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Sell Your Costco Gift Card for Cash

Updated September 23, 2026 · Reviewed by Kirill Novikov, FlipGift founder

Diagram of a FlipGift escrow deal: buyer pays into escrow, seller orders with their gift card, the item ships with proof, then the money is released

Sell your Costco gift card for cash without handing anyone the number or PIN. You use the card to pay for a buyer's Costco order, their money waits in escrow, and it's released to you when the order arrives — typically 72–88% of face value, against the 60–85% buy-back sites pay after taking the code.

Why Costco gift cards go unused

Costco Shop Cards from promotions need a trip or an account; balances often just wait.

Selling a Costco Shop Card: membership and shipping

Costco calls its gift card a Shop Card, and anyone can spend one — Costco says "non-members as well as members" can use it in warehouses and on Costco.com. Online, though, a few Costco rules decide whether you can fill a buyer's order with it:

  • Shop Cards are applied through Costco Wallet. To use one on a Costco.com order it goes into Costco Wallet, and Wallet needs a verified membership. Non-members can shop Costco.com but pay a 5% surcharge over member prices, so the order costs more than the price the buyer saw. The card is easiest to sell if you're a member.
  • US addresses only. Costco.com doesn't deliver to P.O. boxes, APO/FPO boxes, freight forwarders or hotels. Checkout has a Ship To address, so sending an order to someone else is a normal Costco.com flow.
  • Pick 2-Day or standard delivery. A Shop Card can't pay for Same-day Delivery (the Instacart one); Costco itself suggests 2-Day Delivery when you pay with a Shop Card.
  • Travel promo cards: a Digital Shop Card from a Costco Travel promotion works on Costco.com, but once it's in Costco Wallet it can no longer pay for Costco Travel.
  • Not for buying another Shop Card — and buyers can't order gift cards here anyway.

How to sell your Costco card the safe way

  1. List your Costco card — brand and balance only, never the code.
  2. A buyer who wants bulk goods from Costco pays for their order into escrow.
  3. You place their order with your card and upload the confirmation and tracking.
  4. When they confirm delivery, escrow pays you.

How the fee, escrow and disputes work: how escrow works · selling without sharing the code.

Ready to cash out your Costco card? List your Costco card →

Costco at a glance

Sellers ready now1 offering up to $40
Discount band offered17–17% off retail
CategoryUniversal retail
Flat shipping below that$3
In the catalogueYes — requests accepted

Live from the FlipGift order book.

Before you list: check your Costco balance

Costco lets you check the balance online, on the issuer’s balance page, and you will need the PIN from the back of the card.

  1. Click the button to reach Costco's Shop Card balance tool.
  2. Enter the 16-digit card number.
  3. Add the access code / PIN printed alongside it.
  4. Submit to see the loaded amount.

Official Costco balance checker · Full Costco balance guide

What a $100 Costco card pays on FlipGift

Where you sellYou keep
FlipGift Escrow
1 live offer at 17–17% off, after the 2.5% seller fee
$81–$81

Per $100 of face value, to your FlipGift balance after the 2.5% seller fee.

Rules of the Costco gift card

Works on the websiteYes
Works in storeYes
Partial balance stays on the cardYes
ExpiresNever
Feesnone (but a $12 shipping/handling fee applies when the Shop Card itself is ordered by mail, e.g. express shipment or a varying-denomination order)
PIN needed onlineYes
Digital (e-gift) card offeredYes
ReloadableYes
Not valid forFood Court kiosks (digital cards); Same-day Delivery powered by Instacart; Costco Next

Called a "Shop Card," not branded "gift card." Redeemable at any Costco warehouse in US/Canada/Puerto Rico or online at costco.com/costco.ca. No Costco membership needed to USE a Shop Card (only to buy one).

Source: Costco gift card terms, checked 2026-09-02

Official source: Costco gift card page

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to share my Costco card number or PIN to sell it?

No. You keep the card and use it to pay for a buyer's Costco order yourself — the number and PIN are never typed into any site or handed to anyone.

How much will I get for my Costco gift card?

Typically 72–88% of face value: you set the discount, the buyer pays that price into escrow, and you keep it minus a 2.5% seller fee and the 2% withdrawal fee. Buy-back sites usually pay 60–85% and take the code first.

How fast do I get paid for my Costco card?

When the buyer confirms their Costco order arrived — or automatically about 16 days after it ships if they never respond. You can then withdraw as crypto or a digital prepaid Visa card.

Can I sell a Costco Shop Card if I'm not a Costco member?

You can list it, but it's harder to use. Costco lets non-members spend Shop Cards, yet online a Shop Card is applied through Costco Wallet, which needs a verified membership, and non-members pay a 5% surcharge on Costco.com. A member can place the buyer's Costco.com order at the price the buyer saw; a non-member usually can't.

Can I get cash for a Costco Shop Card?

Not from Costco — Shop Cards aren't redeemable for cash except where the law requires it. The way to turn one into money here is to use it on a buyer's Costco.com order. Escrow holds their payment and releases it to you when they confirm delivery, and you never share the card number or PIN.

More gift cards you can sell this way

No open orders at Costco this minute

The newest Costco listing gets the next order.

List a Costco card
Buyers are waiting at these stores right now:
Sell your card for cash — no code shared