6 Cheapest Bourbons From Costco, Ranked Worst To Best

More often than not, Costco doesn't sell the highest-quality version of a given type of product. Rather, for a still-pretty-solid level of quality, prices at Costco are typically cheaper than most, if not all competitors. The alcohol department complicates that calculation — its inventory of outside products is oftentimes priced comparably to big-box retailers, like BevMo or Total Wine. There are usually a handful of comparatively premium options offered too, like Suntory's Hibiki Harmony Japanese Whisky, to give one example from my local warehouse. However, clearance sales and the the already cheap prices of its Kirkland Signature brand products mean that there are some killer deals for savvy shoppers all the same.

I visited my nearest Costco in the suburbs of Las Vegas in order to rank the six cheapest bourbons available to me. Even if Bourbon is no longer in the midst of the boom that skyrocketed its popularity through 2020, the quintessentially American style of whiskey is still popular enough to warrant plenty of new bourbons worth trying in 2026. For those looking to get into this libation for the first time to budding bourbon aficionados simply curious about how Costco's budget-friendly options stack up, the following is a ranking of the six cheapest bourbons from Costco, in order from worst to best.

Costco members looking for the most bourbon for the least amount of money can pick up a 1.75-liter bottle of Jim Beam's standard Kentucky straight bourbon whiskey at a $22.49 price point — that was the price at my local Costco at least, whereas some users online have noted even lower clearance prices on occasion. That unmatched price point, however, is the only reason to opt for Jim Beam, when virtually every other bourbon in Costco's whiskey aisle is superior in quality.

The last time I drank Jim Beam, I had a drink ticket exchangeable for no other whiskey. I disappointedly accepted my fate. While there's a hint of a vanilla sweetness to its flavor, that's quickly overshadowed by the sort of fiery astringency characteristic of younger, wilder whiskeys. Simply put, even if Jim Beam's flagship offering is identifiably bourbon, it's more often than not one of the worst bourbons available. A Mashed survey even determined that the brand that makes the worst bourbon, according to 24% of those surveyed, was Jim Beam. In, say, a mixed drink where its flavor will be buried under other, stronger ingredients, Jim Beam's low price point makes it worthwhile. For any other occasion, even Costco's selection of cheap bourbon is full of better options.

My Green River Wheated Bourbon cost $27.99 for a standard 750-milliliter bottle, lower in price than a fair number of alternative budget bourbons. While Green River is handily the least well-known distillery among the producers of the bourbons on this list, it happens to boast a 140-year history. In fact, Green River was allegedly a bourbon industry leader in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

The first thing I noticed about my dram of Green River was positive: Its thick, velvety mouthfeel, courtesy of its high-wheat mash bill. That effect was wasted, however, on what I could only describe as a total lack of flavor up front. Gradually, a significant bitterness I likened to grapefruit — but just its bitterness, with little citrus flavor — took over the experience. That grapefruit bitterness ended up a little unpleasant, albeit to an extent that wasn't quite as off-putting as Jim Beam's brand of astringency. For what it's worth, user reviews online for Green River Wheated Bourbon are predominately positive, with a scattered few reporting experiences similar to mine. That leads me to believe some batches are better than others. Nevertheless, based on my experience with the stuff, Green River Wheated Bourbon is better off skipped in favor of Costco's multitude of superior budget bourbons.

At my local Costco, a 750-milliliter bottle of Basil Hayden retails for $32.49. By volume, then, it's the most expensive bottle on this list, just barely qualifying as a budget bourbon. Something worth noting about Basil Hayden bourbon is that it's famously welcoming to new bourbon drinkers, courtesy of its relatively low, 80 proof alcohol content, as well as a deliberately light flavor profile.

That lightness was immediately apparent in my first sip of Basil Hayden. As much as it was identifiably bourbon, I found it equally comparable to certain entry-level single malt scotches, like Glenlivet's signature 12-year, for example. Its initial flavor offered both the vanilla of a classic bourbon and a blend of green apple and orange peel more characteristic of Speyside scotch. Some oak barrel bitterness eventually emerged over time, but not to the extent that it clouded that light character. Basil Hayden is pleasant and full of personality — it doesn't rank higher on my list simply because I prefer a heftier bourbon. Even if, to my taste, Basil Hayden makes merely the fourth-best budget bourbon at Costco, connoisseurs of elegance and delicacy in their spirits may well find it their number-one choice.

