Aldi has increased pay for store assistants as it vowed to continue its run as the best-paying supermarket in the UK.

From 1 March 2025, store assistants will see hourly rates increase from £12.40 per hour nationally to at least £12.71 and from £13.65 for those working within the M25 to £14.

Pay for store assistants will rise further based on length of service, reaching £13.62 nationally and £14.23 within the M25.

Aldi is also the only UK supermarket to offer paid breaks, a benefit worth an estimated £1,370 per year for the average store colleague.

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The discount grocer’s new pay rates also exceed the Real Living Wage set by the Living Wage Foundation in October 2024.

Aldi UK and Ireland CEO Giles Hurley said: “Our colleagues are the best in the business and this latest pay rise reflects our ongoing commitment to ensuring they remain the best paid.

“Every single Aldi colleague plays an absolutely vital role in delivering on our promise to bringing unbeatable Aldi prices to even more customers across the UK.”

The move to increase pay comes as Sainsbury’s unveiled plans to raise pay after delivering its ‘biggest ever Christmas’.

Chief executive Simon Roberts said that Sainsbury’s would raise pay for its hourly-paid colleagues by 5% in the year ahead, with rates moving to £12.45 per hour in March, or £13.70 for those in London, with a further increase to £12.60 per hour in August, or £13.85.