New Warehouses Open
Costco opened two large warehouses in recent weeks, in Meridian, Idaho, and Amherst, New York, drawing big crowds, and changes to membership perks and returns have drawn member attention.
Meridian, Idaho
The new Meridian warehouse opened Thursday, November 5, 2026, at 8 a.m. at 203 E. Tower Lane, near Lake Hazel and Meridian roads on the Meridian-Kuna boundary, according to BoiseDev and Costco. At 200,342 square feet it is the largest Costco in the Treasure Valley. It is the second Costco in Meridian, the fourth in the Treasure Valley by one count and the eighth in Idaho, though BoiseDev's wording called it the fifth local store, so counts differ. It has a 16-pump gas station, roughly 900 to 1,000 parking spaces, and the Treasure Valley's first Market Delivery Operation, which supports home delivery of large items. Idaho Press reported that thousands of shoppers came on opening day and that Meridian became the first Idaho city with two Costco locations.
Amherst, New York
The Amherst warehouse, at 4230 Ridge Lea Road, opened Wednesday, October 28, 2026, and is Costco's first in the immediate Buffalo Niagara region. The opening slipped from a spring 2026 target to August because of weather delays, and officials later said it would open the last week of October. Crowds were large, and the Buffalo News reported that getting there was the real challenge because the store sits in the middle of Amherst's busiest retail corridor. Local reports indicate more openings are planned, including in Polk County, Florida and Thurston County, Washington, but details on those sites were not confirmed here. AOL has reported that Costco plans six new locations in 2026.
Costco Next Is Gone
Costco ended Costco Next, a members-only program that sold products from outside brands, at the end of August 2026 without warning. On September 24, executives explained during the fourth-quarter earnings call that they wanted to integrate popular Costco Next products and brands directly into Costco's website and app, according to coverage of discontinued perks.
Food Court and Returns
Coverage says that in 2026, members must scan their membership card in the food court before ordering, regardless of how they pay. On returns, sources disagree about how much has changed. Careful guides say the written policy has not changed, with the 90-day window for electronics unchanged and most other items still returnable without a time limit, but that enforcement has tightened. Some blogs claim Costco flags memberships with unusually frequent returns and asks for more documentation on high-value returns, but these are blog claims, not Costco statements. Social posts have complained about checkout lines and self-checkout issues with large items.
Other Perks That Have Gone
Lists of discontinued Costco perks include the photo centers, which closed in February 2021, extended warranties on Citi Costco cards, which ended around 2023, and Xbox consoles, which Costco has said it has no plans to bring back. Nintendo and PlayStation hardware remain on sale.
Hot Dogs and Prices
Social posts and a BroBible-style headline say fans are upset about a quiet change to the food court hot dogs, but the details could not be confirmed. A guide to Costco rules lists the $1.50 hot dog and drink combo as unchanged.
What Members Should Do
Check Costco's own pages for current return, membership and holiday-hour rules, since blogs often repeat outdated claims. New warehouses draw heavy traffic in the first weeks, so shoppers may want to avoid weekends. Veterans Day hours and any tariff-related refund issues were not confirmed in the sources reviewed.
How Fast Costco Is Growing
Costco's CEO has said the company aims to open 30 or more warehouses a year over the next five to 10 years, with roughly half in the U.S. For fiscal 2026 the plan was revised down to about 28 net new openings, with some reports saying 26, mostly because of construction delays on buildings in Spain. Each new warehouse is typically a large box with a gas station, and Costco has been adding capacity in markets where existing stores are crowded, such as the Treasure Valley, where the new Meridian store joins three others.
The membership model explains the changes to perks and returns. Costco's fee revenue reached about $5.9 billion in fiscal 2026, and management has said renewal rates could slip as online sign-ups grow, since online members tend to renew at slightly lower rates than those who join at the warehouse. Tightening return rules and trimming programs like Costco Next are ways to protect margins while keeping the membership proposition simple.
What the Changes Say About the Business
Costco's membership model depends on high renewal rates, and policy changes at the margins, from ending Costco Next to tightening returns, are ways to protect it. New warehouses add capacity in growing markets, and Meridian's store includes the Treasure Valley's first Market Delivery Operation, which supports home delivery of large items, a sign that Costco is investing in online fulfillment.
