Iga Świątek, Eileen Gu and Coco Gauff are the top earners for the past 12 months as tennis players continue to dominate the annual pay ranking.
With Serena Williams retired and Naomi Osaka sidelined for the year as she recovered from injuries and then childbirth, the list of the world’s highest-paid female athletes has a new No. 1: 22-year-old Polish tennis star Iga Świątek, who made an estimated $23.9 million in 2023 (before taxes and agents’ fees). Since Forbes introduced the ranking in 2008, Maria Sharapova is the only other woman beyond Williams and Osaka to have claimed the crown, reigning for eight straight years until Williams took over in 2016.
Świątek’s monster year included the women’s singles title at the French Open, plus four new endorsement deals, but it’s also no coincidence that she—like Osaka, Williams and Sharapova before her—plays tennis. Twelve of the world’s 20 highest-paid female athletes, and nine of the top 10, come from the sport, which offers sizable prize money and ample marketing opportunities for female athletes.
Golf and soccer each have two athletes represented in this year’s top 20, with badminton, basketball, gymnastics and freestyle skiing rounding out the list with one athlete apiece.
Combined, the 20 top-earning women made an estimated $226 million in 2023. That is a 13% drop from 2022’s $258 million, but the decline can be attributed almost entirely to the loss of Williams (who hauled in $41.3 million on last year’s list) and Osaka’s tumble to $15 million (from $51.1 million in 2022) amid her long layoff.
In fact, there are plenty of reasons to view the 2023 ranking with optimism. The median for the top 20 is now $8.5 million, up from $7.3 million last year, and 16 of the 20 list members are under 30, suggesting they could have more earning potential. There are also eight athletes surpassing $10 million, matching last year’s record total and double the number from 2021.
As a whole, women’s sports continued to thrive this year, with the National Women’s Soccer League and international soccer posting new attendance highs, the WNBA announcing its first expansion team since 2008 and the LPGA Tour promising to push its total prize fund past $118 million, up from roughly $70 million in 2021. Despite that momentum, however, female athletes’ pay still lags well behind the men’s. The top 20 male athletes in Forbes’ 2023 ranking, published in May, totaled $1.9 billion—more than eight times what the top 20 women earned—and the difference gets even starker from there. During the 2023-24 season, 60 NBA players will outearn Świątek with their playing salaries alone, according to Spotrac.
Historically, tennis has had a narrower pay gap than other sports, and the WTA Tour committed in June to evening the purses at its biggest tournaments. (The four Grand Slam events have all had equal prize money for men and women since 2007.) But that transition is expected to take a decade, and players have recently spoken out on other issues including playing conditions, tournament operations and maternity coverage.
“We’re the highest-paid female athletes, and it’s a huge global sport, but at the same time, the pay gap is still very big,” Jessica Pegula, a member of the WTA Players’ Council and No. 7 in the earnings ranking with $12.5 million, told Forbes this fall. “We always talk about how it’s equal at Slams, but those are four tournaments a year—it’s not equal at a lot of the other tournaments.”
Fundamentally, the discrepancy comes down to revenue—women’s leagues are paying out of a much smaller pot. For instance, WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert has said the league will seek more than $100 million a year in its next media rights deal, starting in 2026. The NBA, by contrast, brings in more than $3 billion a season from its U.S. and international rights and is expected to double that number in its next round of contracts, which would begin in 2025.
Still, many elite women’s competitions—including the NCAA basketball tournament and the FIFA Women’s World Cup—will renegotiate their broadcast deals over the next few years, giving each organization a well-timed opportunity to translate the excitement around its sport into meaningful money. At the same time, more brands are seeing the business case for sponsoring leagues and players, and athletes are forcing their way into more mainstream media coverage, including the Netflix tennis docuseries Break Point, which featured Świątek in its first season and will highlight Pegula in its second.
“I think we need to do better at marketing our game,” Pegula says, noting that the WTA launched a partnership this year with private equity firm CVC Capital Partners to overhaul its commercial side. “It’s such an international sport, and there are so many different stories, and we reach so many people. But are we really telling those stories the best way we can to the fans? I think that’s something that can really grow and change.”
