19 Impressive Costco Statistics [2023]: Revenue, Store Count, Trends, Facts, And Predictions

Research Summary. Costco Wholesale is a household name. The company operates a global chain of membership warehouses that carry quality, brand-name products at substantially lower prices than typical retail sources. To show the impressive reach of Costco, our data analysis team collected the following statistics:

• Costco has 584 locations in the United States and 848 warehouses total worldwide.

• Costco has 123 million members as of February 2023.

• Costco has 304,000 employees, with 203,000 of those working in the U.S.

• Costco generates $222.7 billion of revenue annually.

• Costco is the sixth-largest retailer in the world and the third-biggest in the US, behind Walmart and Amazon.

For further analysis, we broke down the data in the following ways:
Stores | Customers | Region | Trends

Costco Annual Revenue 2011-2022

Costco Company Statistics

In 1976, the company’s first location opened in San Diego. At the time, the company (then named Price Club) served only small businesses. After some trial and error, they realized they could achieve more business by also serving clients who were non-business members.

From there, the company began opening warehouse locations, becoming the first company to grow from $0 to $3 billion in sales in under six years. The Costco brand believes in maintaining simplicity, which is their key to success, as demonstrated by the following data:

• Costco operates 848 warehouses worldwide.

  584 of those locations are in the United States and Puerto Rico. Costco also has 107 locations in Canada, 29 locations in the United Kingdom, 14 locations in Taiwan, 18 locations in Korea, 31 locations in Japan, 40 locations in Mexico, 14 in Australia, four locations in Spain, two in both France and China, and one store each in Iceland, New Zealand, and Sweden.



• Costco grew by 9.2% from 2019 to 2020.

  This is consistent with past growth for the company. From 2016 to 2017, the organization grew by 8.7%. The following year (2017-2018), they grew 9.7%, and from 2018 to 2019, they grew 7.9%.

• Costco offers the highest pay in retailing, with workers averaging $20 an hour.

  Costco has consistently been praised for its treatment and compensation of its employees. Salaried employees can receive benefits after their first month of work, whereas full-time hourly employees can receive benefits after 90 days. Costco also offers a generous 401(k) plan.

• For this most recent quarter (FY2023 Q1), Costco reported net sales of $53.44 billion.

  This number compares nicely to $49.42 billion from the same time last year. Net sales for the organization have increased by 16% in 2022 to $222.7 billion compared to $196 billion in the same period in 2021.

• In 2021, the annual percentage change for Costco’s stock (NASDAQ: COST) was 18.43%, with the average stock price at $376.50.

  The stock’s annual change had not seen a low since 2016, when it experienced a decrease of 0.86%. The all-time high Costco stock closing price was $452.89 on August 16, 2021, but the average Costco stock price for the last 52 weeks has been $372.27.

Costco Store Statistics

Costco has stores across the globe, most of which are found in the United States, with Canada and Mexico as their second and third markets. New Costco locations are opened regularly, with new warehouses scheduled to open for the remainder of 2023.

Interestingly enough, Costco’s method of sales is significantly different from other stores in the retail space. For example, Costco does not advertise, tell customers where to find things, or even offer bags for their products.

Still, the company is among the most successful in the industry, often touted for how well they treat and compensate their employees. Consider these store statistics:

• Costco stores range in size from 80,000 to 230,000 square feet.

  The size of an average Costco store is 146,000 square feet

• In July 2021, Costco’s retail sales rose almost 17%.

  During its monthly review, the retailer reported net sales for July 2021 at $15.21 billion, up from $13.04 billion a year prior. The actual percentage increase was 16.6% from 2020.

• Its most popular item is Kirkland Signature Bath Tissue, of which Costo sells over a billion rolls per year, bringing in $400 million from this product alone.

  In second place comes Costco’s rotisserie chicken, from which the company makes around $30-$40 million annually. Bacon is the third most popular product, hot dogs the fourth, and gas the fifth most popular item at this major retailer.

Costco Customer Statistics

Costco is notorious for turning the experience of warehouse shopping into an enjoyable experience for customers. The company attracts loyal and affluent customers of all kinds, offering products beyond food and beverages.

These products range from diamond rings, gas, car products, wedding dresses, caskets, and more. Our data analysis gathered information regarding the wide variety of customers Costco serves regularly:

• The average Costco customer picks up to nine products resulting in a $114 per trip.

  On average, Costco shoppers take about 23 trips per year, visiting the wholesale club every two to three weeks. About 11% of the average Costco shopper’s spending happens at the retailer, which is on par with what the average person spends on Amazon.

• The typical Costco shopper in the United States is an Asian American woman between 35 and 44 years old who is married with a four-year degree (or higher) and earning over $125,000 per year.

  Costco’s next most popular age group is those over the age of 65. Hispanic and Caucasians are the next most popular races that typically shop at Costco. Those earning between $100k-$125k are second most common, with those earning $80k-$100k the third.

  23% of Costco shoppers have no college degree, 34% have an associate’s or bachelor’s degree, whereas 43% of Costco shoppers have advanced degrees. Finally, 54% of Costco shoppers have children, as compared with the 46% of shoppers who don’t.

Costco Regional Statistics

Costco’s worldwide headquarters are located in Issaquah, Washington, which is a suburb of Seattle. As of 2005, the largest Costco warehouse is located in Hillsboro, Oregon. However, this location was surpassed by a new warehouse in Salt Lake City, measuring 235,000 square feet.

