The One And Only Time Costco Raised Its Rotisserie Chicken Price

Costco's rotisserie chicken has become one of the most famous grocery store items. According to Reddit, the deal on this bird alone is worth the cost of a Costco membership. It has been consistently priced at $4.99 since it was first put on the shelves in 1994. As of 2026, the price should have been at least $11 if adjusted for inflation, yet Costco has kept it just under $5. The chicken has held this price throughout the warehouse's history, with one sole exception: In 2008, the store temporarily raised the price by $1 to cope with the recession.

The recession that lasted from late 2007 to mid-2009 was incredibly tough on the U.S. economy. Unemployment was high, new job openings were scarce, and mass layoffs were widespread, including at large grocery retailers. But despite the rough economic times, Costco avoided layoffs. It kept its employees and continued to offer good deals, resulting in strong customer turnout. During the 2008 holiday season, people spent more money at Costco than before the recession, as they were seeking out budget-friendly deals.

Still, the effects of the struggling economy showed in the sales; Costco's overall profits were down. The store raised its chicken price to $5.99 to stay afloat — and once the worst was over, it promptly dropped it back to $4.99, where it has stayed ever since.

The price of Costco's rotisserie chicken is still the same as it was over 30 years ago, while the costs of production have inevitably risen, so the chicken is being sold at a loss — and Costco is okay with that. In fact, the bird is a so-called "loss leader" – a grocery store deal that's specifically designed to make you spend more.

Rotisserie chicken is lucratively placed at the very back of the store near items with higher margins, so customers are exposed to other, more profitable goods before they ever make it to the poultry section. You may come to Costco for the chicken, but you're definitely leaving with other items in your shopping cart, too. So, while the store doesn't make any profit directly from the bird, it definitely profits from its placement. Not to mention, a deal like that is a great look for Costco and a magnet for customer loyalty.

The store sells well over a hundred million rotisserie chickens every year. From a business perspective, that's not an easy demand to meet when operating at a loss. Costco had to open its own chicken facility in 2019 to keep production costs as low as possible. Even so, the demand for its rotisserie chickens is so great that the facility doesn't meet half of it, so Costco still needs to source the majority of its chickens elsewhere.