Are you getting a good deal at work?
Compare your job to find out

Best paid retail jobs

If you’re thinking about working in a shop in the UK, it’s helpful to know where the best paid jobs are.

Retail work isn’t always easy, so it’s important to find a job that pays well for all the work you put in. Knowing that you have choices, particularly around pay, is a good starting point when looking for a retail job that’s right for you.

Why are good paying retail jobs important?

At Breakroom, we believe that all jobs can be good jobs. However, not all jobs are paid fairly.

Retail work is physically demanding, requires patience, and involves working under pressure and problem solving. These skills should be reflected in the pay retail workers receive.

Who are the best paying retail companies?

Along with sharing the UK retail companies that pay the best (and what the pay rates actually are), we’ve also included extra information about each one.

This extra information and our unique Breakroom Rating helps you see which shop jobs would be best for you.

All of the information on this page comes straight from workers at these retail companies. They have shared their experiences on Breakroom, so we can all learn what it is really like to have these jobs.

  1. 1

    Lidl

    Breakroom Rating based on 220 job reviews

    5.8/10
    What is this?

    What is the Breakroom Rating?

    Close

    We’re different from other job review sites.

    Breakroom Ratings are a fair and objective measure of how good an employer is.

    Instead of giving us a personal opinion of their workplace, everyone on Breakroom answers the same set of questions about their job.

    This means we can measure what jobs are really like at an employer, and you can trust the Breakroom Rating to find out where’s best to work.

    💰

    Lidl pays £10.10 per hour

    Pay ranges between £9.00–10.74 per hour

    Based on 124 job reviews from people working in stores

    • Most people get enough choice over which shifts they work

      Good

    • Most people feel stressed here

      Not great

    Best thing

    Good pay

    Worst thing

    The work you do can be extremely hard physically

    Customer assistant, May 2020

    See what 220 people said
    about jobs at Lidl

  2. 2

    Aldi

    Breakroom Rating based on 517 job reviews

    6.9/10
    What is this?

    What is the Breakroom Rating?

    Close

    We’re different from other job review sites.

    Breakroom Ratings are a fair and objective measure of how good an employer is.

    Instead of giving us a personal opinion of their workplace, everyone on Breakroom answers the same set of questions about their job.

    This means we can measure what jobs are really like at an employer, and you can trust the Breakroom Rating to find out where’s best to work.

    💰

    Aldi pays £9.69 per hour

    Pay ranges between £9.10–10.69 per hour

    Based on 276 job reviews from people working in stores

    • Most people recommend working with their team

      Good

    • Most people don’t get proper sick pay

      Not great

    Best thing

    Pension scheme

    Worst thing

    Stress. Adding extra responsibilities with no extra pay

    Deputy manager, January 2020

    See what 517 people said
    about jobs at Aldi

  3. 3

    John Lewis & Partners

    Breakroom Rating based on 83 job reviews

    7.0/10
    What is this?

    What is the Breakroom Rating?

    Close

    We’re different from other job review sites.

    Breakroom Ratings are a fair and objective measure of how good an employer is.

    Instead of giving us a personal opinion of their workplace, everyone on Breakroom answers the same set of questions about their job.

    This means we can measure what jobs are really like at an employer, and you can trust the Breakroom Rating to find out where’s best to work.

    💰

    John Lewis & Partners pays £9.34 per hour

    Pay ranges between £8.43–11.02 per hour

    Based on 47 job reviews from people working in stores

    • People don’t worry about getting enough hours

      Excellent

    • People get proper breaks

      Excellent

    Best thing

    The staff

    Worst thing

    Being on my feet all day

    Catering assistant, September 2019

    See what 83 people said
    about jobs at John Lewis & Partners

  4. 4

    IKEA

    Breakroom Rating based on 40 job reviews

    7.5/10
    What is this?

    What is the Breakroom Rating?

    Close

    We’re different from other job review sites.

    Breakroom Ratings are a fair and objective measure of how good an employer is.

    Instead of giving us a personal opinion of their workplace, everyone on Breakroom answers the same set of questions about their job.

