen entrees. Items included either received 3.5 stars or lower on Costco's website, with customers indicating they do not recommend the purchase. Alternatively, they were mentioned frequently in Reddit threads, with users commenting the item was overpriced or not worth the money. I have done my best to capture the breadth of reviews available, while keeping in mind that tastes and products may vary regionally. I also visited my local Costco in Cranberry, Pennsylvania, to gather accurate pricing as of the publication date, and make sure items listed are regularly available.

The Philips Crab Cakes at Costco are a packaged version of the ones sold at Philips Seafood in Baltimore, Maryland. Many posts from Reddit users suggest avoiding this product, saying that even the chain restaurant version is not worth buying. According to Maryland natives, Philips Seafood is an overpriced tourist trap. 

People who have purchased the crab cakes say they bought them on sale, but certainly wouldn't pay full price. At $27.99 for a box of six, many customers say the price simply isn't worth it, describing the flavor as fishy and not reminiscent of crab, and the texture as oily. Some people say you're better off just purchasing crab meat and making your own for the price of the packaged version.

Philips Crab Cake Minis are a smaller version of the same product often available around the winter holidays. These get absolutely no love, with a 2.3 star rating on Costco's website and multiple people commenting that they are the worst product they've ever purchased from the warehouse. They describe the texture as mushy or soggy, saying the mini crab cakes fall apart when picked up.

Another product most customers agree is not worth purchasing is the 4-pound box of Pilgrim's Crispy Wings. These are sold at Costco in two different flavors: garlic parmesan and honey BBQ. Neither flavor comes recommended by Reddit users. On Costco's website, the honey BBQ flavor receives 3.4 stars with reviewers saying the package came with broken bones and missing chunks of meat, making the product feel like it is made from poorly raised chickens. 

Others say they could not get the wings crispy even after trying multiple cooking methods. This isn't surprising as some comments describe the skin as thick, flabby, and reminiscent of chewing on leather.  Posts from Costco and Reddit mention a preserved taste and rubbery texture, likening the meat to deli ham, and recommend forgoing the included sauce altogether. Currently, this will set you back $18.99 a bag, and reviewers agree they wouldn't purchase it again even on sale.

The chicken pot pie from Marie Callender's comes in an eight-count box at Costco for $12.99, but customers don't seem to view this as a deal. They say they are willing to purchase a box on sale when the price per pie is less than $1, but not at full price as the Costco version is smaller with a poor ratio of crust to filling. They also note that when purchasing a box of eight pies, they get tired of them and end up throwing them away after they've been in the freezer for too long. 

Another frequent complaint is the salt level of the pies, with many people saying they can't enjoy them due to the high amount of sodium. Issues with the recipe don't stop there. Many people report that Marie Callender's has changed the recipe for these pies and they now find the crust gluey and no longer able to brown, the filling to be lacking in gravy and meat, and the gravy that is present to be watery and tasteless. Reddit users echo this, concluding that the pies just aren't worth the money now. Customers on Marie Callender's website give the product 2.6 stars and beg the company to return to the old recipe.

With a plethora of options for breaded chicken in the Costco freezer aisle, shoppers are definitive about which items are worth the purchase and which to leave on the shelf. With only 3 stars on Costco's website, the verdict on the Kirkland Signature Chicken Breast Chunks is clear. Customers say they are inconsistent, way too salty, barely breaded, rubbery, and even woody. Many assert the product has changed and now the chicken is gristly or tough and the breading falls off, with much of it at the bottom of the bag.

Reddit users are known for their frugal grocery hacks, and most recommend skipping the Kirkland Signature 4-pound bag at $18.15, and instead opting for the Just Bare Lightly Breaded Chicken Breast Chunks at $14.99 for 3 pounds, saying the chicken is better quality and the Kirkland brand is overpriced. 

To emphasize their point that these chicken chunks have decreased in quality and are no longer worth the money, reviewers also point out changes based on the nutritional information on the packaging. One notes that the sodium content has changed from 530mg per serving to 750mg per serving. Another claims the chicken chunks are smaller, but with 10 more calories and 1 added carbohydrate per serving.

According to customer reviews, Crazy Cuizine's promise of "restaurant quality at home" for the Mandarin Orange Chicken does not deliver. Costco reviewers give this chicken 3.1 stars online, often saying there is too much breading and not enough chicken. The people who are able to find chicken in the breading don't enjoy the texture or look of the meat, calling it weirdly stringy. Other reviews say that the sauce is not worth using as it is too sweet and has a bad aftertaste. 

