Aisles, Samples, and the Social Contract
Costco is a glorious place. It’s a never-ending wonderland where you can buy a kayak, a gallon of pesto, and a sweater you didn’t know you needed—all in one trip. It’s also where normal shopping manners mysteriously evaporate the second you flash your membership. It’s time we addressed the Costco-sized elephant in the room and talked about the worst behaviors you only see in a store that offers everything.
1. Treating the Entrance Like a Photo Shoot
Oh, trust us, this happens. You make it through the doors and immediately run into someone who stops dead to adjust their jacket, check their phone, and scan the ceiling. Meanwhile, everyone behind them is forced into a traffic jam. It’s one thing to get oriented, but maybe wait until you’re inside the building.
2. Parking the Cart Sideways for No Reason
Some shoppers position their cart diagonally across the aisle, and it needs to stop! It turns a wide lane into a single-file obstacle course in seconds. When you leave it like that, you’re basically testing everyone else’s patience.
3. Moving at a Leisurely Stroll in the Busiest Bottleneck
This is Costco, people—there’s nothing worse than no sense of urgency. Someone always chooses the high-traffic corridor to slow down or meander through aisles. If you want to drift, pick a quieter aisle and let the rest of the store breathe!
4. Using Your Cart as Personal Storage
You’ll see carts overflowing with coats, backpacks, and random items that never came from a shelf. It makes the cart harder to steer and easier to crash into displays and ankles. It’s hard to shop efficiently when carts look like a moving closet.
5. Standing in Front of the Rotisserie Chickens
Hey, we get it. We all love a good chicken. But the rotisserie case draws a crowd that behaves like the chickens are about to dance. People hover, point, and wait in the exact spot everyone needs to pass through. It’s okay to not press your nose to the piping hot glass!
6. Turning the Sample Station Into a Full-Service Café
Grabbing a sample is fine, but some folks linger. They block the cart lane, chat with the sample worker, and reach for seconds with impressive confidence. Those are all no-nos! If you want a snack break, take it two steps away so the line can keep moving.
7. Letting Your Kids Treat the Aisles Like a Playground
Costco isn’t built for small-scale chaos. That’s why it’s so baffling when some parents act like it’s no big deal when kids run ahead. Carts are heavy, corners are blind, and accidents happen fast.
8. Abandoning Frozen Items
You’ve seen it time and again: somebody leaves a box of ice cream sandwiches on a shelf next to chips. It’s just as annoying in Costco as it is in grocery stores! That food is going to melt, get tossed, and waste money and effort.
Connor Scott McManus on Pexels
9. Acting Shocked at the Checkout Line
It takes a certain kind of shopper to get genuinely offended when they see a line, but here we are. They sigh loudly. They might pace. Some even comment on how “unbelievable” it is. But, yes…the lines are going to be long.
10. Hovering Too Close While Someone Pays
Speaking of checkout, personal space gets ignored by people who creep forward. You’re not going to get served quicker just for being closer! It’s uncomfortable, unnecessary, and makes everyone tense for no reason.
Richard Arthur Norton (1958- ) on Wikimedia
11. Blocking the Entire Aisle
Some shoppers stop and hold a full committee meeting over peanut butter. Beep beep, everyone! If you need time, pull over just like you would in traffic. Don’t block aisles with your cart, and definitely pay attention to the line forming behind you.
12. Cutting In Line
Whether it’s the food court, membership desk, or checkout, someone always tries to slide in with a casual “Oh, I’m just grabbing this.” Everyone else has been waiting, and they notice, even if they don’t say anything.
13. Treating Food Court Pickup Like a Waiting Room
Some people cluster around the counter in a tight pack, even when their number hasn’t been called. All that does is make it harder for staff to hand out orders and for customers to hear what’s ready.
14. Leaving Your Cart to Wander Without Warning
A cart sitting alone in the middle of an aisle is never “out of the way,” even if you tell yourself it is. Other shoppers have to maneuver around it while you browse three sections away, and on a weekend, that move is diabolical.
MIKI Yoshihito from Sapporo City,Hokkaido., JAPAN on Wikimedia
15. Pretending You Don’t See the Line of Carts Behind You
Sometimes a person stops and stares at a display so long that a full queue forms behind them; they keep browsing while everyone else plays the silent game of waiting versus squeezing by. If you notice carts stacking up, it’s time to move over and reset the flow.
GoToVan from Vancouver, Canada on Wikimedia
16. Hogging the Freezer Door
You must enjoy the cold with how long you spend in the freezer! Deep freezes invite long decision-making, but some shoppers hold the door open as they comb through every label. Essentially, it just warms the case and forces others to wait while their hands freeze on cart handles.
17. Grabbing Samples With Both Hands
You wouldn’t think this happens in the wild, but it does. There’s always someone who reaches across other people and collects multiple cups, which is not only impatient but just plain rude. It’s awkward, too, and it’s selfish, and it makes the station run out faster.
18. Talking on Speakerphone While Steering a Cart
If you can’t multitask, it’s okay to pull over to the side! But some people refuse to give up. On any other day, we’d applaud the effort, but on a busy weekend, distracted driving with a loaded cart is a recipe for bumping into displays and strangers.
Antoni Shkraba Studio on Pexels
19. Leaving Empty Boxes on Random Shelves
You wouldn’t just leave garbage lying at home, would you? Yet, sure enough, some shoppers open packaging (or even worse, snack) then dump the remnants wherever they stand. It makes the store look messy and creates extra work for employees who already have plenty to do.
Sebastián Mera Jaramillo on Pexels
20. Treating the Receipt Checker Like a Villain
The exit check is part of the deal, so you'd better get used to it now. However, that doesn’t stop some people from rolling their eyes, arguing, or acting offended. We already had a hard enough time getting in—don’t slow things down when we’re so close to the parking lot.
