ISSAQUAH, WASH. — Costco shoppers who have been using other people’s membership cards to buy jumbo packs of coffee, diapers and steaks on the cheap may no longer be able to get away with it.

Those who use the self-checkout registers will now need to present a matching photo ID similar to customers who check out with a human cashier.

What You Need To Know

  • Costco will require an ID for customers using self-checkout

  • Previously, customers only needed to show a membership card

  • Costco has about 66 million paying members and 119 million cardholders, collecting more than $4 billon in membership fees last year

  • Those fees help the wholesale store chain keep prices low

“We don’t feel it’s right that nonmembers receive the same benefits and pricing as our members,” Costco said in a statement. “As we already ask for the membership card at checkout, we are now asking to see their membership card with their photo at our self-service checkout registers.”

People who pay $60 per year for a regular membership, or $120 for an executive card, are the only ones able to shop at the warehouse stores that sell everything from appliances to yogurt.

Based in Issaquah, Wash., Costco has about 66 million paying members and 119 million cardholders. Last year, it made $4.2 billion in membership fees. Those fees help to pay the company’s costs of operation and purchases, helping keep prices low.

Costco’s announcement comes a little more than a month after Netflix made a similar move to stop subscribers from sharing passwords with people outside of their households. The streaming service now charges a $7.99 fee to add an extra member to an account which otherwise costs $6.99 to $19.99 for a monthly subscription.