Should You Buy Your Thanksgiving Turkey From Costco? Here’s What You Need To Know – Mashed

Anyone who loves Thanksgiving — or anyone who always gets pressured into hosting — knows that putting this massive meal together is a huge challenge. From finding those Thanksgiving sides that will have guests asking for seconds to sourcing the perfect turkey, it’s a lot to have to deal with. You might be tempted to do some one-stop shopping at Costco and pick up everything that you’ll need, but is that the best plan?

That’s what we’re deep diving into, and we’re going to focus on the turkey. Costco generally has a variety of options, and if you plan ahead, you can even order some online. But should you? That’s the thing: There are some options that are online only, and if you’re the type who wants to pick out their bird in person, you might just be out of luck. On the other hand, Costco might be the perfect place to source your Thanksgiving turkey.

So, we’re going to take a look at what has been on offer at Costco in the past few years, and see what people have had to say about the turkeys they’ve purchased. Hopefully, it’ll help you decide if Costco will be your go-to store for Thanksgiving shopping.

Shopping for the holidays can be tricky when you’re working with any kind of dietary restrictions, so let’s talk about halal meats. In a nutshell, in order for meat to be counted as halal, it needs to come from an animal that’s been humanely raised and properly slaughtered. That’s tricky with turkeys, who are often killed in massive processing facilities — and that’s not even getting into the questionable conditions on many large-scale farms. 

Costco does offer halal turkeys, but there are a few things you’ll need to keep in mind. Costco’s halal turkeys aren’t available in-store, and can only be ordered online. The good news is that they’re delivered via 2nd-Day air, and the estimated delivery date is posted when you order.

There’s more good news, too. Turkeys weigh in between 15 and 17 pounds, were raised without antibiotics, and then frozen. That means you’ll need to thaw it before the big day, which takes some planning ahead (and here’s the best way to thaw your Thanksgiving turkey). Customers who have purchased the halal turkeys and left reviews are generally favorable, with many saying it was the perfect size, deliciously moist, carefully packaged and shipped, and that it was a total win.

Thanksgiving means time to spend with the family, and it makes sense that you might not want to spend the whole time in the kitchen — even if you are enjoying the chance to whip up some non-traditional Thanksgiving sides — and Costco might have the solution for you. It’s offering several premade Thanksgiving meal options, but there’s a catch.

First, there’s a $179.99 meal that serves eight people, and includes dinner rolls, corn, green bean casserole, mashed potatoes, stuffing, cranberry relish, and two pies. There’s plenty of each, with decently-sized 2-pound trays, but there is a massive caveat: You don’t actually get a full turkey. Instead, you’ll be getting a 5-pound turkey breast, and if you’re hoping for leftovers, this might not be the way to go. (You’ll also need to plan well in advance, order online only, and place that order by November 11.) 

There’s another, even pricier option, too. For $269.99, you can order a (mostly) ready-to-serve meal that includes mashed potatoes, stuffing, Brussels sprouts, green beans, an assortment of relishes, and two pies — one of which you’ll have to bake yourself. You’re not getting a full turkey, here, either. Instead, you’ll get a 5-pound turkey breast roast, which could be what you’re looking for … or it could be a massive disappointment.

You can definitely get some stellar deals at Costco. Whether or not that extends to Thanksgiving turkeys won’t be clear until the birds hit the shelves, but there are some things that we did find when we started looking at pricing.

ABC News spoke with Dr. Michael Swanson, the Chief Agricultural Economist from the Wells Fargo Agri-Food Institute. He said that for 2024, it was forecasted that turkey prices were going to be down about 16% from 2023, but that price drop wasn’t reflected in the pricing available (at the time of this writing) for Costco. In 2023, Costco’s halal frozen turkey was $49.99. However, halal turkeys available for order online were priced at $79.99, or $63.99 after a manufacturer’s discount if you happened to order in a specific two-day window. That turkey was described as being slightly larger, but that’s still quite the price jump.

Economists note that Costco is generally competitive when it comes to turkey prices, but if you’re thinking about buying a fully-assembled meal with sides and a turkey, Costco might not be the best. While Costco’s 8-serving Thanksgiving dinner is currently priced at $179.99, Aldi is offering a meal basket that serves 10, comes with 20 items (including a whole turkey), and costs $47. You’ll have to do your own cooking, but that’s some food for thought.

This year, you might consider brining and smoking your turkey. If you’re wondering how long it takes to smoke a turkey, the general rule is that it’ll take about 15 minutes per pound. You’ll need to keep an eye on things, though, and here’s where Costco comes in. One of Costco’s offerings is the Kirkland Signature Naturally Hickory Smoked Turkey, which is advertised as having already been through the smoking process for four to six hours. According to what some Redditors have to say, this just might be the best turkey you’ve ever had.

