Have some gripes with your local Costco? You may be among the unfortunate shoppers that frequent some of the worst Costco locations in America. According to a new Reddit thread, there are certain warehouses that simply take the cake when it comes to an awful shopping experience. From crowded aisles to crowded parking lots, crowds seem to be the major deciding factor for a nightmarish shopping experience.
Redditors chimed in by nominating some of their local Costcos as the chain's worst locations across the country, and their fellow shoppers' upvotes revealed that many agree these locations are very frustrating to shop at. If your local Costco didn't make the list (yet), be grateful for the free samples and relatively safe parking lot.
The Costco in Bellingham, Wash., kicks off the list of worst Costco locations. And according to one local, the place is always crowded.
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"Just south of the Canadian border, so lots of traffic from British Columbia to buy cheap dairy and gas," says the person who nominated the location."It is in a town full of retired and work-from-home, meaning it is busy almost any time you go from open to close. No difference on the weekends."
A constantly crowded and chaotic Costco can't be a pleasure to shop at, and folks in Marina Del Rey, Calif., know that well.
"The store itself is fine but the Marina Del Rey, CA location has a Costco Gas Station AND an In-n-Out in one tiny parking lot. Chaos reigns," said one shopper. The gas station's proximity to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) makes it a popular spot to refill rental cars before drop off, a contentious fact for local Californians. And the popular burger chain that attracts crowds of locals and tourists sure doesn't help. "Went to that In-N-Out a few months back, that parking lot was WILD. Almost died several times trying to park and leave my car," another person commented.
Indeed, Costco shoppers in California have it rough, with two more locations on the worst Costco rankings. Alhambra and Roseville is also mentioned for its overcrowded situation.
"I almost got run over in the parking lot once. Oh and the stampede over the free samples. Never again," someone said of the Alhambra location, while another person agreed: "Last I remembered, almost everything here is the more expensive organic version of produce and meats."
As far as Roseville's Costco goes, an insider confirmed that even the company knows this warehouse is too popular for its own good: "Can confirm I worked there for 8 months and the store was nicknamed the monster in the company. We broke the single day sales number two weekends in a row this past holiday season at like 3.2 – 3.5 million. In a day! Yeah Roseville you crazy."
In the South, a Huntsville, Ala. location made the list, in a seemingly a stark contrast to the beloved Costcos in nearby Georgia and the rest of the region. "I went there on a wednesday afternoon, thinking it'd be a quick in and out. I was so so wrong. Felt like a saturday afternoon in there," said one person, which checks out since it's the only Costco in northern Alabama, as another Redditor pointed out.
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"I went there recently when visiting family and was taken aback by how run down the place was and how not-nice the Costco employees there are. I am more disappointed than anything, really. I expect more of BOTH huntsville and Costco" yet another person griped.
Portland, Ore., makes the list for its Costco location near the border with Washington state. Seemingly, these Costcos near state lines are uniformly problematic, as they get traffic from both states.
"Because it is so close to WA and Portland doesn't have sales tax while WA does, the parking lot and lines aren't just full, they are full of people loading large screen TVs and other major purchases. We stopped in for something and left without buying anything because it was pure chaos," said the shopper that nominated the location.They also added that they had shopped there with "two friends who had never been to a Costco and it traumatized them! We had to show them our normal local Costco later so they didn't think they were all that bad."
Though some Redditors praised the other Oregon Costco locations—Tigard and Hillsboro—Portland's warehouse remains a cursed place.
And Portland and L.A. aren't the only major cities that have terrible Costco locations. The warehouse in Brooklyn, N.Y., made the list as well, though New Yorkers on the thread are debating if the Industry City location is worse than the warehouses in Queens and Harlem. The proclivity of Instacart shoppers at New York City locations can make the experience even worse.
Though not ranked as the worst, the popular Costco location in Hawaii's Maui, near the airport, was also flagged as a problematic one.
"Tourists buying things for their trip because they are staying in a Condo/rental with a kitchen. Buying cheap beach gear to use while they are visiting so they don't have to pack it on the plane, etc. Buying stuff to bring home as their trip ends. Most of whom are completely unaware of their surroundings either because of selfishness or just overwhelming sensory inputs," one Redditor shared. "Then you've got the locals, many who work 2 or more jobs to make ends meet, often with large families and Costco is one of the few places on the island that doesn't jack the price of things up exponentially, plus they sell things that can easily be split among several families. So yeah, it's a real study in chaos theory."
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