Showcase: CostPal - Price tracking app for Costco

Meet CostPal, a smart price tracking app based on Capacitor that helps Costco shoppers save money by automatically monitoring their purchases for price drops and facilitating refunds through Costco's 30-day price adjustment policy. Developed by Aleksandr Melentiev and Christopher Lee at Gravi Opus Studios, this innovative app has already helped thousands of users save money on their Costco purchases.

Introduction

CostPal (formerly known as "Companion for Costco") is a mobile application that solves a common problem faced by Costco shoppers: missing out on potential refunds when prices drop shortly after a purchase. With Costco's generous 30-day price adjustment policy, customers can get refunds when items they recently purchased go on sale, but manually tracking these price changes is time-consuming and often overlooked.

The app addresses this challenge by automating the entire process. Users simply upload their Costco receipts, and CostPal monitors their purchases for price drops, sending real-time notifications when savings opportunities arise. With over 50,000 downloads and 10,000 monthly active users, CostPal has established itself as an essential tool for savvy Costco shoppers. To date, CostPal has saved their users over $100,000.

Features

CostPal offers a comprehensive set of features designed to maximize savings for Costco shoppers:

Automated Price Tracking: The app continuously monitors recent Costco purchases for price drops, eliminating the need for manual price checking.

Real-time Price Adjustment Alerts: Users receive instant notifications when prices drop on their recent purchases, ensuring they never miss a savings opportunity.

Receipt Upload: Simply scan or upload Costco receipts to the app, and it automatically extracts purchase information for tracking.

Purchase Analytics: Gain insights into purchasing habits and track total savings over time.

Price Adjustment Assistance: The app simplifies the process of claiming refunds by providing guidance on Costco's price adjustment policy.

The app's intuitive interface makes it easy for users to manage their receipts and track their savings. As one user noted, "As a busy mom and family of 6, I don't have time to watch prices myself" - CostPal solves this problem perfectly.

Monetization

CostPal follows a freemium model with strategic monetization that aligns with user value:

Free Features: Basic app download and initial setup are free, allowing users to experience the core functionality.

Price Adjustment Assistant: The premium feature that provides advanced price adjustment assistance is offered as a paid subscription.

Free Trial: New users can try the premium features with $5 worth of price adjustment savings at no cost.

Subscription Tiers: Plans start at $2.99/month or $29.99/year, with alternative payment options ranging from $0.99 to $9.99 (as of July 2025).

This pricing strategy ensures that users only pay when they're actively saving money, creating a win-win situation where the app's success is directly tied to user savings.

Development

The development of CostPal showcases the power of modern cross-platform development tools. Aleksandr Melentiev and Christopher Lee chose Capacitor for its ability to deliver a "fast-to-market" solution using a single front-end codebase without worrying about iOS and Android specific development complexities.

The app is built using a combination of technologies that enable rapid development and deployment across platforms:

• Capacitor
• Ionic Framework
• Vue.js
• Firebase (Analytics, Crashlytics, and more)

The team has also leveraged a wide range of Capacitor plugins to enhance the app's functionality, including:

@capacitor-community/admob
@capacitor-community/in-app-review
@capacitor-firebase/analytics
@capacitor-firebase/authentication
@capacitor-firebase/crashlytics
@capacitor-firebase/messaging
@capacitor-firebase/remote-config
@capacitor/app
@capacitor/camera
@capacitor/device
@capacitor/filesystem
@capacitor/geolocation
@capacitor/haptics
@capacitor/share
@capacitor/splash-screen
@capacitor/status-bar
@capawesome/capacitor-app-update
@capawesome/capacitor-live-update
@capawesome/capacitor-screen-orientation
@revenuecat/purchases-capacitor
capacitor-branch-deep-links

Q&A

Q: Why did you choose Capacitor for your app development?

A: "Fast-to-market by utilizing single front-end codebase without having to worry about iOS and Android specific development. Probably the easiest framework to get a mobile app up and running fast enough at the moment."

Q: What challenges did you face during development?

A: The main challenge was dealing with outdated plugins in the Capacitor ecosystem. "We have encountered some outdated plugins for Capacitor, from both community-maintained plugins as well as official big company plugins that were not updated to Capacitor v7 for a long time, hindering our development and plans. We had to create our own forks by upgrading them to v7 compatibility."

Q: How satisfied are you with Capacitor?

A: The team rates their satisfaction as 8/10, appreciating Capacitor's ease of use and rapid development capabilities.

Q: What's your most valuable tip for developers using Capacitor?

A: Focus on leveraging the extensive plugin ecosystem while being prepared to maintain or fork plugins when necessary for compatibility with newer Capacitor versions.

Q: What are your future plans for CostPal?

A: The team continues to enhance the app's features and expand its capabilities to provide even more value to Costco shoppers.

Conclusion

CostPal represents an excellent example of how modern cross-platform development tools like Capacitor can be used to solve real-world problems efficiently. By focusing on a specific niche (Costco shoppers) and providing genuine value (automated price tracking and refund assistance), the app has built a loyal user base and sustainable business model.

The app's success demonstrates several key principles:

• Focused Problem-Solving: Addressing a specific pain point for a well-defined audience
• Value-Aligned Monetization: Pricing that scales with user savings
• Efficient Development: Using Capacitor to rapidly deploy across platforms
• Community Engagement: Building tools that genuinely help users save money

For Capacitor developers, CostPal showcases the framework's potential for creating successful commercial applications. The extensive use of plugins, from core Capacitor features to specialized third-party solutions, demonstrates how developers can leverage the rich ecosystem to build feature-rich applications.

Whether you're a Costco shopper looking to maximize your savings or a developer interested in cross-platform app development, CostPal offers valuable insights into both smart shopping and modern app development practices.

Download CostPal on the App Store or Google Play Store to start saving money on your Costco purchases today.

You want to showcase your Capacitor app? Reach out to us at support@capawesome.io. We would love to feature your app in our next showcase post!