Editors Note: Sadly, Complete ID is no longer accepting new enrollments, and there are no details regarding when or if they will recommence offering this service. If you want an identity theft protection solution from Experian, we recommend checking out Experian IdentityWorks’ plans. Alternatively, take a look at our 2024 comparison of identity theft protection services for other options.
You can get everything from Costco. They sell gold bars, giant pizza slices, and even saunas. Well, maybe Costco doesn’t sell absolutely everything. But for a while, Experian and Costco teamed up to offer Costco members identity theft protection services. The service, Complete ID, offered customers identity and credit monitoring as well as restoration services and insurance to help them recover from any incidents.
Sadly, Complete ID is no longer available to new customers. However, existing customers can continue to enjoy the benefits that Complete ID has to offer. While a $1.99 pizza slice is a great deal from Costco, how do Complete ID’s plans stack up against competitors like Aura and Identity Guard? We’ve broken down each package to see if you should hang on to your Complete ID membership or consider switching to another identity theft protection service.
FYI: If you’ve never run across Experian before, it’s one of the three U.S. bureaus that keep track of our debts, credit card balances, and bill payments.1 In other words, Experian issues our credit ratings. In our eyes, this makes it a great fit for an identity theft protection business.
Key Features
Three-Bureau Credit Monitoring
Social Security Number (SSN) Monitoring
Identity Theft Recovery Services
Identity Theft Insurance (up to $1 Million in Coverage)
Exclusive Offers and Discounts for Costco Executive Members
Plus: Our Team's Featured Picks
Check out more recommendations from the SafeHome team:
First off, if you’re new to identity monitoring services, most core features are similar from provider to provider. That’s why pricing plays a big role in whether or not we recommend a service at SafeHome.org. After all, why pay more when you don’t have to?
In Complete ID’s case, we found that price was a factor. Complete ID is cheaper than comparable LifeLock plans – or at least it was when it was still accepting new memberships. But it’s not a huge savings. There’s also the fact that in order to sign up for Complete ID, you actually needed a Costco membership, which starts from $65 a year.
Complete ID Dark Web Surveillance
Pro Tip: Children are unlikely to become victims of identity theft.1 But if they are, it can be an absolute mess. Protecting your kids and having recovery services to turn to can make life a whole lot easier if disaster ever strikes.
Families and Multi-User Households
Another thing to keep in mind about Complete ID is that you’re charged for every user. Not the end of the world by a long shot, since some services do offer “family plans” that include partners and kids. (In fact, Zander Insurance’s family plan is one of them.) But just remember that if you’re a two-user household, you’ll need to pay for two separate Complete ID accounts. You’ll also need to pay extra for child monitoring. But the good news here is that Complete ID covers up to five children on one plan!
Complete ID Savings Tiers
Finally, keep in mind that there are different savings tiers for Complete ID. Costco’s Executive members pay less for the service, for instance, while Gold Star and Business members pay a bit more.
Complete ID keeps things very simple. In fact, there was only one plan to choose from, which is what you’re likely on if you’re a Complete ID member right now.
This might not seem like much of a selling point, but some identity theft protection providers have a huge variety of plans on offer (each with its own set of features). This can make it even more difficult to choose the right one. With Complete ID, you pay for the adult plan, and the only upgrade or add-on you need to think about is child monitoring, if you want it. Easy does it.
Complete ID Features
Complete ID isn’t a cheap spin-off of Experian IdentityWorks. Its extensive range of features can be categorized into identity protection, credit monitoring, and restoration services. Let’s take a look at each one.
Identity Protection
Complete ID keeps an eye on your personal information, like driver’s license numbers and bank information. If anyone tries using these details, you’ll get an alert so you can take the appropriate action. That said, Complete ID isn’t the only service that does this. We found the same above-and-beyond monitoring coverage when testing LifeLock.
FYI: Complete ID will also scan the dark web for your personal information to see if anyone is using it to hack your accounts, open loans in your name, or sell your details to the highest bidders.
Your Complete ID plan also includes SSN monitoring, which is incredibly important. Remember, once a fraudster nabs your SSN, they can really go to town. With SSN monitoring, you’ll know the minute your SSN has been used for anything out of the ordinary, like applying for a loan or opening a bank account.
Credit Monitoring
Monitoring from all three bureaus is a huge bonus in my book, and something that typically only comes with the highest-tier identity theft protection packages.
Why do we love having monitoring from all three major bureaus? Because, by checking in with Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion, Complete ID makes sure we don’t miss any important financial events that might slip through the cracks, causing real havoc when we least expect it. That’s why we always recommend signing up with a service that offers triple-bureau coverage.
Did You Know? If you want a credit boost (or your credit rating has taken an unexpected hit), just ask a family member or friend with a credit card in good standing to make you an authorized user. Their good credit is now yours.
Complete ID Credit Monitoring
Restoration Services
Obviously, this is the worst-case scenario, but if you ever become the victim of identity theft (which is, unfortunately, on a crazy upwards spike these days2), Complete ID’s recovery assistance team will jump into action and help you get back what you lost — to the tune of $1 million (maximum) in identity theft insurance.
FYI: Restoring your ID takes work. Companies like Complete ID will tick off all the boxes — like reporting the incident, correcting your credit records, and securing your identity going forward — to make sure you get your good name and credit back.
Neighborhood Watch
The last feature we want to touch on is sex offender registry alerts. If your ID theft monitoring service offers this feature, we highly recommend turning it on, especially if you have children. The idea is pretty simple: If a state-registered sex offender joins your community, sex offender registry alerts, like Neighborhood Watch, let you know.
While this might not be dinner conversation, or anything you even think about on the day to day, it is a fact of life. With this extra layer of security running in the background 24/7, you’ll at least have the peace of mind of never being caught off guard.
Complete ID Neighborhood Watch
Complete ID Value for Money
As we discovered in our analysis of Complete ID, the service’s $8.99 per month price tag is competitive, if not cheaper than some other comparable plans on the market. The caveat? These savings are only available for card-carrying Costco Executive members. Otherwise, if you’ve got a basic Gold or Business membership, your bill would be $13.99 per month, which is par for the course for mid-tier identity monitoring coverage.
But one downside is that Complete ID doesn’t have any family plans. You’ll need to pay for separate accounts and then even more to add on the kids. When we rounded up the best identity theft protection services for families, we picked Aura for its extensive monitoring and digital security features. Identity Guard and LifeLock also include great features for everyone in your household.
So should you hang onto your Complete ID plan? If you only need identity theft protection for yourself, you’ll find it hard to get a plan with as many features as Complete ID that starts from $8.99 per month. But if you need coverage for the whole family, we recommend checking out services like Aura, Identity Guard, Zander Insurance, or Experian’s own IdentityWorks.
Costco Gold Star and Business members pay $13.99 per month for Complete ID, while Costco Executive members pay $8.99 per month. This is on top of the annual Costco membership costs that start from $65 a year.
SafeHome.org only uses high-quality sources to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial guidelines to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Max Sheridan brings over two decades of writing experience to our team. He has spent 1,000-plus hours researching VPNs, identity theft protection, and various topics in cyber technology. Previously, Max was an investigative journalist, and he is also a published novelist. He earned a B.A. in Classics from the University of Virginia and an M.A. in Classics from the University of Illinois. He currently lives in Nicosia, Cyprus.
Updated December 20, 2024
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