Celebrities are adored by many people and have a large number of fans, hence their huge number of followers on social media platforms. Celebrity status is often achieved through extensive media coverage, due to their wealth, lifestyle, controversial issues, or association with popular people.
However, most celebrities are workers, workerswho became famous due to their spectacular work. Be it formal or informal work, they earn income, mostly huge sums of money. Formal work includes acting, boxing, soccer, policymaking, etc., while informal activities such as social media stunts, among others, put them in the spotlight. Some celebrities get paid or earn more than others, hence our ranking of our highest paid and lowest paid celebrities. Here is a list and profiles of the 20 highest paid celebrities around the world.
The highest paid celebrities in the world right now
Floyd Mayweather – $285 million
The Money Man was born Floyd John Mayweather Jr. on February 24, 1977 to Floyd Mayweather Sr and Josie Harris. He grew up in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Floyd is popular in boxing as he won multiple championships at home and is often referred to as the greatest boxer of that era.
Prior to his professional days, Mayweather had won an Olympic bronze medal and three national gold glove championships. He has the blood of a boxer. His father and two of his uncles were title holders.
As a professional boxer, his first championship victory came in 1988, when he won the WBC super featherweight championship and another in 2002 for the WBC lightweight title after defeating Jose Luis Castillo. In 2005, he won the WBC light welterweight title and a year later his success accelerated when he won the IBF, IBO, WBC and IBA championships. Over the years he added new titles to his wall and in 2010 he became the third highest paid American athlete.
He went from earning as little as $2,500 to earning $100,000,000 per game. He is currently worth between $700 million and $1 billion and receives a $285 million paycheck that has earned him his place as the highest paid celebrity in the world.
George Clooney – $239 million
George Clooney is famous as an actor, filmmaker, and businessman. He is most popular for his roles in several movies over the past 3 decades. He was born George Timothy Clooney in the family of Nina and Nika Clooney on May 6, 1961 in Lexington, Kentucky, United States.
He starred in award-winning films like Batman & Robin (1997), Ocean’s Eleven (2001), Goodnight and Good Luck (2005) among many others. For his roles in the films and his production skills, he was awarded individually. Among her awards are Best Supporting Actress (2005) as part of the Oscars, 5 Golden Globes, the British Academy Film Awards (2012), among others.
This hugely popular and wealthy actor is worth a staggering $500 million and earns an annual salary of $239 million. Makes you want to be an actor, doesn’t it?
Kylie Jenner – $166 million
Kylie Jenner is first and foremost known for her Kylie Cosmetics, a women’s cosmetics brand, a company that has made Kylie a fortune since its inception. She is mainly involved in her marketing, especially on social media. However, the production and packaging of the articles are entrusted to private companies. His large clientele has allowed him to promote and sell his products enormously. A very effective strategy indeed!
She also makes a fortune for being on the reality show Keeping Up With the Kardashians. She also co-owns the Kylie + Kendall clothing and accessories line, alongside her sister, Kendall Jenner. Kylie, who is a model, has won several endorsements from companies such as Puma, Fashion Nova, among many other brands. These endorsements serve as another rich stream of income.
Additionally, Jenner’s offspring has an app that fetched over $150,000 on its first day of launch. The app is said to give its fans an up close experience. With her various sources of income, she would have an annual salary of 166 million dollars.
Judy Sheindlin – $147 million
Judy Sheindlin is better known as JudgeJudy, a title given to her on the popular CBS television series Courtsroom. She was born Judith Susan Blum on October 21, 1942 in the boroughs of Brooklyn in New York, United States. She had earned her first arts degree, and in 1958 graduated with a law degree. She began practicing as a lawyer in 1965 as a Family Court Prosecutor and was later appointed a Supervised Family Court Judge in Manhattan in 1986.
As a lawyer and judge, she was largely successful and demonstrated integrity and a sense of justice. Her success accelerated when she appeared on her first CBS television series titled 60 Minutes, which brought her national recognition.
Along with being a prosecutor, judge, and television personality, she is also a television producer and writer. She is famous for her 1996 non-fiction masterpiece: Don’t Pee on My Leg and Tell Me It’s Raining. Judy is most popular for her role in the television series, Judge Judy. In this show, she presides over real cases and gives real rules. In 2012, she earned a comfortable salary of $45 million. In 2018, she was making $147 million a year, making her the fourth highest-earning celebrity in the world.
Dwayne Johnson – $124 million
Dwayne Johnson is popularly known as WWE wrestler, The Rock. Recently, he has moved into professional cinema and has been seen in several hit films such as Rampage, Baywatch, Hercules, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle and Skyscraper among others.
The handsome and well-built celebrity was born on May 2, 1972, in Hayward, California, into a family of professional wrestlers. He rose to fame as a wrestler and was very successful. He had a huge fanbase and could shut down any event just by holding the mic. Dwayne made his first Hollywood appearance in the film The Scorpion King, this role landed him in the Guinness Book of Records for the incredible fee collected for a first performance ($5.5 million).
