Does Sotheby's pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, Sotheby's employees rate their compensation and benefits as 2.1 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at Sotheby's. This rating has been stable over the past 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at Sotheby's?

21% of Sotheby's employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated Sotheby's 2.6 out of 5 for work life balance, 2.3 for culture and values and 2.6 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at Sotheby's?

Intern (53) , Administrator (23) , Specialist (23) , Floater (18) , Exhibition Assistant (15) , Associate (13) , Internship (13) , Cataloger (11) , Coordinator (10) , Marketing (9) , cataloguer (9) , Manager (8) , Administrative Assistant (7) , Project Manager (7) , Art Handler (6)

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

"Colleagues are great and you get to work with wonderful clients and artworks" ((in 53 reviews)); "The people are great and working with art is amazing" ((in 52 reviews)); "Great team and intern class" ((in 17 reviews)); "Great opportunity to get to know the auction and private sale art market at a prestigious art auction house!" ((in 15 reviews)); "Good benefits and perks." ((in 15 reviews))

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

"pay is low and not appreciated" ((in 76 reviews)); "Management is poor" ((in 47 reviews)); "No upper mobility and low salaries" ((in 45 reviews)); "Long hours and weekends sometimes" ((in 20 reviews)); "Not very good compensation and no work/life balance" ((in 16 reviews))

What are employees saying about Sotheby's redundancies in 2026?

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

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Sotheby's

Sotheby's Reviews

2.5

21% would recommend to a friend

(650 total reviews)

Charles F. Stewart

12% approve of CEO

23% positive business outlook

Company ratings over time

Ratings trend for the last 6 months (650 reviews)

Sotheby's has an employee rating of 2.5 out of 5 stars, based on 650 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have an average working experience there. The Sotheby's employee rating is 29% below average for employers within the Retail and wholesale industry (3.5 stars).

Reviews by job title

650 reviews

3.0

12 Feb 2024

Great in theory

Senior account manager

Recommend

CEO approval

Business outlook

Pros

Interesting job and meet lots of people who are in the top of their field.

Cons

Company is disorganized, old-fashioned, nepotistic, and doesn't value their employees. Teams do not work together.

4.0

12 Mar 2022

Good experience overall

Sale coordinator

Recommend

CEO approval

Business outlook

Pros

friendly team guidance interesting work/tasks in the beginning (only!) , a steep learning curve

Cons

slow career progression not many options to move within the company

4.0

2 Dec 2019

Specialist

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business outlook

Pros

Exciting, creative, challenging. The best part is you can work on art works all the time.

Cons

Company performance can be easily affected by regional economy.

Viewing 1 - 3 of 650 Reviews

Jobs at Sotheby's

Temporary Associate Cataloguer, Private Sales & Middle Market Auctions

Associate Specialist, Furniture and Decorative Arts