Here’s how much you spend per minute while shopping at Costco

Costco might be known for giving their customers the most bang for their buck, but it turns out that you’re spending money with each minute you spend in the store.

Anyone who has been to Costco knows the feeling: You go to pick up specific items and end up leaving with a cart full of random things and a large receipt.

In a joint Instagram post, business news site Morning Brew and Phil Andrews of @maxinomicsmb, a YouTube channel that explores spending habits, revealed that from the moment someone walks into a Costco, they’re set to spend about $1.75 per minute.

Andrews explains that the average person spends about 37 minutes wandering around Costco, which will bring the shopper to spend about $64.75.

“It’s why food samples are in the back, taking at least 30 seconds to walk to,” he said, which leaves plenty of time for the shopper to get distracted and add something to their cart. “And with no signs to tell you where anything is, it becomes a bit of a treasure hunt.”

However, people in the comments admitted to spending way more than 37 minutes in the retail store, with one person quipping that they “spend 37 minutes in each aisle at Costco.” Another commenter said their family spends “at least 1.5-2 hours” in the store, and if Morning Brew and Andrews’ estimates were applied, that would equate to a bill of up to $210.

Andrews showed that between Costco, Target and Walmart, Costco had the longest “dwell time,” the amount of time that people wander around.

Part of that is due to the wholesaler not implementing curbside pickup or delivery, making shoppers spend time in the store.

“People pay to go in,” Andrews reminded viewers about Costco.

“Every square foot of floor space at Costco will do $1,900 in sales, 40% more than in 2019 — after adjusting for inflation,” he explained.

Anyone worried about Costco increasing the price of the soda and hot dog combo do not need to worry, Andrews says, because “that 50 cents is peanuts compared to the ten minutes your partner will spend wandering around while you eat it.”