    This means we can measure what jobs are really like at an employer, and you can trust the Breakroom Rating to find out where’s best to work.

    💰

    IKEA pays £9.30 per hour

    Pay ranges between £9.00–9.33 per hour

    Based on 15 job reviews from people working in stores

    • People recommend working with their team

      Excellent

    • People feel treated with respect by their managers

      Excellent

    Best thing

    The people I work with

    Worst thing

    The pressure lack of staff

    Sales assistant, February 2020

    See what 40 people said
    about jobs at IKEA

  5. 5

    Boots

    Breakroom Rating based on 129 job reviews

    5.8/10
    What is this?

    What is the Breakroom Rating?

    Close

    We’re different from other job review sites.

    Breakroom Ratings are a fair and objective measure of how good an employer is.

    Instead of giving us a personal opinion of their workplace, everyone on Breakroom answers the same set of questions about their job.

    This means we can measure what jobs are really like at an employer, and you can trust the Breakroom Rating to find out where’s best to work.

    💰

    Boots pays £9.22 per hour

    Pay ranges between £8.68–9.83 per hour

    Based on 78 job reviews from people working in stores

    • Most people get enough choice over which shifts they work

      Good

    • Most people don’t get 4 weeks notice of when they’re working

      Not great

    Best thing

    People I work with

    Worst thing

    Managers don’t listen and put too much pressure on when they are short staffed and don’t usually get cover, which results in having to come in on days off

    Pharmacy advisor, September 2019

    See what 129 people said
    about jobs at Boots

  6. 6

    Sainsbury’s

    Breakroom Rating based on 369 job reviews

    6.5/10
    What is this?

    What is the Breakroom Rating?

    Close

    We’re different from other job review sites.

    Breakroom Ratings are a fair and objective measure of how good an employer is.

    Instead of giving us a personal opinion of their workplace, everyone on Breakroom answers the same set of questions about their job.

    This means we can measure what jobs are really like at an employer, and you can trust the Breakroom Rating to find out where’s best to work.

    💰

    Sainsbury’s pays £9.20 per hour

    Pay ranges between £9.20–9.50 per hour

    Based on 251 job reviews from people working in stores

    • People don’t worry about getting enough hours

      Excellent

    • Most people don’t get 4 weeks notice of when they’re working

      Not great

    Best thing

    Pay is good.
    Staff discount.
    Company sick pay

    Worst thing

    Minimal labour budget = lack of staff/stressful day to day workload.
    Management have unrealistic expectations of colleagues.
    Management don’t respect colleagues.

    Food services assistant, December 2019

    See what 369 people said
    about jobs at Sainsbury’s

  7. 7

    Waitrose & Partners

    Breakroom Rating based on 151 job reviews

    6.6/10
    What is this?

    What is the Breakroom Rating?

    Close

    We’re different from other job review sites.

    Breakroom Ratings are a fair and objective measure of how good an employer is.

    Instead of giving us a personal opinion of their workplace, everyone on Breakroom answers the same set of questions about their job.

    This means we can measure what jobs are really like at an employer, and you can trust the Breakroom Rating to find out where’s best to work.

    💰

    Waitrose & Partners pays £9.14 per hour

    Pay ranges between £8.41–10.03 per hour

    Based on 102 job reviews from people working in stores

    • Most people get enough choice over which shifts they work

      Good

    • People don’t get paid breaks

      Bad

    Best thing

    My team members

    Worst thing

    Too much pressure to do extra when the team is already stretched

    Supermarket assistant, March 2020

    See what 151 people said
    about jobs at Waitrose & Partners

  8. 8

    Tesco

    Breakroom Rating based on 727 job reviews

    6.1/10
    What is this?

    What is the Breakroom Rating?

    Close

    We’re different from other job review sites.

    Breakroom Ratings are a fair and objective measure of how good an employer is.

    Instead of giving us a personal opinion of their workplace, everyone on Breakroom answers the same set of questions about their job.

    This means we can measure what jobs are really like at an employer, and you can trust the Breakroom Rating to find out where’s best to work.

