Here's How Much Money Aldi Employees Really Make

If 2020 has taught us anything (other than how to gain, then rapidly lose, patience), it's what an "essential worker" is. With just about every aspect of our lives in lockdown at various points this year, there has been a force of workers out there that have ensured that we are able to get the food and other items we need to live on a day-to-day basis.

From the person checking you out to the person making sure the shelves are stocked to the store managers, each and every position in a grocery store is essential. Did you ever wonder how much employees at Aldi make, though? 

You'll find out roughly how much your neighborhood Aldi employees are making for their Herculean efforts to keep you stocked up on toilet paper, frozen pizzas, Special Buys, and whatever they have on sale in that middle aisle of theirs. Remember, too, that the numbers on these next slides are averages. Depending on where you are in the country (or the world, as Aldi is a Germany-based company), the pay may vary.

Most likely the person you will see more than anyone else in a grocery store, the cashier is your gateway to goods. With over 2,000 stores in the United States alone (and 25,000 employees), chances are you are going to run into more Aldi cashiers than anyone else inside the store. Cashiers, too, likely come into contact with the most people on a daily basis. Aldi estimates that pre-COVID, they had around 40 million customers every month — or 480 million customers per year —coming through their stores. Therefore, Aldi cashiers can be considered some of the most essential employees of any Aldi store staff.

Not only does a cashier work the cash register, but they help with the day-to-day objectives as well, such as stocking, cleaning, and more. In fact, the pressure is on for Aldi cashiers, who have rigorous performance standards that include a goal of ringing up 1,200 items per hour on shift (via Mental Floss). Even the seat Aldi cashiers are provided with is an incentive to bring up their ringing speeds. What do cashiers get for their lightning-fast work ethic? As a cashier at Aldi, you can expect to make around $25,000 per year, according to Zippia — this is a little more than the national average for cashiers of $23,014.

Encompassing the duties of the cashier role and adding more — such as overseeing the sales floor and maintaining a high level of customer service — the lead cashier role nets you a slightly higher pay rate than a typical Aldi cashier, according to Indeed.com. For the extra job duties, you can expect to make around $12.61 per hour. If you work full-time, that comes out to a salary of a little more than $26,000 a year. 

In addition to salary pay, eligible Aldi employees are able to access a wide variety of additional benefits, namely health insurance. In a 2018 study conducted by Aon for Aldi, the company was found to rank first among five direct competitors when it comes to benefits for medical, vision, and dental insurance. Not only do employees get insurance, but they are paying just about half of what their counterparts at other discount grocery retailers are. Those types of savings really add up with each and every paycheck.

The groceries and other goods have to come from somewhere and, after they leave whatever company created them, they will end up in a warehouse before being transported to an Aldi. If this is the sort of work for you, a warehouse associate can expect to make around $17 per hour, according to PayScale (roughly $35,000 per year). 

The work, though, will involve a ton of lifting and moving things — so either you will need to be in good physical shape or on your way there. In fact, Aldi employees can expect to wear steel-toed boots on the job because of all the heavy equipment they use (via Mental Floss). Physical fitness aside, this is one of the most important roles one can have with Aldi, as the warehouse associates are the ones responsible for ensuring that products get to Aldi stores for purchase. Warehouse workers, too, have an opportunity that store workers do not — every quarter, they can earn a two percent safety bonus for continuing to have a safe working environment.

The store associate position is the kind of Aldi job that keeps its workers on their toes and offers the ability to do a number of different things each and every day. As a store associate, you'll not only spend some time stocking shelves, but you'll also spend time behind the cash register as well (not to mention that you will spend "the whole time working with customers and building your career" according to Aldi). 

A full-time store associate can expect to earn $13 an hour, from a range of $11-$17 nationally, according to Glassdoor. That adds up to an average salary of about $27,000. It is with salaries like these (as well as working environments that are conducive to personal and professional growth) that have helped Aldi earn numerous awards as an employer over the last decade, including being one of the best employer's for new grads in both 2018 and 2019, according to Forbes.

Think of an assistant buyer as a pre-shopper. For Aldi, assistant buyers work to make sure that any product you may even consider purchasing while on a shopping trip has been purchased for Aldi for the best deal and was delivered on time (so that you can impulse purchase it). Assistant buyers also negotiate contracts with various sellers to ensure long-lasting and profitable deals. An assistant buyer for Aldi can expect to make around $25 per hour, or $52,000 per year, according to Glassdoor. 

