Costco sells a wide range of shrimp raw, cooked, farm-raised, and wild-caught and prices can vary a lot depending on size and source. In this guide, I'll break down the best shrimp to buy at Costco, how much each type costs
📋 What's New In This Post (12/18/25) - Add info on where Costco sources it's shrimp from. Also updated prices for Christmas 2025 along with what sales are going on.
Are you a fan of shrimp?
Have you ever bought it at Costco before? Maybe you have not thought about it.
What does Costco even offer? Let us guide you through what you might expect to find.
Shrimp at Costco can be broken down into 2 categories - raw and cooked. Both can be found frozen or previously frozen.
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🌎 Where Does Costco Shrimp Come From?
Before we get into the prices of each type of shrimp, I wanted to talk about where Costco sources its shrimp mainly from
- India
- Thailand
- Ecuador
- Argentine
Where Do You Find This Information? The previously frozen shrimp will have where it is from right at the top of the label. The frozen shrimp bags will say somewhere on the back of the bag.
When I was at a store in Huntsville, Alabama, I did find some US shrimp from Cox's Seafood that was from the gulf. That was the only store I found them in.
🦐 Raw Shrimp Prices
Here are the options for frozen raw shrimp. The count describes the size of the shrimp. 21-25 count mean that is how many shrimp will equal a pound at that size. Thus a 21-25 size bag has larger shrimp (I would call them jumbo shrimp) than a 31-40 size bag. Some shrimp may not be available at all stores. The ones marked with the "*" next to the price I did not see at the last Costco I was at.
| Farm Raised 21/25 ct (tail-on) | $17.99 for 2 lbs |
| Farm Raised 31/40 ct (tail-on or tail-off) | $16.99 for 2 lbs |
| Argentina Wild Red 10/30 ct (tail-off) | $19.99 for 2 lbs |
Argentina Wild Caught Red shrimp naturally come from the waters of Argentina or the surrounding area. They are large in size and are said to have a rich, sweet flavor, more like lobster. They may look like cooked shrimp because they are red, but they are naturally that color even when raw. Trader Joe's and ALDI carry them as well.
💡 Tip - Since raw shrimp turning red is a sign they are cooked, with Argentina Red, you have to look for the shrimp to look more opaque and slightly curled. Any raw shrimp you can look for these two things to help you determine doneness.
🍤 Cooked Shrimp Prices
All cooked shrimp is red in color but as we just learned not all red colored shrimp is cooked. Costco sells farm raised cooked shrimp in the following sizes (with prices).
| Farm Raised 21/25 ct (tail-off) | $17.99 for 2 lbs |
| Farm Raised 31/40 ct (tail-off) | $16.99 for 2 lbs |
| Farm Raised 50/70 ct (tail-off) | $17.79 for 2 lbs |
People like to use already cooked shrimp to make easy shrimp cocktail. The smaller size cooked shrimp would be good for salads. During the holiday season Costco will have thawed cooked shrimp in easy to grab containers that have cocktail sauce and lemon wedges with them. Or they may come with some kind of seasoning already on them.
If you only want to buy wild caught shrimp then you need to either buy the Cox's brand of frozen shrimp if your store has it or the Kirkland Argentina Red Shrimp. Otherwise you will be getting farm raised shrimp.
📏 Best Size for Frying
By far my favorite way to enjoy shrimp is deep fried! You can fry any size shrimp really however I would avoid the smaller sizes (50-70 count for example). Big juicy fried shrimp is where it's at. Save the smaller sizes for salads.
At Costco go for the 21-25 count (raw or cooked) or the Argentina Red.
🍤 RECIPE - How to Make Panko Fried Shrimp with Cooked Shrimp
❔ Does Costco Sell Fresh Shrimp?
The answer is no. You will find shrimp in the fresh meat section but this shrimp was all previously frozen and has been thawed. These are all raw shrimp and a lot of them you are getting the whole shrimp, head, tail and all!
Here are those prices:
| Farmed Whole Head On White Shrimp 9/11 | $6.99/lb |
| U-15 White Shrimp | $10.99/lb |
| Whole Head On Farmed Black Tiger U-6 Shrimp | $13.99/lb |
| U-15 Easy Peel White Shrimp Farmed Raised 13/15 (Previously Frozen) | $10.00/lb |
💡 Tip - Keep in mind when you look at seafood at Costco or any grocery store, it may have actually been previously frozen and have been thawed for your convenience. I prefer thawing it myself from frozen as you know exactly how long it has been thawed. Seafood can be quite perishable.
🎄 Sales for Christmas in 2025
During Christmas time you may be able to find a sale at your Costco store on shrimp. There were a couple sales that I found on frozen shrimp in 2025:
| Kirkland Shrimp Ring with Sauce 21-25 CT 40-oz | $19.99 (normally $29.99) til 1/11/26 |
| Kirkland 21-25 CT Raw Tail-On Shrimp 2 lbs | $13.99 (normally $17.99) til 12/21/25 |
🍤 If you want to buy already breaded frozen shrimp, check out the Kirkland Panko Shrimp and the Kirkland Tempura Shrimp. See my instructions for how to cook it in the air fryer.
⚖️ Pros & Cons
When looking to buy either raw or cooked shrimp here are the pros & cons.
Raw Shrimp
👍 Pros - Better flavor and texture. Cheaper price.
👎 Cons - More work as you have to peel and devein the shrimp and takes longer to cook.
If you don't like deveining shrimp, the frozen raw shrimp at Costco has been deveined already, so you don't have to count that as a con.
Cooked Shrimp
👍 Pros - Much easier to work with, you don't have to do anything to use the shrimp
👎 Cons - The texture of the shrimp could be rubbery if you overcook it, flavor is not as good, more expensive.
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📚 More Costco Meat Guides
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