Costco Workers React to New '8-Second' Self-Checkouts Being Tested

Costco members were in for a treat once self-checkout was introduced to their neighborhood warehouses.

More recently, self-scanning entered the picture, though customers have offered mixed reviews due to the technology and other reasons.

Nevertheless, the wholesale giant decided to up its game a step further on the self-checkout front with an even newer model that has already begun testing in certain locations.

Per the Daily Mail, CEO Ron Vachris told investors the company has begun deploying systems that allow employees to scan items in customers’ carts before they reach the cashier — an effort aimed at speeding up throughput and reducing errors.

According to the tabloid, Costco CFO Gary Millerchip said in the company’s second-quarter earnings call that the new technology allowed for “an average transaction time of around eight seconds,” and that “early results show this is improving the flow of traffic, and we have received great member feedback.”

Reddit is revealing mixed reviews, however, a similar response to the penultimate self-checkout upgrade (self-scanning). In a thread dedicated to Costco employees, one user wrote, “It’s a pain… It’s slower now. You have one cashier pre-scanning everything, holding up the line, and members trying to skip the line, which makes the people waiting even more frustrated because others aren’t following the rules.”

Another user in the same Reddit/CostcoEmployee thread wrote, “Pre-scan for registers works nicely because no one is itching to cut in front of you while you scan. pre-scan for self checkout is an absolute ticking time bomb before members argue about cutting while you scan.”

With around 640 Costco warehouses across the U.S., Costco began rolling out new self-checkout terminals in the early 2020s as part of its efforts to streamline the shopping experience and reduce wait times for members. As it’s shown in recent years, self-checkout terminals can be a pretty polarizing topic for some people.