Is Elsevier a good company to work for?

Elsevier has an overall rating of 4.0 out of 5, based on over 2,533 reviews left anonymously by employees. This rating has been stable over the past 12 months. 79% of employees would recommend working at Elsevier to a friend and 76% have a positive outlook for the business. The best reviews about Elsevier have been left by employees working as Software Engineer , Editor and Manager .

Does Elsevier pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, Elsevier employees rate their compensation and benefits as 3.6 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at Elsevier. This rating has improved by 1% over the last 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at Elsevier?

79% of Elsevier employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated Elsevier 4.4 out of 5 for work life balance, 4.2 for culture and values and 3.6 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at Elsevier?

Software Engineer (78) , Senior Software Engineer (63) , Account Manager (61) , Product Manager (55) , Journal Manager (49) , Project Manager (37) , Publisher (30) , Director (29) , Editor (28) , Manager (23) , Sales (22) , Editorial Project Manager (21) , Marketing (18) , Software Engineer III (18) , Data Scientist (16)

What are the pros of working at Elsevier according to real employee reviews?

"Flexibility and good work/life balance" ((in 277 reviews)); "You get the chance to work with great people that are very driven and know their subject area very well." ((in 163 reviews)); "Great employees and colleagues" ((in 145 reviews)); "Great company and team to work for." ((in 49 reviews)); "Good work/life balance and good opportunities for career progression." ((in 37 reviews))

What are the cons of working at Elsevier according to real employee reviews?

"We're continued to be asked to develop "world class content" with third world resources and insultingly low salaries." ((in 96 reviews)); "the pay is low but everything else was great" ((in 89 reviews)); "Management on the corporate side is poor with very little business development experience." ((in 78 reviews)); "level and higher managers result in poor leadership and decision" ((in 58 reviews)); "There are also bad managers and seemingly no easy way to reduce their impact on the staff for whom they are responsible." ((in 51 reviews))

What are employees saying about Elsevier layoffs in 2026?

Explore Glassdoor’s employee reviews to understand what current and former employees are saying about Elsevier layoffs and their outlook for job security at Elsevier in 2026.

What are the top reviewed Elsevier locations?

Philadelphia , New York , Saint Louis , Maryland Heights , San Diego , Atlanta , Gainesville , Dayton , Boston , Cambridge , Houston , Pittsburgh , Tampa , Phila , Orlando , Washington , San Francisco , Waltham , Texas City , Minneapolis , Miamisburg , Berkeley , Rockville , Miami , Salt Lake City , Chicago , Dallas , Los Angeles , North Andover , Woodbury

Elsevier reviews

4.0

79% would recommend to a friend

(2,188 total reviews)

Kumsal Bayazit

91% approve of CEO

76% positive business outlook

Company ratings over time

Ratings trend for the last 6 months (2,188 reviews)

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Elsevier has an employee rating of 4.0 out of 5 stars, based on 2,188 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The Elsevier employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Media & Communication industry (3.7 stars).

Reviews by job title

2K reviews

2.0

Sep 5, 2024

Nice Play to Work, but they fired us like dogs

Associate conversation designer

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Good team, benefits were alright. Work-life balance was excellent.

Cons

No room for advancement on my team. And they laid off half of us team --all of the people they'd hired during the pandemic--without any consideration for effort or work product after two years. The VP hauled us all into a meeting on a Monday with a misleading title (which was honestly an outright lie) and read us the riot act in a monotone. Severance was weak (two months) AND they before laid us all off before our 5% retirement match could vest. A dirty thing to do to employees, quite frankly.

Elsevier Response

1y

Thank you for leaving your review. We take your review seriously but must delve more into your highlighted issues. Unfortunately, the lack of a named location makes it difficult to investigate this. We are in over 180 locations worldwide with more than 9,000 workers, so if we are to investigate this, we need more information. Our recent employee opinion survey shows strong positive momentum in people's experience working at Elsevier, but it appears that hasn’t been the case here. If you prefer, feel free to contact us at elseviergdrev@elsevier.com to provide more information. Again, thanks for your review.

1.0

Sep 4, 2024

Bad Experience

Content development specialist

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

There are no pros that come to mind.

Cons

Narcissistic leadership. Indian Managers hires sycophants from their home state to tip the balance in their favour. Work hours are insane and there have been complaints about workload globally. It doesn't end well for whistleblowers. Sycophants are promoted and hardworking employees are left behind. This company is always hiring for CDS and EPM for the same reason. There is no work life balance.

Elsevier Response

1y

Thank you for leaving your review. We’re sorry your experience hasn’t reflected our values of inclusivity, fairness, and respect in the workplace. We’re actively working to build an environment where employees feel valued and supported, regardless of background or location, and we are committed to ensuring that all employees experience equitable growth opportunities. The concerns you raised around workload and work-life balance would have been prioritized through ongoing initiatives to improve resourcing and wellness support across teams. Your input when you worked here would have been vital to making the required improvements, as we encourage open dialogue at all levels, including anonymous feedback channels, to create a culture where everyone feels heard. If you’d like to discuss this further, please contact our HR team confidentially or email us at -elseviergdrev@elsevier.com to provide more information.

5.0

Sep 4, 2024

good work life balance but don't listen to employees

Editorial project manager

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

great work life balance good benefits lovely people and real supportive team feel does feel like company cares about well-being of employees and managers are relatable and empathetic

Cons

constantly dismiss employees' concerns about pay, this has come up the whole time I've worked here and they always give the same line even though benefits now are far less than they were a decade ago insisting on pushing AI which is a move in the wrong direction do not pay most people who work on their content

Elsevier Response

1y

Thank you for your review. Compensation is always a hot topic in any industry. Here, we benchmark our salaries externally to ensure we stay competitive. We offer competitive rates plus an array of great benefits.

Viewing 289 - 291 of 2,188 Reviews

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Nice Play to Work, but they fired us like dogs

Bad Experience

good work life balance but don't listen to employees

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