At Costco warehouses, a 2½-pound block of Tillamook Medium or Sharp Cheddar retails for about $11.23, translating to roughly 28 cents per ounce. That’s significantly cheaper than similar products at mainstream grocers, where cheddar can cost from 39 cents to 62 cents per ounce — giving members a tangible per-unit savings on a staple dairy item.

Food Republic and consumer feedback note that Tillamook often ranks highly in taste tests for flavor, creaminess and overall quality, outperforming many store-brand or competitor offerings. For dairy-centric households and cheese enthusiasts, this reputation boosts the appeal of buying in bulk at Costco rather than piecemeal at local supermarkets.

Some shoppers share extreme examples of “membership payback,” like a Reddit user who reportedly purchased 34 pounds of Tillamook cheese on sale, slashing their effective cheese costs and making the annual fee seem almost negligible relative to the value gained from that single dairy purchase.