5 Costco Cookies, Ranked Worst To Best

Since Costco started selling its baked goods (which happen to come with that famous 100% refund policy), the wholesale store has garnered quite a reputation. One of the most popular things to snag in the bakery are the fresh-baked cookies, which always hit home. The dilemma when shopping in Costco's iconic warehouse is often which scrumptious cookies to purchase though. 

The cookies come in delicious-looking tubs filled to the brim, marked with a sell-buy date within a few days of when they've come out of the oven. Buying more than one pack would be impractical — after all, it's unlikely you'll consume them all within a few days, and after a certain point they slowly decline in their softness. So which ones are worth grabbing the giant container of anyway?

I did the hard work for you (it's a tough burden to bear) and tried all of Costco's fresh bakery cookies to find out which one is worth purchasing over and over again. I ranked them from least favorite to the absolute best based on flavor, texture, uniqueness, and practicality. You can read more about my methodology at the end of this article. Admittedly, everyone will have a subjective personal favorite, but I tried to be as objective as possible in my ranking and approach.

My least favorite cookie of the bunch is the mini chocolate chip cookies. They are practical if you want to take a tub of cookies to a party with a lot of people in attendance, but beyond that, I just don't see the point.

Due to their size, these cookies are lacking the incredible texture that makes the larger chocolate chunk cookies so darn good. They are chewy, but too thin to really have a good bite. Plus, the fact that they have mini chocolate chips instead of those great chunks makes them a bit less interesting. You might be tempted to buy them thinking that because they're so small you won't eat as many — but once that lid comes off it is easy to forget how many you've had and get carried away. Buy them for a large get together, if you must, but it's safe to say that everyone would be much happier with any of the options further down this list.

These fall-edition sugar cookies are decorated with an enjoyable colorscape of sugar sprinkles. They're tender, soft to bite into, and have that delightful buttery taste that makes sugar cookies so craveable. They're not bad by any means — they're good, classic sugar cookies, but just aren't terribly unique or creative. I feel like if you were to put a tub of these out at a party next to any of the other full-sized cookies on this list, they would diminish at a much slower speed than the rest.

Making sugar cookies at home is super easy, and there are a few hacks and tricks you can use to give them intriguing flavors and a pop of color. Plus, cutting out unique shapes and decorating sugar cookies at home can be such a fun family activity. The sprinkles on the Costco version are nice to look at, but they're a few steps away from being a favorite cookie — you may have more fun just making them at home. 

My grandma used to tell me that anything with oatmeal in it is automatically healthy, whether it's a warm bowl of apple-cinnamon steel-cut or a sugar-loaded cookie, the oats would magically cancel out any potential sugar crashes. The logic of this is highly questionable, but when you eat Costco's incredibly soft oatmeal raisin cookie, you'll want to believe grandma was right.

This cookie is so soft it can barely stay in one piece, immediately falling into pieces as I ate it. Don't get me wrong — it's not an overly dry, Nature Valley bar kind of crumble. Rather, it falls into two or three pieces as the cookie is simply too soft, and too thin to stay together (a great problem to have with a cookie).

Although it's delicious, I ranked this cookie third because it lacks the enjoyable contrast of textures the top two cookies have. Raisins just don't give the same balance as the bite of chocolate and nuts.

The name of this cookie is a bit confusing — it's basically a white chocolate macadamia nut cookie, but it's called "double nut" because of the addition of cashews. This is objectively (unless you have a nut allergy) awesome. The macadamias have that great crunchy texture and distinct flavor. The white chocolate is sweet, and the cashews add a great contrast and savory element. 

This may be a less objective cookie, given that tree nut allergies are a concern if you plan on throwing these on the table at a party with a lot of people, and white chocolate itself can be a bit controversial, but there are many reasons to love them. The second-place factor is mainly the contrast of textures — the dough is buttery and soft just like a cookie should be, but you still get a nice crunch from the nuts and chocolate pieces. My main reason for putting this cookie in the No. 2 spot is because I wish there were a few more nuts to match the amount of white chocolate. I suspect there aren't more nuts because macadamias, especially, are undeniably quite expensive. Still, for a cookie called double nut, you would expect to get them in every bite. 

Chocolate chunk (unsurprisingly) takes first place. It's classic, beloved by many, and is just plain good. It's amazing how a chunk can make such a difference from a chip — but it does. If you opt for microwaving your cookie, you'll get ooey gobs of creamy chocolate melting in your mouth, and warm bits of dough that are perfectly cooked. Even if you don't microwave it the dough is still soft and chewy, which contrasts nicely with the slight crunch of the chocolate chunk when cold or room temp. 

The perfect balance of flavors is there — a buttery dough and rich chocolate. The chewy texture is spot-on. I don't think I've ever met a single person who didn't like a chocolate chunk cookie — they're universally enjoyable. I almost ranked this cookie second place, but given that it has a universal appeal as compared to the double nut, it's a logical first place choice. Plus, the chocolate chunk cookies come in a individual packs as well as the variety pack, allowing you to purchase them on their own.

For this ranking, I tasted all of the cookies at room temp, just as they come out of the package, as well as microwaved for about 15 seconds (who doesn't love an ooey-gooey cookie, after all?). I find that Costco's cookies have such a nice, soft texture that you don't even need to microwave them, unless you really want that melted chocolate effect.

To determine where they rank, I considered the flavor and texture balances of the cookie — do they provide more than one flavor or texture, and do these aspects complement each other? I also considered the universal appeal. Most people don't shop at Costco just for one person — you're either shopping for a family, a party, or to share with somebody. Thus, the cookies you buy should be universally enjoyed.