Consumer Reports magazine listed the top store brand pharmacies in their June 2014 issue and Costco Pharmacies came out on top at #1! According to the Consumer Reports (CR) article, Costco’s Kirkland Signature (KS) house brand was the only store brand to receive top marks in both price and quality for over the counter (OTC) medications and personal care products. In the pharmacy area of your local Costco you can find a KS equivalent for just about every name brand OTC medication from pain relievers and allergy pills, to cough medications and vitamins. You can also find a selection of KS brand personal care items like shampoo, conditioner, soaps, lotions and wipes.

By choosing a KS item you can save up to a staggering 92% compared to the price of the name brand equivalent. Let’s pause for a minute to think about that, 92% savings, thats incredible! At 92% savings that means the brand name is 12 (12!) times more expensive than the KS equivalent or Costco is selling the KS equivalent product for 1/12 the price of the name brand product per pill. But how do you know the Costco price of the name brand product is a good deal to begin with? Well, duh! You’re at Costco so of course its going to be a good deal 🙂 but let me do that math to illustrate my point. Lets use Benadryl for an example, Walmart sells a 48 pack for $6.48 which comes out to $0.0135 per pill, but Costco sells a bundle of three 48 count packs of Benadryl (for a total of 144 pills) for $13.69 which comes out to $0.0950 per pill. That makes the Costco price for Benadryl 30% cheaper than the Walmart price per pill. What if we take it one step further and compare the the price of Costco’s KS house brand to the price of Walmart’s Equate house brand? Walmart sells a 100 pack of Equate allergy pills for $4 which comes out to $0.04 per pill, but Costco sells a 600 pack of KS allergy pills for $4.69 which comes out to $0.0078 per pill. That makes the price of Costco’s KS allergy pills 81% cheaper than Walmart’s Equate allergy pills. Can you imagine how much greater the savings would be if you compared the price of a KS item to the price of a brand name item sold at a regular retail pharmacy like Duane Reade or Walgreens!?

Anyway, here are a few more examples of the many KS OTC medications and personal care items you can find in the pharmacy area of your local Costco: 

Per caplet, the KS Ibuprofen is 88% cheaper than the regularly priced Advil.

Per caplet, the KS Naproxen Sodium is 42% cheaper than the regularly priced Aleve.

Per tablet, the KS Extra Strength Pain Reliever is 61% cheaper than regularly priced Excedrin.

Per tablet, the regularly priced KS Aller-Fex is 42% cheaper than Allegra.

Per tablet, the regularly priced KS Aller-Tec is 92% cheaper than regularly priced Zyrtec.

Per tablet, the regularly priced KS AllerClear is 91% cheaper than Claritin.

Per tablet, the KS Mature Adult Multi Vitamins are 56% cheaper than Centrum Silver.

Per tablet, the regularly priced KS Calcium + D3 Supplements are 75% cheaper than Caltrate.

Per tablet, the KS Omeprazole is 42% cheaper than Priolosec.

Per towelette, the KS Daily Facial Towelettes are 39% cheaper than Neutrogena Make Up Removing Facial Towelettes.

Per fluid ounce, the KS Antiseptic Mouthwash is 54% cheaper than Listerine.

Per piece, the KS Quit-4 gum is 47% cheaper than Nicorette.

Per can, the KS Minoxidil Foam is 35% cheaper than Rogaine.

Also in the June 2014 issue, Consumer Reports takes a look at ice cream and Costco’s KS Super Premium Vanilla Ice Cream ranked excellent for taste and it was named a CR Best Buy for its low price! KS Super Premium Vanilla Ice Cream (item #948400) comes packaged as two separate half-gallon containers so they will easily fit into any freezer. 

This is hands-down our favorite vanilla ice cream; we love the rich vanilla flavor and the creamy texture. And since vanilla goes with all sorts of desserts from apple dumplings to chocolate cakes and peanut butter cookies we always keep some on hand. Remember that the best way to store ice cream is in the very back or very bottom of your freezer to prevent it from melting and refreezing. And to avoid freezer burn be sure to keep the lid on tight. If I know we won’t be consuming an entire tub right away I put Glad Press & Seal across the top of the container then put the lid on over the plastic wrap to create a better seal.

To read the full CR articles that mention Costco pick up the June 2014 issue of Consumer Reports magazine.

Selections vary by location but you may be able to pick up that latest issue of Consumer Reports (as well as their special issues) at your local Costco for 30% off the cover price! The location of the magazine stands vary by warehouse but I usually find them near the books or up front by the registers. For more information on Consumer Reports you can also check out their website: ConsumerReports.org.