Alongside the affordable prices, one of the things that people love about Costco warehouses is that they are all set up similarly. You likely won’t have trouble finding what you need at any of the stores if you are already familiar with one location. Despite the similar setup, the size of each warehouse can vary greatly, and the largest Costco in the world can be found in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Costco has seen steady growth since its first store opened in 1983. By November 2024, it had 896 warehouses in the world — 616 stores of which are in all but three states across the country (Rhode Island, West Virginia, and Wyoming). While the average size of a store is 147,000 square feet, the Salt Lake City location on 300 West, which has been open since 1995, is more than 235,000 square feet. It did not start out that large, though. It initially had a square footage of 165,000 (closer to the average), but an additional 70,000 square feet were added in 2015. The overall size is a stark contrast to what you will experience in Juneau, Alaska, which is home to the world’s smallest Costco at 79,696 square feet. It is also one of the key differences between Costco vs Sam’s Club, the latter of which has fewer and smaller stores on average.
What To Expect At The Salt Lake City Costco Warehouse
If you plan to visit the unique Costco location in Salt Lake City, Utah, there’s one key thing to keep in mind: Wear comfortable shoes because you’ll be walking — a lot. The massive square footage of store space means that the perimeter of the warehouse is about one-third of a mile around — taking about 800 steps. A more distinguishing difference at this Costco location is that it has a business center — the first-of-its-kind hybrid store when the expansion was completed. The goal was to make the warehouse the go-to spot for commercial and institutional shoppers — such as caterers, coffee shops, and schools — although individuals and families can shop there as well.
While it might be tiresome to explore every foot of this Salt Lake City Costco, you will be rewarded with 2,700 more items to peruse — from nonperishables and soft drink pallets to dairy, produce, and meats. The warehouse even has whole roasting pigs and lambs, more single-serve items, and a bigger variety of candy and drinks. Best of all, more than 70% of the products are different from what you will find at a standard Costco store…