![[OC] The $1.50 Costco Hot Dog and Soda Has Held Steady Throughout Inflation](https://www.byteseu.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/16qoe8ezcptf1-1024x585.png "[OC] The $1.50 Costco Hot Dog and Soda Has Held Steady Throughout Inflation")
Did you know that the price of a Costco hot dog with a soda has stayed the same at just $1.50 since 1985 even through inflation?
The $1.50 Costco Hot Dog and Soda Has Held Steady Throughout Inflation – 2025-10-06.
Calculated using CPI data from US Bureau of Labor Statistics and Costco Wholesale.
Figure has not yet been formally peer reviewed and are intended as exploratory
Posted by Odd-Distribution4153
28 Comments
I think its more cause Costco isnt trying to make money off of the Hot Dog and Soda. Its to get you in the door to spend money on items that are going up with inflation.
How long till costco decides not to take those losses.
It will be sad day indeed.
IKEA has a similar thing but the price has risen from 1,50€ to 2€ (or 1,50€ for a vegan one) here in Germany and they don’t even include the drink anymore, that would be another 50ct or € I’m not sure right now…
The Costco hot dog is a loss leader – meaning it’s purposely priced – they lose money on every single one sold. It is not a marker for any sort of inflation statistics.
I still never eat it… lol..
I’ll fuck with that new combo calzone though… they got me
If everything was increasing with inflation then inflation would not be at the level it is.
They lose money on the hot dog but prices of costco membership have increased to offset losses
but what about dog shrinkflation? we need a measurement of dog length going back to 1985
I remember reading that CostCo was also really fighting to raise the price of their rotisserie chicken during the pandemic, because they felt that this was a signature item at that price. This is a couple of years ago now, dont know if they actually raised prices.
the fixins have been consistently removed over time. the oniy thing left to take is the relish
Definately not 4.50 worth smh
Yes I knew this because it’s posted once a month on Reddit.
Yes, this single data type on an excel chart sure is beautiful.
/s
Ok look: this is a loss leader. They get you on, and you buy a $5 hot dog for $1.50 but you also buy $350 worth of other stuff. And you had to pay a membership fee just to walk in the door!
Those things aren’t magic. They are marketing!
Those of us with class by pass the hotdog and get a chicken…. And spend $250 on random shit because it’s at the back.
Then I go home and question life choices and devour the chicken with my bare hands over the sink.
Hey look, I can plot the price of a Costco hot dog over time too:
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What a useless visualization.
The Hot Dog is good, and the roasted chicken is also good.
“If you raise the price of the fucking hot dogs I will kill you.”
Costco realized that that selling $1.50 hot dogs isn’t a random product to bump up a food court profit margin but a cheap massive marketing campaign that more marketers would kill for.
You talk about Costco and the $1.50 hot dog isn’t far behind.
This sub sucks now
Charging 4.5 equivalent for a hotdog and soda in 1985.
Simply means it was overpriced before.
Jim Sinegal (the co-founder and former CEO) told his successor that if they raise the price of the hot dog he was doing to kill him. That’s why they haven’t raised the price.
When interviewed about it in 2009 by The Seattle Times, when they asked him what it would mean if the price ever went up he replied, “That I’m dead.”
Damn it might be coming soon. Multiple times I’ve found little plastic bits in the hot dog. I’ve since stopped eating it and moved to their pizza. No strange substances yet…
It hasn’t changed price but they stopped offering sauerkraut and brown mustard, which is necessary for all hot dogs.
Gotta redo the chart to account for this effect of inflation.
Repost bot post and repost bot comments
This chart looks like my income.
I don’t even want the hot dog at $1.50, I can’t imagine anyone paying $4.50 for it.
The hotdog at Costco is the last thing I believe in