If you’re not regularly taking advantage of the Costco price adjustment policy, you’re absolutely leaving money on the table. While most loyal Costco shoppers are already aware that they don’t price-match other retailers, they absolutely do offer internal price adjustments if the price of an item drops after you purchase it. Here’s everything you need to know to take advantage of this great, yet often forgotten, Costco perk.

First Off, What Is a Costco Price Adjustment?

A Costco price adjustment is when you buy something from the Costco warehouse (or online) only to have the price of the item drop later.

In this case, you’re eligible for a price adjustment and refund for the difference in price.

Costco is known to lower their prices often, especially around Black Friday and December in effort to keep pricing competitive with places like Best Buy, Target, and Walmart.

Be sure to take advantage of this policy moving forward and get some significant money put back in your pocket.

See Also: Skip the Membership: All The Stores That’ll Price Match Costco

How Many Days Do I Have to Get an Adjustment?

30 days.

You have 30 days from the date of your original purchase to request a price adjustment.

What If I’ve Gone Past the 30 Days?

According to several comments on this article, you might NOT be out of luck, especially if it’s just a week or two beyond the 30 days.

Specifically, “K Van” informed me that she actually got $500 back on a bedroom set that went on sale over 2 months after she purchased it.

Moral of the story…always ask politely and you just might get a price adjustment on items 30 days beyond your purchase date.

PRO TIP: PRICE ADJUSTMENT WORKAROUND

If for some reason Costco gives you grief about giving you a price adjustment you still have an option. You can simply return the item and purchase it again at the lower price.

Because of Costco’s liberal return policy, which pretty much gives you unlimited days to make a return (90 days for Electronics), it’s easy to just return the item and buy it again.

A scenario where Costco might refuse your price adjustment is with a cheaper TV that’s a slightly different model than the one you bought.

The Costco employee might decline your price adjustment request for this reason, so simply return your TV and purchase the similar model at the lower price.

Do I Need My Costco Receipt?

No.

If you have your original receipt, definitely bring it with you as it’ll make the transaction much smoother.

But if you lost your receipt, just visit the Costco customer service desk and give them your membership number and they can look up your purchase and get you your price adjustment that way.

Is the Price Adjustment Period 90 Days on Electronics?

Unofficially, yes.

I had a Costco employee at the returns desk tell me that they always prefer to do a price adjustment on electronics if it’s within 90 days of purchase.

He said they do this because it’s WAY easier than having a customer return a used item and rebuy at the lower price.

While not all Costco locations do this, it’s safe to assume that the majority do.

PRO TIP: LEVERAGE “MARKDOWN MONDAYS”

Mondays are a GREAT day to see if the price of something you bought has been lowered, allowing you to get money back via a price adjustment.

I had an employee let me know recently that many Costco locations offer substantial discounts on the fourth Monday of each month, an event often referred to as “Markdown Mondays”.

These days are dedicated to clearing out inventory, with significant price reductions on various items.

It’s also a great day to try and get some money back on previous purchases via their price protection policy.

Can I Get an Online Price Adjustment?

If you bought something from Costco.com and notice the price drops within 30 days, you can request a price adjustment.

To make it happen, you can either fill out this online form or call them at 1 (800) 774-2678.

You CANNOT go to the warehouse to get a price adjustment for something you bought at Costco.com.

You must use one of the two methods noted above.

Be aware that the price adjustment they’ll give you will be the online price and not the current warehouse price.

This is important to note as the online price is usually a little higher to make up for shipping costs.

Important Note: From the comments, shoppers were wondering when the online price adjustment period starts: Order date? Shipment date? Or delivery date?

I hit up Costco live chat and was told that the price adjustment period for online purchases begins on the order date.

See Also: 7 Ways to Essentially Get a $60 Costco Membership for Free

Can I Get a Price Adjustment via Live Chat?

Yes.

As of 2024, you can now get a price adjustment via live chat. I tested it out myself to verify that it works.

Keep in mind that this only works for purchases made on Costco.com.

To make it work, you’ll need to be logged into your Costco account and tell the live chat robot you “Want to get a price adjustment”.

The system will then pull up your recent order history and let you select the item you want to get a price adjustment on.

See screenshot above to see what it looks like.

If I Call for a Price Adjustment, How Will I be Paid?

Let’s say you bought a refrigerator off the Costco website, then notice a week later it’s being sold for $100 less.

You call them up at the above number (or fill out the form)…so how will they pay you?

I called Costco and asked and they said they will issue the $100 refund to your original form of payment.

Are There Any Item Exclusions or Limits?

According to the Costco rep I chatted with, “No”.

Specifically, he told me “No, we have a satisfaction guarantee on products. Worst case we have you return the item and repurchase it”.

Can I Get a Price Adjustment on Clearance Items?

According to Costco, Yes.

BUT…according to the comments section, your mileage may vary.

Much to her frustration, blog reader Sandy told me she was refused a price adjustment on clearance items.

So she was forced to go home and get the items, go back to Costco, and return them and then repurchase.

Anybody else had this problem recently? Seems like a terrible policy that causes shoppers nothing but frustrations.

Can I Get an Adjustment on a Rebate Offer?

This question came from Steven in the comments section.

His example was a TV that came with a $100 rebate offer 10 days after he originally bought it.

He was wondering if he could come back to Costco with his receipt and claim the $100 rebate offer.

I called Costco specifically with this question and was told they have no way of issuing a $100 rebate offer WITHOUT you returning and repurchasing the TV.

So unfortunately you’d have to return and rebuy the TV to claim the $100.

Can I Get a Price Adjustment on Tires?

Maybe.

No pun intended, but your mileage may vary on this.

According to this Reddit thread, if you buy a set of 4 tires at Costco and they go on sale within 30 days, you stand a chance of getting an adjustment.

But the original poster had to visit a different Costco than where he bought the tires, and talk to a couple employees at the customer service desk before they agreed to refund him the difference in price.

Can I Request “Cash Back” on My Price Adjustment?

Great question.

I had a Costco rep tell me “it’s up to the Warehouse to do the price adjustments. But as long as they approve it, I don’t imagine they will have issues giving cash back.”

So I’m guessing your mileage may vary but it’s definitely worth asking if you’d prefer cash to a charge-back to your credit card.

See Also: Employees Tell Me The Single Best Day to Shop at Costco

Ask the Reader: Have you ever taken advantage of Costco’s price adjustment policy? If so, how much cash did you get back and was it an easy process?

By Kyle James

Kyle James( Owner/Founder )

I started Rather-Be-Shopping.com in 2000 and have become a consumer expert and advocate writing about out-of-the-box ways to save at stores like Amazon, Walmart, Target and Costco to name a few. I’ve been featured on FOX News, Good Morning America, and the NY Times talking about my savings tips. (Learn more)