    💰

    Tesco pays £9.00 per hour

    Pay ranges between £8.89–10.00 per hour

    Based on 454 job reviews from people working in stores

    • Most people find it easy to change shifts

      Good

    • Most people feel stressed here

      Not great

    Best thing

    Get the correct training, my colleagues are great to work with, regular customers are lovely to talk to.

    Worst thing

    Pressures to achieve unattainable targets that have been set by people who look at numbers. Team always being told what doing wrong, not what is going well or given actual helpful advice on how to improve as the people giving advice (managers) may have worked on the floor job but not our job as it did not exist when they were at the bottom of the chain.

    Customer assistant, December 2019

    See what 727 people said
    about jobs at Tesco

  9. 9

    Marks & Spencer

    Breakroom Rating based on 327 job reviews

    6.0/10
    What is this?

    What is the Breakroom Rating?

    Close

    We’re different from other job review sites.

    Breakroom Ratings are a fair and objective measure of how good an employer is.

    Instead of giving us a personal opinion of their workplace, everyone on Breakroom answers the same set of questions about their job.

    This means we can measure what jobs are really like at an employer, and you can trust the Breakroom Rating to find out where’s best to work.

    💰

    Marks & Spencer pays £9.00 per hour

    Pay ranges between £8.73–10.00 per hour

    Based on 237 job reviews from people working in stores

    • Most people recommend working with their team

      Good

    • Most people feel stressed here

      Not great

    Best thing

    Free reign

    Worst thing

    Stress and responsibilities versus payout and appreciation barring direct manager

    Fire health and safety officer, September 2019

    See what 327 people said
    about jobs at Marks & Spencer

  10. 10

    Asda

    Breakroom Rating based on 448 job reviews

    5.9/10
    What is this?

    What is the Breakroom Rating?

    Close

    We’re different from other job review sites.

    Breakroom Ratings are a fair and objective measure of how good an employer is.

    Instead of giving us a personal opinion of their workplace, everyone on Breakroom answers the same set of questions about their job.

    This means we can measure what jobs are really like at an employer, and you can trust the Breakroom Rating to find out where’s best to work.

    💰

    Asda pays £9.00 per hour

    Pay ranges between £9.00–10.41 per hour

    Based on 254 job reviews from people working in stores

    • Most people feel treated with respect by their managers

      Good

    • Most people feel stressed here

      Not great

    Best thing

    Break time. Uninterrupted peace for fifteen minutes.

    Worst thing

    Constantly under pressure, not enough colleagues to get all the work done so I have to push myself.

    Bakery assistant, February 2020

    See what 448 people said
    about jobs at Asda

  11. 11

    Morrisons

    Breakroom Rating based on 256 job reviews

    5.6/10
    What is this?

    What is the Breakroom Rating?

    Close

    We’re different from other job review sites.

    Breakroom Ratings are a fair and objective measure of how good an employer is.

    Instead of giving us a personal opinion of their workplace, everyone on Breakroom answers the same set of questions about their job.

    This means we can measure what jobs are really like at an employer, and you can trust the Breakroom Rating to find out where’s best to work.

    💰

    Morrisons pays £9.00 per hour

    Pay ranges between £8.70–11.00 per hour

    Based on 164 job reviews from people working in stores

    • Most people don’t do unpaid extra work

      Good

    • People don’t get paid breaks

      Bad

    Best thing

    Pays not bad.

    Worst thing

    Job is boring and grueling.

    Warehouse operative, December 2019

    See what 256 people said
    about jobs at Morrisons

  12. 12

    EE

    Breakroom Rating based on 65 job reviews

    7.3/10
    What is this?

    What is the Breakroom Rating?

    Close

    We’re different from other job review sites.

    Breakroom Ratings are a fair and objective measure of how good an employer is.

    Instead of giving us a personal opinion of their workplace, everyone on Breakroom answers the same set of questions about their job.

    This means we can measure what jobs are really like at an employer, and you can trust the Breakroom Rating to find out where’s best to work.

