Costco removes fear of losing membership card
Costco Wholesale Corp. members now only have to remember their smartphones when visiting a store.
The discount warehouse club retailer is introducing a digital version of its membership card, available within the Costco consumer app for customers in the U.S. and Canada. In posts on its e-commerce site and the Instagram and Facebook social platforms, Costco announced the new way for members to identify themselves when they first enter a store and when they check out.
To obtain a digital card, members must first download or update the Costco iOS or Android app. After launching the latest version of the app, members then tap the digital membership card icon at the bottom of the screen, where they are brought to a login screen for their account.
After logging into and their account (and verifying online if they have not previously done so), members will see their digital card on the screen. They can then have access to their card from the app when shopping at a store.
From images displayed on social media, the digital membership card displays the customer’s member number, headshot, information on when they joined and when their account expires, and a large QR code that is presumably used for quick scan-based authentication. There are also links at the bottom of the screen, including a digital storefinder.
A reply to a customer inquiry on the official Costco Instagram page indicates that at least for now, a physical membership card is still required for fuel purchases. Costco is still accepting physical cards for identification for all purchases, and the Costco app does not have a payment function.
The discount warehouse club retailer is introducing a digital version of its membership card, available within the Costco consumer app for customers in the U.S. and Canada. In posts on its e-commerce site and the Instagram and Facebook social platforms, Costco announced the new way for members to identify themselves when they first enter a store and when they check out.
To obtain a digital card, members must first download or update the Costco iOS or Android app. After launching the latest version of the app, members then tap the digital membership card icon at the bottom of the screen, where they are brought to a login screen for their account.
After logging into and their account (and verifying online if they have not previously done so), members will see their digital card on the screen. They can then have access to their card from the app when shopping at a store.
From images displayed on social media, the digital membership card displays the customer’s member number, headshot, information on when they joined and when their account expires, and a large QR code that is presumably used for quick scan-based authentication. There are also links at the bottom of the screen, including a digital storefinder.
A reply to a customer inquiry on the official Costco Instagram page indicates that at least for now, a physical membership card is still required for fuel purchases. Costco is still accepting physical cards for identification for all purchases, and the Costco app does not have a payment function.