Costco Membership Cards Are Finally Going Digital

One of life’s minor inconveniences is that there are still plastic cards for almost everything: discount cards for the pharmacy and the grocery store, punch cards for the coffee shop, and of course your Costco membership card. And no matter how prepared you think you are, that mischievous thing always seems to float to the bottom of your purse, and then you’re inevitably digging around your bag and pockets while the rest of the line rolls their eyes impatiently as you search.

Well, this frustrating scenario is soon to be nothing but a distant memory: Costco membership cards are finally going digital. 

The new system is simple: All you have to do is download the Costco app, log in to your account, and access the digital membership card, which comes with a barcode that you simply scan at checkout. You can use the new digital card at any Costco warehouse, but not at gas stations (yet).

According to Business Insider, the move to digital might be part of a plan to appeal to a younger generation of grocery shoppers. Most people who shop at Costco are, of course, folks with families and houses that need to be stocked full of food. Costco is known for generally sticking with the same business model over the years. While other grocery stores have attempted to adjust to new technology, Costco has remained an analog stalwart. That’s why it feels so significant that Costco is making the small but meaningful switch to digital membership cards.

Still, the reason some people seem to love Costco so much is precisely because it’s remained the same reliable big-box store, never changing to please the trends. If that’s you, don’t worry, you don’t have to give up your plastic membership card. Just be sure to keep it somewhere it’s easy to find.