Cool chart reveals what the price tag code on your Costco purchases really means

Emily Shiffer
Mon, 08 Dec 2025 16:25:44 +0000
Costco, Costco clearance, Costco deals, Costco price, Costco price decoder, Costco price tag, Costco prices, Costco promotion, Costco purchases, Costco savings, Costco shoppers, Costco shopping, Costco price meaning

Shopping at Costco is all about getting the most bang for your buck. Buying in bulk is one frugal strategy to cut down on expenses for groceries and more. Plus, a Costco membership comes with tons of benefits besides deals on food and gas. And if you've ever shopped at the retailer, you might have noticed that Costco price tags have a number of symbols and codes on them.

Curious shoppers are right to investigate—because the price tags hold a lot of information about products besides just pricing. Costco devotees on Reddit decoded what Costco price tags truly mean —and when the price reflects a major deal.

@rossen.reports
Costco price tag SECRETS — find the hidden deals!

Price endings meaning

When shopping at Costco, the last two digits of the price spill a lot of information.

.99

Items that end in .99 at Costco are full-priced. This doesn't necessarily mean you're not getting a good deal on the item—but it doesn't indicate a further discount.

.97

If you see items priced ending in .97, this indicates the item is on clearance.

".97 is the indicator for a corporate markdown. Sometimes these are warehouse specific, or can affect multiple warehouses or even all warehouses in one region, but just because an item is marked down at one warehouse, does not necessarily mean it will be marked down at another warehouse," the moderator commented. ".97 pricing can also vary by warehouse - example: you may see one warehouse that has a $299.99 item marked down to $249.97, while another warehouse may have it marked down to $199.97. Asterisk PLUS the .97 pricing may mean that they’re trying to make room for a new model or that warehouse is trying to get rid of that product."

.00 and .88

If you see items priced ending in .00, this indicates it has been marked down by the store manager.

"Price ending in .00 (sometimes but rarely .88 depending on the warehouse) usually means that specific warehouse really wants that item gone and .00 is often the lowest possible price. But sometimes .00 is used for discounted display models or unopened returns)," the moderator added. ".88 is also used for pricing on certain Asian goods usually around Lunar New Year since the number eight is considered a lucky number in certain cultures. .00 tend to more rare finds and deeper discounts. You may see a price tag with an asterisk that has NOT and may NOT be marked down. They’re not mutually exclusive. And you may sometimes see .97 or .00 pricing WITHOUT the asterisk (until inventory is lower)."

.X9

Items that end in .X9, like .49 or .79 for example, indicate a promotion by the manufacturer. This usually indicates that the product is having a trial run in your Costco.

Costco price tag decoder. Image via Reddit/Olshansk

What symbols mean

There are three important symbols that have specific meanings on Costco price tags:

Asterisk

The asterisk indicates a few key things about the item you're about to purchase.

"Asterisk (also sometimes called 'Death Star' or 'Star of Death' signifies that the item is pending deletion and that specific item number will usually not be restocked in the near future at that specific warehouse, other warehouses may vary," they wrote. Depending on the item, a product with an asterisk MAY still come back at a later date."

They also explain that "this is commonly seen on seasonal items or food items that rotate on varying schedules. Items may also come back in a different iteration (different packaging, size change, or quantity), or for electronics - an updated model number. But if it’s a packaging, quantity, size change, or updated model number - it will usually get a new SKU / item number. So technically the original item number is pending deletion. An asterisk alone does NOT indicate a discount."

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Date on the Bottom

If you notice a date on the bottom of a price tag at Costco, it indicates the last time a price was changed.

Green Tag

The green tag on items in Costco typically indicate the item is organic. However, many people noted it may not be a consistent thing within Costco' in different regions.

"I work in the Midwest region and I haven’t seen them being used (from merch pics or email communications). I think at one point we highlighted by hand (my location) but it looked tacky and stopped doing so," one commented. Another added, "The majority of the organic items in my warehouses do not have green price tags, and there are no consistent reasons where it appears to be used."

But another shared, "In Texas I see the green tag pretty consistently for organic."