A thrifty Costco shopper has gone viral for a simple trick that helps him avoid overspending at the warehouse giant: skipping the cart.
TikToker Danny Hoang (@the.hoang.family) shared how his family limits impulse buys by only purchasing what they can physically carry. If it’s impossible to buy more than you can carry, it’s effortless to buy less and save more.
Hoang demonstrated the simple trick during a trip to the store in a video shared on Oct. 21, 2025. Costco shoppers in the comments agreed that the thrifty dad’s hack works.
In his video, Hoang shopped into one of the recycled cardboard merchandise containers provided by the store instead of bags at checkout. He made his way through the store, cutting to clips of a growing pile of items supported by the box and delicately balanced in his arms. Hoang’s haul included pancake mix, a dozen and a half eggs, a tray of pomegranates, and, impressively, a bouquet of 24 roses.
Hoang revealed in a comment that he was shopping for his anniversary. “Can’t forget our anniversary, hence her favorite fruit and flowers 
,” he wrote.
“& STILL GOT THE ROSES!!”
“It’s such a life hack !”
A Reddit thread from 2021 showed that people have been shopping without carts at Costco for years.
u/Rittytittit posted to r/Costco, “Anyone else shop at Costco without a cart? I do this so I can only buy what I can carry. Helps keep the bill under $100.”
Like Hoang, Reddit users wrote that they use a box instead of a cart to keep their item count down.
While shopping for a rotisserie chicken, don’t get distracted and start filling up a huge cart. “The trick is to liberate a small box along the way to the chicken.”
“My routine involves going in without a cart and picking up an empty box along the walk around the store.”
“Get a cardboard flat and fill it up. Still only what you can carry…”
Another tip for saving money at Costco? Get in and get out. u/ShibaInuMan suggested shoppers “run” to check out.
“Yeah and run to the self-checkout. The longer you wait in line, the more your brain starts thinking (what else should I buy while I’m still here).”
