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Costco Artificial Christmas tree review

Today’s artificial Christmas trees are realistic and beautiful and will last for years. My Costco artificial Christmas tree review will answer all of your questions about it and artificial trees in general.

artificial pre lit christmas tree from costco with decorations

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Review of our Costco artificial pre-lit LED Christmas tree

If you’re in the market for an artificial Christmas tree and are wanting to know more about Costco’s pre-lit LED tree, then you’ve come to the right place. I’m sharing everything that I love and don’t love about our 7.5′ Costco pre-lit LED Christmas tree.

costco-christmas-tree-review-1

We bought our tree in 2018 after having a real tree for the 12 previous years and I have no regrets. Although I do miss the days of letting our girls pick out the tree from the lot and the fresh pine scent of a real one, the benefits and investment are worth it. 

The girls are grown now, and I can use a balsam scented candle (this one has 61,000 positive reviews) or Frasier fir scented diffuser if I want the house to smell like we have a real tree. 

Costco Christmas Tree Pros

There are several reasons why I love our artificial tree. 

  1. Easy to assemble. It takes about 5 minutes to put the tree together, and maybe another 5 to make sure the branches are all placed where they’re supposed to be. The tree comes in 3 parts that snap together.
  2. It’s pre-lit. I think this is the best thing about the tree. When we had an artificial tree NOBODY wanted to put the lights on it. Getting a pre-lit tree has definitely made Christmas decorating much more enjoyable. Now we just add the garlands and ornaments and that only takes about 30 to 45 minutes.
  3. Very realistic branches. One of the biggest reasons I was skeptical of artificial trees is because I was afraid they would look to plastic-y. I’m happy to say that this tree looks as realistic as almost any artificial tree I’ve seen at this price. You can get some that are more realistic at a higher price point, but we weren’t willing to spend quite that much.
  4. The tree is very full. Although sparse Christmas trees and flocked trees are both becoming more popular, a full tree never goes out of style. This one is very full.
  5. Various light options. There are 5 light settings and 13 brightness levels so there’s something for everyone.
  6. Remote control. Say what? Yes, there’s a little remote that controls the lights. That didn’t really factor into our decision, but I gotta say I really like it. No more having to reach all the way behind the tree to plug in the lights!
  7. Costco guarantee. One thing we love about Costco is their satisfaction guarantee. If you don’t like something or if you aren’t satisfied, simply return it to the store. 
  8. It will last for years. Yes, artificial trees are expensive. But they last for years so it’s worth the investment. 

Here’s a closeup of the branches so you can see how realistic they look.

close up of costco artificial Christmas tree

I tucked a few artificial eucalyptus branches in the tree to add more texture to it. I did a cozy lodge theme with the tree. I’ve had the crocheted snowflake ornaments for years. The knitted garland and plaid ribbon definitely add coziness to the tree. 

snowflake ornament on costco artificial christmas tree

Here’s our most recent tree with vintage ornaments, navy blue and white checked ribbon, and chunky knit garland. I decorated with a colorful vintage theme and you can see more of it here: Colorful Christmas Decorating Ideas

decorated artificial Costco Christmas tree and cat napping on chair next to it

And the year before I decorated it with hydrangeas and blue and green ornaments. See more here: Cozy Christmas Decor with Blue, Green, & Hydrangeas.

Christmas tree with hydrangeas

Here’s how the tree looks at night. As you can see, there are plenty of lights on it.

costco artificial christmas tree at night

Now for the things I don’t like about the tree.

Cons of artificial trees

  1. Not real. Obviously, they’re fake. But as I mentioned above, if you want the scent of a real tree you can always use a Christmas tree scented diffuser or pine scented candle.
  2. It’s very heavy. I can’t put it together by myself because the sections are too heavy for me. If you’ve got good upper body strength, you could probably do it yourself. 
  3. It takes up a lot of room in storage. We have ours stored in one of those rolling Christmas tree storage bags, which I definitely recommend. The one we currently have is stored flat and takes up a lot of room in our garage and lots a bit like a large body bag 😂. If you have the space for that style, they’re less expensive.
    We’re going to upgrade to one of these so it takes up less space → rolling stand up Christmas tree storage bag. Note – I would recommend “sizing up” to the 9″ bag if you have the 7.5″ tree.
  4. It’s expensive. Realistic artificial trees are several times more expensive than real ones. But the convenience and lifetime of the trees make it worth the investment.
  5. Disposal. I must say, the fact that the tree is going to eventually go into a landfill bothers me. I’ve read arguments for both types of trees being more environmentally friendly that you can read here: Real vs Artificial Christmas Trees – which is greener?

Here’s a peek at one of our real trees from a few years ago and you can see more of it here Snowflake Christmas Tree Decor.

Christmas tree with red and white decorations

shop this look: tree collar / plaid throw blankets / crocheted snowflake ornaments / red velvet ribbon

What other artificial trees did we consider?

Since this is an expensive purchase that should last for years, I did lots of research. We considered several other trees before purchasing the artificial Christmas tree from Costco and they’re all very nice trees too. 

