U.S. consumers are starting to be choosier about where they spend their dollars.
They’re holding back on impulsive buys, scrutinizing pricing more closely, and more often wondering if the items in their carts are worth the price.
The burden on family finances is high.
KMPG surveyed 1,544 U.S. consumers and found that 93% had higher cost of living than a year ago. Fifty-two percent said they were tracking expenses more carefully, while 31% said they had cut food spending or struggled to pay for groceries.
Meanwhile, a March 2026 McKinsey survey of 4,989 grocery consumers found 60% of respondents said getting good value for money had become more important. More than half said they were buying less on impulse, 47% were buying more private-label products and 43% were more careful comparing prices.
That would appear to make it a challenging atmosphere for a firm that costs people an annual fee just to buy there.
Instead, Costco (COST) is selling more.
The warehouse giant reported net sales of $23.70 billion for August, up 9.9% from $21.56 billion a year earlier.
It sold $297.3 billion worth of merchandise for the complete fiscal year.
And those numbers may be telling us something broader about American shopping.
Consumers aren’t just buying less. They’re becoming more selective about where and how they spend, switching brands, buying in bulk and gravitating toward retailers they think can make household budgets stretch further.
Those habits are a perfect match for Costco’s unconventional business strategy.
Cash-strapped consumers are changing how they grocery shop
The typical American grocery store journey is becoming a study in trade-offs.
In the past three months, 51% of consumers said they limited their impulsive buys to save money, according to McKinsey’s Grocery Consumer Survey (March 2026).
Forty-seven percent were purchasing more private-label items, 43% were leaning more heavily on discounts and 43% were comparing costs more closely.
Another 35% were postponing purchases.
And particularly relevant for Costco, 34% said they were buying in bulk.
The data demonstrate that consumers are not reacting to increased household costs by simply purchasing less of everything.
They are shopping differently.
In its 2026 retail forecast, Deloitte agreed. According to the company, four in 10 Americans now shop on a budget, and higher-income families are following suit. Nearly 70% of Deloitte-surveyed retail executives said trading down and surfing value channels are structural changes, not just inflation-related.
That’s an important distinction for Costco.
The company’s appeal isn’t built around running a sale every weekend.
Its strategy encourages users to pay either $65 yearly for a normal Gold Star membership or $130 for an Executive membership and in return guarantees access to items at affordable costs.
Costco promotes its business concept as delivering brand-name products at rates “substantially lower” than those available from traditional wholesale or retail suppliers. It also distributes private-label Kirkland Signature items in areas ranging from groceries and coffee to clothes and detergent.
Related: Costco makes major mistake with new delivery service
Those two qualities bulk buying and private label align very well with what customers say they’re doing to save money.
And private labels are becoming more and more popular.
According to data by Numerator, 99% of U.S. households bought private-label items. And Kirkland Signature, in particular, is well-recognized by consumers: 92% of those polled who bought Kirkland products identified it as the private label for Costco.
In other words, the economic situation that is causing problems for many businesses could also be reinforcing some of the habits that led to the creation of Costco.
Maria Korneeva / Getty Images
Costco sales reveal where consumers are still spending
Costco’s August stats make it hard to ignore that customer change. Net sales were up 9.9% to $23.70 billion for the four weeks ending Aug. 30. Same-store sales grew 8.4%.
Excluding the impact of fuel costs and foreign-exchange moves, comparable sales rose 5.4%, including 5.6% growth in the U.S. And Costco did it despite a calendar quirk working against them.
Labor Day is a week later in 2026, which Costco projected would shave just under 75 basis points off August’s total and comparable sales growth.
August wasn’t just a strong month one time.
Net sales in July were up 10.7%. Sales in June were up 10.6%. Sales in May surged 14.5%.
For the full 52-week fiscal year, Costco reported net sales of $297.3 billion, up 10.2% from $269.9 billion a year before.
That increase is especially fascinating when combined with what people are saying about their finances.
KPMG’s U.S. consumer survey found that 54% of respondents expected to spend more on groceries, while planned discretionary spending continued its multiyear decline. More than half were keeping a closer eye on costs.
A separate KPMG survey of U.S. consumers found that 83% expected to spend more on groceries than a year earlier. Nearly 80% of parents surveyed attributed their higher back-to-school spending to rising prices rather than buying more items.
That is an important distinction.
Spending has gone up, but consumers aren’t suddenly feeling flush. Households are spending more, prices are higher and they are also more price conscious.
But there’s more than inflation at work here, as seen by Costco’s adjusted comparable-sales growth. Excluding fuel and currency impacts, its fiscal-year comparable sales grew 6.6%.
Costco’s digital expansion is another hint.
Comparable sales in August were up 17.9% on a digital-enabled basis and 20.9% for the fiscal year.
Thus, the classic Costco concept drive to a warehouse, exploring the aisles, and purchasing large bundles is becoming less tied to the actual shopping excursion.
That may provide Costco with another avenue to acquire spending from more choosy customers without losing the value offer that lured them into the membership ecosystem.
Costco’s biggest advantage may be getting shoppers to commit
There’s another reason the customer narrative at Costco is different from that of a traditional supermarket.
Its consumers have already paid to be there to shop.
That minor difference seems to have a big impact on the way people buy.
Numerator’s 2026 loyalty study indicated that retail memberships were related with far higher levels of expenditure and shopping frequency.
The figures from Costco were especially stunning.
Numerator found executive members spent 20.4% of their total retail expenditure at Costco, compared to 11.1% of Gold Star members.
On average, executive members spend $4,629 a year at Costco, according to U.S. News & World Report, more than double the $2,252 spent by regular members.
They also shopped at Costco an average of 36 times a year, against 21 visits for Gold Star members.
This doesn’t show that membership itself causes the extra expenditure; it’s possible that heavier Costco consumers are just more inclined to opt for the Executive tier.
But it does show just how entrenched Costco can become into a household’s buying patterns if customers feel the membership is worth the money.
That matters in the current environment.
McKinsey found that 71% of supermarket shoppers chose lower, daily constant pricing versus frequent promotions with higher usual costs.
That desire seems quite consistent with the Costco concept. The warehousing chain doesn’t require customers to feel rich. It requires customers to think that paying for access, purchasing in bulk, and picking items like Kirkland Signature ultimately saves them money.
So the August figure from Costco shows more than just another healthy month of retail sales.
The comments come as Americans indicate they are cutting down on impulsive purchases, checking costs, buying more private-label goods, and purchasing more things in bulk.
Costco happens to sit at the intersection of all four behaviors. Consumers may be watching their wallets more carefully.
The interesting thing about Costco’s current data is that for many families, managing their wallets seems to be providing them more reasons to purchase at Costco, not less.
Related: Costco kills Kirkland Signature beer line members loved
