Costco is a membership-only wholesale superstore that employs more than 245,000 workers.The US-based company is known to pay its employees high wages, but yearly salaries and hourly pay vary depending on role.We used self-reported salary information from both PayScale and Glassdoor to take a closer look at what employees make, from entry-level cashiers to senior supervisors.Visit BusinessInsider.com for more stories.Whether cashiers and cake decorators or forklift operators and pharmacy technicians, Costco employees have been earning decent wages for years.Costco, a membership-only wholesale superstore with a 'cult-like following,' employs more than 245,000 workers and is known for providing perks to members along with benefits for its employees.Read more: Costco is raising its minimum wage to $15 as the war for talent rages onPrevious reporting from Business Insider shows Costco has consistently raised its starting rate, which is well over the national minimum wage of $7.25. Business Insider's Mary Hanbury reported a raise to $14 an hour from $13 in 2018 and another increase to $15 an hour in March. The most recent change allows Costco to compete with Amazon, which raised its minimum to $15 an hour last fall.To get a better idea of how much each type of employee in a Costco store makes, we looked at self-reported salaries for many roles on both PayScale and Glassdoor and ordered the positions from lowest to highest hourly pay. For some jobs, we found data from only one of the two sources.Because the latest increase was implemented very recently, some positions' salary averages we found may not reflect the new minimum just yet, as the self-reported data we looked at spans the past few years.While most hourly positions align with recent years' starting rates, some senior management roles — along with specialized positions such as pharmacy technicians — allow for some higher salaries (upward of $25 an hour).Keep reading for a look at employee salaries throughout a Costco Wholesale store:
Costco Wholesale Corporation operates an international chain of membership warehouses, mainly under the 'Costco Wholesale' name, that carry quality, brand name merchandise at substantially lower prices than are typically found at conventional wholesale or retail sources. The warehouses are designed to help small-to-medium-sized businesses reduce costs in purchasing for resale and for everyday business use. Individuals may also purchase for their personal needs.
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Costco's warehouses present one of the largest and most exclusive product category selections to be found under a single roof. Categories include groceries, candy, appliances, television and media, automotive supplies, tires, toys, hardware, sporting goods, jewelry, watches, cameras, books, housewares, apparel, health and beauty aids, furniture, office supplies and office equipment. Costco is known for carrying top quality national and regional brands, with 100% satisfaction guaranteed, at prices consistently below traditional wholesale or retail outlets.
Members can also shop for private label Kirkland Signature™ products, designed to be of equal or better quality than national brands, including juice, cookies, coffee, housewares, luggage, clothing and detergent. The Company also operates self-service gasoline stations at a number of its U.S., Canada, Australia, Japan, United Kingdom, Spain, Mexico, Taiwan, and Iceland locations.
Additionally, Costco Wholesale Industries, a division of the Company, operates manufacturing businesses, including special food packaging, optical laboratories, meat processing and jewelry distribution. These businesses have a common goal of providing members with high quality products at substantially lower prices.
According to Craig Jelinek, the Company's President, CEO and Director, 'Costco is able to offer lower prices and better values by eliminating virtually all the frills and costs historically associated with conventional wholesalers and retailers, including salespeople, fancy buildings, delivery, billing and accounts receivable. We run a tight operation with extremely low overhead which enables us to pass on dramatic savings to our members.'
Costco is open only to members and offers three types of membership: Executive, Business and Gold Star. Executive Members are offered additional savings on Costco Services such as auto and home insurance, Costco Auto Program, check printing, identity protection, payment processing and bottled water delivery. Executive Members in the U.S earn an annual 2% Reward (up to $1,000) on qualified Costco purchases. All types of membership include one free Household Card. Costco membership cards are accepted at Costco locations worldwide and online at Costco.com.
Business Members qualify by owning or operating a business, and pay an annual fee ($60 in the U.S.) to shop for resale, business and personal use. This fee includes one free Household Card. Business members may purchase up to six additional membership cards ($60 each) for partners or associates in the business.
Gold Star Members pay a $60 annual fee (in the U.S.), to shop for personal use. Individuals who don’t own a business may sign up for a Gold Star Membership. This fee includes one free Household Card.
Costco warehouses generally are open seven days per week for all members.
Costco is a Washington corporation, publicly traded under the Nasdaq ticker symbol 'COST', with its home office in Issaquah, Washington.
A more complete description of the Company and its business is contained in the Company's periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Key Information
Number of warehouses: | 773 (as of 5/16/19) |
Areas of operation: | 536 locations in 44 U.S. States & Puerto Rico; 100 locations in nine Canadian provinces; 28 locations in the United Kingdom; 13 locations in Taiwan; 16 locations in Korea; 26 locations in Japan; 11 locations in Australia; 39 locations in Mexico; 2 locations in Spain 1 location in Iceland 1 location in France |
Membership Data (as of 5/12/19): | 97.2 million cardholders 53.1 million households 42.1 million Gold Star 7.7 million Business 3.3 million Business add ons |
Warehouse sizes: | 73,000 to 205,000 square feet (average 145,000 square feet) |
Annual revenues (FY18 - Ended 9/2/18): | $138.4 billion |
Fiscal year end: | Sunday closest to August 31 |
Number of U.S. employees: | 163,000 full and part-time |
Number of employees (worldwide): | 243,000 full and part-time |