Costco Hearing Aids

This Costco is horrible. They only offer a 3 month warranty on Kirkland brand hearing aids that cost $1,399.00, Scott ** the manager is a liar also, sent out once for repair, I just had to throw them out and start over!!

Wow—I can’t believe some of the negative comments here, on people’s experiences with staff at Costco Hearing Aid Centers. I have had consistently fine and professional contacts with staff over seven years now, having replaced my aids after five years and adjusted them several times.

Last year the hearing in my left ear changed dramatically, and was resolved by staff creating a mold which holds the speaker in the center of my ear canal, plus drastic changes in my programs.

My ENT and my audiologist both have worked with the Costco hearing center and they have performed beautifully. I do not have perfect hearing today but the issue is physical, not one of ineptness or carelessness.

I live in the Tucson area where we are loaded with retirees who need hearing care, and yet Costco handles us all, very well indeed.

I just returned to pick up my Costco KS 9, $1500 a pair aids at Costco, Hutto, TX that I purchased in 2020,--both KS-9s broke at same time-(quality?). Costco repaired both. Had another hearing test (#3) and hearing had deteriorated (am 80-not surprising).

Costco gave me loaner (Jabra Enhance Pro PM 8) made by GN, who makes RESOUND ($2,400 pair) Jabra are lower priced now at $1,700 a pair. Have NOT been happy with Costco KS9. I like music--terrible. Doesn't block out background noise to hear conversations.

Cannot hear/understand conversations in group of 5-6 people. Lots of high pitched sound. Essentially, KS9's are "junk" compared to Resound and the NOW lower priced Jabra.

I could hear music in car driving to Costco with the loaner Jabra, but just turned off the radio driving back with the repaired and reprogrammed KS9. Jabra were NOT available in 2020.

Costco attitude by tech who did hearing test was a 10. Costco tech from whom I picked up the repaired KS9 and tried to explain the problems was a 3. Just like "shingles", doesn't care. She said it was my fault--If I had wanted "quality" should have paid $2,700 vs $1,500 and should have returned the cheaper KS-9s.

I said I pay for value, not highest or lowest price. I had the expensive RESOUND for about 4 years before the KS9's--they were good at the time, but Resound (GN) warranty is not great--cost $140 for any repair after the initial warranty AND after about 4-5 year--they will not repair, so I went to the KS-9s.

Summary if you never had aids, KS-9s are probably OK . If you have had Quality Aids, go for the Jabra, or perhaps Phillips that were not available. They also have Phonak that did not have good reviews. I asked if they took trade credit to upgrade--No.

Aids should be covered by Insurance--but Congress is "shingles". Will probably have to wear the KS-9s around the house or outside and the old RESOUND when people or music is important. Then buy VALUE aids. P.S. Costco sound booths are not realistic--they never test hearing clarity with background noise, as in the real environment.

Even a caveman can hear other people when talking in a cave! Costco tech 3 rating told me to go to an audiologist if I didn't like their testing--actually I had!

I have been a hearing aid user since 1985, with aids prescribed and fitted by "professional audiologists" (who are more akin to used car salesmen than licensed professionals).

When my then-latest hearing aids (Siemens) finally gave up the ghost in 2010, and a VERY bad experience with the "professional audiologist" I was then working with, I bought a pair of Costco Resound aids at their Gig Harbor store. WHAT A DIFFERENCE! REAL professionalism from a hearing aid provider.

When those aids finally failed in 2018 (the wire from aid to speaker broke), I had moved to San Antonio, so I went to the San Antonio Costco for replacement.

The level of professionalism displayed by personnel at the SA location was as good as the GH location. Both sets of Resound aids (and bluetooth accessories) have worked flawlessly. Highest recommendation!

I called Costco in New Rochelle New York as I have bad hearing for an appointment. Got one in 3 weeks. I have not been there yet but it was very easy to get an appointment and the sales rep on the phone was very helpful.

