How Much Does Amazon Pay?

One of the most influential economic and cultural forces, and the world’s most valuable brand, Amazon, is rapidly expanding. Recently, the e-commerce giant has reached a new milestone, surpassing 1 million direct employees in the United States. And Amazon’s global workforce topped 1.6 million as of the end of 2021.

How does the company attract so many employees in the tight US labor market? How much does Amazon pay? In this article, we will answer this and other questions, so you can decide whether Amazon is the right choice for you.

How Much Does Amazon Pay an Hour?

In September 2021, Amazon increased its average starting wage in the US  from around $17 an hour to more than $18 an hour. The entry-level base pay remains $15 an hour but goes as high as $22.50 an hour in some areas. This is significantly higher than the hourly pay at Starbucks, for example.

Of course, the hourly wage depends on which state you live in, your position, and your experience level. The Amazon pay structure is organized into levels. We’ll explain that after covering the averages, so stay with us.

How Much Do Amazon Workers Make a Year?

Most Amazon salaries range from $27,000 to $58,500, but top earners make as much as $93,000 annually.

As of April 2022, the average yearly salary of an Amazon employee in the US is $48,345. This is equal to approximately $23.24 an hour.

How Much Do Amazon Workers Make a Week?

Here, it’s important to mention the pay frequency. Does Amazon pay weekly or biweekly?

Due to the pandemic, Amazon reviewed its payment policy and changed the pay frequency. In October 2020, the company started to pay weekly. Previously, full-time employees were paid bi-weekly, and part-time employees were paid weekly.

The weekly pay rate depends on the hours worked. The Amazon salary for a 40-hour week ranges from $360 for an Administrative Manager to $3,144.82 for a Senior Solution Architect. The average weekly pay, however, is around $929.

How Much Does Amazon Pay a Month?

As of April 2022, Amazon’s monthly average wage is $4,028. These calculations are for 40 working hours a week and an hourly rate of approximately $25,17.

Amazon Salary Levels

As mentioned above, Amazon jobs are categorized into 12 levels, and each level has its salary range.

At level 11 are the CEOs and all the SVPs (about 20 senior leaders). Levels 10 and 9 are all the vice presidents (VP) with four to ten years of experience. Level 8 is for Directors, level 7 for Senior Managers, and levels 6, 5, and 4 for Managers and individual contributors. Lastly, levels 1, 2, and 3 are primarily for support staff, FC workers, and similar roles.

Let’s dig further into the Amazon pay levels:

• Level 1 salary starts at $43,813 per year and goes up to $134,118 per year for the highest level of seniority.
• The salary trajectory for level 2 starts at $88,012 per year and goes up to $211,266 per year.
• Level 3 at Amazon can expect to make an average annual salary of $35,006.
  The typical Amazon area manager level 4 salary is $52,141 per year, and the average sign-on bonus is $26,000.
• The Amazon starting pay at level 5 is $59,154 and goes up to $101,513 per year.
• The highest salary for level 6 in the US is $107,170 per year.
• The level 7 salary at Amazon is $167,325 per year.
• The Directory level (level 8) is 15% higher than level 7. The base salary starts at $600,000 per year.
• At levels 9 and 10 are only a few hundred VPs. Their salaries are undisclosed, though.
• As mentioned above, at level 11, there are leading Amazon CEOs and all SVPs. Their payment is unknown, too.
• The highest salary level, 12, is reserved for only one person – Jeff Bezos himself. We don’t know how much he makes a year, but the net worth of the e-commerce giant founder is $140.6 billion as of 2022.

Notably, for higher-level Amazon employees, a good part of total compensation comes in the form of restricted stock units (RSUs).

What Amazon Job Pays the Most?

As the most valuable company in the world, Amazon is home to some high-paying careers. Let’s check out the list of the best-paid job positions, excluding those from level 9 and above.

• Software Development Manager with an hourly rate of $79.50
• Data engineer with an hourly rate of $62.51
• Solutions Architect with an hourly rate of $57.28
• Scientist with an hourly rate of $59.07
• Finance Analyst with an hourly rate of $47.68

Average Salary by State

As we mentioned before, the hourly rate and the annual income of Amazon employees depend on the location. This tells that state-based differences are remarkable. With that said, let’s see how much is the Amazon salary in certain states.

How much does Amazon pay in California?

The average annual pay for the Amazon Warehouse jobs category in California is $31,943. This equals $15.36 hourly wage and $614 weekly pay.

For Software architects, the average salary is $150,398 per year, which is 16% above average.

Packers in Amazon are paid $17.17 per hour.

Delivery drivers in California stand to make $17.88 per hour, which is approximately 12% above the national average.

How much does Amazon pay in Texas?

An average hourly salary for a Warehouse worker in Texas is $16.56 per hour.

For Software architects, the Amazon average salary is $142,599 per year, which is 10% above the national average.

The job of a packer pays $17.74 per hour.

In Texas, the Amazon delivery driver’s hourly pay is $18.28.

How much does Amazon pay in Florida?

In Florida, software architects stand to make $143,937 per year.

A warehouse worker will roughly make $15.82 per hour, approximately 6% above the national average.

The hourly salary of a packer in Florida is $16.87 per hour (16% above the national average)

The average hourly salary of a delivery driver in Florida is $21.84 per hour.

What Day Does Amazon Pay Its Employees?

Amazon pays its employees on Friday. But you could receive your payment within the first few days of the following week, depending on which payment method you have chosen. The fastest way to receive your money is through direct deposit or physical paychecks.

How Old Do You Have to Be to Work at Amazon?

As of 2022, the company only hires people older than 18 due to safety reasons. Amazon delivery drivers must be at least s 21. And f you want to work for Amazon, you must be legally allowed to work in the US in addition to meeting the minimum age requirement.

Amazon Employee Benefits

Like every other successful company, Amazon has many perks for its employees. Of course, the company’s hourly wage is not the only reason people work at Amazon. Amazon’s benefits can vary by location, the number of scheduled hours, job status such as seasonal or temporary employment, and length of employment.

When it comes to insurance, you can count on:

• Health insurance
• Life insurance
• Disability insurance
• Dental insurance
• Vision insurance

The company also offers a range of fully paid Maternity and Parental leave options for parents before and after the birth or adoption of a child.

Amazon gives many other workers benefits such as paid time off in addition to company paid holidays. The company also offers a 10% employee discount. The annual discount is $100, so everything you buy up to $1,000, you get 10% off. But for Amazon Prime, employees don’t get a discount, and they are paying full price for Prime membership.

Notably, the Amazon part-time benefits are the same as those for full-time employees.

One thing that people most care about is the perks of working at Amazon. Besides caring about your and your family’s health, Amazon takes care of your finances too. The list of financial perks is also impressive. There are:

• Competitive wage paid weekly
• Overtime for more than 40 hours a week
• Time-and-a-half pay for working on holidays: New Year’s Day, Memorial Day,
• Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day
• Financial counseling
• Estate planning
• 401(k) savings plan

Lastly, it’s important to mention that Amazon provides adoption assistance for qualified domestic and international adoption expenses and resources for parents whose children struggle with developmental disabilities.

Wrap Up

The online retail giant Amazon is known for its ability to get customers any product they want. While making that happen, Amazon’s employees are generously paid, including bonuses and stocks.

So, how much does Amazon pay? The biggest factors are the location and the position. Amazon pays an attractive average starting pay of $18 per hour. With bonuses, raises, and benefits, working at this successful company is a good deal for many people.