For Costco fans, the members-only warehouse club is the place to go to get good deals year-round. But the bargain-hunting really heats up heading into Black Friday. That's when shoppers start to crowd Costco's aisles not only to land bulk items, from paper plates to bottled water, to stoke holiday parties, but also to scope out deep discounts on holiday gifts.
We talked to some deals experts to see just what Costco has in store this Black Friday and what's a good deal - and what's a dud.
Remember this going in: Costco is just giving us the dollar discount on items. Prices on the products are set by each individual store (or available to members online), so you will have to do some power comparison-shopping to see how hot the deal really is.
Online-only sale items are available beginning Thanksgiving through Cyber Monday. The physical stores are closed Thanksgiving and open 9 a.m. on Black Friday. Store-only deals are available Friday through Monday. (See which other retailers are open and closed on Thanksgiving Day.)
Here are some items to look for:
Xbox One S 500GB "Minecraft" bundle, $50 off. "If this deal hits $240, it will beat our predictions and be the lowest price we've seen," says Benjamin Glaser, editor of deals site DealNews.com. Microsoft's suggested retail price on this bundle is $299.
Dyson Ball Complete upright vacuum, $160 off. The personal-finance site NerdWallet.com cites this as a top bargain. Adds DealNews: "We didn't make any predictions about Dyson vacuums, but if this discount drops this model to $290 like we expect it to, it'll be the lowest price on this model we've seen." Dyson prices its Ball upright vacuums anywhere from $400 to $700, depending on the model.
Microsoft Surface Pro 4 bundle, $250 off. Again, NerdWallet points this out as a Black Friday bargain. Pay careful attention to what's included in the Costco bundle and the specifications. The Surface Pro 4 shown on Costco.com comes with an Intel Core i7 processor, 16GB of memory and a 256GB hard drive. Microsoft's current price on a Pro 4 with similar specs is $1,599, marked down from $1,799.
15.6-inch HP Pavilion 15t 1080p touch-screen laptop ($550 off; available online-only). Another bargain, according to NerdWallet. On HP's online store, Pavilion touch-screen laptops start at $849, but can double in price depending on upgrades.
Acer 14-inch 1080p IPS Chromebook bundle, $65 off. DealNews says if you're in the market for a Chromebook, this might be your package. "We predicted that Chromebooks would drop as low as $95, and while this particular one isn't that low, it's still the best deal we've seen for this model. This particular Chromebook has only dropped as low as $269 at other retailers, and those deals didn't include anything bundled with it. We're expecting this deal, which is bundled with an Acer wireless mouse, to be around $230."
Various televisions. According to NerdWallet, Costco will have a slew of TVs at highly competitive prices on sale during Black Friday weekend, including:
Vizio 70-inch class 4K Ultra HD LED LCD home theater display for $980.
Vizio 65-inch class 4K Ultra HD LED LCD home theater display for $690.
Samsung 65-inch class curved 4K SUHD smart LED LCD TV for $1,580.
Samsung 40-inch class 4K Ultra HD Smart LED LCD TV for $290.
LG 70-inch class 4K Ultra HD LED LCD TV for $1,100.
One Costco Deal to Avoid
Take a pass on the unlocked Motorola Moto G 4th Gen 32GB Smartphone for $55 off. "This deal will likely not meet our predictions for Android phones," says Glaser. "It is eligible for a mail-in rebate store credit, but you should look elsewhere for better straight-up discounts."
A final tip: If you're planning to charge your Costco purchases, deals experts say, think twice about which card to use. Some Visa cards are featuring up to 5% cash back at Costco.
Bob Niedt is an editor at Kiplinger.
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