Does United Nations pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, United Nations employees rate their compensation and benefits as 3.9 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at United Nations. This rating has been stable over the past 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at United Nations?

78% of United Nations employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated United Nations 3.9 out of 5 for work life balance, 4.0 for culture and values and 3.6 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at United Nations?

Intern (400) , Consultant (142) , Internship (130) , Administrative Assistant (59) , Project Manager (46) , Research Assistant (30) , Political Affairs Officer (24) , Officer (23) , Political Affairs Intern (19) , Security Officer (18) , Team Assistant (18) , Analyst (16) , Director (16) , Economic Affairs Officer (16) , Finance Assistant (15)

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

"stable happy versatile good benefit" ((in 168 reviews)); "The people are great and passionate about what they do" ((in 163 reviews)); "Good salary and experience overall" ((in 151 reviews)); "Great for CV and great colleagues" ((in 131 reviews)); "Good work environment for beginners" ((in 90 reviews))

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

"The internship is unpaid and probably with rooms of improvement regarding the plan for career guidance" ((in 108 reviews)); "Management is poor" ((in 47 reviews)); "bad managers" ((in 24 reviews)); "No job security at all" ((in 23 reviews)); "Too much bureaucracy and almost impossible to get promoted.It is hard to do things differently due to the bureaucratic nature of the organization." ((in 22 reviews))

What are employees saying about United Nations layoffs in 2026?

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

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United Nations

United Nations reviews

4.0

78% would recommend to a friend

(2,244 total reviews)

António Guterres

75% approve of CEO

58% positive business outlook

Ratings by category

4.3

Diversity & inclusion

4.0

Culture & values

3.9

Work/Life balance

3.9

Compensation and benefits

3.6

Senior management

3.6

Career opportunities

United Nations has an employee rating of 4.0 out of 5 stars, based on 2,244 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The United Nations employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Regierung & öffentliche Verwaltung industry (3.6 stars).

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Reviews by job title

2K reviews

5.0

May 13, 2013

Excellent benefits and pay

Team assistant

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Great workplace and environment and work stability

Cons

Job advancement is subject to really competitive examinations. Advancement by seniority is slow and not guaranteed.

4.0

Apr 26, 2013

High pay

It consultant

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

The pay is fairly high for people who recently received their BA degrees, the starting salary is ca. $4,000 per month (G-3) excluding paid leave. Paid leave accrues at a rate of 2.5 days per month and can be cashed in (I cashed in my paid leave when I resigned).

Cons

Salary progression is quite difficult, raises barely keep up with cost of living (remember, Manhattan has the highest cost of living in the USA). In addition, there is not much transparency in the job application process (difficult to find HR contact information). If you want to make 100K per year after 5 years, you most likely won't have that opportunity with the UN.

4.0

Apr 16, 2013

Constantly exciting and rewarding

Civil affairs officer

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

working on complex peace building initiatives; working with great people.

Cons

conflict prone environment that requires constant vigilance

Viewing 2140 - 2142 of 2,244 Reviews

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Jobs at United Nations

PROGRAMME MANAGEMENT OFFICER, P3

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Programme Management Assistant, G6

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