I'd argue that the author's choice of volume as the metric to compare against is a poor one.

The costco hotdog contains 580 calories, approximately 110 of which is the bun. If the bun shrinks by 30%, the calories of the entire dog shrinks by 5.7%%. But also the $1.50 is for a combo that includes a drink of up to 270 calories, so the caloric content of the combo shrinks by 3.9% -- substantially less than the 37% claimed volume loss (which does not account for the drink).

EDIT - The drink also allows for a refill which would add another 270 calories bringing the total to 1120, and the caloric shrinkage down to 2.9%

When looking at protein the meal loses 1 gram out of 23, or 4% loss, which is less than inflation. Good for all the gym rats.

Edit 2 - fixed percentage calculations

I got a Costco hot dog the other day, and it looked like the 2023 version. The 2026 one looks comical, like someone took an off the shelf bun and put the dog in it. Maybe that particular Costco ran out of the normal buns?

>The price has not changed since 1984.

$1.50 in 1984 money is $3.21 in today's money.

https://www.usinflationcalculator.com/

I'd love to see a photo from 1984 though! Seen old photos from fast food chains where the same food items used to be much larger.

One of my favorite memes shows a kid having a conversation with his father in the car:

Kid: Dad, why is my sister named Rose?

Dad: Because your mother really like roses.

Kid: Oh, ok, thanks Dad!

Dad: No problem, Costco Hot-Dog!

When did this change supposedly occur because when I last got one the bun looked like it did in the 2023 photo, which was in the last two months.

Sad, but not as shittifying as losing the infinite onion grinder to COVID. The hot dog was only just the delivery device.

What’s funny is that up in Canada the buns look like the 2023 bun, and the price is still $1.50CAD.

Indexed to the USD, the price is actually dropping in the past few years in Canada, and we still have the option of a polish dog (and poutine, and smoked meat sandwiches).

The author seems to just assume the hot dog has stayed exactly the same size at 8"; I suppose it's unlikely it'd have gotten larger, but that seems a big assumption to base the entire analysis on.

Last time I got a costco hot dog the bun didn't look like that. Probably what happened is they ran out of hot dog buns and someone just grabbed some off the self and they weren't big enough.

Clickbaity title. The price tag didn’t change and still sits at 1.50.

Shrinkflation is a thing and the bun has been its victim. They could slowly shrink the sausage now until it fits the bun again.

Wouldn’t it just be much simpler to weigh the hot dog and bun?

Frankly, I prefer the newer bun; better bite consistency and topping distribution.

I'm skeptical that you can derive these conclusions from those assumptions. Here in Canada they are required to post the caloric content of the hot dogs, so even a 10% change in content will be obvious. A 37% cut means they would have changed the signs from 540 calories to 340, but nothing like that has happened.

Buns and bun suppliers aren't the same all over the country. They're usually sourced locally.

The materials cost between those buns is practically nothing. OP is reaching.

Should have used his hand ( visible in both pictures) as the metric.

Thank for you putting this out, I love these deep dives into niche topics!

Mannnn this is dumb. The hot dog is what I am there for! Not the fucking bun! This is a product improvement!!

The loss on the Costco hotdog is effectively Costco’s entire marketing budget. People make their own merch celebrating it.

Not for the consumer it hasn't.

Cost, not price.

These have been sold at a loss forever , still need a membership. So raising the price of the membership indirectly makes the hotdogs more expensive

fiat money printer made it possible

tldr, price same, hot dog same size, bun much smaller

lips and assholes

Costco shoppers love shoving these wieners in their mouth. If they don't have one in their mouth, they're telling everyone in the vicinity about it. This is the one of the cringiest things about Americans.