We research, compare, and evaluate every product we recommend, and only describe a pick as directly tested when that is specifically documented. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. When you buy through our links we may earn a commission -- at no extra cost to you. Prices and availability verified May 19, 2026. Full disclosure.
Sol de Janeiro Brazilian Body Butter is $70.80 on the brand's website. At Costco, the same 354mL jar costs $24.99. That is a 65% discount on a product that is not on sale, not a knockoff, and not a smaller size. It is the same product, sitting on a warehouse shelf.
That number caught our attention, so we kept going. We compared 100 non-food, non-Kirkland-brand products at Costco against their prices on Amazon or the brand's own website. The results were consistent enough to be useful: Costco is not always cheaper, but when it is, the gap is often significant.
This is a data-driven comparison, not a "Costco is amazing" post. We will show you exactly where the savings are and where they are not, so you can decide whether a membership makes sense for your actual shopping habits.
How We Did This
We pulled 100 branded products across three categories: Health and Beauty, Home and Cleaning, and Electronics. No Kirkland-brand items were included because that is a separate analysis. No food items were included.
For every product, we normalized prices to the same quantity using per-ounce or per-unit math where needed. Brand price was taken from the brand's own website first. When a brand does not publish retail pricing, we used the Amazon listing price. All prices were verified in May 2026.
Savings percentages are calculated as: (brand/Amazon price minus Costco price) divided by brand/Amazon price.
The Top 20 Best Deals at Costco Right Now
1. Sol De Janeiro Brazilian Body Butter Cream (354mL)
Costco: $24.99 | Brand website: $70.80 | Savings: 65%
Compare Options
This was the single biggest gap we found across 100 products. At $70.80 on the brand site, most people treat this as an occasional splurge. At $24.99 at Costco, it becomes an everyday staple. If you use this product at all, this is the most straightforward win on the list.
2. Colgate Total Whitening Toothpaste (5-pack)
Costco: $14.99 | Amazon: $34.95 | Savings: 57%
Compare Options
You will use toothpaste every day for the rest of your life. Paying $3.00 per tube instead of $6.99 is the kind of compounding savings that adds up fast over a year. No coupon clipping required.
3. Crest Complete + Scope Toothpaste (5-pack)
Costco: $15.99 | Amazon: $34.95 | Savings: 54%
Compare Options
Same logic as the Colgate pick. If you prefer Crest over Colgate, you get almost the same savings percentage. Stock up and forget about it for months.
4. Sensodyne Pronamel Whitening Toothpaste (4-pack)
Costco: $14.99 | Amazon: $31.96 | Savings: 53%
Compare Options
Sensodyne commands a premium because it works for sensitive teeth. Costco cuts that premium nearly in half. At roughly $3.75 per tube versus $8.00 on Amazon, this is one of the most consistent deals in the oral care aisle.
5. Nature Made Vitamin D3 2000 IU (650ct)
Costco: $12.99 | Amazon: $27.12 | Savings: 52%
Compare Options
A 650-count bottle at $12.99 works out to roughly two cents per capsule. The same brand on Amazon is about four cents per capsule. Supplements are one of Costco's most consistent categories for per-unit savings.
6. Cetaphil Moisturizing Cream (32oz)
Costco: $14.99 | Amazon: $29.98 | Savings: 50%
Compare Options
Cetaphil is a dermatologist-recommended staple with a loyal user base. The 32oz tub at Costco is $14.99. The same size on Amazon runs $29.98. This one is a straightforward 50% saving on a product people repurchase repeatedly.
7. Perricone MD Cold Plasma+ Neck Cream
Costco: $49.99 | Brand website: $99.00 | Savings: 50%
Compare Options
Perricone MD sits at the luxury skincare tier. Half price at Costco is genuinely notable for a brand that almost never discounts. If this is already in your skincare routine, this is a significant find.
8. Centrum Silver 50+ Multivitamin (400ct)
Costco: $19.99 | Amazon: $37.98 | Savings: 47%
Compare Options
A 400-count bottle is a year-plus supply for most people. At $19.99, you are spending about five cents per tablet. On Amazon, that same tablet costs closer to nine cents. Multivitamins are a category where buying in bulk at Costco is almost always the right call.
9. Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser (40oz)
Costco: $14.99 | Amazon: $27.98 | Savings: 46%
Compare Options
Cetaphil lands twice in the top ten because Costco consistently bundles its most popular skus at strong per-ounce prices. The 40oz cleanser at $14.99 is the kind of purchase where you stop thinking about running out.
10. Neutrogena Makeup Remover Towelettes (125ct)
Costco: $16.99 | Amazon: $29.95 | Savings: 43%
Compare Options
This is a high-frequency use item. Forty-three percent off on something you go through weekly adds up to real money over the course of a year.
11. Philips Sonicare Advanced Clean Toothbrush (2-pack)
Costco: $69.99 | Amazon: $119.98 | Savings: 42%
Compare Options
Electric toothbrushes are one of the few electronics categories where Costco reliably wins on price. The two-pack at $69.99 means you are paying $35 per brush for a product Amazon prices at $60 per unit. Good for households with multiple users, or as a backup when a head replacement cycle ends.
12. Arm & Hammer Baking Soda (13.5 lbs)
Costco: $10.99 | Amazon: $18.53 | Savings: 41%
Compare Options
Baking soda is one of those products you use in a dozen different ways, cooking, cleaning, deodorizing. At 13.5 lbs for $10.99, you will have it on hand for a long time at roughly half the per-pound price of most grocery alternatives.
13. Lysol Disinfecting Wipes (4-pack, 380ct)
Costco: $13.99 | Amazon: $23.47 | Savings: 40%
Compare Options
380 total wipes for $13.99. This is a cleaning staple where the volume pricing at Costco beats Amazon's subscribe-and-save pricing in most cases.
14. Natrol Melatonin 3mg Fast Dissolve (250ct)
Costco: $8.99 | Amazon: $14.99 | Savings: 40%
Compare Options
A 250-count bottle of melatonin at under $9 is hard to beat. This is a pantry staple for light sleepers and frequent travelers. Stock it here.
15. Bose QuietComfort SC Headphones
Costco: $199.99 | Amazon: $329.99 | Savings: 39%
Compare Options
Electronics is the least consistent category in this comparison, but the Bose QuietComfort SC is a standout exception. A $130 savings on a flagship noise-canceling headphone is significant. Costco also bundles its standard return policy, which is more generous than most electronics retailers.
16. Waterpik Water Flosser Combo Pack
Costco: $79.99 | Amazon: $129.98 | Savings: 38%
Compare Options
The Costco combo typically includes the flosser plus a Sonicare brush or extra tips. At $79.99 for the bundle versus $129.98 for the equivalent on Amazon, this is a strong buy if you have been considering a Waterpik.
17. Dawn Platinum Dish Soap (90oz)
Costco: $14.39 | Amazon: $22.99 | Savings: 37%
Compare Options
A 90oz bottle of Dawn at $14.39 works out to about 16 cents per ounce. On Amazon, you pay closer to 26 cents per ounce. Dish soap is a permanent household need. This is a reliable bulk buy.
18. LG 86-inch 4K UHD Smart TV
Costco: $699.99 | Amazon: $1,099.99 | Savings: 36%
Compare Options
A $400 gap on a TV that sits in your living room for a decade is worth paying attention to. Costco's TV pricing tends to be strongest in the 75-inch-and-up range. Below 65 inches, the savings are less consistent. This 86-inch model is one of the better electronics deals we found in the full 100-item dataset.
19. Winix C909 Air Purifier
Costco: $159.99 | Amazon: $249.99 | Savings: 36%
Compare Options
The Winix C909 covers large rooms and includes a True HEPA filter. At $159.99 versus $249.99 on Amazon, this is a $90 saving on a product that many households are buying right now. Replacement filters are available on Amazon, so ongoing costs are manageable.
20. Ziploc Variety Bags (194ct)
Costco: $12.97 | Amazon: $20.05 | Savings: 35%
Compare Options
A 194-count variety pack at $12.97 rounds out the top 20 with a classic household staple. Not glamorous, but Ziploc bags are something every household burns through, and the 35% saving is consistent.
