Should You Take Your 35mm Slides To Costco or
Old Photo?

Many big-box and drugstore brands that “offer” digitizing don’t actually do the work in-store. Your slides are typically shipped to a third-party aggregator that processes jobs for multiple retailers. In our own test order placed through Costco, the return media identified the processor as YesVideo.

YesVideo has since rebranded as Capture, but the important point for you is custody and quality control: when you hand over irreplaceable slides at a retail counter, they leave your possession and are routed elsewhere. When you ship directly to Old Photo, your slides stay in our Waupun, WI facility from intake to completion.

We shop at Costco regularly and like it for bulk groceries, electronics, and everyday value. Their return policy is excellent. Slide scanning, however, is a different story. Our small test order took roughly four weeks end-to-end because it was shipped out and shipped back to the store. More importantly, the results lacked color accuracy and detail compared with our in-house scans.

When we picked up the order, the photo counter had a large bin of completed jobs—likely due to a recent promotion. Based on what we received, we suspect many customers were disappointed with the color casts and softness we observed. If results like that are acceptable, a low-end DIY scanner might deliver similar quality—but most people digitize slides to preserve them well, not “just okay.”

To decide for yourself, try our free ten-slide demo scan. Send us ten slides; we’ll return your files quickly. Then, if you wish, submit the same ten slides to any retail service for a direct comparison. We welcome the test because we’re confident you’ll prefer the color, sharpness, and care you get from Old Photo.

(Wondering about Walgreens instead? See our notes here.)