2024 Healthy Costco Shopping List & Printable List

Hi friends!  Today I’m sharing my updated list of healthy Costco items for 2024!  I’ve also updated the printable PDF grocery shopping list for those of you on my email list! 

 

Remember that Costco product shelves widely vary from location to location.  The two Costcos we live between have very different items.  This is even more pronounced from state to state.  So if you see something on the list that you can’t find, or you find something at Costco that’s not on the list, it’s likely because of their product variability by location.  This list originally started as just the things my family buys at Costco, but as the post has gained in popularity each year, I’ve tried to be more extensive adding my favorite picks in each category, even if we don’t necessarily buy them.  Also, you’ll find notes below about what I buy vs. other options I think are good options too.  These notes are not on the PDF but are below.  Lastly, I added a new section this year, what not to buy!  These are “healthy food dupes” things you may think are healthy, but are probably not the best purchase in Costco-size quantities (unless it’s for a special event.)

I believe that what you buy has to be a balance between health needs and desires vs. budget.  As we had a third kid this year, who just started eating table food, I will make compromises on items I didn’t make when we didn’t have kids.  Ultimately my goal is to shop for the cleanest items, the best overall health effects, and the least amount of toxin exposure (pesticides, food additives, colors, chemicals, etc.)  I specialize in autoimmunity as well as hormone issues. I’ve seen the huge effect cumulative toxin load can contribute to.  But health is a journey. At 22, I didn’t care what was in plastic and what wasn’t. I was on a grad student budget. As I became more aware and as I could afford it, I made gradual shifts to decrease plastic use, etc.  I don’t think there is such a thing as the perfect diet or that you can be completely “nontoxic” in all your household purchases.  The goal is to enjoy your food while doing the best you can within your time and budget restraints.  

You may also like these 25 healthy snacks from Costco! 

Not a Costco member yet?  Hungry Hobby readers get a $20 shop card when they join!  Click here! (affiliate link)

Cold Cases

Dairy and Eggs

• Kirkland Organic Eggs or Conventional Eggs
  •  Organic Pastured Eggs may have slightly more nutrients, but conventional eggs are still a nutrient-dense very healthy option! And besides, they don’t have pastured eggs there anyway and there is no evidence organic cage-free eggs (like what Costco has) have any additional health benefits to us.  We are now a family of five, and grocery costs have gone up 30-50% in the last year, I now buy the conventional 5 dozen pack of eggs.  When it was just me and my husband I religiously bought pastured eggs only.  I think it’s important to remember that sometimes the marginal benefit of the BEST case doesn’t take away that the conventional version is still very nutrient-dense!
• Kirkland Egg Whites
• Kirkland Plain Cottage Cheese
• Kirkland Plain Greek Yogurt 
• Kerrygold Butter or Kirland 95% Grassfed
  • Kerrygold is estimated to be about 85-95% grass-fed.  So either is a good option.  For baking or holidays when I’m flying through butter, I often buy the other types of organic butter there. 
• Chobani Low Sugar 
  • I haven’t seen this at our Costco in a while so, not sure if they discontinued it.  
• Chobani Zero Sugar 
  • sweetened with allulose, a newer natural low-calorie sweetener.  Limited human studies are promising, but since my kids consume it, I prefer to stick to Chobani Low Sugar instead. 
• Organic String Cheese 
  • my kids are obsessed. 
• Stonyfield Yogurt Tubes
• Organic Half and Half 
• Milk 
  • I don’t buy milk at Costco because my kids aren’t huge milk drinkers, so I can still afford 100% grass-fed milk.  They also don’t have organic milk at Costco.  But some people may really like that they have A2 milk there or just plain old affordable milk.  All types of milk are a great source of nutrients if you can tolerate it.  Nutritionally best case is 100% grass-fed milk, then organic, then conventional, but even conventional is a nutrient-dense food.  
  • What is A2 Milk?  It’s a milk made from a breed of cows that produces milk with a protein called A2 which is slightly different from most dairy milk.  This protein may be more easily digested by certain people, but the research is unclear.  I say if it works for you, go for it!

