Money Management

Costco offers deals beyond the doors of the warehouse club. Here’s how you can also use your Costco membership to save with other merchants. [[{“value”:”

When you think of Costco, you probably think of deals on bulk groceries and household items, like paper towels and cereal. And, it is indeed true that Costco helps your personal finances by allowing you to save on these items.

But, there’s actually much more to the warehouse club than just giant tubs of mayonnaise or industrial-sized bags of dog food. In fact, checking out one specific type of deal that Costco offers could help you save on many more purchases than you might imagine.

Be sure to check out these Costco deals regularly

When it comes to Costco deals, one type of bargain on offer can really go a long way toward helping you to keep more money in your bank account. Specifically, Costco actually makes it possible to get deals on other products and services beyond what it sells in its warehouse clubs or on its website.

You can do this by buying discounted gift cards. These discounted cards provide a tremendous opportunity to save on both life’s necessities and on some splurges or fun purchases, as well. For example, Costco’s discounted cards as of early April 2024 include:

$79.99 for $100 worth of Domino’s Pizza gift cards$39.99 for a Cinemark Theatres $50 gift card$79.99 for $100 worth of Peet’s Coffee E-Gift Cards

And this is just the tip of the iceberg. There are 92 different gift cards available on the Costco website, many of which come at a significant savings compared with paying retail price.

Why you should take advantage of Costco’s gift card deals

Checking Costco’s gift card options to find bargains is something just about everyone should do on a regular basis. This includes non-members, who are allowed to buy most of the cards available at the reduced cost (although they will have to pay a 5% surcharge for not being a member).

If you find a gift card deal on any product or service you regularly buy, it can pay to purchase it at a reduced price. For example, if you often get pizza takeout for your family, there’s no reason not to save yourself $20 by getting the $100 Domino’s gift card deal. That’s an extra $20 you could invest or use to pay down debt, or even to pay for an extra pizza night without raiding your savings account.

You can also buy these reduced priced gift cards at presents for special occasions, bringing joy to others while spending less of your hard-earned cash.

Since Costco’s gift card deals change over time, it’s worth checking every week or so in order to see what is on offer. And you should make sure you are only buying gift cards you will definitely use, as Americans collectively have around $21 billion in unspent gift card funds.

If you know that you will absolutely be shopping at a store or other business that has a reduced-priced gift card available, though, you should pull the trigger, as there’s no real downside for your budget. You get to save on something you’d have bought anyway, and it’s all thanks to Costco’s gift card bargains.

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We’re firm believers in the Golden Rule, which is why editorial opinions are ours alone and have not been previously reviewed, approved, or endorsed by included advertisers.
The Ascent does not cover all offers on the market. Editorial content from The Ascent is separate from The Motley Fool editorial content and is created by a different analyst team.Christy Bieber has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Costco Wholesale. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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Gen Z have special challenges in saving money, and social media is part of the problem. These emotional triggers are holding Gen Z back from financial success. [[{“value”:”

It can be hard to be young, and Gen Z in many ways has had an especially tough time during the past few years of the global economy. Gen Zers got hit hard by COVID-19, high housing costs, and rising inflation. If you’re in your early 20s and just trying to get started in life, it can feel like everything gets more expensive while your paycheck stays too small.

A new survey from Empower shows an interesting glimpse inside the everyday spending of Americans — and why Gen Z is facing challenges that their parents couldn’t have imagined.

Let’s look at the top “emotional trigger” reasons why Gen Z struggles to save — and learn how to fight back!

Spending while bored — the new Gen Z national pastime?

A recent survey from Empower, “How Americans’ spending habits are changing,” found that many Americans spend money based on emotion. Far from being rational economist-like decision makers who do price comparisons and diligently save up for every purchase, lots of Americans spend money based on how they’re feeling that day or how much stress they’re under at work.

The Empower survey found:

20% of Americans spend more money due to feelings of “job stress/burnout”20% spend more money due to “anxiety/uncertainty”25% of Americans spend money while bored — including 43% of Gen Z.

Gen Z is the generation most likely to spend extra money out of boredom; it was this age group’s top emotional trigger for spending. The news about emotional triggers is not all bad. Some Americans also spend money when celebrating (32%) or feeling joy and elation (20%).

There’s nothing wrong with spending money to celebrate a happy occasion or a pay raise. But if you’re spending money out of a sense of doom, or just mindlessly spending on stuff you see popping up in your social media feed, that could be a bad sign that you’re not really using money for your highest goals.

