In 2024, a record-breaking 11 women from the Forbes list earned more than $10 million, surpassing the previous high of eight in prior years. Among them, 20-year-old Coco Gauff, who topped the list, made a remarkable income that only Naomi Osaka and Serena Williams had surpassed before her. Additionally, 17 members of the top 20 are under 30, with the average age of the athletes on the list being just 26, suggesting that the best years are still ahead for these incredible athletes. Forbes Sport highlights the world’s top 20 highest-earning female athletes of 2024.
Women’s sports are rapidly growing, and this evolution is starting to reflect in athletes’ earnings. Phenomenal Caitlin Clark, who after her college league debut season with the Indiana Fever helped the WNBA achieve record attendance, earned $8.1 million this year, matching the record in women’s basketball set last year by the now-retired Candace Parker.
Thai golfer Jin Young Ko earned a record $4 million at the CME Group Tour Championship in November, marking the largest prize purse in the history of women’s golf. Her LPGA Tour counterpart Nelly Korda ended the year with an estimated total income of $12.5 million, setting a new benchmark in women’s golf in the 17 years Forbes has compiled the highest-paid athletes list.
20-year-old tennis star Coco Gauff earned $34.4 million, the highest in the list’s history after Naomi Osaka and Serena Williams’ earnings. In 2021, those two tennis stars reported the highest earnings—$57.3 million and $45.9 million, respectively. The collective income of the top 20 female athletes, including Korda (8th), Titikul (12th), Clark (13th), and Gauff (1st), surpassed $258 million in 2024. This number is slightly lower than the $92 million earned by Osaka and Williams together in 2022 but 15% higher than the $226 million earned by the top 20 female athletes in 2023.
However, the overall income of the top 20 female athletes is still less than 12% of the total earned by the 20 highest-paid male athletes. According to Forbes’ 2024 list, the top male athletes earned $2.23 billion in total. The top-50 list had no women included.
Sponsorships And The Pay Gap
Women athletes traditionally have fewer sponsorship contracts, and their value is significantly lower than men’s. This year, the 20 female athletes earned around $191 million outside of sports, compared to $624 million for men. The disparity is even greater in salary, prize money, and bonuses. For instance, the maximum contract in the WNBA this season is $241,984, while 41 NBA players have salaries higher than the total income of the highest-paid female athlete, Coco Gauff.
While the gap isn’t as stark in every sport, significant differences still exist, even in more gender-balanced fields. In golf, Jin Young Ko set a 17-year record with $6.1 million in prize money on the LPGA Tour, but this amount is still less than what 33 male PGA Tour and LIV Golf players earned this year. Tennis is one of the few sports offering equal prize money across all four Grand Slam tournaments, but such equality is not guaranteed on lower-tier events.
Earnings Breakdown
Overall, only four athletes from the top 20 earned more in their sport than outside of it. The 20 athletes combined earned $68 million on-field, which accounts for 26% of their total earnings, with tennis players earning the majority. For comparison, the top 20 male athletes earned 72% of their total earnings on-field.
The income gap is primarily due to the financial landscape of leagues—women’s leagues have far less money. However, the situation is changing. Reports suggest that the WNBA will receive $200 million annually from the NBA’s $76 billion media rights deal, compared to just a fraction under the previous agreement with ESPN.
The total prize pool for 33 LPGA Tour tournaments next year will rise to $131 million, 90% more than in 2021. The WTA has committed to equalizing prize money at all combined ATP and WTA 500 and 1000 events by 2033.
In the meantime, other sports are establishing women’s leagues, including the Professional Women’s Hockey League, Athletes Unlimited Softball League, and Unrivaled in Basketball.
More Equal Representation
A positive sign of the financial viability of women’s professional sports is the increasing diversity in the fields represented on the list, although tennis still dominates. This year’s list includes three golfers, two basketball players, a soccer player, a gymnast, a freestyle skier, and a badminton player. (Five years ago, the entire top 10 consisted of tennis players.)