Other Cold Items 

• MUSH Overnight Oats – love the clean ingredients, could be a time saver in the morning.  Make sure to add a protein, like a protein shake or hard-boiled eggs if you eating these for breakfast!
• Oasis Hummus (3-packs)
• Nitrate-free chicken sausages – usually chicken apple, paleo black pepper, or Sabatino’s mozzarella 
• Hillshire Farm Nitrate Free Deli Turkey 
• Maple Leaf Uncured Canadian Bacon 
• Colombus Uncured Turkey Bacon
• Three Bridges Egg Bites
• Raw Sauerkraut 
• Kevin’s Brand anything
  • I noticed they’ve been carrying a few of Kevin’s products recently and I love to see that as they are DELICIOUS with really clean ingredients.  I was first exposed to the in my Hungryroot boxes. 
• Shrimp cocktail 
• Teton Water hog dogs 
• Teton Water jalapeno cheddar brats 
• Amyulu breakfast sausage 
• Aidells chicken sausage (not the bacon and pineapple because the bacon is not uncured)
• Sabatino’s chicken sausages and meatballs – all varieties  (not pictured)
• Sukhi’s Tikka Masala or Coconut Curry 
• Kirkland Cheese Blocks (any kind!)
• Gourmet Cheeses 
• Siete Tortillas
• Kirkland Cheese, Nuts, and Fruit Trays 
• Street Tacos
  • Item isn’t perfect, but it’s my go-to healthy meal to pick up from their pre-prepared item section. 

*I don’t get bacon (or most of my meat) at our Costco because I get it from Butcher Box.  

Produce

You can’t go wrong with fresh produce of any kind!  I tend to purchase items where the skin will be peeled, like bananas, avocados, oranges, etc as conventional.  Other things I may purchase organic as my budget allows.  

• All Salad Kits
  • Sometimes use my own dressing, sometimes not. 
• Large Container Spinach
• Cherry Tomatoes
• Organic Berries
• Mini Sweet Peppers 
• Big bags of broccoli or whatever we feel like eating in bulk that week 
• Baby carrots
  • although they are organic and I don’t typically purchase organic carrots 
• Wildborne Sauerkraut
• Bananas 
• Apples
• Avocados

Freezer

We purchase most of our meat and bacon from ButcherBox, an online meat delivery service, but we get a ton of seafood and convenience meat items from Costco.  (For a comparison of organic Costco meat vs. Butcher Box, see my updated Butcher Box review.)

• Kirkland Farmed Alaskan Salmon (I now buy my salmon from Sprouts, it’s still farmed but from Norway where salmon farming has better healthier practices.)
• Kirkland Wild Caught Sockeye Salmon
  • I don’t like sockeye salmon, but if you do, this wild-caught option is great!
• Kirkland Wild Caught Pacific Cod
• Kirkland Wild Caught  Mahi Mahi
• Trident Pollock Burgers
• Trident Salmon Burgers
• Kirkland 2LB Bag of Raw Shrimp 
• Columbus Seasoned Turkey Burgers
• 100% Grassfed Kirkland Burgers 
• Just Bare Chicken  – my in-laws buy these and the ingredients are pretty clean! 
• Frozen fruit for smoothies 
• Cauliflower crust pizzas 
• Frozen Green Beans
  • love making these in the air fryer
• Frozen Stir Fry Veggies
• Frozen Root Vegetable Blend
  • the baby LOVES these and they are steam in the bag, but I haven’t seen them in a while!
• Frozen Asparagus (steam in the bag)
  • FYI I used to use steam in the bag all the time, but now, I only use steam in bags under emergencies due to plastic exposure. Cooking food in plastic is a leading cause of chemicals such as BPA and phthalates in the food.  These are known endocrine disruptors contributing to gut inflammation, hormone imbalance, infertility, and autoimmune conditions. 
• Frozen Brussel Sprouts (steam in the bag)
  • FYI I used to use steam in the bag all the time, but now, I only use steam in bags under emergencies due to plastic exposure. Cooking food in plastic is a leading cause of chemicals such as BPA and phthalates in the food.  These are known endocrine disruptors contributing to gut inflammation, hormone imbalance, infertility, and autoimmune conditions. 
• Siete Almond Flour Tortillas 
• Evol Egg Burritos 
  • high carb, but pretty clean ingredients! I typically buy them postpartum and during pregnancy! 

