Business

The Insanely Large Paychecks Of 19 TV Personalities

Posted September 09, 2014 11:00 pm

Kirsten Acuna

<span><img style="float:right;" src="http://static6.businessinsider.com/image/54062a4deab8ead951bf2af6-1200-924/live-with-kelly-3.jpg" border="0" alt="live with kelly ripa michael strahan">How does Kelly Ripa's salary compare to Matt Lauer's on "Today" and Jimmy Fallon's on "The Tonight Show"?</span>

TV Guide recently released its annual salary report, a list that rounds up the paychecks of some of television's highest-paid actors and TV personalities.

Jon Stewart may be the highest-paid late-night host; however, there's one woman who has been keeping him at bay from being the highest-paid on television.

<h3>[TIE] 17. Chelsea Handler: $10 million</h3>

Reports say Handler recently signed a $10 million deal with Netflix consisting of several comedy specials and a talk show for the streaming service. <span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Handler previously made between $8 million and $12 million for her E! show over the past two years.</span>

<h3>[TIE] 17. Jimmy Kimmel: $10 million</h3>

Kimmel's "Lie Witness News" and "Celebrities Read Mean Tweets" sketches have been big hits on the ABC late-night show.

<h3>[TIE] 17. Shepard Smith: $10 million</h3>

The FOX News anchor's contract was renewed last year. Smith was also named both <span style="line-height: 1.5em;">the host of "Shepard Smith Reporting" and the managing editor of the network's new breaking news division.</span>

<h3>[TIE] 15. Anderson Cooper: $11 million</h3>

Cooper has been hosting his CNN show "Anderson Cooper 360" since 2003. Last year, Cooper's syndicated talk show "Anderson Live" was canceled after two years.

<h3>[TIE] 15. Jimmy Fallon: $11 million</h3>

<span style="line-height: 1.5em;">The new "Tonight Show" host didn't get a raise when he left "Late Night." However, that may change because Fallon has been dominating in the ratings since he took over hosting duties in February.</span>

<h3>[TIE] 13. Pat Sajak: $12 million</h3>

Sajak has been hosting "Wheel of Fortune" for more than 31 years. <span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Last year, Sajak told The Huffington Post he may be nearing the end of his time hosting the game show; however, he still has another few years on air.</span>

<h3>[TIE] 13. Conan O'Brien: $12 million</h3>

O'Brien's switch to TBS has proved more profitable than his late-night network competition. <span style="line-height: 1.5em;">He has been hosting "Conan" since 2010 on the network. This past May, O'Brien signed a new deal to stay on TBS through 2018.</span>

<h3>12. Brian Williams: $13 million</h3>

The "NBC Nightly News" host reportedly makes the same as he did <span style="line-height: 1.5em;">before Williams' "Rock Center" was canceled in 2013.</span>

<h3>11. Robin Roberts: $14 million</h3>

The "Good Morning America" co-host received a big pay bump from last year, when it was estimated she made $6 million per year. <span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Roberts has been a co-anchor on "GMA" since May 2005. </span>

<h3>[TIE] 9. Howard Stern: $15 million</h3>

Stern is currently hosting his third season of "America's Got Talent." According to Forbes, Stern earned a total of $95 million between June 2012 and 2013 for both "AGT" and his Sirius Satellite radio deal, which was extended in 2010 for five years.

<h3>[TIE] 9. Ryan Seacrest: $15 million</h3>

<span>Seacrest received a </span>$5 million raise<span> after signing a two-year hosting deal for "American Idol" back in 2012. He has hosted the reality singing competition since it started airing in 2002 on Fox.</span>

<h3>8. Jennifer Lopez: $17.5 million</h3>

A celebrity judge on "American Idol" since 2011, Lopez is also working on an NBC FBI drama "Shades of Blue," which she will executive produce with Ryan Seacrest.

<h3>7. Bill O'Reilly: $18 million</h3>

"The O'Reilly Factor" host's salary is up $1 million from last year. The Fox series is currently the top-watched cable news show, with an average of 2.4 million viewers.

<h3>6. Kelly Ripa: $14 million to $20 million</h3>

Ripa took over hosting duties on "Live!" in 2011 after the departure of Regis Philbin. The former soap opera actress has been a part of the morning show since 2001. Her co-star, Michael Strahan, reportedly receives $6 million per year for "Live!" in addition to his $4 million yearly salary from Fox Sports for his role as an analyst on "Fox NFL Sunday."

<h3>5. Ellen DeGeneres: $16 million to $20 million</h3>

<span style="line-height: 1.5em;">"Ellen" has been on the airwaves for more than a decade. The NBC talk show is currently renewed through 2017. Last year, Ellen hosted the Oscars, during which she took the </span><span style="line-height: 1.5em;"></span>most retweeted selfie ever<span style="line-height: 1.5em;">.</span>

<h3>4. David Letterman: $20 million</h3>

The current dean of late-night television will retire next year from "The Late Show" and hand the reins over to Stephen Colbert.

<h3>3. Matt Lauer: $22 million to $25 million</h3>

The host of "Today" <span style="line-height: 1.5em;">signed a contract worth a reported $25 million in 2012 for a multiyear deal. Since Ann Curry's tumultous departure from the morning show, Lauer has worked to rebuild both his image and the morning show, which took a rating's dive. </span>

<h3>2. Jon Stewart: $25 million to $30 million</h3>

Stewart is the highest-paid late-night television host for his satirical Comedy Central series "The Daily Show." He has been hosting the talk show since 1999.

Stewart took three months off last year to work on his directorial debut, "Rosewater," about a journalist taken prisoner and tortured in Iran for over 100 days.

<h3>1. Judge Judy Sheindlin: $47 million</h3>

Judge Judy is still the highest-paid celebrity on TV. Sheindlin's "Judge Judy" continues to be the most-watched syndicated show during the week with an average of nine million viewers. TV Guide reported that "Judge Judy" brought in $230 million in advertising in 2012.

<h3>Those are the highest-paid personalities on TV... </h3>

<h2> Now check out the 24 new shows coming to TV this fall > </h2>

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