Walmart CEO Pay Hits $27.4 Million as Median Worker Earns $29,469

Walmart’s latest proxy filing put a hard number on a gap associates already feel in the store: Doug McMillon’s 2024 compensation totaled $27,408,854, while the company’s median employee made $29,469. That worked out to a 930-to-1 pay ratio, wider than the 976-to-1 ratio Walmart disclosed the year before.

The median figure matters because it is not a single cashier, stocker or manager. It is the midpoint of Walmart’s global pay distribution, calculated from more than 2.1 million associates worldwide. The number also reflects annual total compensation, not just hourly wages, so it captures more than a base paycheck. Walmart said its average U.S. hourly field associate made $18.25 an hour as of the report.

McMillon’s package was mostly stock-based. Walmart said $19,608,750 of the total came in stock awards, with another $4.5 million in non-equity incentive plan compensation. The company said the filing came alongside a year of growth, including fiscal 2025 revenue of $681 billion, up 5.1%, and operating income up 8.6%. Walmart also said it continued investing in wages, healthcare and education as it expanded stores, remodeled locations and pushed deeper into automation.

That context does not erase the headline number, but it does shape what workers should take from it. The ratio is not a measure of one store versus one executive office. It is a snapshot of Walmart’s entire compensation structure, from a global workforce spread across warehouses, clubs, stores and support roles to a chief executive whose pay is tied heavily to stock performance and company goals. For hourly workers, the number lands because it sits alongside the daily reality of schedules, raises and rent.

Shareholders later backed the company’s named executive officer pay on a non-binding advisory basis, with about 95.2% of votes in favor at the annual meeting on June 5, 2025. But the figure that will stick with associates is the simplest one: Walmart’s CEO took home more than $27 million while the median worker stayed just under $30,000. In a company with more than 2.1 million associates, that remains one of the clearest ways to see who benefits most when the business posts another strong year.