Ulta may not pay a whole lot, but it sure does have some nice perks, according to one worker who says she works at the beauty store as a hobby.
In the video with over 490,000 views, TikTok user Emily (@emsinggg0) sits in her car as she responds to a comment from a viewer, asking about her pay.
“Ulta does not pay a lot of money,” she tells her 18,000 followers.
For Emily, her job at Ulta is more of a “hobby.” The content creator says she simply enjoys makeup and helping people. “I don’t work full-time. I work part-time, but there are perks to working at Ulta,” she says.
Then, she unveils an orange Ulta plastic bag full of “gratis.” Every month, the content creator says she receives “gratis,” which is a bag full of free products for her to try to effectively help customers. Next, she reveals the products she got for January. First up is her favorite: a Drunk Elephant a full-size Protini Polypeptide Resurf Serum. “This probably the best gratis I ever got,” she states, taking the product out of its packaging. “So big, so cool. Full size.”
After putting the product back in the box, she takes a full-size Kylie setting powder. In addition, she says she was gifted a hot pink Alix Earle makeup bag and full-size hair oil by OUAI. She also says she received two Sunday Riley products: a small eye cream and a sulfur spot treatment mask. Emily wraps up the video by showing off a Hubba Loop Lash eyelash serum by Benefit, a pink Slip hair tie, as well as shampoo and conditioner testers.
According to her other videos, Emily is located in Ohio. The average Ulta worker pay in Ohio is $12.84 an hour, per ZipRecruiter. “As of Jan. 2, 2024, the average hourly pay for an Ulta Cashier in Ohio is $12.88 an hour. While ZipRecruiter is seeing salaries as high as $17.37 and as low as $7.31, the majority of Ulta Cashier salaries currently range between $10.72 (25th percentile) to $14.62 (75th percentile) in Ohio," the site reads. "The average pay range for an Ulta Cashier varies greatly (as much as $3.89), which suggests there may be many opportunities for advancement and increased pay based on skill level, location and years of experience."
In the comments section, former and current Ulta workers revealed that they received perks as well.
“My local Ulta pays $12/hour. But there is a great discount,” one viewer shared.
“I work at ulta to get out of the house a few hours a day plus 25% discount,” a second wrote.
“I’m a lead at Ulta! I also work there for fun and the benefits lol,” a third commented.
On the other hand, some weren’t as lucky.
“Not me working at ulta for 2 years and never getting gratis,” one user remarked.
“I was an operation manager only making 21 $ an hour and hardly got [gratis] because our store manager kept it all for herself,” a second recalled.
The Daily Dot reached out to Emily via TikTok comment.