Forbes Methodology
The Forbes ranking of the world’s highest-paid female athletes reflects earnings for the 2024 calendar year. Earnings from sports include salaries, bonuses, stipends, and prize money, rounded to the nearest $100,000. Earnings from outside sports, rounded to the nearest $500,000, are determined through conversations with industry insiders and reflect annual income from sponsorships, licensing, appearances, memorabilia, and business ventures where the athlete holds significant interest. Forbes excludes investment income such as interest payments or dividends but includes earnings from stock sales. Taxes or agent fees are not deducted. Only athletes considered active during any part of the year are included.
1. Coco Gauff — $34.4 Million
Sport: Tennis
Nationality: USA
Age: 20
On-Sport Earnings: $9.4 Million
Off-Sport Earnings: $25 Million
Coco Gauff topped the 2024 list with her breakthrough year. Despite a dip in form during the summer, she ended strong with victories in China and the WTA Finals, earning $4.8 million. Beyond tennis, Gauff’s impressive portfolio includes 11 sponsorships, including haircare brand Carol’s Daughter and sports giant Fanatics.
2. Iga Świątek — $23.8 Million
Sport: Tennis
Nationality: Poland
Age: 23
On-Sport Earnings: $8.8 Million
Off-Sport Earnings: $15 Million
Despite challenges, including parting ways with her coach and losing her No. 1 ranking, Świątek remains a top earner, thanks to her consistency and endorsement deals with brands like Lancôme and Lego.
3. Eileen Gu — $22.1 Million
Sport: Freestyle Skiing
Nationality: China
Age: 21
On-Sport Earnings: $0.1 Million
Off-Sport Earnings: $22 Million
Gu continues to dominate in endorsements, representing major brands like Louis Vuitton and Porsche while also winning her 16th World Cup victory. Her choice to represent China has been met with some controversy, but her success speaks volumes.
4. Zheng Qinwen — $20.6 Million
Sport: Tennis
Nationality: China
Age: 22
On-Sport Earnings: $5.6 Million
Off-Sport Earnings: $15 Million
Zheng’s rise in tennis is impressive, marked by a breakthrough performance at the Australian Open and winning gold at the Paris Olympics, making her a major star in China.
5. Aryna Sabalenka — $18.7 Million
Sport: Tennis
Nationality: Belarus
Age: 26
On-Sport Earnings: $9.7 Million
Off-Sport Earnings: $9 Million
Sabalenka claimed the top spot in WTA rankings after a successful year, winning two Grand Slams and securing the most significant earnings in tennis this year, boosted by sponsorships with Audemars Piguet and Master & Dynamic.
6. Naomi Osaka — $12.9 Million (Tie)
Sport: Tennis
Nationality: Japan
Age: 27
On-Sport Earnings: $0.9 Million
Off-Sport Earnings: $12 Million
Osaka made a strong return after her year-long hiatus, performing in 19 tournaments and securing endorsement deals with over a dozen brands, including her production company Hana Kuma, in partnership with the LPGA.
7. Emma Raducanu — $12.9 Million (Tie)
Sport: Tennis
Nationality: United Kingdom
Age: 22
On-Sport Earnings: $0.9 Million
Off-Sport Earnings: $12 Million
Since her breakthrough US Open win, Raducanu has maintained high earnings through major brand deals, though injuries and coaching changes have slowed her on-court performance.
8. Nelly Korda — $12.5 Million
Sport: Golf
Nationality: USA
Age: 26
On-Sport Earnings: $4.5 Million
Off-Sport Earnings: $8 Million
Korda earned a record $4.4 million in prize money this year, setting a high standard for women’s golf, and added new endorsements to her portfolio, including a deal with luggage brand Tumi.
9. Venus Williams — $12.1 Million
Sport: Tennis
Nationality: USA
Age: 44
On-Sport Earnings: $0.1 Million
Off-Sport Earnings: $12 Million
Though Williams has retired from full-time tennis, her endorsement deals, particularly in fashion and real estate, have kept her near the top of the list.