Social media peer pressure: Keeping up with the Joneses

Social comparison and envy about money is nothing new, but social media takes it to intense and often unhealthy new levels. If all your friends are posting on social media about their latest amazing vacation or their expensive new car, it can make you feel worse about yourself, and wonder if you’re falling behind.

The Empower study found that 24% of Gen Zers have felt pressure to show off their wealth on social media. Some of the biggest wealth indicators that Americans mentioned seeing on social media include:

Posts that casually mention spontaneous travel (53%)Posting from luxury gyms or personal training sessions (43%)Showcasing high-end tech purchases/gadgets (40%)

Gen Z’s time spent on TikTok and other social media apps can provide comfort, community, and cute videos of pets. But your social media feed might also be making you feel extra financial stress and distorting your perceptions about money. Try not to feel self-defeating envy from the perfect-looking lives of others. Focus on replenishing your savings account instead.

Interestingly, there seems to be a backlash brewing against the high-spending influencers who show off their fancy lifestyles on social media. The Empower survey found that 47% of Americans have negative sentiment toward people displaying wealth on social media, while only 8% view it positively.

Could society’s standards be shifting? Maybe in the future, flaunting your money online will be considered distasteful and boring, and it will be considered “cool” to post about being frugal and buying jeans at Costco. This middle-aged dad knows what the TikTok teens like!

Bottom line

It’s normal to have emotions, and money can be a way of showing what we care about and celebrating the little moments along the way. But if you feel as if your personal finances are out of control, understanding the emotional triggers of everyday spending can help you get back on track. Instead of doom spending and boredom-scrolling, download a budgeting app. Understand where your money is going. Embrace the TikTok trend of “loud budgeting” to declare independence from social media peer pressure and establish boundaries about how (and when) you spend.

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We’re firm believers in the Golden Rule, which is why editorial opinions are ours alone and have not been previously reviewed, approved, or endorsed by included advertisers.
The Ascent does not cover all offers on the market. Editorial content from The Ascent is separate from The Motley Fool editorial content and is created by a different analyst team.The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Costco Wholesale. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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Interest rate cuts are likely for 2024. Find out how that might affect CDs. [[{“value”:”

Any money you have earmarked for emergency expenses should go into a regular savings account. And money you’re reserving for a far-off goal, like retirement, should be invested in a brokerage account or IRA for a higher return. But if you have money for an in-between goal — say, one that’s a year or two away — then opening a CD could make sense.

With a CD, you’re committing to leaving your money in the bank for a period. And there can be penalties for taking an early withdrawal. However, you’ll generally get a higher interest rate on a CD than a savings account. Also, that rate is guaranteed for the duration of your CD’s term.

Right now, CD rates are up following a string of interest rate hikes from the Federal Reserve. The Fed raised interest rates 11 times between 2022 and 2023 to help slow inflation, and that’s benefitted people with money in the bank.

But now, the Fed has signaled that it’s looking to cut rates in 2024. And that begs the question: Will CDs be worth it once that happens?

This year’s rate cuts shouldn’t be extreme

The Federal Reserve’s next policy meeting begins at the end of April. The next meeting scheduled after that is mid-June. Based on how inflation is trending, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Fed keep interest rates steady at its next meeting and wait until June or later to start cutting rates.

From there, it’s a question of how many rate cuts come down the pike this year. And the most likely answer is two to three. This could change, of course, if inflation starts moving in an unfavorable direction as 2024 chugs along.

But all told, the Fed is not expected to lower rates drastically. While we could see two to three rate cuts this year, that may not drive CD rates down all that much.

Right now, many banks are offering 12-month CDs at around 5.00% APY. By the third or fourth quarter of the year, savers who open a 12-month CD may only be looking at 4.00% or 4.50%. But that’s a pretty good rate of return given that there’s no risk involved.

When you buy stocks, you risk losing money. Even so-called safe investments like bonds carry risk.

But if you bank at an institution that’s FDIC insured and keep your account balance to $250,000 ($500,000 if you have a joint account holder), then your money is fully protected in the event of a bank failure. Even if CD rates fall this year, they’ll probably still be a good deal.

What about future years?