“So worth it. I’ve gotten it three years in a row now. Best turkey ever,” wrote one person, while others confirmed it only needed to be reheated, and came with easy-to-follow directions. Another Redditor volunteered, “The white meat was perfectly juicy and delicious. The dark meat was mind blowing. One of the best turkeys I’ve ever had.”

That sounds like a slam dunk, but fortunately, Redditors tend to share the good and the bad. Some complain about the high price tag, and while the price varies by the year, it’s always a more expensive option. That makes sense since someone else is doing the work for you, but others suggested that the smoked flavor wasn’t great when used for some leftovers, and some found it too salty.

There are a number of ways you can reduce the stress of Thanksgiving, and we’d suggest that depending on what kind of holiday meal you’re looking for, you might even want to skip the whole turkey. If you’re having a small, intimate gathering, or if you find you’re always sick of leftovers, why not skip the hassle of cooking a whole turkey and opt for a turkey breast instead?

Available options seem to depend on your location, but Costco has fully cooked turkey breasts that are up to 9 pounds in size — and if you’re looking for something smaller, those options are there, too. Since they come precooked, you might wonder if they have that deli-meat texture that can ruin any meal. So, we did some digging and Redditors with experience with the Kirkland Signature brand turkey breast came through for us.

In one Reddit thread, customers shared that yes, they are real, legit turkeys, and the key is following the directions on the package that shows different ways to cut the turkey for different uses. Some recommend reheating it with butter and seasonings or covered in sautéed vegetables for an extra-flavorful dish, while others say that since it’s available all year, it’s the perfect way to get an easy Thanksgiving fix any time of the year.

Take a look at some of the labels on Costco’s different brands of turkeys, and you’ll notice that not all of them have the same information. Butterball turkeys, for example, might be labeled as “tom” turkeys, while Plainville Farms has a line of “Young Organic Hen Turkeys.” Others might not say whether you’re getting a male or a female bird, but does it matter? It might … or it might not.

The USDA‘s official stance on the difference between the two is something that’s easily visible elsewhere on the label: weight. Male turkeys tend to be bigger, but some sources suggest there’s a little more to it. Some claim that toms have more flavorful meat, while that the meat from female turkeys tends to be lower in fat and calories. 

There’s also the matter of usable meat. Weight, after all, includes the bones, and tom turkeys tend to have bigger skeletons that are included in the weight. They will also, however, have larger breast muscles, so if you’re planning on using most of your turkey on Thanksgiving, you might want to opt for a tom. If you’re a leftover-lover who is more about the stews, soups, and sandwiches that come after the main meal, hens can have a higher percentage of leaner meat that works better in these applications.

You’ve probably heard about the movement to eliminate antibiotics from the food chain. The idea is that when animals raised for their meat are over-prescribed antibiotics, it speeds up the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Generally, antibiotic use is highly regulated and the connection between the use of these drugs and the impact it has on human health is still uncertain. 

Plenty of people are still understandably concerned about what goes into the animals they’re eating, so let’s take a look at Costco turkeys. In 2018, Costco announced it was going to be putting strict guidelines in place to limit antibiotic use. Fast forward to 2021, and As You Sow’s report on Costco claimed it wasn’t being as transparent as it could be and wasn’t holding third-party suppliers to task. While that issue is considered “resolved” with a shareholder request for stricter regulations, just what came of that is unclear.

Costco does, however, offer antibiotic-free turkeys, including the Quality Ethnic Foods Halal Frozen Whole Young Turkey. These birds are clearly labeled as being raised without hormones, steroids, and antibiotics. So, if you’re concerned, you’ll need to check the labels on individual brands instead of relying on a blanket policy.

A turducken might seem like one of the many weird foods that have come on the scene fairly recently, but that’s not the case at all. Surprisingly, the turducken traces its origins all the way back to a Roman Empire-era tradition. It’s a perfectly legitimate option for Thanksgiving dinner, but if you’re wondering if you should pick up a premade turducken at Costco, you might want to rethink that.

Costco’s 7-pound bacon-wrapped turducken retails for $139.99 (with a $30 discount if you order in a very small window). Reviews aren’t great, and while there are some 5-star reviews, as of this writing there are more that are unhappy with this bird. Some of the one-star reviews call it tasteless, bland, unsatisfactory, and claim that there’s not enough meat to justify the price.

