Business

T-Mobile allows Costco members to obtain perks online

By Patricia Battle TheStreet

Updated May 9, 2026 8:18 AM

T-Mobile has been doubling down on boosting customer loyalty after several months of continued customer losses in its wireless business.

As the company works to keep customers from flocking to its competitors, it is sweetening the deal for Costco members by granting them a new freedom.

Currently, a Costco membership, which costs $65 a year, gives T-Mobile customers access to a wide range of perks available to use in Costco stores.

For instance, Costco members can receive a $150 Costco Digital Shop card and a $250 Prepaid Visa Card when they switch to T-Mobile and activate a new phone on its Experience Beyond plan.

Even if members activate their current device or finance a new one on a new T-Mobile line, they are eligible to receive a $75 Costco gift card. Also, members can score a $100 Costco gift card when they upgrade their T-Mobile device.

Costco members who buy a new watch or tablet from T-Mobile and activate a new line on a qualifying plan also get a $25 Costco gift card.

Additionally, one of the most popular T-Mobile benefits for Costco members is the removal of the $35 Device Connection Charge when adding a new line or upgrading a device.

T-Mobile launches solution to key friction point for Costco members

Members usually had to travel to a local Costco location to snag these perks, but that is no longer the case.

Costco members can now go to the warehouse club's website to sign into their T-Mobile account to take advantage of these benefits, according to a recent report from The Mobile Report.

Members will first need to visit the "Shop T-Mobile" page on Costco's website and sign in to their Costco account. Afterward, they will be redirected to T-Mobile's website, where they will be instructed to enter additional information to link both their Costco and T-Mobile accounts.

When both accounts are connected, customers can explore a list of all the T-Mobile perks available to them as Costco members.

For example, members will be able to see that they can combine the $75 Costco gift card deal with the recent $400 T-Mobile rebate offer, which gives a $400 rebate Mastercard to customers who open a new line and port in from an eligible rival carrier.

Costco members are welcoming the new change from T-Mobile, with many claiming it makes the customer experience less frustrating.

"This is great. So much easier than calling in or doing in store," wrote one Costco member.

"Way easier. Finally something good. The reps I've dealt with never make it easy. I love the leaning on the kiosk scrolling through social media look at Costco," wrote another.

"Big win for Yearly Update people. Was never successful to do upgrade via costco because they kept telling me that I'm not eligible for trade in. Had to do it via t-mobile website, pay extra $35 and none of costco benefits," wrote another member.

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T-Mobile is under pressure to keep customers from switching

The move from T-Mobile comes as it struggles to retain customers after enforcing price hikes.

The company is also battling rising competition from other wireless carriers and cable providers, which have been doubling down on offering customers bundled internet and mobile services.

During an earnings call on April 28, T-Mobile CEO Srini Gopalan said that postpaid phone churn, the rate at which customers are canceling their postpaid phone service, increased by 3 basis points year over year during the first quarter of 2026.

"January was particularly competitive and particularly heavy in one-dimensional competition based on subsidies," said Gopalan. "I think February and March and going into April, we have seen some cooling down of that environment."

The increased customer losses align with a growing trend of Americans rethinking their phone plans and providers as monthly wireless bills rise, according to a recent Oxio survey.

Why Americans are contemplating switching wireless carriers:

Roughly 70% of Americans review their wireless plan at least once a year.
Higher monthly costs are a key reason behind the trend, with 58% of Americans saying price increases make them rethink their current wireless provider.
Affordable pricing remains the biggest factor when selecting a new wireless provider, cited by 79% of U.S. consumers.
Network coverage and reliability ranked next at 63%, followed by speed and performance at 60%.
Billing transparency was important to 40% of respondents, while 27% said rewards, perks and added benefits influence their decision.

Source: Oxio

"It's true, the foundations of mobile remain intact," said Oxio CEO Nicolas Girard in the survey. "But the next era will look different than the last. It will belong to providers who price fairly, reduce complexity and design experiences that put the customer first."

To keep customers from fleeing to other carriers, T-Mobile has been rolling out a "digital transformation" at the company aimed at improving the customer experience, which is most likely behind the latest change it made for Costco members.

More T-Mobile News:

During an earnings call in October, Gopalan said the "friction and frustration" T-Mobile customers face is due to the company's processes and the state of evolution in the wireless industry. He highlighted that a "digital transformation" gives the company a "huge opportunity" to change that reality.

"Digital acquisition and moving our customers to digital is fundamentally going after customer pain points and going after the way we've always done things in this industry, changing and radically relooking at that process, and just making it simpler to do the one thing you can't do on your wireless, which is buy wireless," said Gopalan.

To support this new digital-first strategy, T-Mobile has doubled down on making customers more dependent on its T-Life app to upgrade devices, add new lines, and activate accounts.

In December, T-Mobile even added its digital switching tool, "Easy Switch," to its T-Life app and website, allowing consumers to switch to its network in 15 minutes or less.

The carrier later introduced a price-comparison feature in its app to further speed up the switching process, allowing customers to compare the prices of their current T-Mobile plan with other offerings.

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This story was originally published May 9, 2026 at 8:07 AM.