Pantry Items

• NEW! One Degree Organic Rolled Oats
  • Note: I typically buy from Thrive Market because I prefer organic.  I don’t think organic is best for all things, but for wheat and oat products, I think it’s worth it. Organic oats and wheat have high glycinate (round-up pesticide) exposure which can not be washed off.  I was so happy to find bulk organic oats at Costco!  Coaches Oats, Kirkland Oats, and Quaker Oats are great options if you don’t prefer organic.  
• Health Warrior Instant Oatmeal Packet
• Kirkland Almond Flour
• Kirkland & Kinder Seasonings (garlic salt, cinnamon, and steak seasonings plus other random ones) 
• Kirkland Coconut |Kirkland Olive| Chosen Foods Avocado Oil 
  • Note: Again, I typically buy from Thrive Market since all of their bottles are plastic.  Oils, more so than other foods, kept in plastic bottles have higher levels of plastic chemicals such as BPA in them. Seems the oils have unique capabilities to leach the chemicals from the platic container. I avoid these as they are known endocrine disrupters.
• Vanilla extract
• Lotus Foods Brown Rice Ramen 
• Kirkland or Seeds of Change Pre-cooked Brown Rice/Quinoa Packs
• Banza Chickpea Pasta (occasional item, when I see it I buy it)
• Kirkland or Nutiva Hempseeds, chia seeds, and flaxseeds 
• Coffee Pods
  • whatever is on sale and organic or Kirkland Strong Organic 
• Laird Superfood Creamer
  • I don’t love this, but many people do, and it has super clean ingredients!
• Wild Sardines
• Wild Pink Salmon
• Kirkland Albacore Tuna or Wild Planet Tuna 
  • The wild planet is the best option as it retains natural oils with high levels of omega 3’s. 
• Mandra’s Lentils (not recently, but in the past)  
• Kirkland Vanilla Almond Milk
  • the 10-pack is fortified – the other original version is not fortified with calcium.
• Kirkland Almonds, Cashews, Pistachios, etc.  
• Kirkland Maple Syrup 
• Honey
  • the ones that come in bears because they are the least messy. I don’t buy raw honey because I prefer not to take the risk of botulism.  🙂 
• Kirkland Almond Butter
• Kirkland Organic peanut butter
  • I buy the organic because it’s just peanuts and salt, not because it’s organic. 
• Stonewall Kitchen Jam or Organic Strawberry Jam
  • lowest sugar, least processed options
• Paleo pancake mix (on occasion) 
• Granola/Cereal:  
  • Nutrail Keto Nut Granola (lowest sugar – 2g per 1/4 cup but sweetened with Erythritol.  Sugar alcohols may bother some people’s stomachs, and I wouldn’t serve it to kids. My in-laws said it’s delicious though!)
  • Autumn Gold Grain Free Granola (6g sugar per 1/4 cup)
  • Natures Path Pumpkin Seed and Flax (about 3g per 1/4 cup)
• Chosen Foods Avocado Mayo 
• Coconut Aminos 
• Kirkland Organic Chicken Broth 
• Kirkland Organic Chicken Stock 
• Campbell’s Simply Chicken Noodle 
• Organic Black Beans and Refried Beans 
• Rao’s Tomato Sauce 
• Dried Fruit 
  • Any dried fruit is great as long as the only ingredient is the fruit itself!
• Jarred Marinated Artichokes
• Jarred Pickles
• Jarred Olives
• Jarred Peaches 
• Jarred Salsa
  • I stick with glass jars to reduce plastic exposure as tomato products are high acidity and, like oil, are known to leech chemicals out of plastic containers. 
• Kinder Sauces – Clean ingredients!
• Organic Ketchup and Mustard – NEW! I don’t care about the organic with these products, but love that the ingredients are cleaner in these like no high fructose corn syrup etc.  
• Kinders BBQ and Terriyaki
  • Kinders products tend to have lower sugar and clean ingredients!

Snacks

• Simple Mills Almond Flour Crackers 
• Multigrain Crunch Master
• Organic Triscuits – not GF but only has 3 ingredients!
• Caveman Bars 
• RW Garcia Crackers
• Terra Vegetable Root Chips 
• Nearly Naked Popcorn
• KIND Bars – 5g Sugar 
• Salt and Vinegar Pistachios (Wonderful Brand)
• Garlic, Herb, and Olive Oil Almonds
• Kirkland Variety Snacking Nuts 
• Nature’s Garden Organic Snack Mix 
• The Only Bean Roasted Edamame* NEW
• Jerky –  all contain soy, but I avoid those with hydrolyzed corn protein or other weird ingredients
  • Snake River Wagyu Jerky
  • Country Archer Mango Habanero Jerky (GF)
  • Tillamook Jerky Zero Sugar
  • Kirkland Turkey Jerky (must be refrigerated after opening) 