The reason Maker's Mark uses "whisky" rather than "whiskey" on its bottles is in tribute to the distillery founders' Scottish ancestry. Typically, if it's made in America or Ireland it's "whiskey," whereas if it originates anywhere else in the world it's spelled "whisky." It's at least a little funny, then, that Maker's Mark's flagship Kentucky straight bourbon whisky is such an archetypal American bourbon.

One characteristic that perhaps sets Maker's Mark apart from the pack is a significant level of honey sweetness. Otherwise, that slightly stronger-than-average honey component — a standard flavor for bourbon, it's worth clarifying — is accentuated by notes of caramel and oak. In situations that call for a readily available, standard bourbon, Maker's Mark is my go-to, due to its uncomplicated, satisfying flavor. The two bourbons higher up on this list are a little more interesting than Maker's Mark, but as an altogether inoffensive and perfectly pleasant baseline bourbon, Maker's Mark certainly gets the job done.

At $19.99 for a 1-liter bottle, Costco's proprietary Kirkland Signature Small Batch bourbon boasts the single lowest price tag of the entire bourbon aisle. In the past I've purchased the Kirkland Signature 12-Year Blended Scotch Whisky for its killer value, and found it to handily deserve a spot among the cheapest whiskeys that should never be overlooked at Costco. This was, however, my first time trying the Kirkland Signature Small Batch bourbon.

I quickly found that Kirkland Signature's bourbon belongs right alongside its 12-year scotch. Hitting my palate first upon my initial sip was a healthy dose of corn sweetness, pleasant in intensity without veering into overly sweet territory. A bitter oak character snuck up on that flavor at first, before overwhelming its aftertaste. Eventually that bitterness veered into slightly astringent territory. But, for the most part, the way that sweetness up-front transitioned into an oaky finish was pretty satisfying. Lowest price tag or not, I'd pick the Kirkland Signature Small Batch bourbon over all competing budget bourbon options at Costco, save for one.

Buffalo Trace's reputation as a leading budget bourbon has, at times, led to inventory shortages, making it difficult to find on store shelves. I first tried Buffalo Trace's proprietary Kentucky straight bourbon whisky early on in my bourbon-drinking journey, and I didn't understand the hype. Tasting Buffalo Trace for the sake of this ranking, then, I was curious if my opinion would change, or if I'd still think Buffalo Trace was a little overrated.

As it turned out, I'm now convinced the reason I didn't appreciate Buffalo Trace in the past was that I simply wasn't an educated bourbon drinker. Up against the rest of the budget bourbons I tried for this ranking, Buffalo Trace stood out as the tastiest, and most compelling in flavor of the bunch. At its forefront was a deft balance between honey sweetness and oaky bitterness. Complicating those flavors were a leathery complexity to its bitter notes, and an identifiable note of vanilla in its aftertaste. Compared to the rest of the field, Buffalo Trace was darkest in color, and, accordingly, richest in flavor. The only evidence of its status as a value bourbon was a slight astringency that emerged well into its finish. For a bourbon that punches well above its weight class, cost-conscious Costco shoppers can't do any better than Buffalo Trace.

For the most part, selecting the six cheapest bourbons from Costco was as simple as strolling the whiskey aisle and comparing bourbon prices. For logistical reasons, I only purchased four of the six featured products, and based my analyses of Jim Beam and Maker's Mark on my ample past experience. For what it's worth, Maker's Mark's price tag was a bit higher than a couple of alternatives, but relative to its 1.75L size, it still ranks as one of Costco's cheapest bourbons by price-per-milliliter.

After I brought home the four bottles I purchased, I poured each bourbon into its own glass and tasted them all neat in relatively quick succession, attempting to cleanse my palette with water in between tastings. After those first impressions, which allowed me to best compare the bourbons to one another, I went in for a second round, leaving about a 10-minute buffer around each tasting, so my palate could better recover. Finally, for a third round a few hours later, I added a few drops of water to each bourbon, and tasted all four of them again. My rankings are based on my personal opinions of each product as a sipping whiskey — while there's perhaps an argument to be made that my lower-ranked picks have their place in mixed drinks, any spirit can theoretically be used in a decent cocktail. Sipped plain or with a drop or two of water is when whiskeys show the most personality.