    💰

    EE pays £8.90 per hour

    Pay ranges between £8.20–9.50 per hour

    Based on 21 job reviews from people working in stores

    • People get proper sick pay

      Excellent

    • Most people get enough choice over which shifts they work

      Good

    Best thing

    Pays well for the retail sector along with good benefits.

    Worst thing

    Stressful job juggling performance and gdpr practices and always learning new tech, along with pressure of not hitting targets

    Manager, October 2019

    See what 65 people said
    about jobs at EE

  13. 13

    Zara

    Breakroom Rating based on 11 job reviews

    5.2/10
    What is this?

    What is the Breakroom Rating?

    Close

    We’re different from other job review sites.

    Breakroom Ratings are a fair and objective measure of how good an employer is.

    Instead of giving us a personal opinion of their workplace, everyone on Breakroom answers the same set of questions about their job.

    This means we can measure what jobs are really like at an employer, and you can trust the Breakroom Rating to find out where’s best to work.

    💰

    Zara pays £8.90 per hour

    Pay ranges between £8.19–9.60 per hour

    Based on 10 job reviews from people working in stores

    • People get paid breaks

      Excellent

    • People find it hard to change shifts

      Bad

    Best thing

    I met nice people

    Sales assistant, October 2019

    Worst thing

    My boss she’s horrible and a bully

    Sales assistant, January 2020

    See what 11 people said
    about jobs at Zara

  14. 14

    TK Maxx

    Breakroom Rating based on 68 job reviews

    5.6/10
    What is this?

    What is the Breakroom Rating?

    Close

    We’re different from other job review sites.

    Breakroom Ratings are a fair and objective measure of how good an employer is.

    Instead of giving us a personal opinion of their workplace, everyone on Breakroom answers the same set of questions about their job.

    This means we can measure what jobs are really like at an employer, and you can trust the Breakroom Rating to find out where’s best to work.

    💰

    TK Maxx pays £8.76 per hour

    Pay ranges between £8.48–9.63 per hour

    Based on 54 job reviews from people working in stores

    • People don’t do unpaid extra work

      Excellent

    • Most managers change people’s shifts at short notice

      Not great

    Best thing

    Pay

    Worst thing

    Rarely do contracted hours. Always on at managers about scheduling and wanting to reduce only to my contracted hours. Rarely get a weekend off. Managers get more weekends and early finishes...

    Sales and fitting room associate, September 2019

    See what 68 people said
    about jobs at TK Maxx

  15. 15

    Three

    Breakroom Rating based on 25 job reviews

    7.0/10
    What is this?

    What is the Breakroom Rating?

    Close

    We’re different from other job review sites.

    Breakroom Ratings are a fair and objective measure of how good an employer is.

    Instead of giving us a personal opinion of their workplace, everyone on Breakroom answers the same set of questions about their job.

    This means we can measure what jobs are really like at an employer, and you can trust the Breakroom Rating to find out where’s best to work.

    💰

    Three pays £8.75 per hour

    Pay ranges between £8.67–9.42 per hour

    Based on 14 job reviews from people working in stores

    • Managers don’t change people’s shifts at short notice

      Excellent

    • People don’t get paid breaks

      Bad

    Best thing

    The money, hours and work environment

    Worst thing

    The sales pressure

    Customer advisor, October 2019

    See what 25 people said
    about jobs at Three

  16. 16

    McColls

    Breakroom Rating based on 31 job reviews

    5.1/10
    What is this?

    What is the Breakroom Rating?

    Close

    We’re different from other job review sites.

    Breakroom Ratings are a fair and objective measure of how good an employer is.

    Instead of giving us a personal opinion of their workplace, everyone on Breakroom answers the same set of questions about their job.

    This means we can measure what jobs are really like at an employer, and you can trust the Breakroom Rating to find out where’s best to work.

    💰

    McColls pays £8.69 per hour

    Pay ranges between £8.36–8.78 per hour

    Based on 11 job reviews from people working in stores

    • Most managers don’t change people’s shifts at short notice

      Good

    • Only some people recommend working with their team

      Not great

    Best thing

    Some of the people I work with and some customers.

