World's highest-paid athletes 2026
These are the world's 10 highest-earning athletes according to Forbes (May 2026), including salaries, prize money and endorsements over 12 months 💰
Type your monthly salary and we'll tell you how long you'd need to earn what each of them makes in a year 😅
Cristiano Ronaldo
$300M
That's about $821,918 a day
Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez
$170M
That's about $465,753 a day
Lionel Messi
$140M
That's about $383,562 a day
LeBron James
$137.8M
That's about $377,534 a day
Shohei Ohtani
$127.6M
That's about $349,589 a day
Stephen Curry
$124.7M
That's about $341,644 a day
Jon Rahm
$107M
That's about $293,151 a day
Karim Benzema
$104M
That's about $284,932 a day
Kevin Durant
$103.8M
That's about $284,384 a day
Lewis Hamilton
$100M
That's about $273,973 a day
Source: Forbes – The World's 10 Highest-Paid Athletes 2026 · All figures are pre-tax estimates
How are these figures worked out?
Forbes adds up each athlete's earnings over 12 months: salaries, bonuses and prize money on the field, plus endorsements, sponsorships and business income off it. Figures are before taxes and agent fees.
Ronaldo tops the list for the fourth year in a row with a record $300 million, joined by fellow football stars Messi and Benzema.
Please note
All figures are estimates and change every year. We update the list when Forbes publishes its new ranking, usually in May.