Does Amazon Give Raises? (How Often, How Much + More)

Amazon is not only a huge e-commerce retailer serving millions of shoppers in the U.S. and around the world, but it’s also one of the largest American employers that continue to expand its workforce and number of locations.

If you or someone you know has considered working for Amazon, you may be wondering does Amazon give raises. I couldn’t help but think the same thing, so I did my research, and here are all the facts I found behind Amazon’s competitive pay and raises.

Does Amazon Give Raises?

Amazon gives raises to many of its employees every year, which typically happens around May every year. Additionally, Amazon has a minimum wage of $15 an hour and recently gave raises ranging from 50 cents to $3 an hour to over half a million of its operation employees in the U.S.

If you want to know more about Amazon’s pay, including how often the company gives raises and how much their raises are, keep reading!

How Often Does Amazon Give Raises?

Getting a raise at Amazon depends on the department and length of employment.

While many employees receive raises once a year, if not every six months, it’s not uniform across the board due to Amazon’s expansive workforce.

Nearly one million people, or 1 in every 169 U.S. employees, work for Amazon, with 30 different teams covering all aspects of the business. This includes Amazon Web Services, Fulfillment &

Operations, Transportation & Logistics, Business & Corporate, and so much more.

With that in mind, Amazon gives raises to different teams depending on their performance and current pay. Although most employees receive at least a yearly raise, it’s not guaranteed.

Amazon usually announces its plans for employee raises at the start of the year and in the middle of the year.

By making this information about good starting pay and competitive raises public, Amazon hopes to encourage more people to apply for its job vacancies, as there are thousands of job openings all the time.

How Much Are Amazon Raises?

Currently, Amazon raises typically range from 50 cents an hour up to $3 an hour.

The company’s most recent raise went to 500,000 employees on the warehouse, fulfillment, and delivery teams, totaling $1 billion in incremental pay for these trusted Amazon workers.

Of course, a wealth of resources puts Amazon in a prime position to hand out generous raises on top of attractive starting pay, unlike some smaller competitors.

Amazon is valued at $1.7 trillion, and as the company continues to grow, so does the likelihood of more exciting raises for employees in the future.

Employee performance and history with the company may be taken into account when deciding on raises, as well as how their current pay rates stack up with the rest of the team and the company as a whole.

While Amazon is more generous than most companies with its raises, the retailer still looks for employees who are working hard and meeting, if not exceeding expectations.

For example, warehouse teams that are constantly hitting their quotas ahead of time should stand out when it comes to annual performance/pay reviews.

Not only is Amazon handing out raises to thousands of employees, but it also offers exciting sign-on bonuses in many cases.

These bonuses can be as high as $3,000 and serve as an incentive to prospective workers, as Amazon constantly needs to hire new people to keep up with its growth and the demand for services.

Does Amazon Do Pay Reviews?

Does Amazon Do Pay Reviews?

Amazon has a yearly performance review process, much like other companies.

This review gives both management staff and their employees the chance to reflect on the past year of work, the employee’s overall performance, and any room for improvement.

Pay raises may also be on the table during this review process, especially for employees who have no marks against their performance and have maintained Amazon’s high standards of customer service throughout their work.

Employees can expect a performance/pay review after one year with Amazon, and then it continues every year with the appropriate raises factored in.

The higher up the ladder an employee is, the more likely they are to get a bigger pay raise each year.

While entry-level warehouse workers may see $0.50-$3 per hour added onto their payslip, Amazon’s corporate staff often receive thousands of dollars in raises every year based on their performance and skillset.

Is Amazon’s Pay Competitive?

Keep in mind that Amazon’s raises are pretty good, considering the company’s attractive starting pay.

In 2018, Amazon raised its U.S. minimum wage to $15 an hour, although many workers earn more than that. With yearly raises and exciting bonuses, Amazon has become one of the most popular places to work in America.

There aren’t many other U.S. companies that offer the same minimum wage and work opportunities as Amazon.

However, more major retailers are following in Amazon’s footsteps, with Best Buy, Costco, and Target all committing to at least $15 per hour for all employees.

While other big-name retail brands have performance reviews and pay raises, too, Amazon has the second-highest number of employees behind Walmart.

With a workforce of one million and growing, Amazon is committed to competitive pay and attractive employee benefits to hire and retain employees who can keep the billion-dollar company operating smoothly.

If you want to know more, you can also read our related posts on when does Amazon pay, if Amazon gives bonuses, and the Amazon mandatory overtime policy

Conclusion

Amazon has surpassed many leading U.S. employers in the past decade and now ranks second in terms of total Americans employed.

One of the key reasons why Amazon can attract and keep employees is the competitive pay, which includes a minimum wage of $15 per hour plus sign-on bonuses and annual pay raises.

There are dozens of employment teams at Amazon, and each department may receive a different raise based on their starting pay and performance expectations.

Amazon usually gives raises to its employees once a year following their annual performance and pay review, but sometimes the company does a big round of raises to generate enthusiasm and public interest.

Amazon’s last major pay increase came in mid-2021 when the retailer announced raises for 500,000 of its warehouse, fulfillment, and delivery workers, ranging from 50 cents to $3 an hour. The longer employees stay with Amazon, the more likely they are to see bigger pay bumps in the future.

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Marques Thomas

Marques Thomas graduated with a MBA in 2011. Since then, Marques has worked in the retail and consumer service industry as a manager, advisor, and marketer. Marques is also the head writer and founder of QuerySprout.com.

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