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These States Have the Best Costco Stores, According to Customers

FinanceBuzz surveyed over 5,000 shoppers to find out which states have the best overall Costco shopping experience.

By Josh Koebert

Updated Dec. 3, 2025

Between quality groceries in bulk, budget-friendly prices, friendly staff, free samples, and a beloved food court with unbeatable prices, it's no surprise that Costco has a legion of shopping loyalists. Though the feel of the warehouse chain tends to be consistent across many of its stores, as Costco insiders know, not all locations are created equal. But which stores have better experiences than others?

To find the best Costco stores in the country, our team at FinanceBuzz surveyed over 6,000 shoppers, asking them to rate their local warehouses on a 10-point scale across six different metrics: cleanliness, friendliness, stock, quality of samples, number of samples offered, and parking. Though most shoppers are happy with their Costco experiences, some locations and states fared better than others.

Key findings

Stores in Kansas had the highest average rating in the US. Kentucky and Georgia come in second and third, respectively.
The Costco locations in Meridian, Idaho, and the Fortune Park warehouse in Indianapolis, Indiana, were tied as the highest-rated stores in the U.S.
Maryland has the lowest-rated Costco locations in the country, according to shoppers.

How we evaluated each store

We surveyed more than 5,000 Costco shoppers to create our store rankings. Survey respondents were asked to identify which of the more than 600 Costco locations across the United States they shop at most frequently.

From there, they were asked to rate that location on a 10-point scale in six key categories:

Cleanliness: How clean and well-maintained the interior of the store is
Friendliness: How friendly and helpful the staff is at their local Costco
Stock: The variety and availability of different products
Quality of samples: How tasty the samples typically are at their local Costco
Quantity of samples: How many different samples are typically available while shopping
Parking lot quality/parking availability: How easy it is to navigate the store's parking lot and find parking

The states with the highest average Costco ratings

Rank	State	Cleanliness	Friendliness	Stock	Quality of Samples	Quantity of Sample	Parking Lot	Total Score
1	Kansas	9.0	9.3	9.2	8.8	8.2	8.2	52.6
2	Kentucky	9.0	8.9	9.2	8.6	8.4	8.0	52.0
3	Georgia	9.1	8.9	9.0	8.7	7.9	8.0	51.7
4	Alabama	9.2	9.0	9.0	8.7	8.1	7.5	51.5
5	Idaho	9.1	9.1	8.8	8.6	8.1	7.8	51.5
6	Missouri	9.1	9.1	9.1	8.6	7.9	7.8	51.5
7	Louisiana	9.1	8.9	8.8	8.4	8.1	8.3	51.5
8	Indiana	9.0	8.9	9.0	8.7	8.0	7.7	51.2
9	Nebraska	9.1	8.8	8.6	8.6	7.8	8.1	51.0
10	Arizona	9.1	8.9	9.0	8.6	8.1	7.3	51.0

Costco warehouses can be found in 47 different states (only Rhode Island, West Virginia, and Wyoming don't have at least one), so there is plenty of competition when it comes to determining which state has the "best" locations.

Shoppers in Kansas rated their Costco locations higher than those in any other state, with a combined score of 52.6 out of 60. Sunflower State Costco fans gave the warehouses in their state an average rating of 9.0 in three different categories: cleanliness, staff friendliness, and stock. Every single state in the top 10 averaged scores of 8.4 or higher in each of those three categories, which shows that shoppers really respond to well-stocked, clean stores where the staff is warm and helpful.

The only other state where warehouses scored at least 52 out of 60 is Kentucky, where Costco customers gave their stores a score of at least 8 out of 10 in every single category. While there are just four Costco stores in Kentucky, multiple locations in the state received high enough marks across multiple categories to earn a total score higher than 52 out of 60.

Cleanliness and stock are the highest-scoring categories for nearly every state in the top 10, showing just how important it is for shoppers to be able to find everything they are looking for in a clean and inviting environment. After all, who wouldn't want a nice, clean space to enjoy their $1.50 hot dog and soda combo or chicken bake from the food court?

There are things that shoppers appear to want improved, however, even at the "best" Costcos in the country. Chief among these are more samples and better parking, as those were consistently the two categories where stores across the country scored lowest.

The top-rated individual Costco stores

1 (Tie). Meridian, Idaho

Total score: 55.2/60

Idaho ranked as the state with the fifth-highest-rated Costco stores, according to shoppers, with one of the seven locations in that state performing even better, tying for the highest score of any Costco store in the country at 55.2. The Meridian location scored a 9 out of 10 or higher in five of six categories, only failing to meet that mark when it came to parking lot quality, where the store earned an 8/10.

1 (Tie). Indianapolis, Indiana (Fortune Park, Michigan Road)

Total score: 55.2/60

The other top-ranked Costco location can be found in Indianapolis, Indiana. There are multiple Costco warehouses in Indiana's capital city, and it is specifically the Fortune Park location that earned best-of-the-best honors from shoppers.

This store earned high marks from customers when it comes to cleanliness (9.7), stock (9.7), friendliness (9.3), and sample quantity (9.1). The only categories where this store failed to score a 9 or higher are sample quality (8.9) and parking lot accessibility and availability (8.5).

3. Springfield, Missouri

Total score: 55.1/60

The Costco warehouse in Springfield, Missouri, takes the nationwide bronze medal and is the final store in the country to earn a total score of 55 or higher.

This is the top-rated Costco store in Missouri, a state that ranked sixth overall in terms of store quality, making this the best of the best in a state where Costco stores are highly regarded across the board. This store scored a 9 or higher in five different categories, with friendliness of staff earning the most praise at a 9.7/10.

4. Kalamazoo, Michigan

Total score: 54.9/60

Shopper at the Kalamazoo Costco find their local warehouse to be an ideal shopping experience. The store is known for being clean (9.5/10) and well-stocked (9.4/10) with a friendly staff (9.3/10), which all makes shopping there a pleasure for locals.

5. Tulsa, Oklahoma (North Tulsa, N 118th Avenue E)

Total score: 54.7/60

Oklahoma is home to the final Costco store to rank among the five best in the country, according to shoppers. This location earned a score of 9.6 for cleanliness, one of the highest marks across the hundreds of Costco stores in the country. More notable, however, is the fact that this location got an average rating of 9.2/10 for its parking lot, the third-highest score of any store and one of just five locations in the nation where shoppers rated parking as a 9 or higher.

More ways to save while shopping at Costco

Even though Costco is known for its great prices, it's easy to overspend on groceries and other items when you're actually in the store.

Here are some tips and tricks to stay on budget with your Costco shopping:

Plan your trip before you go. Making a list before you head to the store is one way to save on groceries. Our list of ways you can spend less on groceries could help you cut down your Costco bill.
Shop and earn rewards. You can earn points or cash back on your purchases when you use a rewards credit card at Costco. Keep in mind that Costco only accepts Visa credit cards for in-store and gas purchases, but you can make online purchases at Costco.com with Visa or Mastercard. Amex isn't accepted for Costco purchases.
Monitor your spending. An app like Rocket Money or Mint can help you track your spending categories and analyze where you're spending money. These tools can help you keep on budget and mindfully manage your money.

Methodology

FinanceBuzz surveyed over 6,000 self-identified Costco shoppers, asking them to rate their local Costco location on a 10-point scale in six different metrics. Only states with more than 50 responses were included. For individual locations, only stores with more than 10 responses were included in the data. Responses were collected from May 11 through September 12, 2022.