The Best Things to Buy at Costco, According to Our Taste Tests

Costco is huge. Even the smallest Costco is 80,000 square feet. And while browsing one of the chain’s warehouses is our preferred method of exercise, it’s not the most efficient way to find the best things to buy at Costco. Luckily, we have done a ton of taste testing and found the best Costco items to add to your grocery list. 

When we talk about the best Costco items, we’re talking about Costco brand items—labels like Kirkland, Milton’s, and La Terra Fina. We searched through all of our rankings and found the Costco products that scored the highest. Here they are for your perusal—it will take you a lot less time to read this list than it would be to even get to the Costco dip aisle. Here’s the best Costco food we’ve tasted so far.

Best Jerky

Kirkland Signature Turkey Jerky

Amazon

Flavored with a mix of tamari, vinegar, brown sugar, and spices, this Costco turkey jerky has a sweetness that pairs well with the savoriness of the meat. It’s extremely tender. In fact, it’s so tender that contributor Danny Palumbo questioned whether this actually counts as jerky in our ranking of the best turkey jerky. But, regardless, it’s a good, protein-packed snack. 

Read the full ranking of the best turkey jerky 

Credit: Merc / Amazon

Rating:

6.5/10

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Best Nut Butter

Kirkland Creamy Almond Butter

Costco

If you regularly eat almond butter in things like overnight oats, acai bowls, smoothies, or even simply on toast, then you should have this huge jar of reasonably priced almond butter in your pantry. “A scoop of Kirkland Creamy Almond Butter would thrive in any recipe that needs a bit of creamy nuttiness,” senior staff writer Jordan Myrick wrote in their ranking of the best almond butter. Costco roasts the almonds before blending them, so you get a good, deep flavor. And it’s 100% almonds.

Read the full ranking of the best almond butter

Credit: Ryan Martin / Costco

Rating:

7.5/10

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Best Bacon

Kirkland Thick Sliced Center Cut Bacon

Instacart

“Honestly, I’d probably eat clumps of sod if they were wrapped in this center-cut bacon from Costco,” managing editor Gwynedd Stuart wrote in her ranking of the best bacon. It really is made for wrapping. Use it to wrap scallops or dates or scallops or cheese-stuffed peppers or hot dogs! Anything! It’s just thick enough and just salty enough to add texture and flavor. 

Read the full ranking of the best bacon

Credit: Sarah Demonteverde / Sporked

Rating:

8.5/10

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Best Frozen Meatballs

Kirkland Italian Style Meatballs

Costco

Here’s one of the best things at Costco to buy to stock your freezer. These frozen meatballs taste like Italian sausage. They’re super savory and spiced just right. “There’s delicious pork flavor in every bite of Costco’s frozen meatballs, more so than any other meatball we tested,” Danny wrote in our ranking of the best frozen meatballs. They practically taste homemade. 

Read the full ranking of the best frozen meatballs

Credit: Ryan Martin / Costco

Rating:

9/10

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Best Maple Syrup

Kirkland Signature Organic Pure Maple Syrup

Costco

Costco makes the best, cheap maple syrup. If you regularly make pancakes or waffles, you need this Kirkland brand jug of maple syrup. It’s not fancy, but it’s full of rich, maple flavor. It’ll certainly do the job if you’re feeding a crowd of hungry kiddos.

Read the full ranking of the best maple syrup

Credit: Sarah Demonteverde / Costco

Rating:

9/10

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Best Pasta Sauce

Kirkland Basil Pesto

Costco

There’s a reason Kirkland pesto has such a dedicated fanbase. It’s incredibly rich and cheesy with bright pine nut flavor and a delicious base of fruity olive oil. “It’s not overloaded with garlic, which is a mistake a lot of people make when they make pesto,” Danny wrote in our ranking of the best jarred pesto. This just has a pure nutty, cheesy, oily, and herby flavor.” Find it in the refrigerated aisle! 

Read the full ranking of the best jarred pesto

Credit: Merc / Costco

Rating:

9/10

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Best Snacks

Kirkland Butter Toffee Cashews

Costco

Costco is a great place to buy office snacks in bulk. And these nuts are so good you can feel good about committing to a giant bagful. They will be eaten. “The candy-coated cashews are so buttery, so toffee-y, so crunchy. They taste like a carnival,” editor-in-chief Justine Sterling wrote in her ranking of the best Costco snacks. They’re equally good as a mid-morning snack as they are as a 4 p.m. pick-me-up.

Read the full ranking of the best Costco snacks

Credit: Merc / Costco

Rating:

9.5/10

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Best Margarita Mix

Kirkland Signature Margarita Mix

Amazon

This is one of the best deals you can find at Costco. You get two 1.75L bottles of Margarita mix per purchase. And the mix is really good! It’s citrusy without being too sour. It’s just sweet enough to take the edge off a measure of tequila. If you’re hosting a BBQ, this is definitely one of the best Costco items to buy for sure. 

Read the full ranking of the best Margarita mix

Credit: Ryan Martin / Amazon

Rating:

9.5/10

Sporks

Best Frozen Fried Shrimp

Kirkland Breaded Panko Shrimp

Costco

If you have room in the freezer, we insist you buy this big box of fried shrimp. They’re big and sweet, the breading is crispy rather than soggy, and the oil they’re fried in tastes fresh, like they came from a good restaurant kitchen rather than a grocery store’s cooler. Serve them as an appetizer or make them a meal—when you have 50 of these suckers in the freezer, the possibilities are endless.

Read our ranking of the best frozen fried shrimp

Credit: Merc / Instacart

Rating:

10/10

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Best Shrimp Cocktail

Kirkland Signature Shrimp Cocktail

Instacart

Ditch that ring-shaped shrimp cocktail platter with the itty-bitty shrimp, and buy this for your next party instead. Okay, Costco’s shrimp cocktail may not have the same aesthetic effect as a ring, but would you look at the size of those shrimp? They’re huge. And sweet. And flavorful. Even if you aren’t hosting a swanky little get together, this is the shrimp cocktail platter to buy if you like cold shrimp salads—we also wouldn’t judge you for just eating the whole thing for lunch.

Read our ranking of the best shrimp cocktail platter

Credit: Merc / Costco

Rating:

10/10

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Best Dip

La Terra Fina Artichoke & Jalapeno Dip

Instacart

We tasted all the Costco dips we could find and La Terra Fina Artichoke & Jalapeno Dip took the number one spot. It’s rich. It’s tangy. It’s briny thanks to the artichokes. It’s zesty and bright thanks to the jalapenos. “If you’ve had the artichoke and jalapeno dip from Trader Joe’s, this is similar but 100 times better,” Jordan wrote in their ranking. This is dip you can eat with a spoon. 

Read the full ranking of the best Costco dips 

Credit: Liv Averett / Instacart

Rating:

10/10

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