As his appearances increased, so did his pay In 2016/2017, he was the second highest paid celebrity in the world. More recently, he dropped to fifth place with an impressive salary of $124 million a year.
U2 – $118 million
U2, the Irish music group won the 6th place of the highest paid celebrities. The rock band formed in 1976 comprises four men, including vocalists, a guitar expert and a percussionist. The Young Boys Now Men formed the band in their teenage years while in high school and had their debut album in 1980.
The group is famous for their social and political position which they portray through music. They have won 22 Grammy Awards and sold over 170 million records worldwide in their musical history. They also had a few tours and concerts around the world. A recent tour titled Joshua Tree Tour in 2017 brought them an exciting $316 million. The immortal tape in 2018 had an annual income of $118 million.
Coldplay – $115 million
Coldplay are a British rock band that caused a stir in the 21st century by fusing introspective Brit-pop and anthem rock. The group was initially popular for their 2000 album Parachutes which won them their first Grammy and have subsequently released award-winning albums over the years.
The group was formed in 1996 by four students: Chris Martin, Jonny Buckland, Guy Berryman and Will Champion. Their 2008 album Viva la Vida or the Death of All Friends was the worldwide hit album that year and won them 3 Grammy Awards. Their main sources of income come from tours, album sales and concert tickets. In 2017, the group had an annual revenue of $88 million, and in 2018, it nearly doubled its numbers with a profit amounting to around $115 million. They rank as the 7th highest paid celebrities in the world.
Lionel Messi – $111 million
Lionel Messi was born Lionel Andres Messi Cuccittni on June 24, 1987 in Rosario, Argentina. His father, Jorge Messi, was a steel mill executive, while his mother, Celia Cuccittini, was employed in a magnet manufacturing workshop. He started playing football at the age of 13 with Spanish football club Barcelona. He left his youth academy and joined the senior club’s big boys league.
From the beginning of his career until now, the Argentine player has continued to excel, he has won the FIFA World Player of the Year title and the Ballon d’Or 5 times, including four times in a row. In addition to his club matches, he also plays for his home country, Argentina. He is responsible for over 400 goals for his club, Barcelona. In summary, he has scored over 600 goals for club and country throughout his career.
Often referred to as the best player in the world, Lionel Messi has, as expected, a coinage of a salary. In 2018, Lionel earned $111 million in annual salary, making him the 8th highest paid celebrity in the world.
Ed Sheeran – $110 million
Ed Sheeran was born Edward Christopher Sheeran on February 17, 1991. He was born in Halifax, West Yorkshire and grew up in Framlingham, Suffolk, England. He is well known as a singer, songwriter and guitarist. The genre of his music is pop. He started music in 2005 with his first EP Orange Room
+ was her debut album and was released in 2011. It achieved top music charts in many countries. Ed Sheeran has won four Grammy Awards and was the highest paid solo musician in 2018. He is the 9th highest paid celebrity in the world with an annual income of $110 million.
Cristiano Ronaldo – $108 million
Cristiano Ronaldo is a Portuguese forward player. He is an iconic player who enjoyed great success at the clubs he played for, as well as for his national team. He was born on February 5, 1985 as Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro in Funchal, Madeira.
He started at the age of 16 and played for Portuguese soccer club Sporting Lisbon before being signed by English club Manchester United for $14 million. By 2008, he had become a star for Manchester United and helped them win the UEFA Champions League that year.
Like Lionel Messi, he has won the Ballon d’Or 5 times. He also plays for Portugal, his home country, and helped them win the European Championship. In 2017, he was the highest paid athlete in the world with an annual salary of $93 million. He started playing for Italian Serie A club Juventus in 2018 and in that year earned an annual salary of $108 million.
Bruno Mars – $100 million
Bruno Mars is an American musician best known for his soulful music. He is also a producer and dancer and was born in Honolulu, Hawaii on October 8, 1985. Mars began his path to fame when he signed with The Smeezingtons label. Under this label, he had several hit songs.
Her second album took No. 1 on the US Billboard 200, Australia, Switzerland, UK and Canada alongside her first Grammy Awards. Throughout his musical career, he has retained an impressive 12 Grammy Awards and sold over 130 million records worldwide.
In 2011, he earned an annual income of $8 million, which was $40 million in 2015, and in 2018, he earned $100 million, which ranked him as the 11th highest paid celebrity in the world.
Conor McGregor – $100 million
Conor McGregor was born on July 14, 1988 in Crumlin, Dublin, Ireland. He is a boxer who has the most success in mixed martial arts with 21 victories out of 25 fights. He had a successful career in the lightweight and featherweight divisions. In 2012, he won featherweight and featherweight from the Cage Warriors and the UFC championship in 2015.
Ironically, he was in the news for the loss to WBO champion Floyd Mayweather in 2017 and with the popularity he gained from his loss, won two or three odds. Besides being an athlete, McGregor is also a businessman. he’s partnered with a fashion brand and also started a whiskey company. His annual salary in 2018 was $100 million, which placed him 12th on the list.
