Costco must shell out more than $14 million to resolve a class-action lawsuit over years of allegedly misleading marketing emails, under a settlement approved by a King County judge.
The settlement agreement applies to all Washington residents who received the emails from Costco between June 2, 2021, and July 7, 2026.
Around 3 million shoppers eligible for settlement payouts were contacted this summer after the judge gave preliminary approval to the agreement on June 23. The deadline to complete the form was Aug. 24. By that day, 313,275 claim forms were found valid, according to court documents. Five class members made objections.
Lawyers representing the lead plaintiff in the case didn't immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday. Costco also didn't immediately respond to a request for comment but has denied any wrongdoing.
King County Superior Court Judge Janet Helson gave final approval for the settlement last week.
In addition to the $14 million, Costco must also pay over $4.6 million to attorneys for the class and $2,500 to Michael Aaland, the class representative. Any remaining money will go to the Legal Foundation of Washington, a nonprofit in Seattle.
The Issaquah-based chain of warehouse stores was accused of breaching the Commercial Electronic Mail Act, a state law that bans deceptive commercial emails, including false or misleading information in the subject line."
The lawsuit was first filed in June 2025 under another class representative, Joseph Zydel.
The plaintiffs claimed in court filings that one email's subject line falsely referenced "the 'last day' to access 'Member-Only Saving,'" while another email deceptively marketed "'Hot Buys' which were available for '5 Days Only.'
Other major retailers, such as Old Navy and Macy’s, have also been slapped with legal action in response to the law.
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