How to cancel Costco Membership

Costco has one of the most consumer-friendly cancellation policies in retail. You can cancel any time and receive a 100% refund of your membership fee, no questions asked.

In person (recommended — fastest and gets the refund on the spot):

1. Go to any Costco warehouse (doesn't have to be your home club)
2. Visit the membership counter (usually near the entrance)
3. Tell the rep you'd like to cancel and request a refund
4. They void the membership and refund the full fee (Gold Star $65 / Executive $130) to your original payment method
5. Takes ~10 minutes

By phone: 1-800-774-2678, daily 5am-8pm PT. Refund issued to the card on file within 7-10 business days.

Online: Sign in at costco.com → Membership Renewal doesn't directly cancel — you have to call or go in person. Costco doesn't offer self-service web cancellation.

Executive Membership refund quirk: Executive Members ($130) get a 2% reward on purchases up to $1,000/year. When you cancel, if your 2% reward has been earned but not redeemed, Costco pays that out first, then refunds your remaining membership fee. They make this clear at the desk.

The 100% refund clause is genuine. This isn't pro-rated — even if you've been a member for 11 months and used the warehouse 50 times, you get the full year's dues back. It's Costco's confidence-in-product guarantee.

Don't cancel if you're staying. Costco's Executive ($130) vs Gold Star ($65) math: the extra $65 is recovered by the 2% reward if you spend $3,250+/year at Costco. If your annual Costco spend is over $3,250, Executive pays for itself.