Here are the other artificial trees we looked at:

In the end, we went with the tree from Costco because of the guarantee and price, even though some of the others are more realistic. If you’re shopping for a new tree I encourage you to look at all of them and decide which is best for you. There are many beautiful ones available today.

artificial christmas tree from costco with decorations

You can get lots of great ideas for decorating with Christmas trees throughout your home here:
12 Ways to Decorate with Christmas Trees

review of costco artificial pre lit christmas tree

Let me know in the comments if you have any questions about our tree that I haven’t answered. I’m happy to help!

25 Comments

  1. Thanks Angie, lots of help, i love your garlands on your beautiful tree, great idea. Real trees really bother my sinuses, even though i love the smell.

  2. Do you know who manufactures the tree for Costco? THey are no longer available on the website and their customer service is awful. Am hoping to go to manufacturer instead of waiting until Thanksgiving.

    1. I really wish it was on the box somewhere. We just put our 12 foot up and for some odd reason the part that plugs into the wall is missing and we can’t find it anywhere are searching everywhere for a plug. If anyone on this thread has an extra I sure would appreciate it.

  3. I broke down and got a Costco tree after years of knowing my husband was suffering with allergies during the entire time of our beautiful real tree (especially the first few days). I can put it up by myself which is pretty impressive for this Grandma, and it's super easy. BUT – I don't understand why the manufacturer didn't make a top branch point for a star or angel to easily slip onto?? When getting our real trees for decades, I always tried to remember to notice that it had a good top point. I've struggled to get a star in. I finally attached it to a chopstick and poke it in there, but it's still hard to get it centered. What tips do people have?? I wish this tree came with some sort of attachable "top" for those of that use a tree topper. I just talked to someone else with the same frustration which made me feel better : )

  4. We also bought ours in 12/2018. Ours is the 9 foot. My biggest complaint is the lights give off a green tint. Also, attaching a tree topper is almost impossible.

  5. I’ve used real eucalyptus (well it has a smell) from arts/craft store. Some people don’t like the smell!

  6. I really enjoyed your review of the
    Costco artificial tree. I want the 7.5
    tree. The thing I really like is that I
    apparently won’t have to spend hours
    fluffing up the branches (from what
    I’ve read), please correct me if I misunderstood about that!
    Are the branches sturdy to hang the
    ornaments?
    Thank you
    Deb

    1. Hi Deb. Minimal fluffing is needed with this tree. The branches might require slight rearranging, but they don’t flatten while stored off-season.

    1. Hi. I haven’t had to replace any of mine, but you should be able to replace them if needed. Spare bulbs were included.

  7. Hi – have you upgraded to the rolling upright bag you linked yet? Wonder how well it works. Also, can you share where you bought the tree collar? 🙂

    Thanks!

    1. Yes, we upgraded to a rolling upright bag. It takes up a lot less space and is convenient especially if you’re able to store it on the same level of your home that your tree will be displayed in. Our tree is stored in our basement so we still have to take it apart before we store it or display it, and carry the tree upstairs in sections. I hope that makes sense. Also, unless your tree is slim or smaller than 7.5′, I recommend getting the taller bag. Our tree is 7.5′ and the smaller bag is challenging to get the tree all tucked inside for storage.

      The tree collar came from Crate and Barrel a few years ago. But I just saw the same one on amazon for a lot less here: https://rstyle.me/+ummitgsy2KclPcT8In6qvw

      I hope that helps! Let me know if you have any other questions!

      1. Thanks Angie! We just bought the same tree from Costco. 🙂
        Thanks for the tip on getting the bigger bag, although I worry it’ll be a lot of excess space at the top.

    1. Hello! We’ve had ours for four Christmases and haven’t had to replace any yet. But I’m quite sure that replacement bulbs came with it so I assume they can be replaced if needed. I hope that helps!

  8. We just got ours last weekend (7.5 foot) and it is super wobbly. The base doesn’t lock, so we tried putting some bubble wrap in there to secure that, but then the whole tree was leaning and would wobble all around. With a toddler in my house, this can’t work. Has anyone else had this problem? How did you fix it?

  9. You made the right decision.
    Just a warning: I got scammed by the Balsam Hill company. I bought a tree on sale for $1800.00 and a year later, most of the lights went out. They gave me a very hard time about replacing it and even suggested that I go to Home Depot and buy more lights to put on there. Finally I got them to replace it but they wanted the original tree back. My poor husband and I had to wrestle a 9 ft tree into 2 refrigerator boxes and return. They then sent me a replacement tree that was $300.00 cheaper because mine was out of stock. The new tree lights lasted 1 year again! That time when I called they said “we don’t warranty replacements.” So in other words, they replaced my defective tree, with another defective tree. Their customer service is horrible.
    I would never buy anything from them again. We thought we were investing in a tree to last for many years. Not the case. This year we are going to cut all of the lights off and restring. We have to try to get our moneys worth. For 2 older people, this is very difficult work. Very sad that they do not stand behind their products.#balsamhill

  10. I just bought the Costco tree after having another artificial tree for
    Over 20 years. The old one was beautiful, but too difficult toassemble. I like the Costco tree, but can’t figure out how to put a topper on.
    Any suggestions?

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