Staff discount index 2025: which retailers offer workers the best benefits?

Staff discount is by far the most popular benefit on offer from the UK’s retailers. All the brands on our list bar one offer some form of discount on their own products, in some cases up to 75%. 

The only retailer to abstain from offering a staff discount is Aldi, instead, it has channelled its effort into being the highest paying grocer on the table, and among the highest paying retail jobs on offer in general. 

The most frequent level of discount is between 20-25% off, with many retailers boosting that on double discount days or, in the case of The Co-op and Pets at Home, upping the money off of own-label products in a bid to make their staff advocates of the brand.  

“Every retailer wants to encourage their teams to use their end product, as they can help customers more knowledgeably,” says B&Q people director Andy Moat. 

“For us, 20% has been pretty consistent. We do offer 30% off more energy-efficient products to encourage colleagues to buy those—about 700 SKUs have a higher rate. The annual value of that discount, if you take advantage of it, could be pretty big at B&Q.

“I could buy a kitchen with my 20% discount, or if I’m buying five tins of paint to decorate a room, that adds up. So it depends on the frequency of purchase and the size of purchase in terms of the value it creates for colleagues.”

Although Aldi doesn’t offer a discount, all the other supermarkets do. Lidl, Sainsbury’s, Asda, Co-op and Tesco offer 10% off, while Morrisons and Iceland take 15% off for staff. 20% off is the deepest discount on offer from the category, enjoyed by employees at Marks & Spencer and Waitrose, unless you count Co-op’s 30% off own-label. 

Cross-group discount is also a popular benefit, according to our research, particularly within fashion and leisure brands. For example, H&M employees can use their 25% at Cos, & Other Stories and Weekday, while Zara employees can take 25% off purchases at Massimo Dutti, Stradivarius and Bershka. 

Frasers Group also offers cross-group discounts, benefitting employees of Flannels, Sports Direct and Evans Cycles to the tune of 20%. 

The deepest discount on the table is from leisurewear brand Lululemon, with employees able to cut 60% off all full-price purchases and a whopping 75% off goods in the sale. 

No one likes working on their birthday, at least that’s what many of the UK’s biggest retailers have decided as birthdays off crops up as one of the most popular staff benefits among their packages, alongside wellness packages, cycle to work schemes and high street discounts. 

Although, according to Moat, these additional perks are not the most important: “When it comes to benefits our colleagues really value: pension is a real biggie for us.” he says. 

“If a colleague can afford to save a little bit for their retirement, then we match it or exceed it. The conversation we’re always trying to have is that it’s great to save for your future if you can do it—it’s almost like a free pay increase.”

The cost-of-living crisis prompted more retailers to add discounts with other retailers into their benefits packages, and it’s now the most popular cited benefit from retailers, behind staff discount. Apps like Hapi and Perkbox offer retail workers discounts on everything from hotels and coffee shops to takeaways and clothing retailers, allowing workers to save cash in other areas of their lives. 

Another benefit that increased in the cost-of-living crisis was the number of financial management schemes, now on offer at almost 30% of the retailers on this index. Wagestream was most frequently cited by the retailers on our index, which allows employees to access their pay as they earn it. 

Employee assistance programmes have also become more popular, owing to a combination of increased awareness of mental wellbeing, aforementioned financial pressures, and unfortunately, the rise in abuse directed towards shopworkers. 

The likes of the Retail Trust offer retail employees support in times of crisis, with a 24-hour helpline, counselling, legal guidance and financial aid, as well as proactive help like digital therapy pathways and self-help tools. 

Another benefit that is harder to quantify on a table is the level of flexibility that retailers offer, although many retailers have made an effort to offer workers their shift rotas further in advance, and there are now platforms which allow retail workers to swap, change, or take on more shifts via their mobile phones. 

“I think flexibility is incredibly valued,” says Moat. “That’s something I often hear colleagues value more than most things, along with who they’re working for. Do they have a good boss? Do they like their organisation? I think all of that is in the mix.” 

This article is part of our pay series, to find out what 60 of the UK’s biggest retailers pay their shop floor staff, click here.