The Hidden Downsides Of Buying A Refrigerator At Costco

Costco is a great place to purchase plenty of things at a discounted rate. The warehouse has a plethora of must-have household items under $5, and there's that luxury cut of meat you should always buy when you are at Costco. But purchasing big-ticket appliances like refrigerators from Costco might be more of a pain than purchasing at other places. The selection at Costco tends to be more limited, the delivery services aren't as good, and there aren't as many extended warranty options.

Costco has plenty of great products, but its refrigerator options are much more finite when compared to a specialty store like Best Buy. For example, if you were to search for 'French door refrigerators" at Best Buy, 315 different options would pop up, all varying in brand, make, and model. In comparison, if one were to do the same search at Costco, only 102 options would show up, and that includes items that are out of stock. This lack of choices is also why you should think twice before you buy a microwave at Costco. Other stores also have more of a selection of the types of refrigerators available, like fridges with extra counter depth, quick access doors, and water dispensers.

Another downside to purchasing a refrigerator at Costco is its restricted delivery and installation services. It seems like when purchasing a fridge at the bulk shopping center, you get randomly assigned a delivery date that is pretty annoying to change. Compare this to Home Depot, which has refrigerators available for same-day delivery. To be fair, the selection for same-day delivery is much smaller, but that isn't even an option at Costco.

Finally, the biggest downside to purchasing a refrigerator from Costco is its lackluster warranty options. Our research shows that when you purchase appliances from Costco, a 2-year warranty is included. That may sound impressive, until you realize that other retailers honor the manufacturer's warranty. The clearest example is if you were to purchase a Samsung refrigerator at Home Depot as opposed to Costco, you would have an up to 10-year warranty on parts, which is five times longer. Considering the average lifespan of refrigerators is around 10-12 years, the Costco warranty doesn't seem sufficient.