The $2 Costco Grocery I Buy Once a Week and Use Every Single Morning

Grocery prices are high, so finding ways to shop smart and stick to my budget is at the top of my to-do list in 2025. One of the ways I do that is by shopping at Costco. Buying in bulk requires a long-range budgeting strategy that’s a little different than clipping coupons from your neighborhood grocer. I’ve been a Costco member for over a decade, so I have experience stocking up on staples, anticipating sales, and knowing the label lingo. I’ve learned how to avoid impulse buys and stick to the products Costco sells at competitive prices. 

Usually bulk-buying means paying more upfront, but I’ve found a dependable item in Costco’s produce department that allows me to stock up without breaking the bank. There might not be a better deal in the entire warehouse than Costco’s three-pound bunches of Del Monte bananas. That’s just one reason why I buy them every — yes, every — week.

It comes down to cost and convenience. These bananas are sold in three-pound bunches for just $1.49. The number and size of the bananas in each bundle varies, but I usually find it contains at least eight medium bananas. That breaks down to just 19 cents per banana. (Trader Joe’s famously used to sell bananas for the same price, but increased it in 2024 to 23 cents per banana.)

Costco’s bananas are often sold slightly less ripe than those displayed at other grocers. For me, that’s a win; I prefer a slightly underripe banana for eating out of hand, so that gives me plenty of time to enjoy the fruit as it is before they’re too soft. 

With so many bananas in the bunch, it’s easy to designate a few for eating straight from the peel and others for breakfast, snack, and dessert recipes throughout the week. (One thing that I don’t worry about is how to store the bananas or what to do with them once they’re past their prime, because The Kitchn has done the research already.)

If you love to start the day with bananas as much as I do, the possibilities are practically endless. Peanut butter and banana is one of my favorite flavor combinations, so I’ll often make these peanut butter, banana, and granola wraps for breakfast or as an afternoon snack. Other ways to enjoy this flavor combination are in a peanut butter and banana smoothie, warm bowl of oatmeal, or as a sheet cake with waves of peanut butter icing.

Two-ingredient pancakes are quick and easy to make when you have a bunch of bananas on hand, or try these banana bread pancakes that are buttery and full of banana flavor. 

Thick slices of banana bread are also a welcome start to the day. The only trouble is deciding which recipe to make. There’s the classic banana bread loaf, one studded with chocolate chips, a recipe for pumpkin banana bread, and another for nut-lovers. 

Bananas aren’t just for the morning — they’re just as delicious for dessert. Serve banana pudding in a tall trifle dish or lovingly layered into bars. Bake a banana cake with cream cheese frosting for your next event or make a showstopping dessert like bananas Foster. And don’t forget that bananas are the star ingredient of the classic ice cream treat, the banana split. In the unlikely event that you need to stash a lingering banana in the freezer, here’s the best way to freeze the fruit for later.

Find it in stores: Del Monte Bananas, $1.49 for 3 pounds

What Costco produce do you buy on repeat? Tell us in the comments below.