Costco's New Checkout Tech Could Get You Out The Door In Just Seconds

If you've ever braved a Costco on the weekend or before a big holiday (heaven forbid both, a dreaded weekend before a big holiday), you know how long that checkout line can get. Self-checkout's no better, either. It's just as slow as the regular line, and sometimes even longer. But, according to the company's latest earnings call, Costco Wholesale is about to change all that. Soon, you'll be able to walk out all those cool Costco gadgets in record time.

First teased in 2025, the warehouse is expanding a new checkout approach designed to dramatically shorten the time it takes customers to check out. It lets shoppers scan products themselves while shopping the store and then complete the purchase at self-checkout. If Costco's executive vice president and CFO Gary Millerchip is to be believed, it could bring your final transaction time down to just about eight seconds. (Now if only they could do something about their one-way gas station lines.) The system is currently being piloted in select locations, with no set date for companywide expansion.

The feature will likely live in the Costco mobile app. As customers shop, they scan each item's barcode with their phone, building their cart digitally in real time. When they're finished shopping, they show a personalized code generated by the app to an employee or self-checkout station. There, the order gets verified and you're prompted to pay for it. Just like that, the system shifts most of the checkout work away from the register, so once you get there, all you have to take care of is the transaction.

It's not unlike the mobile checkout options already in place at other competitors such as Sam's Club. There, you can Scan & Go: scan items as you go, then pay directly through the app before leaving the store. The difference is that Costco's version still keeps an employee interaction at the end of the process to verify the purchase before you leave the warehouse. (Not all Sam's Clubs check receipts at the door anymore, and it's been that way for a couple of years now. Instead, they use AI-powered "seamless exit technology" that you walk through on your way out.)

While Costco hasn't announced when the pre-scan system will officially expand nationwide the positive feedback from early pilots suggests we could see the technology scaling sooner rather than later. Don't be surprised to see it being tested out the next time you're shopping Costco's discount electronics.