One reviewer called it “My worst Costco purchase,” writing, “I am a good cook and thought I could avoid what the others were saying. My hubris got in the way of solid critical thinking. This is the first holiday dish where no one wanted seconds; most did not finish their original serving.” Common complaints are pretty standard, with customers complaining it’s dry, chewy, and disappointing. While there were often leftovers, those leftovers happened because no one wanted to eat it.

Butterball is one of the brands that’s typically available at Costco, both in whole turkey form and as a breast roast. The good news is that as far as Thanksgiving turkeys go, Butterball lives up to its reputation in a few ways.

Head over to Reddit to see what people have been saying about recent purchases, and you’ll find that they’re largely saying good things. Redditors laud Butterball for producing turkeys that are consistently juicy, flavorful, and high-quality, which says a lot — especially when some say Butterball has been their go-to for several generations.

Butterball also has a strict policy in place regarding the use of antibiotics in their turkeys, and in recent years, it’s also gotten kudos for how turkeys are raised. In 2021, the National Advertising Division of the Better Business Bureau took a look at the claims the company made, and found some — including claims of humane animal care policies — were legit. They did suggest that some vague statements — including comparisons to the ways other turkeys were raised — be discontinued, but Butterball continued to get high marks all around. They’re a legit option at Costco, with one footnote: Butterball encourages retailers to participate in rewards programs, so if you’re looking for a deal, you might want to check Costco’s pricing against other deals in your area.

There is something else that you might want to take into consideration when you’re picking out your Thanksgiving turkey, and that’s the fact that Costco deals in bulk. There is a school of thought that suggests the more ethical way to source a Thanksgiving turkey is to skip Costco — and all the other big box stores and chains — and get a locally-raised bird from a small farmer. In addition to supporting those small farms, there are a few widely-repeated reasons for opting for one of these local birds.

Proponents of supporting small farmers say that birds generally have happier, healthier lives, contribute to the ecosystem they’re raised in, have a lower carbon footprint, and the money you’re spending stays right in the community. Local farms also tend to be transparent when it comes to practices and procedures, which can be a great thing. 

How does the final product measure up to the options at Costco? We headed over to Reddit to find out, and interestingly, there were a number of people saying that their experiences with heritage breeds were less than stellar. They cited gamey flavors, less breast meat, and a tougher texture. Others suggest that quality varies by bird and by farm, but others swear that the different types of meat is the only way to enjoy Thanksgiving. It seems to be a polarizing thing, and it is a very personal choice. 

Some families love tradition, but there’s nothing wrong with mixing things up. There are a ton of delicious Thanksgiving pies that you’ve never heard of or tried, and some old school Thanksgiving desserts that you should definitely bring back to the table. If you’re the type that thinks traditional is just another word for boring, you might be tempted to trade a whole turkey for the ease of sliced turkey. That could be a fun way to make the day easier, but if you’re going to Costco for turkey, you should know that the Kirkland Signature Oven Roasted Sliced Turkey Breast is often seen as less-than-stellar.

Redditors are pretty united in describing these as not being worth the price, recommending them only if you’re prioritizing time saved, and convenience over things like flavor and texture. Others say it’s just kind of fine, can sometimes have a slimy texture, and not only will that ruin whatever turkey dish you decide on, it’s easy to avoid.

Many say you should just opt for the precooked turkey breast previously mentioned in our deep-dive into the turkey scene at Costco. With just a little more work, you’ll have turkey that can be sliced, chunked, or shredded for your favorite non-traditional dishes.

Let’s recap! Should you buy your Thanksgiving turkey at Costco? That depends on what you’re looking for. There are some circumstances that a Costco turkey is exactly what you need to make your Thanksgiving a win. If you’re looking for a traditional, whole turkey, Costco is known to be competitively priced (although, if you’re looking for the most affordable, it never hurts to do a price check against other stores). 

It’s also a great option if you’re looking for a halal turkey, but if your Thanksgiving is gearing up to be on the less traditional side, you might want to go elsewhere for a turducken. If you’re looking specifically for a hen or a tom, Costco may or may not work for you as it has limited options that are labeled.

Ordering ahead is also tricky if you’re concerned about price since Costco often has small windows in which it offers manufacturer’s discounts. That can be an issue — especially if you don’t have room to store a turkey until the big day. So, when it comes to price, your best bet is to shop around.

In order to determine whether or not Costco was the best bet for a Thanksgiving turkey, we did a few things. We looked at not only what options have typically been available in the days leading up to Thanksgiving, but we also took a look at what customers have had to say about the birds they bought, their experiences with Costco turkeys, and how likely they were to recommend buying them again. We also compared Costco’s offerings to some of the other options out there, past trends in Thanksgiving shopping, and how turkeys are raised and sourced, all in order to give you the inside scoop on Costco’s turkey options.