Does Powell's Books pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, Powell's Books employees rate their compensation and benefits as 2.4 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at Powell's Books. This rating has improved by 3% over the last 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at Powell's Books?

38% of Powell's Books employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated Powell's Books 3.2 out of 5 for work life balance, 2.7 for culture and values and 2.6 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at Powell's Books?

Bookseller (13) , Generalist (12) , Used Book Buyer (5) , Generalist II (4) , Bookseller and Cashier (2) , Entry-Level Bookseller (2) , Generalist I (2) , Inventory Generalist (2) , Inventory Lead (2) , Software Engineer (2) , Warehouse Associate (2) , Warehouse Worker (2)

What are the pros of working at Powell's Books according to real employee reviews?

"Amazing coworkers; greatest bookstore in the world; access to literary events; unvarying schedule with consecutive two" ((in 18 reviews)); "Great benefits and employee discount" ((in 12 reviews)); "They are often great people whom I will always be happy to know." ((in 11 reviews)); "Discount on merchandise, huge discount on used books, education benefit, free streetcar, book borrowing privileges, bragging rights." ((in 4 reviews))

What are the cons of working at Powell's Books according to real employee reviews?

"The pay was low and they very infrequently hired temporary staff as regular employees and it was incredibly difficult to get full time work." ((in 18 reviews)); "Until they weed out the bad eggs in management and corporate... RUN." ((in 9 reviews)); "Upper management is divorced from reality of day to day store operations and needs of employees." ((in 9 reviews)); "The good employees are given too much responsibility in order to make up for the people who don't care about their job." ((in 4 reviews)); "low pay, barely ever saw my direct manager, some of the managers are a bit pretentious." ((in 3 reviews))

What are employees saying about Powell's Books layoffs in 2026?

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

What are the top reviewed Powell's Books locations?

Portland , Beaverton , Providence , Cedar Hills

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Powell's Books

Powell's Books reviews

3.1

38% would recommend to a friend

(117 total reviews)

Emily Powell

1% approve of CEO

14% positive business outlook

Ratings by category

3.2

Work/Life balance

2.7

Culture & values

2.7

Diversity & inclusion

2.6

Career opportunities

2.4

Compensation and benefits

1.9

Senior management

Powell's Books has an employee rating of 3.1 out of 5 stars, based on 117 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The Powell's Books employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Retail & Wholesale industry (3.9 stars).

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Reviews by job title

117 reviews

3.0

May 20, 2026

Upper management is a bit disconnected

Generalist (bookseller)

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Employee loan program, employee discount, co workers and customers.

Cons

There is a definite feeling of bitterness from upper management that they have to deal with a union workplace. I’ve worked with doctors and high level administrators in my other positions and my Powell’s co workers were some of the most intelligent people I’ve ever worked with. It’s really too bad that upper management did not seem interested in taking the advice of their frontline workers more into consideration.

5.0

Nov 27, 2025

....

Sales representative

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Flexible hours and good amount of vacation time

Cons

May be required to work on weekends

3.0

Nov 14, 2025

Mild chaos

Software engineer

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Good people to be around.

Cons

Lack of investment over last several years catching up.

Viewing 1 - 3 of 117 Reviews

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Jobs at Powell's Books

Facilities Specialist

Facilities Generalist

Senior Facilities Manager