    General assistant, February 2020

    Worst thing

    I seem to do everything but not being appreciated.

    Senior sales supervisor, February 2020

    See what 31 people said
    about jobs at McColls

  17. 17

    B&Q

    Breakroom Rating based on 108 job reviews

    6.9/10
    What is this?

    What is the Breakroom Rating?

    Close

    We’re different from other job review sites.

    Breakroom Ratings are a fair and objective measure of how good an employer is.

    Instead of giving us a personal opinion of their workplace, everyone on Breakroom answers the same set of questions about their job.

    This means we can measure what jobs are really like at an employer, and you can trust the Breakroom Rating to find out where’s best to work.

    💰

    B&Q pays £8.65 per hour

    Pay ranges between £8.18–9.28 per hour

    Based on 76 job reviews from people working in stores

    • People don’t do unpaid extra work

      Excellent

    • Most people don’t get 4 weeks notice of when they’re working

      Not great

    Best thing

    Staff

    Customer service, September 2019

    Worst thing

    Total lack of communication, logic and caring

    Customer advisor, June 2020

    See what 108 people said
    about jobs at B&Q

  18. 18

    Co-op Food

    Breakroom Rating based on 270 job reviews

    6.4/10
    What is this?

    What is the Breakroom Rating?

    Close

    We’re different from other job review sites.

    Breakroom Ratings are a fair and objective measure of how good an employer is.

    Instead of giving us a personal opinion of their workplace, everyone on Breakroom answers the same set of questions about their job.

    This means we can measure what jobs are really like at an employer, and you can trust the Breakroom Rating to find out where’s best to work.

    💰

    Co-op Food pays £8.59 per hour

    Pay ranges between £8.38–9.25 per hour

    Based on 144 job reviews from people working in stores

    • Most people get enough choice over which shifts they work

      Good

    • People don’t get 4 weeks notice of when they’re working

      Bad

    Best thing

    Decent level of pay. Shifts are reasonable (no super late or super early shifts, between 6am and 10pm)

    Worst thing

    Unreasonable customers
    Not enough staff or hours to complete tasks to a good standard (1 person doing the workload of 2). Can be very stressful since you are given more work than what is realistically achievable. Especially around Christmas.

    Customer team member, February 2020

    See what 270 people said
    about jobs at Co-op Food

  19. 19

    BP

    Breakroom Rating based on 22 job reviews

    6.2/10
    What is this?

    What is the Breakroom Rating?

    Close

    We’re different from other job review sites.

    Breakroom Ratings are a fair and objective measure of how good an employer is.

    Instead of giving us a personal opinion of their workplace, everyone on Breakroom answers the same set of questions about their job.

    This means we can measure what jobs are really like at an employer, and you can trust the Breakroom Rating to find out where’s best to work.

    💰

    BP pays £8.58 per hour

    Pay ranges between £8.40–9.58 per hour

    Based on 12 job reviews from people working in stores

    • People get paid breaks

      Excellent

    • People don’t get 4 weeks notice of when they’re working

      Bad

    Best thing

    Hrs

    Worst thing

    To many jobs for 1 person

    Customer service assistant, September 2019

    See what 22 people said
    about jobs at BP

  20. 20

    Ladbrokes Coral

    Breakroom Rating based on 93 job reviews

    5.3/10
    What is this?

    What is the Breakroom Rating?

    Close

    We’re different from other job review sites.

    Breakroom Ratings are a fair and objective measure of how good an employer is.

    Instead of giving us a personal opinion of their workplace, everyone on Breakroom answers the same set of questions about their job.

    This means we can measure what jobs are really like at an employer, and you can trust the Breakroom Rating to find out where’s best to work.

    💰

    Ladbrokes Coral pays £8.58 per hour

    Pay ranges between £8.27–9.59 per hour

    Based on 66 job reviews from people working in stores

    • Most people feel treated with respect by their managers

      Good

    • People don’t get paid breaks

      Bad

    Best thing

    The pay

    Worst thing

    Staffing issues and lone working

    Customer service manager, October 2019

    See what 93 people said
    about jobs at Ladbrokes Coral