3 Ways the Costco Tire Center Is Worth the Price of Membership

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Costco, oh Costco, how do we love thee?

Well, one of the things we love about Costco is that it has a tire center with all the bells and whistles. Just like the Costco gas station, the Costco Tire Center is another perk that makes membership worthwhile.

Whether you're just looking for tires, or you want a tire shop that can help you maintain those tires for their lifetimes, the Costco Tire Center is one perk worth the membership fee. Here are three reasons why.

1. Instant discounts on high-quality tires

Look, we love Costco for its discounts, but we also love that it carries high-quality products at great prices. And that whole thing carries on over to the Costco Tire Center. It doesn't offer a wide range of tires like Walmart does, for example, but what it offers are some of the best in market tires available for your car.

For example, when I put my car's 215/55R16 tire into the online system, it gave me four brand options: BFGoodrich, Bridgestone, Firestone, and Michelin. That's it. No off-brand tires, no tires with unknowable lineages -- just well-known brands that have served Americans well for generations.

I checked prices against competitors like Discount Tire and Walmart.com, and although there wasn't a perfect crossover, the tires that were the same had the same prices consistently across suppliers. This might sound like I'm defeating my own argument, but wait, because there's more.

Costco regularly offers discounts on sets of four tires, which is usually what you need anyway. Specific tires will get these discounts. Right now, the Firestone Transforce CV, Bridgestone Turanza Quiettrack, Bridgestone Weatherpeak, and Bridgestone Blizzak WS90 are the lucky winners for my car. They each offer an additional $60 off per set of four, which makes them $60 per set cheaper than the competition automatically.

2. Free tire installation

Granted, I didn't check every tire installer around, but I did look at Discount Tire and Walmart, which are very popular sources of tires locally and nationwide, and what I found is that for these big guys, tire installation isn't usually free like it is at Costco.

At the Costco Tire Center, it costs exactly nothing to have your tires installed. For me, in my state, there's an extra $10 for tire disposal and state fees, but that's for a set of four, which is still almost nothing.

What does it cost at Discount Tire? $88. It's a bit cheaper, but still $72 for a basic tire installation package at Walmart. The free tire installation alone will more than cover the cost of a Gold Star Costco membership (increased to $65 per year beginning Sept. 1).

3. Free tire warranty and maintenance for the tire's lifetime

Although you can buy optional tire protection from Discount Tire and Walmart, you just get free tire maintenance and warranties for your tires at Costco.

The basic maintenance package at Costco includes flat repairs, tire rotation and balancing, and inflation checks as needed for the lifetime of the tires, and the road hazard warranty is good for up to five years. Discount Tire offers just three years of warranty coverage, and it costs $136.24 for the tires I selected. It's just $40 to get warranty coverage for a set of tires at Walmart, but that's still $40 more than Costco.

Costco's got the tires

If you're shopping for tires and you know you're going to pick a solid brand, there's zero reason to buy tires anywhere but Costco. Budget-conscious shoppers will appreciate the instant tire discounts, free installation, and free warranty and maintenance for life, and Costco fans will love having an excuse to piddle around in the store for an hour while they wait for their car to be ready. I can't see any way this is a loser.

We're firm believers in the Golden Rule, which is why editorial opinions are ours alone and have not been previously reviewed, approved, or endorsed by included advertisers. The Ascent does not cover all offers on the market. Editorial content from The Ascent is separate from The Motley Fool editorial content and is created by a different analyst team. Kristi Waterworth has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Costco Wholesale and Walmart. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy .