Summary of Significant Accounting Policies	8 Months Ended
May. 08, 2016
Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Summary of Significant Policies	Note 1—Summary of Significant Accounting Policies Description of Business Costco Wholesale Corporation (Costco or the Company), a Washington corporation, and its subsidiaries operate membership warehouses based on the concept that offering members low prices on a limited selection of nationally branded and select private-label products in a wide range of merchandise categories will produce high sales volumes and rapid inventory turnover. At May 8, 2016, Costco operated 705 warehouses worldwide: 493 United States (U.S.) locations (in 44 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico), 90 Canada locations, 36 Mexico locations, 27 United Kingdom (U.K.) locations, 25 Japan locations, 12 Korea locations, 12 Taiwan locations, eight Australia locations and two Spain locations. The Company's online business operates websites in the U.S., Canada, U.K., Mexico, Korea, and Taiwan. Basis of Presentation The condensed consolidated financial statements include the accounts of Costco, its wholly-owned subsidiaries, and subsidiaries in which it has a controlling interest. The Company reports noncontrolling interests in consolidated entities as a component of equity separate from the Company’s equity. All material inter-company transactions between and among the Company and its consolidated subsidiaries and other consolidated entities have been eliminated in consolidation. The Company’s net income excludes income attributable to noncontrolling interests in Taiwan and Korea. Unless otherwise noted, references to net income relate to net income attributable to Costco. These unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the instructions to Form 10-Q for interim financial reporting pursuant to the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). While these statements reflect all normal recurring adjustments that are, in the opinion of management, necessary for fair presentation of the results of the interim period, they do not include all of the information and footnotes required by U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (U.S. GAAP) for complete financial statements. Therefore, the interim condensed consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and notes included in the Company's Annual Report filed on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended August 30, 2015. Fiscal Year End The Company operates on a 52/53 week fiscal year basis, with the fiscal year ending on the Sunday closest to August 31. References to the third quarters of 2016 and 2015 relate to the 12-week fiscal quarters ended May 8, 2016, and May 10, 2015, respectively. References to the first thirty-six weeks of 2016 and 2015 relate to the thirty-six weeks ended May 8, 2016, and May 10, 2015, respectively. Use of Estimates The preparation of financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates and assumptions. Fair Value of Financial Instruments The Company accounts for certain assets and liabilities at fair value. The carrying value of the Company’s financial instruments, including cash and cash equivalents, receivables and accounts payable, approximate fair value due to their short-term nature or variable interest rates. See Notes 2, 3, and 4 for the carrying value and fair value of the Company’s investments, derivative instruments, and fixed-rate debt, respectively. Fair value is defined as the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. Fair value is estimated by applying a fair value hierarchy, which requires maximizing the use of observable inputs when measuring fair value. The three levels of inputs are: Level 1: Quoted market prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities. Level 2: Observable market-based inputs or unobservable inputs that are corroborated by market data. Level 3: Significant unobservable inputs that are not corroborated by market data. The Company’s current financial liabilities have fair values that approximate their carrying values. The Company’s long-term financial liabilities consist of long-term debt, which is recorded on the balance sheet at issuance price and adjusted for any applicable unamortized discounts or premiums and debt issuance costs. There have been no material changes to the valuation techniques utilized in the fair value measurement of assets and liabilities as disclosed in the Company's 2015 Form 10-K. Merchandise Inventories Merchandise inventories are valued at the lower of cost or market, as determined primarily by the retail inventory method, and are stated using the last-in, first-out (LIFO) method for substantially all U.S. merchandise inventories. Merchandise inventories for all foreign operations are primarily valued by the retail inventory method and are stated using the first-in, first-out (FIFO) method. The Company believes the LIFO method more fairly presents the results of operations by more closely matching current costs with current revenues. The Company records an adjustment each quarter, if necessary, for the projected annual effect of inflation or deflation, and these estimates are adjusted to actual results determined at year-end, after actual inflation rates and inventory levels for the year have been determined. Due to overall net deflationary trends in the third quarter and first thirty-six weeks of 2016, a benefit of $13 and $33 was recorded to merchandise costs, respectively, to reduce the cumulative LIFO valuation on merchandise inventories. A benefit of $7 and $13 was recorded to merchandise costs in the third quarter and first thirty-six weeks of 2015, respectively. At May 8, 2016, and August 30, 2015, the cumulative impact of the LIFO valuation on merchandise inventories was $49 and $82, respectively. Derivatives The Company is exposed to foreign-currency exchange-rate fluctuations in the normal course of business. It manages these fluctuations, in part, through the use of forward foreign-exchange contracts, seeking to economically hedge the impact of fluctuations of foreign exchange on known future expenditures denominated in a non-functional foreign-currency. The contracts relate primarily to U.S. dollar merchandise inventory expenditures made by the Company’s international subsidiaries, with functional currencies other than the U.S. dollar. Currently, these contracts do not qualify for derivative hedge accounting. The Company seeks to mitigate risk with the use of these contracts and does not intend to engage in speculative transactions. These contracts do not contain any credit-risk-related contingent features. The aggregate notional amounts of open, unsettled forward foreign-exchange contracts were $775 and $889 at May 8, 2016, and August 30, 2015, respectively. While the Company seeks to manage counterparty risk associated with these contracts by limiting transactions to counterparties with which the Company has an established banking relationship, there can be no assurance that this practice is effective. The contracts are limited to less than one year in duration. See Note 3 for information on the fair value of unsettled forward foreign-exchange contracts as of May 8, 2016, and August 30, 2015. The unrealized gains or losses recognized in interest income and other, net in the accompanying condensed consolidated statements of income relating to the net changes in the fair value of unsettled forward foreign-exchange contracts were a net loss of $11 and $17 in the third quarter and first thirty-six weeks of 2016, respectively, as compared to a net loss of $15 and an immaterial net loss for the third quarter and first thirty-six weeks of 2015, respectively. The Company is exposed to fluctuations in prices for the energy it consumes, particularly electricity and natural gas, which it seeks to partially mitigate through the use of fixed-price contracts for certain of its warehouses and other facilities, primarily in the U.S. and Canada. The Company also enters into variable-priced contracts for some purchases of natural gas, in addition to fuel for its gas stations, on an index basis. These contracts meet the characteristics of derivative instruments, but generally qualify for the “normal purchases or normal sales” exception under authoritative guidance and thus require no mark-to-market adjustment. Foreign Currency The Company recognizes foreign-currency transaction gains and losses related to revaluing or settling monetary assets and liabilities denominated in currencies other than the functional currency in interest income and other, net in the accompanying condensed consolidated statements of income. Generally, these include the U.S. dollar cash and cash equivalents and the U.S. dollar payables of consolidated subsidiaries revalued to their functional currency. Also included are realized foreign-currency gains or losses from settlements of forward foreign-exchange contracts. These items resulted in an immaterial net gain and a $34 net gain in the third quarter and first thirty-six weeks of 2016, respectively, as compared to a net gain of $12 and $24 in the third quarter and first thirty-six weeks of 2015, respectively. Stock Repurchase Programs Repurchased shares of common stock are retired, in accordance with the Washington Business Corporation Act. The par value of repurchased shares is deducted from common stock and the excess repurchase price over par value is deducted by allocation to additional paid-in capital and retained earnings. The amount allocated to additional paid-in capital is the current value of additional paid-in capital per share outstanding and is applied to the number of shares repurchased. Any remaining amount is allocated to retained earnings. See Note 5 for additional information. Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements In November 2015, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued guidance on the presentation of deferred tax assets and liabilities by jurisdiction, along with any related valuation allowance. The guidance requires companies to classify all deferred tax assets and liabilities as non-current on the balance sheet on either a prospective or retrospective basis. The guidance is effective for fiscal years and interim periods within those years beginning after December 15, 2016, with early adoption permitted. The Company elected to early adopt the guidance at the beginning of the second quarter of fiscal year 2016 on a retrospective basis and reclassified deferred tax assets and liabilities from current to non-current. The reclassifications reduced other current assets and other liabilities by $520 and $410, respectively, increased other assets by $109, and had a nominal impact on other current liabilities in the accompanying condensed consolidated balance sheet for the fiscal year ended August 30, 2015. Adoption of this guidance also had a nominal impact on the total assets by segment as disclosed in Note 9. In April 2015, the FASB issued guidance to simplify the presentation of debt issuance costs by recording deferred debt issuance costs as a direct deduction from the carrying amount of the related debt liability. The guidance is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2015, and interim periods within those fiscal years, with early adoption permitted. The Company elected to early adopt the guidance at the beginning of its first quarter of fiscal year 2016 on a retrospective basis. The Company reclassified deferred issuance costs from other assets to the respective debt liability. Adoption of this guidance and prior fiscal year reclassifications had an immaterial impact on previously reported consolidated financial statements. Recent Accounting Pronouncements Not Yet Adopted In May 2014, the FASB issued new guidance on the recognition of revenue from contracts with customers. The guidance converges the requirements for reporting revenue and requires disclosures sufficient to describe the nature, amount, timing, and uncertainty of revenue and cash flows arising from these contracts. Companies can transition to the standard either retrospectively or as a cumulative effect adjustment as of the date of adoption. The new standard is effective for fiscal years and interim periods within those years beginning after December 15, 2017. The Company plans to adopt this guidance at the beginning of its first quarter of fiscal year 2019. In February 2016, the FASB issued new guidance on leases, which will require lessees to recognize assets and liabilities on the balance sheet for the rights and obligations created by all leases with terms greater than twelve months. The standard is effective for fiscal years and interim periods within those years beginning after December 15, 2018, with early adoption permitted. The Company plans to adopt this guidance at the beginning of its first quarter of fiscal year 2020. In March 2016, the FASB issued new guidance on stock compensation, which is intended to simplify accounting for share-based payment transactions. The guidance will change several aspects of the accounting for share-based payment award transactions, including accounting for income taxes, forfeitures, and minimum statutory tax withholding requirements. The new standard is effective for fiscal years and interim periods within those years beginning after December 15, 2016, with early adoption permitted. The Company is evaluating the impact of these standards on its consolidated financial statements and disclosures.

Note 1—Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

Description of Business

Costco Wholesale Corporation (Costco or the Company), a Washington corporation, and its subsidiaries operate membership warehouses based on the concept that offering members low prices on a limited selection of nationally branded and select private-label products in a wide range of merchandise categories will produce high sales volumes and rapid inventory turnover. At May 8, 2016, Costco operated 705 warehouses worldwide: 493 United States (U.S.) locations (in 44 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico), 90 Canada locations, 36 Mexico locations, 27 United Kingdom (U.K.) locations, 25 Japan locations, 12 Korea locations, 12 Taiwan locations, eight Australia locations and two Spain locations. The Company's online business operates websites in the U.S., Canada, U.K., Mexico, Korea, and Taiwan.

Basis of Presentation

The condensed consolidated financial statements include the accounts of Costco, its wholly-owned subsidiaries, and subsidiaries in which it has a controlling interest. The Company reports noncontrolling interests in consolidated entities as a component of equity separate from the Company’s equity. All material inter-company transactions between and among the Company and its consolidated subsidiaries and other consolidated entities have been eliminated in consolidation. The Company’s net income excludes income attributable to noncontrolling interests in Taiwan and Korea. Unless otherwise noted, references to net income relate to net income attributable to Costco.

These unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the instructions to Form 10-Q for interim financial reporting pursuant to the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). While these statements reflect all normal recurring adjustments that are, in the opinion of management, necessary for fair presentation of the results of the interim period, they do not include all of the information and footnotes required by U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (U.S. GAAP) for complete financial statements. Therefore, the interim condensed consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and notes included in the Company's Annual Report filed on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended August 30, 2015.

Fiscal Year End

The Company operates on a 52/53 week fiscal year basis, with the fiscal year ending on the Sunday closest to August 31. References to the third quarters of 2016 and 2015 relate to the 12-week fiscal quarters ended May 8, 2016, and May 10, 2015, respectively. References to the first thirty-six weeks of 2016 and 2015 relate to the thirty-six weeks ended May 8, 2016, and May 10, 2015, respectively.

