Costco has launched a brand-new feature to its app that will change the way customers shop.
The warehouse-based retailer will now let its customers check if an item is in-stock at their local store before they make the trip to purchase it.
The ‘search warehouse inventory’ tool is in Beta testing and currently only available to select customers for the present.
The new feature can be found by clicking ‘warehouse’ on the bottom of the app’s homepage, and is situated between ‘account’ and cart.’
Customers are able to select their most convenient stores to be tracked, and the app will then show gas prices and a search bar to look up individual items.
Costco is work-shopping the new feature, which has been rolled out to some users for testing
The search bar allows users to search for products by name or even description.
Customers reported the new feature first appearing on their apps in June.
‘You can now search items from your local Costco warehouse in the Costco app!’ one excited member wrote on X.
The customer said they had been using the app for other purposes but was now excited to ‘see the actual warehouse prices to price compare too.’
However, others were less convinced by the app’s utility, and pointed out other gripes they would like the retail giant to address.
‘It will be interesting to see how accurate it is… I’m not holding my breath,’ one customer moaned on Reddit.
‘As someone who’s done inventory at multiple warehouses, I can assure you that not even the instore item counts are accurate. Much less the app,’ another agreed.
‘I hope this is accurate. Also would love it to tell me the location of something. Home depot is amazing, it will tell you the aisle and bay number of an item,’ a third wrote.
The app change comes as Costco hiked its membership prices for the first time in seven years.
The retail giant announced in July that it would be raising its standard membership from $60 to $65 and its executive level increased from $120 to $130 a year.
Costco said the rise will hit 52 million memberships, around half of which are the top level.
Costco membership allows customers to shop for discounted groceries and electronics in store.
It also gives access to services such as hearing tests and home insurance.
The new feature is being launched to some users of Costco’s own app
The new feature allows items to be searched, revealing if they are in stock at a local store
Many Costco fans had been expecting a rise in rates – since the retailer normally increases fees every six years or sooner.
Costco’s stock, which is up more than 37 percent this year, has been rewarded by investors who have been keen for membership price hikes.
In the three months ending February 18, Costco generated $1.11 billion in membership fees – almost 2 percent of its total revenue for the quarter.
It means Costco nets around $4 billion-plus a year from the fees – a figure that will likely go up with the increase.
