Shopper Says Costco Is The Best ‘Open Bar’ Hack—Here’s Why

Wedding season is here. That means thousands of couples are currently engaged in a super serious debate: Open or cash bar?

Amid the flowers, gowns, and music, libations might be one of the most important parts of a wedding. One Miami woman says she’s got the solution for alcohol anxiety. Like in much of the rest of life, Costco is the solution.

In a TikTok video captioned “Truly anything to save a dime in this wedding economy,” Liv (@olivia.s54) shares a hack.

‘Cheapest Open Bar’

Filming from the front seat of her car, she says, “Costco is your cheapest open bar-saving hack.”

Liv and her fiancé are throwing a backyard wedding, so they’re supplying all their own alcohol. It’s a good start to save money, but buying from a wholesale store can amplify those savings.

“We bought all of our beer, wine, Prosecco, and liquor at Costco for our wedding,” she explains.

‘Massively Overbought’

“And we massively overbought,” Liv admits. But there’s a method to her madness: “You can return it,” she alleges. “Any alcohol that’s unopened, you can return to them.”

She then encourages people to double-check with their Costco. But she says it’s a pretty accepted practice, writing, “I know people that’ve done this in other states.”

Then she breaks down her method. “We had 120 guests. For example, we bought 120 bottles of Prosecco and returned 60 of them. We really only paid for the amount of alcohol we drank,” she says.

The video has been watched over 69,000 times. And the internet is ready for the hack that can really be used for any party.

“Obviously just keep your receipts,” she reminds the audience.

The Only Drawback

Before you run out and buy a pickup truck’s worth of champagne, though, you first need to check that your venue—if you are renting one out—will allow you to provide your own libations.

Oh, and consider bringing a friend with you to the store. “You’re gonna need help loading it all up in your car and returning it, ” she says with a smile.

“But it’s so worth it, I promise,” she emphatically says.

What Did She Buy?

A user in the comments said she’s got a similarly sized wedding coming up and asked for Liv’s shopping list. She replied in the comments, “Here are the bottle quantities: 120 Prosecco, 60 red/60 white, 10 tequila, 3 rum, 6 Tito’s, 2 jack daniels, 6 Bombay sapphire, 6 Aperol, 6 bourbon, 150 beers, 150 seltzers, 20L club soda, tons of sprites and mixers!”

Then, answering a follow-up question she says that she and her (now) spouse paid $5,000 upfront and got about $2,500 back.

The savings were due to Costco’s generous return policy. But per The Street, the ability to return alcohol is dependent on local state laws. It reports, “Since all states have their own laws regulating the return of wine, beer and/or spirits, the best way to find out whether and how you can return your item is to check with your local Costco.”

Users in the comments verified this, as several have purchased alcohol expecting to be able to return it and instead get stuck with it. Anecdotally, it seems that Colorado, Michigan, and California don’t allow this. While some states like Utah, Pennsylvania, and Ohio don’t sell alcohol at the wholesaler at all.

But one user, Rachel Anne, has an even better solution. “I’m having a stock the bar party the weekend before my wedding!” she says. “It’s a thing down south.”

Saving Money And Making Memories

There are other ways to make your big day more cost-effective. In a subsequent video, Liv details some of the other choices she made. She used tricks like getting married at home and hiring professionals to cover the pool so it could be used as floorspace—still less expensive than a venue. Buying her glassware from Temu and then reselling it as well as doing her own (fake) flowers all saved money.

Other budget-conscious things couples can do when wedding planning include getting married in an “off season” and opting for minimal bouquets. Additionally, Brides magazine suggests embracing vintage and borrowed decor items as well as putting together a streamlined guest list. Then, “there’s often room to include that wish-list item that otherwise would have had to have been removed,” the magazine notes.

BroBible reached out to Liv via email and with a TikTok direct message. We’ll update this if she replies.