To save time what I did was download patient history intake form four pages and filled it out to save time on my appointment.

I strongly recommend this downloading the form and completing it for Costco audiologist. I plan on getting the Kirkland brand as I am on a limited fixed income.

This is my first time getting hearing aids. What a difference! I bought the Kirkland 10.? and they are fantastic! After a few days my wife turned the volume on the tv to what I set it prior. Wow, talk about waking up the neighborhood... Save up, it's worth it.

I am a Canadian living in the most eastern part of the country near the city of Halifax NS. In order to comment I had to pretend I was entering comment. Based on the premise that I was living in America.

Tomorrow March 1st, I have an appointment with a Costco store in Dartmouth Nova Scotia. I am writing to tell Lynn that I really appreciate her frankness in her writing about her experiences at her local Costco with respect to her hearing aid interactions.

I shall enter my appointment tomorrow feeling somewhat more informed and guarded. Thanks Lynn. Gary.

I have used Kirkland hearing aids 5.0 and 8.0 since 2014. I am going next week for my third set. Further loss of hearing is my problem. The service level of the certified hearing aid specialist, a Mr. ** made all the difference. The product is very good and dependable.

Even more important was the quality of care, compassion and honesty of Mr. **. The pricing of product is excellent, the hearing aids are very good and Costco listens to customers.

The hearing aid center was and is the primary reason for my individual membership as well as their product warranties

Great service. No pressure to buy. Costco techs do NOT MAKE A COMMISION. They are paid hourly. So if someone tries to tell you that they are trying to sell you something so they can make a commission, well they don't know what they are talking about.

Have been a customer for years with Costco hearing. The price of Costco hearing aids is usually unbeatable and that’s about the only good thing I can say about them and I have dealt with all the Costco hearing locations surrounding Denver.

Making appointments is very difficult if not impossible. Costco hearing department will almost NEVER answer their phone. You have to leave a message and play phone tag with them. This is totally ridiculous.

A person who is hard of hearing often needs someone to assist them on the phone. So it would be very helpful if they could just answer the phone when you call.

I have been sitting at the hearing centers, waiting to be called back to an appointment, and you can hear the phone ring off the hook and even if they are not busy they will NOT answer it and this applies to all Denver locations.

Second they state they do not operate on commission so there is no pressure. The River point location consistently will provide poor customer service to an existing customer if they are not going to make money off of them that day.

This is even more true if there is another customer there waiting that they may make money off of that day. This leads me to believe the they may not be working off of commission, but it sure does seem like they are working off of a bonus.

After waiting a month or more for an appointment for either hearing tests, molds, tube replacements, etc they have cut my appointment short because there was a possible sell standing in line.

Even after contacting the head of all Costco hearing aid Centers, Mesfin, with my concerns, this type of poor customer service continues to this day. Riverpoint, Arvada, Quincy and superior locations have very limited availability.

If you walk in an hour before they are closing because you can’t get anyone to answer the phone and you have been playing phone tag with them for days, the staff has either left early or they are shopping the store without leaving a sign or a note at the center.

The center appears to be closed and locked up. So unless you go talk to management asking where the Costco hearing aid staff is, you will assume they are closed and will miss them. This has happened to me at least a half a dozen times at all locations.

Finally, Costco uses hearing aid specialists. These specialists can have as little as 6 months training. Most locations do not have an audiologist on staff.

Services provided by these minimally trained staff members with so little experience, can be the equivalent to ordering hearing aids through the mail.

If you are used to Costco’s exceptional customer service and superior quality products and expect the same from the Costco hearing aid center, think again.

You may get great hearing aids for a great price, but sadly they will do you no good without the customer service to make them work. Hearing aids need to be serviced, cleaned on occasion, retuned to match an increased hearing loss.

You will need new molds and new tubes at least once a year if not more and it will be very difficult to get the assistance Costco hearing center promised you when you purchased the hearing aids form then. Proceed with caution and low expectations.