Neymar Jr. – $90 million
Neymar Jr is a Brazilian footballer who has made a name for himself in the field of football. He is a young player who very early started to interact successfully. He was born on February 5, 1992 as Neymar da Silva Santos Junior in Mogi das Cruzes, Brazil.
He made his professional debut at Santos aged 17 and started his successful journey there. He helped the club win two championships and twice won South American Footballer of the Year. He currently plays for French Ligue 1 club Paris St Germain and the Brazilian national football team. Neymar has won a plethora of accolades including La Liga’s World’s Best Player twice and the FIFA Club World Cup bronze ball (2011). In 2018, he made a salary of $90 million, ranking 13th on the list.
Howard Stern – $90 million
The 14th place on the highest paid celebrities list is TV show host Howard Stern. Stern is an actor, producer, television and radio personality, and photographer. He is best known for his Sirius XM radio show The Howard Stern Show.
He was born at Howard Allen Show on January 12, 1954 in Queens, New York. He worked with his first radio station in 1976, earning $96 a week. His pay continued to grow over the years. For his incredulous works, he received several plaques such as Adult Video News (2000), Blockbuster Entertainment Awards (1998), etc. In 2018, he renewed his contract with Sirius XM for an annual salary of $90 million.
Ellen DeGeneres – $87.5 million
Ellen DeGeneres is a comedian, television host and LGBT activist. She gained worldwide recognition for her hilarious and entertaining show, Ellen. She was born in Louisiana, USA on January 26, 1958 and has an older brother, Venice, who is also in showbiz.
She started her career as a coffee shop comedian in the early 1980s. She gained a lot of fans through her appearance on the talk show circuits. Ellen’s big fans led her to create her own series, Ellen, which won her two Daytime Emmy Awards as well as the People’s Choice Awards. Thanks to her fame and success, it is no surprise that she is the 15th highest earning celebrity in the world and earns an annual income of $87.5 million.
James Patterson – $86 million
He was born James Brendan Patterson on March 22, 1947, in Newburgh, New York. He is popular for his writing skills and has written several bestselling books. He writes in several genres, including mystery, young adult fiction, thriller, comedy, realistic fiction, and romance.
Her first novel was Alex Cross, a soap opera crime novel, and is one of her best-known titles. James Patterson has published more than 160 bestselling novels in New York City and entered the Guinness Book of Records for being No. 1 New York Times Bestseller 67 times and has been individually awarded. It made a gross income of $86 million in 2018, which places it in 16th place.
LeBron James – $85.5 million
LeBron James is a basketball player who is often called the greatest baller of all time. He is an NBA star and currently plays for the Los Angeles Lakers as a forward. He was born in Ohio to Gloria and Anthony on December 30, 1984. He started playing basketball in high school and later joined the Cleaveland Cavaliers.
The American basketball player is good at his game and has had several merit awards to prove it. He started winning medals and awards in high school and went on to be a professional athlete. He returned home with notable awards such as 2004 NBA Rookie of the Year, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013 NBA Most Valuable Player, among others. In 2018, his earnings reached $85.5 million.
Rush Limbaugh – $84.5 million
Rush Hudson Limbaugh III is a radio host of the most listened to talk shows in the United States: The Rush Limbaugh Show. It has an estimated 13.25 million unique listeners. The Missouri-born host is also a political commentator, popular for his conservative views. He was born on January 21, 1951 into a family of lawyers.
Rush began his career as a disc jockey at radio stations in the early 1970s and did not become a host until 1984 at radio station KFBK in Sacramento, California. He enjoyed success on this and subsequent stations. However, he had a career breakthrough with his self-hosted, under-syndicated talk show, which first premiered in August 1988. With over two decades of existence and unprecedented success, it generates a fortune for Rush. In 2018, Rush was ranked the 18th highest earning celebrity with an annual income of $84.5 million.
Katy Perry – $83 million
Number 19 on our list of highest paid celebrities is sensational solo singer Katy Perry. Born in Santa Barbara, California on October 25, 1984, her name was Katheryn Elizabeth Hudson. At the age of 9, she ventured into music at the age of nine. She released her first album as a gospel musician, but turned to secular music when her gospel album failed commercially.
She had her first hit album in 2008 with the release of One of the Boys. Various singles from the album were instant hits. Katy Perry is among other things the first singer to reach 1 billion views on Vevo for her music videos. The silver-voiced singer has been listed in the Guinness Book of World Records 4 times and received awards such as the American Music Awards (5 times), Brit Awards, Juno Awards, and more. She earns a total annual income of $83 million.
Robert Downey Jr. – $81 million
Robert Downey Jr was born on April 4, 1965 in New York, United States. He made a career in cinema and is one of the major actors in Hollywood. He began acting as a youth and made his debut on Saturday Night Live (1980).
The following years, Robert lives more and more on the screen and most of his films record successes. He starred in box office movies like Iron Man, Spiderman Homecoming, a couple of Avengers series among others. For his works, he won the BAFTA Awards (1993), the Golden Globe Awards (2001) and the American Cinematheque Awards (2011), among others. In 2018, his annual salary was $81 million.