HIGHEST-PAID FEMALE ATHLETES 2023
#1. $23.9 million
Iga Świątek
SPORT: TENNIS | NATIONALITY: POLAND | AGE: 22 | ON-FIELD: $9.9 MILLION • OFF-FIELD: $14 MILLION
VCG/Getty Images
Świątek capped her big 2023 with a title at the WTA Finals and the year-end No. 1 singles ranking, earning a second straight WTA Player of the Year Award. At just 22, she has now spent 82 weeks at No. 1, the 10th-most in WTA history, and is 14th on the tour’s career prize money list with nearly $25 million. Off the court, Świątek bolstered her endorsement portfolio this year with Visa, On shoes and apparel, Oshee sports drinks and information technology company Infosys, on top of four existing partnerships.
#2. $22.1 million
Eileen Gu
SPORT: FREESTYLE SKIING | NATIONALITY: CHINA | AGE: 20 | ON-FIELD: $0.1 MILLION • OFF-FIELD: $22 MILLION
VCG/Getty Images
Gu, who was born in San Francisco but represents China in competition, is the rare Olympic athlete whose business doesn’t plummet between Games. The freestyle skier and model has long-term sponsorships all over the globe, with brands including Mengniu Dairy and sportswear maker Anta in China and Louis Vuitton and Victoria’s Secret in the West. Gu, coming off a knee injury, returned to the slopes this December, winning halfpipe events in China and Colorado in her first World Cup action in 11 months.
#3. $21.7 million
Coco Gauff
SPORT: TENNIS | NATIONALITY: U.S. | AGE: 19 | ON-FIELD: $6.7 MILLION • OFF-FIELD: $15 MILLION
VCG/Getty Images
A Grand Slam breakthrough at the U.S. Open in September could push Gauff to a new level as a pitchwoman, but she was already doing just fine on the marketing side, signing this year with Baker Tilly, Bose and UPS. Widely known as a Marvel superhero fan, the 19-year-old Gauff appeared in an ad for 2023 film The Marvels and graced a limited-edition cover of an Invincible Iron Man comic book. On the court, Gauff is ranked a career-high No. 3 in singles after winning four WTA tournaments this year.
#4. $15.2 million
Emma Raducanu
SPORT: TENNIS | NATIONALITY: UNITED KINGDOM | AGE: 21 | ON-FIELD: $0.2 MILLION • OFF-FIELD: $15 MILLION
Robert Prange/Getty Images
Raducanu built one of the most valuable endorsement portfolios in tennis after she won the 2021 U.S. Open at 18, with brands flocking to a player they thought could be a star for years to come. Since then, however, she has dealt with a series of injuries and illnesses, seeing her world ranking fall to No. 299, from a high of No. 10 in 2022. Raducanu has also raised eyebrows by parting ways with five coaches in roughly two years, but she pushed back against the criticism in a recent interview, telling the BBC, “On certain occasions they haven’t been able to keep up with the questions I’ve asked, and maybe that’s why it ended.”
#5. $15 million
Naomi Osaka
SPORT: TENNIS | NATIONALITY: JAPAN | AGE: 26 | ON-FIELD: $0 • OFF-FIELD: $15 MILLION
Sarah Stier/Getty Images
Osaka, who gave birth to a daughter in July, hasn’t played competitive tennis since September 2022 but is gearing up for a comeback in Brisbane as a tune-up for the Australian Open next month. In the meantime, she has expanded into new marketing categories by signing sponsor deals with Bobbie baby formula and Crate & Kids, and her media company, Hana Kuma, raised $5 million in April as it spun off from the SpringHill Co.
#6. $14.7 million
Aryna Sabalenka
SPORT: TENNIS | NATIONALITY: BELARUS | AGE: 25 | ON-FIELD: $8.2 MILLION • OFF-FIELD: $6.5 MILLION
Robert Prange/Getty
Sabalenka had a career year, winning the Australian Open, spending two months at No. 1 in women’s singles and capturing the International Tennis Federation’s World Champion Award. While players from Russia and Belarus have struggled to gain traction with sponsors amid the war in Ukraine, Sabalenka recently partnered with Maestro Dobel Tequila and Leaf Trading Cards. She is also an investor in wellness brand Beekeeper’s Naturals and Olipop soda and was featured in Netflix’s tennis docuseries Break Point.
