Costco members can get discounts on travel arrangements through Costco Travel, from flights and cruises to hotels and rental cars.
But, can members also get passport photos printed in Costco’s stores? Here’s all the information I could find.
Costco does not take or print passport photos as of 2022 either in-store or online. This service was permanently discontinued in all Costco stores throughout the US on February 14, 2021, due to a drop in demand. Alternatively, Walgreens, Walmart, CVS, and Target take passport photos.
So, why exactly did Costco ax passport printing and other photo services? Read more to find out everything you need to know!
Why Did Costco Discontinue Its Passport Printing Service?
Costco discontinued its passport photo printing service in all US stores on 14 February, 2021.
The reason behind this was the Costco cited a steep decline in demand resulting from the rise of camera phones and social media.
And it wasn’t just the taking and printing of passport photos that ceased in Costco’s stores.
All photo services that used to be carried out at in-store photo centers were discontinued for the same reasons.
However, you can still access some photo services and products through the Costco Photo Center website, including:
- Prints and wall art
- Enlargements
- Personalized greeting cards, invitations, and gifts
- Calendars
- Stationery
- Banners
Costco had actually started closing down a number of its in-store photo centers as early as 2019.
But then, back in January, it was announced that they were going to close the rest all at once in the following month.
What Stores Take Passport Photos?
If you need new photos taking for your passport or another form of identification, then there are a number of convenient locations you can go to.
These include grocery stores, drug stores, and post offices. For ultimate convenience, you can try:
- Walgreens
- CVS
- Rite Aid
- UPS
- Walmart
- Target
What Other Photo Services Has Costco Discontinued?
Along with taking and printing passport pictures, other services such as standard photo printing ceased in all Costco stores in February, 2021.
However, while you can still get photos printed online through the Costco Photo Center website, it is no longer possible to access the more specialist services Costco offers.
These included photo restoration, home video transfers, and ink cartridge refilling.
Conclusion
Costco no longer offers passport photo printing, nor does it offer any other photo services in-store. In recent years, there was a significant drop in demand for these services, making their continuation in-store untenable.
However, you can still access some photo services and products through the Costco Photo Center website, including personalized cards and wall art. If you need a passport photo taken, though, you will have to go to one of many other stores that offer the service.
Costco photo center is one of the most trustworthy and well-known photo services provider centers in the USA. It has skillful and experienced photo shooters who are really keen on making professional passport photos for their honorable customers. For this reason, regular customers visit this photo center frequently and any time they need to renew their passports, to get fresh photos. Certainly, you are thinking about the cost and other facilities of these services. Don’t worry! We will go through everything within this article…
How Much Do Costco Passport Photos Cost on Average?
Costco offers one of the cheapest prices as compared to brands offering similar services. Although there are a few companies offering similar price ranges for instant pictures, you should take into account that they usually won’t offer the same processing for passport photo sizes. At Costco, you will pay a fixed price of $4.99 for the total 4 copies passport-sized photos that are really great in terms of quality, much better than what everyone else offers at this price range.
Costco also offers other kinds of pictures in different shapes and sizes, at great prices for new and existing customers. The classic calendar fee is $8.99 with a shipping fee of $21.95. The canvas print cost is $45.99 with a framed image of 14*14, not bad considering the maximum framed (40*60) price is $349.00. Costco also offers you collage prints sized at 20*30, at a price of just $9.99. The price of a gallery print photo is $9.99, while a single, small photo won’t cost more than $0.17.
There are a total of 672 Costco photo centers across the United States from where you can receive your photos. All you have to do is to upload your raw picture online with full instruction or take your photos to the nearest Costco store. If you go to the store yourself, you won’t have to spend anything on shipping, because it will be free.
Costco Photo Center and other Photo Center Price Comparison
There are many passport photo service brands in the USA. These other brands are really costly when compared with Costco, often offering lower quality photos.
Sam’s Club delivers two pieces of passport size photos for $4.99, while Costco provides 4 copies for the same price. The customers of Walmart get two pieces of passport size photos for $7.50, while Right Aid delivers the same copies for $8.00 with $1 allowed token. With the same process CVS customers pay $10.00, Walgreens customers spend $12.00 and the UPS photo service center is taking $13.00 for the same just two passport size photos.
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The Importance of Passport Photos
Passport photos are a very important thing for travelers who frequently go abroad for their business and traveling purposes. Your passport photos must be up to date and be of the highest quality to ensure an easy pass over any borders.
There are some outstanding international rules for creating your passport photos to go abroad. Would you like to upload your pictures for making new passport photos in the Costco photo center? You must know something that is so important for you if you want to go abroad soon:
Passport Photos Dimensions and Print Materials
Passport photo width and length must be two inches and using glossy/matte paper for proper printing. The perfect dimension of the passport photo is a minimum of 600*600 pixels and the maximum 1200*1200 pixels. This is one of the visual aspects required for these photos. Don’t forget to ask your providing companies about dimensions and sizes to make sure you get accurate photos.
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The Graphic Specs for Passport Picture
The requirement for the proper passport photo is off-white/plain white color background. Remember, other colors are not acceptable for the standard photos.
Passport Photos Date
This doesn’t seem important, but in fact, is one of the key elements of the photo: A present photo of yourself is perfect for your passport, but you can use one no older than six months. This is because you might look different in an older picture. Your physical appearance might have changed, you might have altered your hairstyle, reduced, or gained weight.
Should the average working Joe get passport photos at Costco?
Costco is offering one of the most professional passport photo services in the US. If you want to make sure that you won’t have any problems with your passport photos at the border, then Costco is right for you. If the price is the most important for you, then you won’t be disappointed, as Costco has the lowest prices for the quality.
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Alec Pow is a thorough and methodical Financial and Business Analyst with over 15 years of experience in financial statement analysis, Foreign exchange derivative hedging instruments analysis, modeling, and risk management, with a long history of writing for big news publications like Forbes, MSN.com, Washington Post, and many more.