Is Northern Trust a good company to work for?

Northern Trust has an overall rating of 3.6 out of 5, based on over 6,931 reviews left anonymously by employees. This rating has decreased by 1% over the last 12 months. 67% of employees would recommend working at Northern Trust to a friend and 61% have a positive outlook for the business. The best reviews about Northern Trust have been left by employees working as Business Analyst , Associate and Intern .

Does Northern Trust pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, Northern Trust employees rate their compensation and benefits as 3.2 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at Northern Trust. This rating has decreased by 3% over the last 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at Northern Trust?

67% of Northern Trust employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated Northern Trust 3.6 out of 5 for work life balance, 3.7 for culture and values and 3.4 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at Northern Trust?

Analyst (702) , Senior Analyst (589) , Financial Analyst (299) , Consultant (250) , Technical Coordinator (219) , Vice President (179) , Team Leader (143) , Senior Consultant (125) , Fund Accountant (91) , Senior Financial Analyst (89) , Associate Consultant (67) , Manager (63) , Intern (61) , Second Vice President (54) , Senior Vice President (53)

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

"Work life balance is good for some and ok for others" ((in 774 reviews)); "Northern Trust has a great culture and I have heard it time and time again." ((in 553 reviews)); "some great people that try very hard but a lot of time let down by managers." ((in 385 reviews)); "good benefits and leave credits" ((in 367 reviews)); "Work culture is good but it depends a lot on the process and team you get into." ((in 271 reviews))

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

"Low pay and difficult to get promoted" ((in 394 reviews)); "Too slow to change and low salaries" ((in 294 reviews)); "Certain departments have poor management and there is dead weight that needs to go" ((in 292 reviews)); "Sometimes fails to recognise that a manager is bad with people" ((in 106 reviews)); "Low pay and bonus for the work taken from us" ((in 97 reviews))

What are employees saying about Northern Trust layoffs in 2026?

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

What are the top reviewed Northern Trust locations?

Chicago , Tempe , Miami , New York , Phoenix , Los Angeles , Stamford , Atlanta , Dallas , Houston , Tampa , San Diego , West Palm Beach , Boston , Jersey City , Scottsdale , Naperville , Washington , Newport Beach , San Francisco , North Chicago , Kansas City , Arizona City , Grand Rapids , Denver , Seattle , Philadelphia , Fort Lauderdale , Naples , Chicago

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Northern Trust

Northern Trust reviews

3.6

67% would recommend to a friend

(6,460 total reviews)

Michael OGrady

80% approve of CEO

61% positive business outlook

Ratings by category

3.9

Diversity & inclusion

3.7

Culture & values

3.6

Work/Life balance

3.4

Career opportunities

3.2

Compensation and benefits

3.0

Senior management

Northern Trust has an employee rating of 3.6 out of 5 stars, based on 6,460 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The Northern Trust employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Financial Services industry (3.7 stars).

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Reviews by job title

6K reviews

2.0

Jun 11, 2014

Painfully political

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Job stability - many people have worked all their adult lives at this company.

Cons

No effort is ever good enough. Salaries are lower than other companies, and raises are meted out in pennies. Politics is ridiculously out of control, and the only criteria for advancement. Diversity is a catch phrase, but the reality is a work environment that is highly discriminatory and condescending in Northern's treatment of lower level women, older people. Token diversity is rampant, which is just as insulting as overt racism. The atmosphere is cold, stiff, intolerant, and non-inclusive. Lots of blame throwing. Life long employees are celebrated dead weight who spend more time working the system than adding productive value or ideas. People do not smile much in this region.

2.0

Jan 2, 2014

Poor Pay, Refusal to Promote from within

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Co-Workers (northern gets really good talented people only to treat them like dogs)

Cons

Company culture, (only folks fitting into a physical mold are hired for client facing positions), pay was horrible for the level of skills required, some managers

3.0

Nov 15, 2013

Great History, Some Risks to the Future

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Great legacy of being the safe place for investors. The firm is stable and many employees have been here for years.

Cons

Company has fallen far behind competitors in technology. To some extent the firm is riding on its laurels. Also, the "care for customers first" culture seems to becoming eroded by a brokerage mentality of sell all the time and getting new business and revenues is the only thing that matters. If this becomes more pervasive, the franchise is in serious danger, especially given the lack of investment in systems. And, it's a bank. Senior people get paid pretty well, everybody else, not so much. Good place to have on your resume. Career advancement will require changing employers.

Viewing 145 - 147 of 6,460 Reviews

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Jobs at Northern Trust

Information Architect

HR Data Governance Analyst

Technology Resiliency Architect