The Best Car Buying Service – Truecar vs Costco

Last Updated on January 30, 2023 by Leepu Da Maxim

Both Truecar and Costco offer some advantages and disadvantages. Truecar, for its part, offers a mobile application with greater price transparency and great bargaining power. Costco, on the other hand, offers no negotiating possibilities and a wide variety of available vehicles.

Key Takeaways

• TrueCar allows consumers to see the prices that people offered to buy the same type of car
• TrueCar also offers a guaranteed price from participating dealerships which is also very convenient
• If you want to buy a new car from Costco then you can get discounted prices through the Costco Auto Program
• Costco’s service also included test drive, trade-in assistance and financing options

The Best Car Buying Service – Truecar VS Costco Comparison

Features	Description
Price Transparency	These two services have a high level of transparency in their prices, so both options include the different prices of each vehicle.
Price Levels	The prices of each of these services on new and used cars are equally competitive.
Negotiation Capacity	On the one hand, Truecar offers different negotiation ranges depending on each car model. On the other hand, Costco eliminates negotiation for any of its vehicles.
Information Search	Truecar has a mobile app in addition to the website to find the right information about each car, Costco’s information search does not have the level of efficiency that Truecar does.
Additional Benefits	Costco usually includes a greater amount of benefits such as a reduced price and different special member stories, while Truecar does not usually incorporate additional benefits.

Comparison For The Best Car Buying Service – Truecar VS Costco

When it comes to buying a car, people usually choose from the most popular car dealerships that exist today. In this sense, these two car sales services have certain advantages and disadvantages that need to be considered. In this article, we will find out which is the best car sales service.

Features Of Truecar 

First of all, it is necessary to consider that this dealership is usually very transparent about the prices of the vehicles. So, each person will be able to have a complete report that compares different prices for the same vehicle. On the one hand, the actual cost or invoice price of the car is included.

Also, this is added to the average price paid and other aspects that allow obtaining an intelligent graph to make the best decision. So, it is an excellent marketing tool to show every customer that the prices of this dealership are always lower than the price paid in the market. 

Additionally, this dealership also provides a mobile application with excellent features and functionality. Besides, it is possible to find the prices of different vehicles in this mobile application. In this way, each customer’s decision can be much simpler and more flexible.

So, when customers go to the dealership, they already know exactly what vehicle they want. Apart from that, reviews and images of the different vehicles available can be found in this same mobile application.

This is not only very convenient for customers to make precise and accurate decisions according to their own needs. Beyond this, the mobile app with all this information prevents the dealership salespeople from spending too much time on the same customer.

So, this is a great benefit for customers but a much more important benefit, as salespeople can make a greater number of sales in a single day. A very similar design has been developed between the mobile application and the mobile version of this dealership’s website.

This way, people can get used to the same type of menu to find the exact information they are looking for. The mobile app allows scanning some of the tags that the vehicles have in the dealership.

So, it is also necessary to consider that the flexibility score is usually built into the price reports. Specifically, this tells each customer the available bargain range for each vehicle. Thus, customers will be better prepared to know exactly what to expect from each vehicle.

Features Of Costco

Costco has a comparison with Truecar but the only difference is that it does not usually offer negotiation possibilities on any model of its vehicles. This can be a great advantage or a great disadvantage depending on the profile of each customer. Of course, some customers lose the possibility to bargain the price and get a better cost for a vehicle.

Another great advantage of this dealership is that it has a wide range of vehicles. So, this dealership does not only sells used cars but also new vehicles. Depending on the region, different vehicle brands such as Honda and Chevrolet can be included. 

Those with a large budget can also opt for high-end vehicles such as Volvo and Cadillac. Some vehicles may have a certain general discount while certain special members have additional discounts. For executive members, the discount is $200 while for Gold Star and Business Costco members, the discount is $100. 

In particular, these discounts are specially designed for accessories sold at the same dealership, extended warranty plans, oil changes, or the purchase of different parts. Each of the used cars that are available for sale is thoroughly inspected and repaired.

Of course, this ensures that people and customers get a used car in excellent mechanical condition. So, it is intended to meet the different standards of a brand-certified used car. This same Costco program can also be used to find the exact vehicle for each customer.

In some instances, vehicles may be available at a reduced price including factory add-ons. Special Costco members may qualify for and receive some type of rebate from the manufacturer. To enhance the individual transaction with each customer, this dealership seeks to list all special financing offers.

This way, customers will be able to know exactly which dealerships have the best special financing offers available. While there are some disadvantages to this dealership, it is one of the most popular options these days.

1. So, when it comes to an efficient search for the right car, Truecar may be the best car sales service.

2. When it comes to efficient service at a good price without the need for negotiation Costco offers great additional advantages.

References:

https://www.consumerreports.org/cars/car-prices-build-buy-service/

https://www.edmunds.com/car-buying/which-car-buying-service-is-best-for-you.html