Did Costco Really Discontinue Its Pretzel Rolls?

Shopping at Costco can mean the best of times — cheap bulk products, delicious rotisserie chickens, and impossibly affordable food court fare — but it can also spell occasional heartbreak when the warehouse retailer discontinues products unexpectedly. For instance, when Costco discontinued Kirkland chocolate chips, home bakers from coast to coast were left disappointed. Perhaps the most frustrating aspect of Costco getting rid of beloved products is that we often don't get straight answers as to whether the products are permanently gone. Such is the case with Costco's popular pretzel rolls.

These salty, yeasty, golden-brown rolls were the perfect vessel for sandwiches. Rumblings began circulating in 2017 on forums like Reddit regarding the fact that the bakery pretzel buns seemed to be MIA on shelves. Conflicting answers were given by staff, some of whom thought that the pretzel rolls were only seasonally unavailable, while others claimed that the bread products were gone for good. As recently as 2024, some Redditors claimed that the pretzel rolls were available at some Costco stores, but the availability appears spotty even at those locations. Given how long it's been since the rolls were regularly and reliably available, it's probably safe to say that they have joined the ranks of popular foods that Costco stopped selling.

While Costco sells soft and crunchy pretzels in various sizes and brands, it is no longer a go-to source for pretzel rolls. Other kinds of bakery buns are simply not adequate substitutes for the taste and texture of pretzel bread, so it makes sense that you might want to search out alternatives.

The brand Pretzilla makes pretzel burger buns that are said to be fluffy and tasty, as well as being soy- and nut-free, with no high fructose corn syrup, artificial colors, or artificial flavors. King's Hawaiian, the purveyor of those delicious mini Hawaiian rolls, has also started making a sweet pretzel slider roll that would work for small sandwiches. As with all grocery store bread, make sure you check the color of the tag on the bread bag for maximum freshness.

Unfortunately, this won't help Costco shoppers who liked to make a one-stop sandwich with the in-house pretzel rolls and some juicy hanks of rotisserie chicken. Alas! Accepting that sometimes Costco nixes our favorite items is part of the price we pay for all the great deals we get there.