Is Costco Dropping Bud Light? What We Know

There have been widespread reports on social media that some Costco stores could stop selling Bud Light after multiple photos emerged showing the product marked with an asterisk, which a number of consumer websites have reported means it could be discontinued from the branch.

However, some industry insiders have downplayed the reports, with the head of one prominent alcoholic drink consultancy firm telling Newsweek he finds it "hard to believe any retailer" would voluntarily drop the product.

Conservative activists began boycotting Bud Light in April 2023 in response to the brand's partnership with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney to celebrate her "365 Days of Girlhood." As a result, Bud Light sales fell sharply, with the company selling 31.3 percent less in the week ending June 24 than it did during the same period in 2022.

One photo of a 2 x 12 pack of Bud Light with an asterisk being sold for $14.97 was shared online by a Twitter user from Orange County, California, on July 1.

They wrote: "At Costco this morning, practically giving away Bud Light."

On July 3 a Twitter user from Phoenix, Arizona, shared the image of a Costco price tag for Bud Light, with an asterisk in the top right corner. The poster added: "Even Costco is getting out of the game..."

A third Twitter user posted a photo of Bud Light crates, also featuring the asterisk on the price tag, on July 11. They said: "COSTCO says... STAR OF DEATH for Bud Light it will not be restocked."

The asterisk on the price label of a Costco product is a sign it is about to be discontinued, according to several consumer-focused websites.

An article on All Recipes, which describes itself as "a community built by and for kitchen experts," states: "Any item with an asterisk on the price tag means that item is leaving Costco soon. That could mean either the item will not be restocked because Costco decided to stop carrying it, or that the item was discontinued by the manufacturer, so it will no longer be available anywhere."

Similarly, recipe website Taste of Home describes the Costco asterisk as a "sign of retail doom" which means the product is "not going to come back for who knows how long."

Newsweek has contacted both Costco and Anheuser-Busch, Bud Light's parent company, for comment via press contact form and email, respectively. Neither has yet to comment on the online reports that Costco branches could stop selling Bud Light.

In an interview with Newsweek Bump Williams, CEO and founder of Bump Williams Consulting which specializes in the alcohol trade, expressed doubt that such a halt would take place.

He said: "Bud Light, on a year-to-date dollar basis, is still America's number one selling beer and I find it hard to believe that any retailer would discontinue it from their offerings. Worst case scenario is that Bud Light may lose some packages (18pk, 15pk, 6pk glass) from the shelf sets, but discontinuing Bud Light as a Brand Family from their shelves would not be a smart financial decision."

Mulvaney accused Bud Light of failing to support her when their partnership sparked an angry backlash in a video posted on Instagram at the end of June.

She said: "I was waiting for the brand to reach out to me but they never did and for months now I've been scared to leave my house...for a company to hire a trans person and then not publicly stand by them is worse in my opinion than not hiring a trans person at all."