Use of Estimates

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates and assumptions.

Fair Value of Financial Instruments

The Company accounts for certain assets and liabilities at fair value. The carrying value of the Company’s financial instruments, including cash and cash equivalents, receivables and accounts payable, approximate fair value due to their short-term nature or variable interest rates. See Notes 2, 3, and 4 for the carrying value and fair value of the Company’s investments, derivative instruments, and fixed-rate debt, respectively.

Fair value is defined as the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. Fair value is estimated by applying a fair value hierarchy, which requires maximizing the use of observable inputs when measuring fair value. The three levels of inputs are:

Level 1: Quoted market prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities.

Level 2: Observable market-based inputs or unobservable inputs that are corroborated by market data.

Level 3: Significant unobservable inputs that are not corroborated by market data.

The Company’s current financial liabilities have fair values that approximate their carrying values. The Company’s long-term financial liabilities consist of long-term debt, which is recorded on the balance sheet at issuance price and adjusted for any applicable unamortized discounts or premiums and debt issuance costs. There have been no material changes to the valuation techniques utilized in the fair value measurement of assets and liabilities as disclosed in the Company's 2015 Form 10-K.

Merchandise Inventories

Merchandise inventories are valued at the lower of cost or market, as determined primarily by the retail inventory method, and are stated using the last-in, first-out (LIFO) method for substantially all U.S. merchandise inventories. Merchandise inventories for all foreign operations are primarily valued by the retail inventory method and are stated using the first-in, first-out (FIFO) method. The Company believes the LIFO method more fairly presents the results of operations by more closely matching current costs with current revenues. The Company records an adjustment each quarter, if necessary, for the projected annual effect of inflation or deflation, and these estimates are adjusted to actual results determined at year-end, after actual inflation rates and inventory levels for the year have been determined.

Due to overall net deflationary trends in the third quarter and first thirty-six weeks of 2016, a benefit of $13 and $33 was recorded to merchandise costs, respectively, to reduce the cumulative LIFO valuation on merchandise inventories. A benefit of $7 and $13 was recorded to merchandise costs in the third quarter and first thirty-six weeks of 2015, respectively. At May 8, 2016, and August 30, 2015, the cumulative impact of the LIFO valuation on merchandise inventories was $49 and $82, respectively.

Derivatives

The Company is exposed to foreign-currency exchange-rate fluctuations in the normal course of business. It manages these fluctuations, in part, through the use of forward foreign-exchange contracts, seeking to economically hedge the impact of fluctuations of foreign exchange on known future expenditures denominated in a non-functional foreign-currency. The contracts relate primarily to U.S. dollar merchandise inventory expenditures made by the Company’s international subsidiaries, with functional currencies other than the U.S. dollar. Currently, these contracts do not qualify for derivative hedge accounting. The Company seeks to mitigate risk with the use of these contracts and does not intend to engage in speculative transactions. These contracts do not contain any credit-risk-related contingent features. The aggregate notional amounts of open, unsettled forward foreign-exchange contracts were $775 and $889 at May 8, 2016, and August 30, 2015, respectively.

While the Company seeks to manage counterparty risk associated with these contracts by limiting transactions to counterparties with which the Company has an established banking relationship, there can be no assurance that this practice is effective. The contracts are limited to less than one year in duration. See Note 3 for information on the fair value of unsettled forward foreign-exchange contracts as of May 8, 2016, and August 30, 2015.

The unrealized gains or losses recognized in interest income and other, net in the accompanying condensed consolidated statements of income relating to the net changes in the fair value of unsettled forward foreign-exchange contracts were a net loss of $11 and $17 in the third quarter and first thirty-six weeks of 2016, respectively, as compared to a net loss of $15 and an immaterial net loss for the third quarter and first thirty-six weeks of 2015, respectively.

The Company is exposed to fluctuations in prices for the energy it consumes, particularly electricity and natural gas, which it seeks to partially mitigate through the use of fixed-price contracts for certain of its warehouses and other facilities, primarily in the U.S. and Canada. The Company also enters into variable-priced contracts for some purchases of natural gas, in addition to fuel for its gas stations, on an index basis. These contracts meet the characteristics of derivative instruments, but generally qualify for the “normal purchases or normal sales” exception under authoritative guidance and thus require no mark-to-market adjustment.

