Aldi Raises UK Wages

Aldi Raises UK Wages Again

Aldi UK has raised pay for the second time in just over a month, lifting hourly rates for store assistants to £12.75 nationally and £14.05 within the M25 from 1 March 2025. That replaces the £12.71/£14.00 rates Aldi announced in January, which had been due to start on the same date. And the chain isn’t stopping there: another bump to £12.85/£14.16 is scheduled for September.

The move comes ahead of the UK’s National Living Wage increase to £12.21 in April 2025 and keeps Aldi level with or above rivals such as Lidl. Aldi employs more than 45,000 colleagues across the UK, and in September 2025 it said it had overtaken Asda to become the UK’s third-largest grocer by food and drink sales.

Update (October 2026): Aldi went further than planned. From 1 September 2025 the rate rose to £13.02 an hour, or £14.35 in London, and from 1 April 2026 store assistants earn £13.50 nationally and £14.88 inside the M25.

Why It Matters

These back‑to‑back pay rises highlight how tight the competition for frontline retail talent has become. Aldi is responding to rivals and pushing the going rate higher at the same time. Aldi says its new minimum exceeds the Real Living Wage set in October 2024, which was £12.60 an hour, or £13.85 in London. The chain has also said it plans to grow to 1,500 stores across the UK.

Aldi also remains unique by offering paid breaks, worth about £1,370 a year for the average store colleague, adding tangible value to base pay.

Sector Response

As grocers across the UK raise pay, Aldi continues to set the pace. On 10 February 2025, Lidl said entry-level pay would rise to £12.75 nationally and £14.00 in London from March 2025. Tesco said its store colleague hourly rate would reach £12.64 by the end of August 2025.

The trend matters to economists, too: rising retail wages feed into broader wage growth, one of the signals the Bank of England watches when it sets interest rates.

What It Means for Retail Workers

For hourly-paid retail staff, Aldi’s strategy confirms one clear trend: wage competition is heating up. Workers can expect:

• Better starting pay at discounters and large chains
• Potential for faster progression with tenure-based increments (e.g. up to £13.95 nationally from September 2025)
• A future where minimum wage is no longer a baseline but a floor beneath well-paid entry roles

If you're job hunting or currently in retail, Aldi's momentum shows where the labor market is leaning: higher hourly pay at the big chains.

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