#7. $12.5 million
Jessica Pegula
SPORT: TENNIS | NATIONALITY: U.S. | AGE: 29 | ON-FIELD: $6 MILLION • OFF-FIELD: $6.5 MILLION
Fred Mullane/ISI Photos/Getty Images
Pegula, named to the 2024 Forbes 30 Under 30 list, won the biggest singles title of her career this year, in Montreal, and reached the championship match at the WTA Finals in November. She also briefly held the No. 1 ranking in doubles alongside her partner, Coco Gauff. Off the court, she recently brought on Dyson headphones, De Bethune watches and Gorjana jewelry as sponsors, and she was honored with the WTA’s Jerry Diamond ACES Award for promoting women’s tennis.
#8. $12.2 million
Venus Williams
SPORT: TENNIS | NATIONALITY: U.S. | AGE: 43 | ON-FIELD: $0.2 MILLION • OFF-FIELD: $12 MILLION
Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images
Williams rarely competes anymore—she entered seven tournaments this year, and played 10 matches—but the seven-time Grand Slam singles champion remains a marketing force. She recently inked partnerships with Dove and Nestlé’s Purina PetCare, unveiled a jewelry line in collaboration with Reinstein Ross and invested in Los Angeles Golf Club, a team in the forthcoming TGL league developed by Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy’s TMRW Sports. She is also serving as an executive producer on Behind the Racquet, a docuseries highlighting the mental health challenges that tennis players face.
#9. $9.5 million
Elena Rybakina
SPORT: TENNIS | NATIONALITY: KAZAKHSTAN | AGE: 24 | ON-FIELD: $5.5 MILLION • OFF-FIELD: $4 MILLION
Widak/NurPhoto/Getty Images
Rybakina, who was born in Russia but has represented Kazakhstan internationally since 2018, won Wimbledon in 2022 and followed with perhaps an even better season in 2023, winning two WTA 1000 tournaments and finishing the year at No. 4 in the singles rankings. Along the way, the 24-year-old rising star added partnerships with Red Bull and Yonex.
#10. $8.8 million
Leylah Fernandez
SPORT: TENNIS | NATIONALITY: CANADA | AGE: 21 | ON-FIELD: $1.8 MILLION • OFF-FIELD: $7 MILLION
Robert Prange/Getty Images
Like Emma Raducanu, Fernandez is still profiting from her run to the 2021 U.S. Open final, working with brands including Lululemon, Morgan Stanley and Google Pixel phones. Also like Raducanu, Fernandez has struggled to live up to expectations with her play. “I lost my identity on the tennis court,” she recently told RDS, grading her season as a 4 out of 10. But a tournament title in Hong Kong in October and Canada’s victory in the Billie Jean King Cup in November should have her feeling more optimistic as she heads into 2024.
#11 (tie). $8.2 million
Nelly Korda
SPORT: GOLF | NATIONALITY: U.S. | AGE: 25 | ON-FIELD: $1.7 MILLION • OFF-FIELD: $6.5 MILLION
Orlando Ramirez/Getty Images
Already among golf’s top pitchwomen, Korda reached a new level off the course in 2023 by upgrading her sponsor portfolio, signing with Delta Air Lines, Goldman Sachs, Nike, TaylorMade Golf and T-Mobile. On the course, she is 30th on the LPGA Tour’s career money list with $8.9 million despite being just 25, and having played just 127 tournaments.
#11 (tie). $8.2 million
Megan Rapinoe
SPORT: SOCCER | NATIONALITY: U.S. | AGE: 38 | ON-FIELD: $0.7 MILLION • OFF-FIELD: $7.5 MILLION
Meg Oliphant/Getty Images
Rapinoe’s legendary soccer career didn’t have the fairy-tale ending she might have hoped for as the U.S. bowed out of the Women’s World Cup in the Round of 16 in August and she tore her Achilles’ tendon in her final match, the NWSL championship game in November. Off the field, however, she has never had a better year. Beyond her traditional endorsements, instructional videos she recorded for The Skills are now available through NBC’s new streaming service, SportsEngine Play.
#13. $8.1 million
Candace Parker
SPORT: BASKETBALL | NATIONALITY: U.S. | AGE: 37 | ON-FIELD: $0.1 MILLION • OFF-FIELD: $8 MILLION
Ethan Miller/Getty Images
Parker took a pay cut to sign with the Las Vegas Aces in January, and while she missed the rest of the season after breaking her foot in July, the superteam she helped create went on to win its second straight WNBA championship in October. In recent years, Parker has also become more active as an investor, picking up a stake in League One Volleyball in September.
