American Idol: Do contestants get paid? Details explored

After Iam Tongi took the title home last season, the wait for the new season is finally over as season 22 of American Idol premiered on February 18 on ABC at 8 pm ET. Once again, the hunt for the next singing superstar of America is on, and the first episode already saw Odell Bunton winning the season's first Platinum Ticket, heading straight to the Duet Round.

If season 22 follows the same format as season 21, the current season should be approximately 20 episodes long. Fans can't help but wonder if the singers get paid for their weeks-long appearances on American Idol. The answer is yes, but only for the Top 24 singer.

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How much do the Top 24 singers make on American Idol?

According to a Fox Business article from 2016, the contestants are exempt from any pay until they reach the Top 24. After which, they are paid depending on the number of hours they spend filming in the studio.

The American Federation of Television and Radio Arts, aka AFTRA, makes sure that the contestants are paid $1,571 for filming a two-hour session of American Idol, contrary to the ones who film for an hour and make $1,303. Apart from the hourly pay, the contestants also get an allowance for costumes, so they can come up with a different outfit for every episode.

According to former Vanity Fair editor Richard Rushfield,

"They go on a shopping trip with a fashion consultant who works on the show and they get like 450 dollars a week to spend on whatever they want".

He added,

"But a lot of them dip into their own pocket because a few hundred dollars doesn't go that far in a lot of these expensive stores in Hollywood. The clothes are theirs to keep after the show."

The winner of the show, however, makes way more, with $125,000 as they sign the record, and another $125,000 after they are done recording it. Totaling their earnings to $250,000, according to Newsweek.

However, as these reports are relatively old, the pays of the contestants are suspected to have increased.

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How much do the judges and the host make on American Idol?

The super-talented participants from all parts of the country surely make American Idol what it is, but the star judges greatly add to its appeal as well. The producers pay jaw-dropping sums of money not only to the judges but also to their host, Ryan Seacrest.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Seacrest makes anywhere between $12 million to $15 million per season, resulting in a total of $45 million in three years. Seacrest had initially started with $5 million a season, then worked his way up to over $12 million.

Katy Perry is the highest-paid judge on the panel, with $25 million as her salary per season. According to the sources at the Stylecaster, the show's producer, Ben Sherwood, reportedly blew the budget on Perry without thinking how it would impact the other areas of the show. The source continued,

"He gambled on her because of her appeal to a younger audience and huge social-media following. But Katy is effectively taking money from the other judges, who then had to be paid way less”.

As reported by Page Six, Luke Bryant and Lionel Richie both make $7 million, which is way less than Perry, but enough to keep their boats afloat.

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New episodes of American Idol season 22 drop every Sunday on ABC at 8 pm ET.