What About Instacart?
If you use Instacart to order from Costco, expect to pay a premium on top of Costco's already-low prices. Across the products we tracked, the average Instacart markup on Costco items was approximately 24% above the in-warehouse price.
That markup is not uniform. Clorox wipes were barely marked up at around 6% above warehouse price. Nature Made Fish Oil was marked up by approximately 57%. The pattern held: cleaning staples tend to see moderate markups, while supplements and health products are often marked up aggressively.
The practical recommendation: for supplements and bulk health and beauty items, in-store pickup is significantly better value than Instacart delivery. For last-minute cleaning supplies where convenience outweighs cost, Instacart is still an option, but go in with eyes open.
Categories Where Costco Wins Most
Health and Beauty is the strongest category in this dataset. Nine of the top ten deals are health and beauty items. Skincare, oral care, and supplements showed the most consistent per-unit savings, often 40% to 65% below brand or Amazon pricing. If this is your primary shopping category, the membership pays for itself quickly.
Home and Cleaning is a reliable performer for everyday staples. Dish soap, disinfecting wipes, baking soda, and storage bags all landed in the 35% to 41% savings range. The savings per purchase are smaller in dollar terms, but these are products you buy repeatedly throughout the year, so the cumulative effect is meaningful.
Electronics is the least consistent of the three categories. For most standard consumer electronics, Costco's pricing is competitive but not dramatically lower than Amazon. The exceptions are audio and large-format TVs. Bose headphones and the LG 86-inch TV both showed substantial gaps. If you are in the market for either of those specifically, Costco is worth checking first.
Is a Costco Membership Worth It?
The basic Gold Star membership costs $65 per year. The Executive tier is $130 per year and adds 2% cashback on most Costco purchases, which pays back the extra $65 if you spend $3,250 or more annually at Costco.
If you regularly buy five or more items from this list, the math is not close. A single purchase of Bose QuietComfort SC headphones saves you $130 on its own, which is two years of the base membership. A year's supply of Cetaphil, Centrum, Nature Made Vitamin D3, and Colgate toothpaste saves well over $65 compared to Amazon pricing.
The membership is not worth it if your Costco purchases are infrequent, if you lack storage space for bulk quantities, or if you primarily shop the food aisles where the per-unit math is different. But for health, beauty, and household staples, the case is strong for most households.
Get the Full 100-Item Comparison
The top 20 items above represent the best deals we found, but the full dataset covers 100 products with per-unit pricing, category breakdowns, and notes on which items to skip. Download the complete spreadsheet here:
Get the full 100-item Costco price comparison guide + tracker on Etsy
If you prefer a printable Costco shopping guide you can take into the warehouse, we have one available on Etsy:
Get the printable Costco Smart Shopping Guide on Etsy
FAQ
Is Costco or Amazon cheaper for household storage and pantry products?
Costco wins on household staples -- dish soap, storage bags, disinfecting wipes, and baking soda all came in 35% to 41% below Amazon pricing in our 100-product comparison. Amazon is more competitive on smaller-quantity purchases and specialty items where Costco's bulk sizing creates more waste than savings. For products you consume regularly in volume, Costco is consistently cheaper on a per-unit basis.
What products are always worth buying at Costco over Amazon?
Health and beauty staples are the most reliable Costco wins: Cetaphil moisturizer, Colgate toothpaste, Nature Made vitamins, and Centrum Silver all showed per-unit savings of 40% to 65% versus Amazon. Household consumables like Kirkland dish soap, Glad storage bags, and Clorox wipes are also consistent performers. These are the categories where the membership math is clearest.
Does Costco's bulk sizing actually save money for small households?
It depends on the product. Non-perishables with long shelf lives -- dish soap, storage bags, vitamins, toothpaste, paper towels -- are worth buying in bulk even for one- or two-person households because you will use them before they expire. Perishable food items are a different calculation: the per-unit price may be lower, but waste erases the savings. Focus Costco buying power on the health, beauty, and cleaning categories where expiration is not a factor.
