Get your sister-in-law to buy you a Costco gift card. One of the secret Costco hacks is that you can show a Costco gift card to gain entry to the store if you don't have a membership card. Same goes for buying discounted Costco gas ... the pump will take a Costco gift card without requiring a membership card.
Can you pay for gas and stuff from the store with another card so you don't have to keep reloading the gift card? Does the gift card need a certain balance to use at the pump or store? Was thinking of a friend getting me a card and keeping $5 on it.
Sorry - we've really hijacked this thread!!!!
I only have experience with Costco in Western Pa and Fremont Ca. In Western Pa, you can buy gas in one of two ways. As mentioned, if you have a gift card, you can insert and pump up to the balance of the gift card. The pump automatically shuts off when the gift card balance goes to zero. There is no option to continue to pump and pay using another credit or debit card. Everything else requires a membership card. If you have a membership card, you swipe that at the pump first and then have the option to pay with a Costco gift card, Costco credit card, any debit card or a *Visa* brand credit card. Costco used to be only gift card, debit card or Costco credit card at the pump but a few years ago, they signed a deal with Visa and started accepting all Visa cards (no Mastercard). Inside the store, you can pay cash, write a check, use a Costco gift card, use a Costco credit card, use a debit card or use a Visa card.
My daughter had an internship out in Fremont Ca Fall of 2021. As we all know, gas is crazy expensive out in Ca last fall. The Fremont Costco gas was like 40 cents a gallon cheaper than regular filling stations. Pumping 20 gallons saved you $8 !! That's when I learned about the Costco gift card working at the pump with no membership card required. I was sending her gift cards for $250 and when she got low, I sent her a new gift card. She was able to enter the store and buy items and fill up her tank. And the Costco out there was crazy busy inside and at the pumps. They had ~10 lanes with 3 pumps at each lane and I bet there were over 120 cars waiting in line to get gas. They even had little red and green LEDs high up on the pump islands and whenever a pump was available, the LED would go to green and you were encouraged to move around cars that were pumping to get to the vacant pump!
I also just read a story that in New Jersey, anyone could fill up at Costco (no membership required). But Costco just changed the rules and announced that membership cards are now required in NJ to pump (my old stomping grounds). I wonder who pumps the gas at Costco in NJ? From what I understand, NJ and Oregon are the only states left that require attendant pumping (no self-serv).