The business has active warehouses across the United States, demonstrated by the following data:

• 46 out of 50 states have Costco warehouses for residents.

  Washington D.C. also has one Costco store. The states without Costcos include Maine, Rhode Island, West Virginia, and Wyoming.

• California is the state with the most Costco stores, offering 131 Costco stores to CA residents.

  Although in second place, Texas only has 33 Costco stores. In third place, Washington offers 32 stores to residents, with Florida (28), Illinois (23), and New Jersey (21) following.

Costco Trends and Predictions

As one of the most consistent retailers globally, Costco’s outlook for the future is positive. The competitive advantage stems primarily from having the lowest average markup in the warehouse club space.

Their membership renewal rate stands at just under 91% in the United States, allowing the company to generate recurring revenue from memberships and product sales. Some additional statistics point to their continued growth:/pgt;

Costco Membership Fee Revenue 2009-2020

• Costco’s e-commerce increased sales by 75.8% in a single quarter in 2021.

  Amazingly enough, this percentage increase doesn’t even include Costco’s third-party same-day grocery program, which was up 450% year over year in the same quarter. Costco’s most popular products in e-commerce included over the counter and pharmacy, garden and patio, small electronics, and health and beauty.

• In 2022, Costco opened more than 20 new stores and plans to open about 10 more in 2023.

  These stores are going in all over the world, with about half opening in the U.S.

Costco FAQ

1. What percentage of the wholesale club market does Costco have?

   Costco has 55.5% of the wholesale club market. This number has hovered between 52-56% throughout the past two years. Sam’s Club and BJ’s Wholesale come in second and third place, at 36.2% and 8.3% respectively.

2. What is the busiest Costco in the world?

   The Iwelei Costco on Oahu Island in Hawaii is the busiest in the world. Costco estimates that 1 in 4 residents of the island are Costco members, and with Oahu having a population of over 950,000, it’s easy to see why this location gets a lot of foot traffic.

   There are actually four Costcos on Oahu, but the Iwelei location rakes in more than twice as much in annual revenue as the average Costco location.

3. How much does one Costco make a day?

   One Costco makes $526,000 a day, on average. With the average annual sales per warehouse at $192,000,000 and 365 days in a year, the average Costco location pulls in over half a million dollars each day.

4. Why is Costco brand called Kirkland?

   Costco brand is called Kirkland because in 1992, when the private label was introduced, Costco’s corporate headquarters were in Kirkland, Washington. Costco moved its headquarters to Issaquah, Washington two years later in 1994.

5. How many people have a Costco membership?

   Approximately 123 million people have a Costco membership. That works out to about 68.1 million households around the world that have Costco memberships.

Conclusion

Despite its unlikely business model, Costco Wholesalers is a business that drives revenue and growth at an impressive rate. The organization has generated billions in profits and extreme customer loyalty as it continues to grow and innovate for the future.

This retail icon boasts members from celebrities to shoppers on a budget looking for the thrill of Costco’s ever-changing inventory. So it’s no surprise, based on this data, that Costco is a true competitor in the retail market — and here to stay for good.

Sources

1. NY Job Source. “Costco: Nation’s leading chain of wholesale club stores.” Accessed on August 19, 2021

2. Finbox. “Revenue CAGR (5y) for Costco Wholesale Corporation.” Accessed on August 19, 2021.

3. Costco Wholesale. “Costco Wholesale Corporation Reports Third Quarter and Year-To-Date Operating Results for Discal 2021.” Accessed on August 19, 2021.

4. MacroTrends. “Costco – 35 Year Stock Price History | COST.” Accessed on August 19, 2021.

5. MarketWatch. “Costco’s Sales for July Retail Month Rise Almost 17%.” Accessed on August 19, 2021.

6. Fox Business. “Costco’s top 5 best sellers in the US.” Accessed on August 19, 2021.

7. Insider. “Meet the typical Costco shopper, a 39-year-old Asian American woman earning more than $125,000 a year.” Accessed on August 19, 2021.

8. Numerator. “Costco Numerator Retailer Snapshot.” Accessed on August 19, 2021.

9. Costco Wholesale. “Warehouses By State.” Accessed on August 19, 2021.

10. Winsight Grocery Business. “Costco’s E-Commerce Explosion.” Accessed on August 19, 2021.

11. The Motley Fool. “This is Why 2021 Will Be Another Great Year for Costco.” Accessed on August 19, 2021.

12. Statista. “Revenue of Costco Worldwide From 2017 to 2021, By Region.” Accessed on March 2, 2023.

13. Costco. “Company Profile.” Accessed on March 2, 2023.

14. Costco. “Costco Wholesale 2022 Annual Report.” Accessed on March 2, 2023.

15. Costco. “New Locations Coming Soon.” Accessed on March 2, 2023.

16. Costco. “Costco Wholesale Corporation Reports First Quarter Fiscal Year 2023 Operating Results.” Accessed on March 2, 2023.

Author

Caitlin Mazur

Caitlin Mazur is a freelance writer at Zippia. Caitlin is passionate about helping Zippia’s readers land the jobs of their dreams by offering content that discusses job-seeking advice based on experience and extensive research. Caitlin holds a degree in English from Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia, PA.