Some Reddit users agree that this product is worth buying on sale, but the sauce isn't anything special. At $17.89, many say they can feed a family with this box by adding rice and vegetables, which is cheaper than takeout. However, in the same thread, they offer ways to doctor the sweet sauce by adding soy sauce, chili oil, lemon, red wine vinegar, or sesame oil. If you want to make this into a meal, more money and effort are required than just cooking the chicken in the box and tossing it in the sauce.

The frozen El Monterey Chicken and Cheese Taquitos get mostly favorable reviews on Costco's website, but customers on Reddit tell a different story. They say the texture is mushy and unpleasant and the filling contains very little chicken. One customer compared it to canned dog food and another suggested making your own taquitos from ingredients found at Costco, like large tortillas, frozen chicken, Mexican cheese blend, canned refried beans, and hot sauce instead. 

Interestingly, the unfavorable reviews on Costco's website were posted in the last few months, a sign that these taquitos could be a casualty of cheapening ingredients rather than raising prices. One reviewer from just two months ago states that the chicken in the taquitos tasted more like fish and was very chewy. Another says they took these to a party and were horribly embarrassed after the other guests complained about how flavorless they were. While these may be tempting at $14.89 for 30 taquitos, if most of them get thrown away, the value simply isn't there.

The Beecher's mac and cheese in the Costco freezer section is a polarizing item among customers. With 3.5 stars on Costco's website, it sits right on the line of potentially being either good or bad. The most prevalent complaint is the texture of the sauce, which customers describe as mealy, grainy, or powdery. They also say it's bland even after adding extra seasoning at home. 

Other reviews on Reddit discuss inconsistency in the quality of this product, noting some batches are terrible and others are great. Ultimately, those who buy the product do so on sale, as at the full price of $14.79, it's a bit of a risk. Some customers note that there used to be a sharpness or even some spice to the sauce, but that seems to be lacking in newer batches, making the sauce taste bland.

The Kirkland Signature chicken bake is another item with mixed reviews. People love the version at the food court for $4.99, served hot from the pizza oven with crispy caramelized cheese on top, and have high hopes that the frozen version will scratch that itch at a moment's notice from home. However, at $14.99 for a box of six, most have been left disappointed as the frozen chicken bake is smaller and doesn't hold a candle to the one bought fresh at the food court.

Many customers on Reddit have issues with the cooking directions for this product, saying it doesn't heat well in the microwave so the chicken becomes wet and mushy, whereas in the oven it turns out dry and hard. Again, customers complain about inconsistency saying the chicken bakes changed during the Covid-19 pandemic and are now overly salty and dry.  Another notable difference between the frozen chicken bake and the one from the food court is the addition of green onions. Customers are split on whether or not this is an improvement.  Instead of spending money on this hit or miss product, some people suggest making your own chicken bake at home.

Like the chicken bakes, some people really like the Kirkland Signature Pepperoni Pizza, however, it is nothing like the fresh one you can buy from the food court for $9.95. At $14.39 for a pack of four, the frozen pies should be a steal. While some customers agree Costco pizzas are a bargain for stocking their freezer, others call it the worst pizza they've ever had. 

With 2.5 stars on Costco's website, many believe these aren't worth purchasing again, saying the crust is like cardboard and the rest of the ingredients have become low quality. Recent reviewers state that they used to purchase these pizzas regularly but have thrown them away after multiple disappointing experiences.

The biggest complaint seems to be the crust, which people say is not just bad but is so hard it tears up the inside of their mouths.  Reddit users recommend buying the Kirkland Supreme Cauliflower Crust Pizza instead at 11.99 for a two-pack, saying the taste is much better even if you are not counting carbs.

While some seem to like the flavor of the Tattooed Chef Organic Açai Bowls, customers complain that the packaging of this product has forced them to throw away most of the box. The smoothie-like açai blend topped with fruit and granola is served in a plastic bowl described as extremely fragile or brittle, and many customers discover half their bowls broken, making the product dangerous to consume. 

At $16.99 for a box of six, each bowl is $2.83. While this is much cheaper than purchasing the same product from a restaurant, when customers open the product, the look and overall experience doesn't seem to hold up to expectations. Not to mention the waste due to the packaging issues.

Reddit users are pretty clear that these are not worth buying, saying the flavor and texture are just bad and are not improved by the included toppings.  Some people say they enjoy adding honey to make the product sweeter, but others say the flavor of overripe banana overwhelms no matter what they add.