In a wholesale or warehouse buying club such as Costco, customers pay an annual fee to access discounts or other special deals. Often, the savings come from buying in bulk. Here, we explain the Costco manager salary, benefits, and the essential job duties. We’ll also compare the salaries of Costco warehouse managers to those for two of its chief competitors.
Costco Manager Job Description & Duties
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As with retail store managers in general, the Costco warehouse manager is tasked with overseeing and ensuring the overall efficient and profitable operation of the warehouse. The specific duties and functions include hiring, firing, training, assigning and directing associates, who typically include membership assistants, cashiers assistants, stockers, bakery wrappers, cake decorators, and so on. Under the warehouse manager’s oversight, assistant warehouse/assistant general managers may assume some of these roles.
Beyond leading personnel matters in the warehouse store, the Costco warehouse manager has ultimate accountability for sales, moving and tracking inventory, preventing waste and theft or other loss.
Costco Manager Salary & Benefits
While Payscale reports a median $62,526 salary per year for the Costco retail store manager, Glassdoor says the pay for the same professional, on a base level, amounts at $127,000, or $10,583 per month. While the Costco manager salary can run yearly from $122,204 and $147,411 ($10,183 to $12,284 monthly). In the assistant manager ranks, the mean base pay rests at $65,024 annually or $5,419 per month.
Working as a Costco warehouse manager comes with a bundle of benefits. On the 401(k) plan, managers and other employees (upon eligibility) receive a 50 percent match of employee contributions up to a maximum of $500 per year. Meanwhile, that is $250 for employees on the West Coast. Health benefits include co-pays as low as $3 on generic prescriptions and 15 percent on others. Costco’s vision plan pays $60 on a refraction examination and $175 towards the purchase of prescription glasses and lenses. Eligible employees can participate in the profit sharing plan.
As salaried employees, warehouse managers become eligible for benefits after a month on the job. With nearly seven out of ten being promoted from within Costco, most warehouse managers already receive these benefits.
Alternative Companies Salary
Costco’s main competitor in the buying club sector, Sam’s Club, pays its general managers, or store managers, on a mean basis $95,165 per year. Glassdoor reports a salary range of $50,000 to $127,400. The highest paid Sam’s Club general managers make about as much as their lower-paid Costco counterparts.
BJ’s Warehouse also has a strong presence, especially in the eastern United States, in the wholesale club industry. At these stores, general managers fetch on a mean basis $95,232, according to Glassdoor. This average falls well below that of a Costco manager salary but is generally on par with the base mean pay of Sam’s Club general managers.
Conclusion
The mean Costco manager salary ranks highest among the major players in the warehouse buying club field. Costco also affords its warehouse managers and other employees generous health, retirement, and insurance benefits. You can also check out how much a Walmart manager makes per year. Please offer your opinions on your experience if you have ever worked at Costco.