Kids Snacks

• Fig Bars, Bobos, Z Bars Cliff 
  • These bars have similar amounts of sugar in them, and admittedly they are all kind of high.  9-12 grams per serving.  Bobos being the worst offender, then Z bars Cliff, and then Fig Bars.  We buy fig bars.  
• Applesauce
• Snap Peas
• NEW! Soley Fruit Jerky
• That’s It Mini Fruit Bars
• Skinny Pop or Smartfood Pop (kids five and over only)
• Pure Bars – Organic Layered Fruit Bars
  • I recently gave into these bars after my kids loved them so much when we had them.  I think they are a much better alternative to fruit snacks, but watch the choking hazard as they are small, round, and rubbery
• Country Archer Mini Jerky 
  • Choking hazard for littles, again small round, and rubbery.  However, I have bought these and cut them lengthways for my kids.  I don’t love the salt/high processed aspect, but I love that it’s something with protein I can give my kids as a snack that doesn’t require refrigeration.  

Protein Shakes/Bars:

• PBFit
• Orgain Protein Shakes
  • both powder and pre-made shakes – both vegan and whey
• Core Power Protein Shakes
• Kirkland Protein Bars
  • the quest knockoffs – haven’t bought these recently since I like RX bars better
• RX Bars 
• Perfect Bars (Refrigerated) – high calorie, more meal replacement
• Good To Go Bars (Refrigerated) 
• Ready Clean Protein Bar – soy-based 
• Kirkland Protein Bar Chocolate Peanut Butter – soy-based
• Simply Protein Bar  – soy-based
• Vital Proteins Collagen 
  • Marine and Beef Varieties

Drinks:

• La Croix
• Spindrift when they have it
• Kirkland Water bottles 
• Suja Might Dozen Green Juice
• Pomegranate Juice
  • Kirkland Brand
  • POM Wonderful 

New! Supplements:

I’m not recommending you take every single one of the things on this list, but if your healthcare professional has recommended any of these items to you, these are the ones I like from Costco.  Costco has some super crappy supplements and some good ones, you have to know what you’re looking for when it comes to purchasing supplements there.  Again, not I’m not recommending you take everything on the list, just the brands and products I like!  

• Natural Calm  – Magnesium 
• Sports Research Omega 3 Fish Oil
  • For a long time Costco did not have a great quality fish oil that I could recommend, this one looks pretty good! High EPA/DHA ratio to total fish oil.  
• Kirkland Calcium chews
• Kirkland Vitamin C 
  • Liposomal Vitamin C is more absorbable, but honestly not enough more absorbable for me to pass on the value of Costco chewable Vitamin C.  
• Sports Research MCT Oil 
• Sports Research Vitamin D/K2

Other:

• Huggies or Kirkland Diapers 
• Infant and Kids Pain Relievers (Ibuprofen and Tylenol) – I like that they are dye-free!
• Ziplock bags 
• Dog Dental Chews
  • we get the dentistix because you can break them in half so then you get double
• Dog Food
  • just switched from a grain-free to the other one at our vet’s advice
• Cat Litter
  • whatever is on sale
• Sensodyne 
• Chlorine Tabs (1-2x per year)
• Random clothes
  • Mr. Hungry likes to get basketball shorts there.  Also, baby/kid clothes.  
• Reynolds Heavy-Duty Aluminum Foil
• Kirkland Parchment Paper 
• Kirkland Wax Paper 
• Random paper plates and utensils (for the holidays)
• Kirkland Paper Towels
• Kirkland Bath Tissue 
• Kirkland Napkins 
• Kirkland Trash Bags
• Batteries 
• Cleaning items galore 
  • Cascade or Kirkland dishwasher pods
  • hand soap 
  • swifter pads (dry and wet)
  • Clorox wipes (whatever is on sale, Kirkland brand vs. name brand don’t care)
  • a million other things I’m probably forgetting 
  • Sponges
  • * I recently swapped from Kirkland Laundry Soap and Dryer Sheets to Defunkify Laundry Soap and Clean People Dryer Sheets on Amazon.  The change was painful to  my wallet, I hope Costco gets products in that are a bit cleaner soon, but even their fragrance free is rated a D on the Environmental Working Group website!

