- Las Vegas’ Jackie Young makes $252,450 per season.
- 21 WNBA players make over $200K per season.
- The average WNBA salary is around $120K per season.
The players who help lead teams to the best WNBA odds to win a championship can earn over $200,000 in today’s world.
In its nearly three decades of existence, the WNBA has benefitted from an influx of funding from its media rights deals, among other sources.
However, a potentially new Collective Bargaining Agreement could help players earn even more money within the next few years. Let’s take a look at how.
How Much Do WNBA Players Make?
The average salary in the WNBA today is around $120K, a far cry from the salary range between $15,000 to $50,000 in 1997, its inaugural season.
Rookies currently max out at a salary just shy of $77K, as Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark, who will be a basketball betting MVP favourite for years to come, is set to take home $76,535 in her first season in the league.
Clark will make slightly less than Lisa Leslie, who signed a four-year contract with the Los Angeles Sparks in 2002 at $85K per season after winning a championship and an MVP award the year before.
Over time, the WNBA has benefitted from funding from multiple parties, as it currently generates about $200 million per year.
However, WNBA players only get 10% of the league’s total revenue, whereas NBA players earn 50% of their league’s total revenue.
Kelsey Plum spoke on the misconception of WNBA players’ salaries.
🎥: @TheResidencyPod pic.twitter.com/1EMQdMPcx9
— Just Women’s Sports (@justwsports) November 29, 2022
In this video, Las Vegas Aces guard Kelsey Plum shares that she doesn’t make a dime if her jersey is sold in Mandalay Bay, or anywhere else for that matter.
Meanwhile, LeBron James and other NBA stars get to benefit from the money the league makes from jersey sales, TV contracts, etc.
That’s because the Collective Bargaining Agreement between the NBA and NBPA creates some sort of equity regarding revenue share between the owners and its players.
The WNBA’s CBA expires in 2027, but the league or its players’ union could opt out in 2025, which the players union is likely to exercise.
Although WNBA players will not make the same amount of money as NBA players, it wouldn’t be shocking to see the WNBA’s players union negotiate a deal that allows them to make the same percentage their male counterparts make regarding revenue share.
The players often have to find work in other countries during the offseason and rely on endorsement deals to help them earn the money they deserve in the form of a WNBA contract.
The WNBA also implemented charter flights starting in 2024 after years of using commercial flights, something that coincidentally occurred upon Clark’s arrival into the league.
For instance, New York Liberty owners Joe and Clara Wu Tsai were fined $500,000 after chartering flights for their players during the second half of the 2021 season.
Clark’s arrival has undoubtedly given the WNBA more eyeballs, as the matchup between the Liberty and Fever at Barclays Center generated over $2 million in ticket revenue, the first time that’s happened in league history.
While Clark is great for the league and will certainly help grow the game of basketball, WNBA players should’ve still been able to get a greater split of the league’s revenue share and chartered flights well before Clark’s first game as a professional basketball player.
What Is the Highest WNBA Salary?
Aces guard Jackie Young earns the highest WNBA salary today at $252,450. Young, who has helped the Aces be a heavy favourite on BetMGM’s online sportsbook, signed a two-year, $504,900 deal before the 2024 season.
List of Top WNBA Salaries
Player Name | Team | Salary |
Jackie Young | Las Vegas Aces | $252,450 |
Jewell Loyd | Seattle Storm | $245,508 |
Kahleah Copper | Phoenix Mercury | $245,059 |
Arike Ogunbowale | Dallas Wings | $241,984 |
Diana Taurasi | Phoenix Mercury | $234,936 |
Natasha Howard | Dallas Wings | $224,675 |
Erica Wheeler | Indiana Fever | $222,154 |
Brionna Jones | Connecticut Sun | $212,000 |
Skylar Diggins-Smith | Seattle Storm | $211,343 |
Alyssa Thomas | Connecticut Sun | $209,000 |
Marina Mabrey | Chicago Sky | $206,667 |
Kayla McBride | Minnesota Lynx | $206,500 |
Kelsey Mitchell | Indiana Fever | $206,000 |
Sabrina Ionescu | New York Liberty | $205,030 |
Breanna Stewart | New York Liberty | $205,000 |
Nneka Ogwumike | Seattle Storm | $204,500 |
A'ja Wilson | Las Vegas Aces | $200,000 |
DeWanna Booner | Connecticut Sun | $200,000 |
Kelsey Plum | Las Vegas Aces | $200,000 |
Natasha Cloud | Phoenix Mercury | $200,000 |
Ariel Atkins | Washington Mystics | $200,000 |
Chelsea Gray | Las Vegas Aces | $196,267 |
Teaira McCowan | Dallas Wings | $195,700 |
Satou Sabally | Dallas Wings | $195,000 |
Azura Stevens | Los Angeles Sparks | $192,500 |
Jonquel Jones | New York Liberty | $192,500 |