Costco Just Increased the Price of Two Food Court Staples

One of the best parts about shopping at Costco — besides the great deals on bulk products — is treating yourself to a tasty snack from the store's food court after you've finished shopping. Costco's food court is known for its low prices — especially the iconic $1.50 hot dog and 20-ounce soda combo. However, last week, 2022's inflation finally hit the food court.

Costco raised the prices of both its chicken bake and 20-ounce soda nationwide. The chicken bake, which used to cost $2.99, now costs $3.99, and the 20-ounce soda, which used to cost 59 cents, now costs 69 cents. While the prices only went up a dollar — or in the soda's case, 10 cents — Costco deal shoppers are not too happy with the change, with many people taking to social media to share their frustrations.

"Apparently @Costco thinks raising the price of the Chicken Bake from $2.99 to $3.99 is a good way to keep my business. We'll see," tweeted Zachary Krueger.

However, the good news is that the $1.50 hot dog combo will not increase in price, according to Costco's CEO Craig Jelinek. Additionally, Costco's membership, which costs $60 per year for the Gold Star membership and $120 per year for the Executive membership, will not see a fee increase this year.

And then there's the rotisserie chicken. Costco's rotisserie chicken has cost $4.99 since 2009 and is another item for which the price should stay constant. The reason Costco can keep the price of these pre-cooked chickens so low is that they have their own processing plant in Nebraska that helps cut costs. However, the retailer is currently under fire as an animal welfare lawsuit claims that Costco "neglects and abandons" its poultry used to make rotisserie chicken.

Even though Costco is committed to keeping its prices low, there are some staple items that you'll likely see go up in price (if you haven't already). In comparing Costco prices in July to the ones we reported on in February, there is a noticeable jump in most products.

A 2 1/2-pound bag of Kirkland coffee beans cost $12.99 in February, that same bag costs $15.49 today. In February, Costco's extra virgin olive oil cost $13.49, now it costs $17.99. This trend of products increasing a few dollars in price can be seen in other staples too — like bacon, butter, and minced garlic.

Those are just products made by Costco's in-house brand, Kirkland Signature. So, it's likely that name brand products at Costco also experienced a similar price hike — especially since grocery inflation is up 12.2% since the same time last year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Even with Costco's prices rising, club stores (like Costco, Sam's Club, and BJ's Wholesale Club) remain the best when it comes to prices. As all grocery stores are experiencing inflation effects, these club stores have been able to maintain lower rates, according to Numerator's May report. This also means that more people are choosing to shop at club stores to find better prices, despite having to pay a yearly membership fee.