This little secret of mine is not only your ticket into the land of free-sample-filled-lunches on the weekend, but also serves as a way to shop at Costco without paying the hefty $50-100 annual membership fee.

You’re gonna laugh that I’d even write a post about this… it’s that simple.

1.) Find a friend or family member that has a membership. If they don’t have a second person on their membership, ask them to add you. If they can’t or won’t – here’s where the secret comes in. Give them any amount of cash and ask them to purchase a Costco cash card for you.

2.) When you get to the entrance of Costco and they ask for your membership card, flash your Costco cash card. That gets you in free without a Costco card. Now, you can shop and buy whatever you want, as long as you can pay for your purchase with the cash card. If you know what you buy on a weekly basis (such as food, gas and supplies), ask your friend to buy you a card on a continual basis. They can even buy your Costco cash card online and shipping is free.

3.) Pay for your purchase with the Costco cash card.

The only downside is that every time you run out of money, you have to have your friend/family member refill it. That’s why getting on some sort of system would work well. Or, just give your friend a couple hundred dollars and spend money over time.

Do you have any other Costco money saving tips?