Your Costco run is about to get a whole lot faster.
The warehouse giant is reportedly overhauling its checkout process, testing new automated stations that promise to process orders in less than 10 seconds. By combining employee productivity and high-speed technology, Costco is betting it can solve the retail industry’s biggest problem without losing the low-cost model that builds loyalty among its members.
“In digital, we continue to advance our roadmap to deliver a smoother experience for members in the warehouse and online. In warehouses, we are achieving significant improvements in payment speed and employee productivity, both through improvements to our mobile wallet, pharmacy prepay and the deployment of employee pre-scan technology,” Gary Millerchip, Costco’s chief financial officer, said during the company’s second-quarter earnings call earlier this this month.
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Under the leadership of new CEOs Ron Vachris and Millerchip, the warehouse club is moving from its traditional checkout roots to a high-tech pre-scan model and self-checkouts. First, employees will speed up the pre-scanning process before customers reach the checkout.
Shoppers at the self-checkout counter at a Costco store in Napa, Calif., Monday, September 22, 2025. (Getty Images)
Costco has automatic checkout already tested in some stores, but the system does not seem to work.
“We are also testing automated payment kiosks that will allow members to pay for their pre-scanned orders seamlessly with an average transaction time of approximately eight seconds,” Millerchip added. “Initial results show that this improves traffic flow, and we have received excellent feedback from members.”
The executives also discussed the adoption of changes in AI and e-commerce, following the call that competitors have used to dominate the convenience store market.
“Across our digital sites, we continue to roll out new personalization capabilities that are resonating with our members and starting to have a measurable impact on e-commerce sales growth. As consumers embrace AI in their shopping habits, we believe our commitments to providing the best value on high-quality items can make us a beneficiary of these changes,” the CFO said.
New data from the NCR Voyix Digital Commerce Index reveals a generational gap in how Americans want to pay at checkout. While 43% of all consumers now prefer self-checkout options, 53% of shoppers aged 18-44 prefer the DIY method, while those 55 and older stick to dedicated lanes, citing large cart volumes as the main reason for avoiding self-checkout.
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While many big-box retailers have passed on inflationary costs to consumers in recent years, Costco has maintained its popularity among middle-class Americans because of its roughly 14 to 15 percent cap on product margins. Traditional grocers typically have a markup on their products of 25-35%, making Costco’s prices very competitive.
Costco’s net sales jumped 9.1% to $68.24 billion in the second quarter, with net income reaching $1.36 billion, a 13.6% year-over-year increase following a increase in membership prices.
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