AEW has made its mark on the professional wrestling industry through its efforts in scouting and investing in high-caliber talent.
As per reports from The Wrestling Observer Newsletter, AEW adheres to an annual contract system for providing remuneration to its talent. The total payroll for talent reportedly sits around 4 million per year. Although the exact number may be slightly less than 4 million, this sum gives a ballpark estimate.
Estimates suggest that AEW would need to receive a minimum of 5 million per annum from Warner Brothers Discovery to break even.
The SmackDown Hotel holds that AEW currently boasts 192 active wrestlers in its roster. Given the aforementioned total talent payroll of approximately 4 million, it seems the average earnings of each wrestler hovers around 1,666 annually. This figure is quite high owing to substantial yearly earnings of wrestlers like Kazuchika Okada, who is rumored to receive multiple paychecks in millions every year.
Some prominent contracts at AEW include Okada’s three-year deal amounting to an estimated .5 million, Mercedes Mone’s contract that surpasses million annually for a period of 3-5 years with an opt-out clause in the third year, alongside Will Ospreay’s annual multi-million-dollar contract which extends beyond three years.
On the other hand, WWE Superstars in the main roster apparently garner a base salary of 0,000 at a minimum, as per statements by Triple H.
The known annual salaries of top-tier WWE Superstars oscillate between .5 million and million, exhibiting a remarkable gap at the higher end of the compensation scale.