Foreign Currency

The Company recognizes foreign-currency transaction gains and losses related to revaluing or settling monetary assets and liabilities denominated in currencies other than the functional currency in interest income and other, net in the accompanying condensed consolidated statements of income. Generally, these include the U.S. dollar cash and cash equivalents and the U.S. dollar payables of consolidated subsidiaries revalued to their functional currency. Also included are realized foreign-currency gains or losses from settlements of forward foreign-exchange contracts. These items resulted in an immaterial net gain and a $34 net gain in the third quarter and first thirty-six weeks of 2016, respectively, as compared to a net gain of $12 and $24 in the third quarter and first thirty-six weeks of 2015, respectively.

Stock Repurchase Programs

Repurchased shares of common stock are retired, in accordance with the Washington Business Corporation Act. The par value of repurchased shares is deducted from common stock and the excess repurchase price over par value is deducted by allocation to additional paid-in capital and retained earnings. The amount allocated to additional paid-in capital is the current value of additional paid-in capital per share outstanding and is applied to the number of shares repurchased. Any remaining amount is allocated to retained earnings. See Note 5 for additional information.

Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements

In November 2015, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued guidance on the presentation of deferred tax assets and liabilities by jurisdiction, along with any related valuation allowance. The guidance requires companies to classify all deferred tax assets and liabilities as non-current on the balance sheet on either a prospective or retrospective basis. The guidance is effective for fiscal years and interim periods within those years beginning after December 15, 2016, with early adoption permitted. The Company elected to early adopt the guidance at the beginning of the second quarter of fiscal year 2016 on a retrospective basis and reclassified deferred tax assets and liabilities from current to non-current. The reclassifications reduced other current assets and other liabilities by $520 and $410, respectively, increased other assets by $109, and had a nominal impact on other current liabilities in the accompanying condensed consolidated balance sheet for the fiscal year ended August 30, 2015. Adoption of this guidance also had a nominal impact on the total assets by segment as disclosed in Note 9.

In April 2015, the FASB issued guidance to simplify the presentation of debt issuance costs by recording deferred debt issuance costs as a direct deduction from the carrying amount of the related debt liability. The guidance is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2015, and interim periods within those fiscal years, with early adoption permitted. The Company elected to early adopt the guidance at the beginning of its first quarter of fiscal year 2016 on a retrospective basis. The Company reclassified deferred issuance costs from other assets to the respective debt liability. Adoption of this guidance and prior fiscal year reclassifications had an immaterial impact on previously reported consolidated financial statements.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements Not Yet Adopted

In May 2014, the FASB issued new guidance on the recognition of revenue from contracts with customers. The guidance converges the requirements for reporting revenue and requires disclosures sufficient to describe the nature, amount, timing, and uncertainty of revenue and cash flows arising from these contracts. Companies can transition to the standard either retrospectively or as a cumulative effect adjustment as of the date of adoption. The new standard is effective for fiscal years and interim periods within those years beginning after December 15, 2017. The Company plans to adopt this guidance at the beginning of its first quarter of fiscal year 2019.

In February 2016, the FASB issued new guidance on leases, which will require lessees to recognize assets and liabilities on the balance sheet for the rights and obligations created by all leases with terms greater than twelve months. The standard is effective for fiscal years and interim periods within those years beginning after December 15, 2018, with early adoption permitted. The Company plans to adopt this guidance at the beginning of its first quarter of fiscal year 2020.

In March 2016, the FASB issued new guidance on stock compensation, which is intended to simplify accounting for share-based payment transactions. The guidance will change several aspects of the accounting for share-based payment award transactions, including accounting for income taxes, forfeitures, and minimum statutory tax withholding requirements. The new standard is effective for fiscal years and interim periods within those years beginning after December 15, 2016, with early adoption permitted.

The Company is evaluating the impact of these standards on its consolidated financial statements and disclosures.