At Aldi, too, the salary is bolstered by a number of other benefits beyond actual health insurance. On one hand, employees can utilize the MotivateMe program, which incentivizes healthy habits with the ability to earn Health Reimbursement Arrangement (HRA) dollars, which helps with insurance deductibles and other out-of-pocket costs. Another benefit — SmartDollar — is a financial wellness program available to employees that helps with budgeting and saving advice and help. 

Shift managers wear many hats in the retail space. Not only do they work to help manage the sales floor during a particular shift, but they also work with the sales team from a supervisory angle as well. Shift managers take on many different responsibilities on a daily basis, and for that, they are paid roughly $18 per hour, or just under $38,000 per year, according to Glassdoor. 

The managerial structure at Aldi, too, has a few other benefits, including vacation time. Those on the managerial side of things start employment with one week of vacation automatically, and can earn two weeks after their first year. If you become a district manager, those numbers greatly increase. You earn three weeks of vacation in your first year and then you can earn six weeks once you've been with the company for 10 years. While that may not seem like a lot — get this — after a year of training, Aldi also provides district managers with an Audi A3 or BMW X1, a minimum $80,000 salary, and a possible signing bonus (via Aldi Careers).

For those who aren't exactly customer-friendly, Aldi merchandisers have a hand in the everyday functions of an Aldi in a more organizational manner. As an Aldi merchandiser, you organize the products in-store on sale racks and elsewhere. In addition, a merchandiser can be expected to work with the warehouse team to help manage what products are available for sale in stores. A merchandiser with Aldi can expect to make around $65,000 per year, according to Indeed. 

Regardless of what position you have at Aldi, eligible employees also have the opportunity to start a retirement savings plan, which Aldi also pays into. As a way to further invest in their employees, Aldi will match 401k contributions dollar for dollar up to five percent. Taking advantage of these contributions is a quick and easy way to build up a solid nest egg for whatever the future may bring.

No, this isn't an assistant to the regional manager position, sorry Dwight Schrute fans. After going through Aldi's manager training, one of the perhaps obvious next steps is to be an assistant store manager. As an assistant store manager at Aldi, one can expect to bring in around $19-20 per hour, which translates to around $40,000 per year, according to CareerBliss. Job duties include working with the store manager on various procedures or strategies to improve store and employee performance. 

Paid holidays, too, are part of Aldi's business plan, with salaried employees (who have been part of the company for over 90 days) getting seven of the major holidays off throughout the year. For hourly employees it works a little differently — in order to get the holiday off, the employee needs to work his or her full shift the day before and the day after the holiday in question. 

Looking to take your grocery store chops to the next level and get in line for a manager position, one day stepping out on your own in a brand new Aldi (which is a great possibility given that Aldi is the fastest-growing grocery store chain in the United States right now, per Eat This, Not That)? Taking the managerial route at Aldi will net you roughly $54,000 per year, according to Glassdoor.

With the higher salary, though, comes much more responsibility (obviously). A manager trainee will work on higher-level concepts such as maximizing sales (gotta sell that Aldi wine!) and controlling expenses (while also learning to manage an even greater load of customer service issues on a daily basis). Aldi also works hard to employ a wide array of qualified candidates. It was named one of the best employers for women in 2018 by Forbes, and Aldi has also been named a top diversity employer by the Hispanic Network Magazine and the Black EOE Journal five years running (via Aldi Careers). 

When it comes to individual stores, the Aldi store manager is one of the top dogs on the food chain in terms of day-to-day operations. Overseeing the majority of the store's functions, store managers, according to Glassdoor, can expect to make $25 per hour, which is a salary of about $52,000. Other sites, such as Zippia and CareerBliss, have numbers ranging as different as $39,000 and $46,000, respectively. 

Store managers, too, are eligible for added perks, such as sales and productivity bonuses. While the job has responsibilities and likely more stressors involved on a daily basis than, say, a cashier might, Aldi works to ensure that managers are given opportunities to reap rewards for their hard work. Trainings are also provided for those interested in perhaps moving up in the Aldi corporate chain to a position such as a district manager (which then unlocks even more perks ... remember that sweet BMW?).

Even with reports of some questionable work-life balance for Aldi employees, the retailer still attracts many applicants with its high-growth, not-terrible-paying job options. Back in 2011, Aldi director of operations J.T. Branneman claimed that for every 12 open jobs at Aldi, the company gets about 600 to 800 applicants (via mLIVE). For all of the stiff competition, according to Glassdoor reviews, only 60% of Aldi staff would recommend the job to a friend.