#14. $7.8 million
Alex Morgan
SPORT: SOCCER | NATIONALITY: U.S. | AGE: 34 | ON-FIELD: $0.8 MILLION • OFF-FIELD: $7 MILLION
Carmen Mandato/USSF/Getty Images
With Megan Rapinoe retiring from soccer, Morgan will unquestionably be the U.S. women’s national team’s most marketable star, working with brands including Nike, Hublot and Michelob Ultra. In September, she became a part-owner of Volley Tequila Seltzer. She also served as an executive producer for Copa 71, a documentary about the 1971 Women’s World Cup.
#15. $7.2 million
Qinwen Zheng
SPORT: TENNIS | NATIONALITY: CHINA | AGE: 21 | ON-FIELD: $1.7 MILLION • OFF-FIELD: $5.5 MILLION
Christopher Pike/Getty Images
Zheng won the WTA’s Most Improved Player Award this year, an impressive follow-up to her 2022 Newcomer of the Year Award. Some in the sport wonder if she could be a marketing star along the lines of her countrywoman Li Na, who finished no lower than third in this earnings ranking from 2012 to 2014.
#16 (tie). $7.1 million
Simone Biles
SPORT: GYMNASTICS | NATIONALITY: U.S. | AGE: 26 | ON-FIELD: $0.1 MILLION • OFF-FIELD: $7 MILLION
Naomi Baker/Getty Images
Biles made a stunning return to elite competition this year, becoming the first woman to land a vault now known as the Biles II and setting a world championships record with her sixth all-around gold. Daring Simone Biles, a series she filmed for Snapchat, won an NAACP Image Award in February.
#16 (tie). $7.1 million
P.V. Sindhu
SPORT: BADMINTON | NATIONALITY: INDIA | AGE: 28 | ON-FIELD: $0.1 MILLION • OFF-FIELD: $7 MILLION
Shi Tang/Getty Images
Although virtually unknown in the U.S., Sindhu, a two-time Olympic medalist and the 2019 badminton world champion, is a stalwart of the women’s earnings ranking thanks to her marketing prowess in her native India. This year, she added partnerships with Centuary Mattress and American Pistachio Growers.
#18. $5.7 million
Ons Jabeur
SPORT: TENNIS | NATIONALITY: TUNISIA | AGE: 29 | ON-FIELD: $3.2 MILLION • OFF-FIELD: $2.5 MILLION
Matthew Stockman/Getty Images
Jabeur suffered more heartbreak at Wimbledon in July, losing in the final of a major for the third time in two years, but she has been winning off the court as the face of tennis in North Africa and the Middle East. In August, she joined the ownership group of the NWSL’s North Carolina Courage.
#19. $5.4 million
Brooke Henderson
SPORT: GOLF | NATIONALITY: CANADA | AGE: 26 | ON-FIELD: $1.9 MILLION • OFF-FIELD: $3.5 MILLION
Stuart Franklin/Getty Images
A two-time golf major winner, Henderson is perhaps the biggest female sports star in Canada. In January, she joined Nelly Korda in switching to TaylorMade equipment, shaking up a sponsor portfolio that had included Ping.
#20. $5.2 million
Markéta Vondroušová
SPORT: TENNIS | NATIONALITY: CZECH REPUBLIC | AGE: 24 | ON-FIELD: $4.7 MILLION • OFF-FIELD: $0.5 MILLION
Julian Finney/Getty Images
Ranked 42nd at the time, Vondroušová became the first unseeded woman to win the Wimbledon singles championship in July. (She clearly didn’t expect to reach the final: She had to book a cat sitter at the last minute.) The 24-year-old Czech ace announced a new apparel sponsorship with J.Lindeberg after the tournament and finished the year seventh in the women’s singles rankings.
METHODOLOGY
The Forbes ranking of the world’s highest-paid female athletes reflects earnings from the calendar year 2023. The on-field earnings figures include base salaries, bonuses, stipends and prize money and are rounded to the nearest $100,000. The off-field earnings estimates, which are rounded to the nearest $500,000, are determined through conversations with industry insiders and reflect annual cash from endorsements, licensing, appearances and memorabilia, as well as cash returns from any businesses in which the athlete has a significant interest. Forbes does not include investment income like interest payments or dividends but does account for payouts from equity stakes athletes have sold. Forbes does not deduct for taxes or agents’ fees. The list includes athletes active at any point during the 12-month period.
This article was first published on forbes.com and all figures are in USD.
