The Surprising Reason Costco Sales Keep Growing Year After Year

Costco Wholesale Corporation's October 2025 international retail sales reached $21.75 billion, an 8.6% increase, YOY, from $20.03 billion. Tip Ranks on Nasdaq provides U.S. context; while April 2025 retail sales, across store brands, expanded by 0.1%, YOY, Costco boosted sales figures by 6.4%. The brand accomplished this through good old-fashioned customer loyalty. People appreciate how Costco has developed quality relationships with suppliers and logistics firms to maintain on-time deliveries of high product volume with pricing that can have narrow and even negative profit margins. Costco can implement this strategy because of its recurring subscription membership model, where people pay an annual fee to have the privilege of shopping there. This brand has 74.5 million active subscription members with global renewal rates of 90.5%. Although membership fees don't even account for 2% of the company's overall revenues, these almost pure profit dollars fuel nearly 90% of Costco's operating income. 

Costco offers two personal membership tiers as well as business memberships. As of December 2025, the personal Gold Star Membership costs $65 for two household membership cards, while the executive membership costs $130 for two people. With the executive option, cardholders receive 2% rewards on purchases annually, along with a $10 monthly credit for online purchases or ones using the delivery/pickup Instacart service. Executive members can shop during exclusive hours and receive additional benefits on Costco services. Nasdaq noted how 34.5 million households (46% of the total membership) are executive members. This group accounts for about 73% of Costco's sales.

Shoppers can find bargains at Costco, including in-demand food products for under $5. In November 2025, Chowhound highlighted a three-pound Kirkland Signature rotisserie chicken for $4.99, two pounds of strawberries for $3.99, and Kirkland Signature baguettes, two-count, for $4.99. The brand's best-selling item isn't food or drink, however: It's toilet paper (followed by rotisserie chicken). According to The Globe and Mail, Costco sells a billion-plus toilet paper rolls annually, bringing in revenue of nearly half a billion dollars. In December 2025, Costco sold toilet paper for $26.99 for 24 rolls, while, in comparison, Charmin sold 24 rolls of ultra-soft tissue for $35.49 on Amazon. Plus, many shoppers appreciate how Costco toilet paper is Forest Stewardship Council-certified, meaning it comes from trees in responsibly managed forests. In 2021, when COVID's Delta variant peaked, and a driver shortage existed, The New York Times reported how Costco chartered three ocean ships to make sure that enough toilet paper and other essentials were available on their shelves. Talk about a way to build customer loyalty!

It never hurts to compare options, though, such as the quality of perks between Sam's Club and Costco. At Sam's Club, club memberships for two members of a household cost $50, and, if desired, up to eight additional people can get a membership for $45. Plus Memberships cost $110. Membership prices are slightly lower than Costco so, if shoppers are satisfied with store prices, this could be a better value.