We checked the prices and it turns out Costco is much cheaper than Amazon Prime
(Costco is 19% cheaper than Amazon Prime.Business Insider/Hayley Peterson)
We compared prices between Costco and Amazon Prime to find out which retailer offers the best deals.
It turns out that Costco is the cheapest by a landslide, with an average discount of 19% on items where there was a price discrepancy.
To determine which retailer is cheaper, we went to a Costco store in Richmond, Virginia, and checked prices on 19 items including vacuum cleaners, a flat-screen TV, Bose bluetooth speakers, printer ink, a Dyson fan, a food processor, laundry detergent, shampoo, and Brita pitcher replacement filters, among other things. Then we compared what we found to Amazon's advertised prices on the same items.
The companies offered the same deals on three items — a Ninja blender, Sonicare electric toothbrushes, and a Vizio sound bar.
Costco was cheaper than Amazon on 15 of the 16 remaining items. Price gaps ranged from $19 on a Vizio flat-screen TV to more than $150 on a Powerstroke pressure washer.
The total basket at Costco was $500 cheaper than on Amazon.
It's important to note, however, that Amazon offers some of the items we compared — including Dove shampoo, Tide detergent, and Swiffer Sweeper dry cloths — at more competitive prices in different package sizes.
(This Vizio TV cost $879.99 in Costco and $898 on Amazon at the time of our price check.Business Insider/Hayley Peterson)
Both Costco and Amazon Prime charge membership fees.
A basic Costco membership costs $55 annually, while Amazon Prime's membership costs $99 per year.
While Costco offers cheaper prices on most of the items we compared, there are many perks to Amazon Prime that Costco doesn't provide.
For example, Amazon Prime offers free two-day shipping on millions of items — including most of the items we reviewed. The service also includes free access to books, music, movies, and television shows.
Perhaps most importantly, it offers a vast selection of brands and sizes for most items, whereas Costco offers only one or two brands for many products.
For example, the only food processor that Costco offers is an 11-cup Cuisinart processor with an accessory case.
Amazon offers dozens of food processors of all different sizes and brands, many of which are cheaper than the Cuisinart processor.
So Amazon may be the better option for customers who are picky, want the convenience of two-day shipping, or want items from a brand that Costco doesn't offer.
Some items listed are sold on Amazon’s website by a third party. Amazon doesn’t have control over the pricing on those items.
Here are all the products where we found a price discrepancy.
(Business Insider)
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