One Time Purchases

Over the years, we’ve bought:

• Food Processors
• Air Fryer – I just replaced my Instant Pot Vortex a few weeks ago with the Cuisinart Air Fryer Oven and couldn’t be happier so far! I love that the trays are all stainless steel and that it’s multi-functional.  I do think the stainless steel is harder to clean (but healthier than nonstick and is dishwasher safe) so I found these replacements on Amazon and went ahead and purchased them to have an extra tray.  
• Cutco knives – when on roadshow!
• Vitamix
• Nutribullet
  • this item is great for beginners!
• motion sensor trash can 
• Keurig 
• printer and printer ink
• bright white printer paper
• G2 Pilot pens
• TV
• Eyeglasses
• Dog bed
• 1800 Tequila and Kirkland tequila
• wine 
• other alcohol (but we aren’t big drinkers, so it takes us five years to get through it) 

…and I’m sure other things I’m forgetting!  I’d love to know what you buy!  Did I miss something that is a staple for you?  

NEW Section: Don’t Be Fooled

This is my list of items that when I see people grab them off the shelf, I wonder if they know.  

• Keto Bread
  • Ingredients: potato starch, vital wheat gluten – sooner or later this stuff will wreck your gut. 
• Stevia Blend Packets
  • can you believe the first ingredient on these is sugar? I was floored. 
• Heavenly hunks 
  • mostly sugar 
• Dried fruit with anything other than the fruit as the ingredient. 
• Fruit Snacks 
  • Buy your kids fruit or buy them candy.  But fruit snacks are candy disguised as fruit. Absolutely no nutrient retention in fruit snacks, the first ingredient is corn syrup.  My kids go to preschool and eat these, so that’s fine, but I don’t need Costco amounts in my house. 
• Liquid IV
  • Most people do not need to consume this much salt.  Unless you have special circumstances I would skip it.  Salt in foods doesn’t bother me, we use it liberally around here.  But concentrating that much salt into a drink that some people take daily can dysregulate the immune system which I do not love. I would only take it if you’ve exercised vigorously and continuously for over 90 minutes or if you are super sick with the stomach flu or other dehydration risks.  For a daily drink that’s a bit less concentrated, I like Go Hydrate. 
• Manuka Honey Egmont 
  • The UMF factor is too low to be meaningful.  
• Poppi Soda
  • Unpopular opinion that while I like this soda, I personally don’t find the very marginal health benefits worth the cost.  
• Nuttzo
  • Similar issue here. I LOVE the taste of this product. But it’s mostly cashew and almond butter with a few things added in.  It claims high levels of omega-3 fatty acids from the flaxseed, but we can’t digest whole flaxseeds so we don’t get those benefits.  Better off just buying almond butter at Costco, and cashew butter at Trader Joe’s.  I don’t think it’s worth the money, but they’ve carried it for years so some people must think it is! 
• Rotisserie Chicken 
  • I know I might get a lot of hate for this one, but there are a lot of ingredients (preservatives/chemicals) that just don’t need to be there. I’d rather swing by Sprouts where I can get a Rotisserie chicken without the additives.  
• Metabolism Booster Supplement
  • Costco carries a ton of crappy supplements, but this is by far the worst I’ve seen. Waste. Of. Money. 
• Prilosec/PPIs/Antacids  
  • If you need this many antacids, then you need a GI MAP.  Antacids contribute to leaky gut, poor nutrient absorption, and worsening symptoms.  

Healthy Costco Groceries Haul Video

I shared the following video on IGTV (come join me on Insta! @hungryhobbyRD), all relevant links about items or recipes I mentioned in the video are below the video!

Healthy Costco Groceries Reel

 

 

Not a Costco member yet?  Hungry Hobby readers get a $20 shop card when they join!  Click here! (affiliate link)

Relevant links:

• Grocery Shopping 101: Dairy
• Grocery Shopping 101: Bread Aisle
• Grocery Shopping 101: Oils 
• Collagen Facts & Why We Use It
• SmoothieBox Review 
• Daily Harvest Review
• Starbucks Feta Wraps Recipe
• Paleo Taco Salad Recipe
• Meal Prep Monday (I recorded my meal prep 3 days after this haul, so you can see what we actually ate with these groceries!)

You may also like: 

A Dietitian’s Guide To Shopping Healthy At Trader Joe’s