From the point of view of the fans, being on The Bachelor/ette seems like a pretty good time. You get to lay around drinking all day, some people cry (which can be entertaining), and you get whisked off to exotic locales where you get to make out with someone who is usually physically attractive (I can’t speak to the personalities of the contestants). Not bad, right? Well, if you’re actually on the show, I’m sure it’s a bit more stressful than that, which is why most people ask this singular question: Does the Bachelor or Bachelorette get paid for their time on the show?
A nice, fat check would certainly make everything more worthwhile, wouldn’t it? All of that exotic traveling is good, but if I had to bare my heart on television, some money would certainly lessen the vulnerability. While the contestants on the show get absolutely nothing to compete for the Bachelor or Bachelorette’s heart (aside from notoriety and maybe an endorsement deal or two when the season is over), the star of the show (the Bachelor/ette) reportedly does get a pretty nice payday. Bustle reached out to ABC for comment on what Bachelor stars get paid, but ABC said they have no comment on the matter. However, we can try to gauge what Ben H. might make based on the reported earnings from some recent Bachelor Nation members.
Emily Maynard
This blonde Southern belle allegedly made quite a bit of money following her breakup with Brad Womack. According to Us Weekly, Emily Maynard demanded $750,000 for a season of The Bachelorette, when in reality ABC probably paid about $150,000. Wetpaint says Emily was paid as much as $250,000 for her season, but that seems a little high.
Sean Lowe
Sean found love with Catherine Giudice on his season, and his paycheck certainly afforded them a nice honeymoon. According to HollywoodLife, Sean got $90,000 for his season of The Bachelor . Why didn’t he get more? He didn’t negotiate. That’s a mistake he won’t make again, eh?
Andi Dorfman
Compared to Emily, Bachelorette star Andi Dorfman made peanuts. While she brought home a rumored $50,000 (which is about her yearly salary as an assistant district attorney in Atlanta), it’s still far less than Emily’s payday.
Chris Soules
I couldn’t find any exact data on how much Chris Soules made for his season of The Bachelor, but I’m going to say, based on his popularity at the beginning of the season, it’s close to what Sean made — about $90,000, maybe a little less. Did you guys know he was already a millionaire in his own right? According to (totally unverified) website CelebrityNetWorth.com, Chris is worth about $1.5 million from all of his farming businesses. That makes sense, right? The Soules own a lot of land in Iowa.
Ben Higgins
Our newest Bachelor is a business analyst for a software company, which, according to Glassdoor, could net him about $66,000 a year. No word on how much he's making to be The Bachelor, but I'm sure that his popularity is working for him in the paycheck department.
While most Bachelors and Bachelorettes go on the show for "the right reasons," the big paycheck certainly doesn't hurt!
Images: Fred Lee/ABC (2)