While it might still make sense to open CDs later in 2024, it’s hard to predict how fast rates will fall beyond that point and whether CDs will continue to make sense. Committing to locking up your money is a lot less appealing when it means getting 1.75% on your deposit, as opposed to the rates that are available today.

There’s a good chance CD rates will remain attractive into 2025. Beyond that, it’s hard to know. So if you’re someone who’s interested in putting money into CDs, your best bet is to track rates at different banks, but also follow the news and pay attention to what the Fed is doing with interest rates. That could be your best indicator.

Meanwhile, if you have money available now to put into a CD, don’t wait. The rates available today may not be around much longer. If you’re sitting on some savings because you hibernated during the winter or received your tax refund, compare CD rates in the coming weeks and lock one in before those rates start to fall.

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We’re firm believers in the Golden Rule, which is why editorial opinions are ours alone and have not been previously reviewed, approved, or endorsed by included advertisers.
The Ascent does not cover all offers on the market. Editorial content from The Ascent is separate from The Motley Fool editorial content and is created by a different analyst team.The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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Costco offers two membership tiers, Gold Star and Executive. Keep reading to learn whether it’s worth springing for the Executive membership — or not. [[{“value”:”

When you join Costco, you have two choices for your membership tier. You could spend $60 to get a year of the Gold Star membership which, despite its fancy name, is the basic or entry-level membership. Or you could spend $120 and upgrade to the Executive membership.

Doubling the cost of joining a warehouse club can actually make sense for some people — but it’s not the right choice for everyone. You should be on the lookout for these three signs that you’re better off becoming a Gold Star Costco member rather than paying the extra $60 to upgrade.

1. You spend less than $3,000 a year at Costco

One of the biggest perks of the Executive membership is that you can earn 2% back on all of your purchases at Costco or Costco.com. You can earn up to $1,000 in annual rewards through this Costco program.

For some people, the 2% back means that the upgraded membership pays for itself. If you spend at least $3,000 at Costco during the year, you would get $60 in annual rewards from this program — enough to cover the upgrade. If you ended up spending more than $3,000, you’d make money on the deal.

If you don’t spend at least $3,000 at Costco annually, though, then you won’t earn enough money to repay yourself for the upfront fee. So, the Executive membership probably isn’t worth it in this situation.

2. You won’t take advantage of perks outside the warehouse club

Costco’s Executive membership offers perks beyond the 2% cash back. You also get some additional savings on other goods and services from Costco beyond the products sold in the warehouse.

For example, while all Costco members can get discounted pet insurance through Figo, Executive members can avoid paying a $15 enrollment fee that others are charged in most states.

You can read about some of the other Costco services, including savings on paper check orders and on vehicle parts and services, at Costco.com. If you will use some of these services and you get a better deal for being an Executive member, then upgrading to the higher tier may be worth it even if you don’t hit your $3,000 spending target. That’s the case if the amount you’re saving due to the additional perks of your upgraded membership is worth more than the $60 extra you pay to get Executive status.

However, if you don’t want to buy insurance through Costco or take advantage of its other services, and you’re purely signing up to shop for goods and services at the warehouse club, then the entry level option is the right choice if you also aren’t a big spender.

3. You’re just trying out Costco for the first time

Finally, if you are just signing up for Costco for the first time, you’re often better off starting with the basic membership before taking the plunge on the upgrade.

You can get a feel for how much you’ll shop there and what perks you’ll use and then decide if putting that higher membership fee on your credit card is worth it. You can always upgrade to the higher membership tier later, once you see that the perks or rewards make doing so worthwhile.

Getting a Costco membership makes sense for a lot of people, but paying for the Executive tier may not be worth it for you if one or more of these points applies to you. Thankfully, Costco’s stellar return policy also applies to memberships, so if you’re not getting the most out of yours, you can ask Costco for a refund at any time.

Alert: our top-rated cash back card now has 0% intro APR until 2025

This credit card is not just good – it’s so exceptional that our experts use it personally. It features a lengthy 0% intro APR period, a cash back rate of up to 5%, and all somehow for no annual fee! Click here to read our full review for free and apply in just 2 minutes.

We’re firm believers in the Golden Rule, which is why editorial opinions are ours alone and have not been previously reviewed, approved, or endorsed by included advertisers.
The Ascent does not cover all offers on the market. Editorial content from The Ascent is separate from The Motley Fool editorial content and is created by a different analyst team.Christy Bieber has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Costco Wholesale. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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