Depending on how far down you like to crawl into the r/Costco threads on Reddit, you might have heard that some areas of the United States are experiencing a slight shortage in water bottles.
I looked into it with some dread that we’d be repeating 2020’s toilet paper nonsense. Here’s the good news: Most Costcos are doing fine and are well stocked on water bottles.
But there are some cities, such as Salt Lake City; Tacoma, Washington; Tulsa, Oklahoma; and a few other stores in the northwestern United States that said they’ve had to put a limit on how many packages of water folks may buy. Here’s what we know:
Stores in the northwest, Salt Lake City, and Tulsa reported shortages.
Although the western part of the country is facing another intense drought, I was told that water supply actually wasn’t the problem in places such as Salt Lake City.
Instead, a Costco administrator told me that they were short on drivers who could deliver the water, so that was pushing back their ability to restock on time.
If your Costco doesn’t have water, look elsewhere or shop online.
Of course, you can always check other physical stores such as Walmart, Target, convenience stores and grocery stores. But I found the best prices on 24-packs from manufacturer websites such as Hinckley Springs and Ice Mountain.
If you’re within delivery range, you might try ordering one of these 24-packs:
- From Ice Mountain for $4.49
- From Hinckley Springs for $6.49
- From Ozarka for $4.49
- Compare to an Ozarka 24-pack from Walmart for $9.98
The best way to help is to buy only what you really need.
Store administrators in Oregon and Boise, Idaho, said that a bigger problem they were seeing was people buying a lot more than what should be necessary. Costco recently lifted their buying limits on everything. I guess it was only a matter of time.
The admin in Salt Lake City said she wished her Costco would lower the limit to what people can buy from five 40-packs of water down to two. “If customers only bought one or two packs, that would go a long way for us to provide water to more people,” she said.
Thanks for reading. If your Costco is experiencing a water bottle shortage, please let us know in the comments.
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