How Much Do ‘The Voice’ Contestants & Coaches Get Paid?

The Voice Season 17 coaches
Trae Patton / NBC

The Voice returned for its 27th season on February 3, once again raising questions about how much money contestants on the show actually make.

According to Newsweek, contestants who make it past the Blind Auditions are paid but not in the form of weekly paychecks. Instead, the contestants receive a living stipend to cover their room, board, food, and any travel expenses. The exact amount of this stipend has never been revealed, but Taste of Country, citing a no longer available New York Daily News article, states the amount is “small.”

To make matters worse, contestants are committed to the show while it is filming and that obviously limits their opportunities to make outside income from regular jobs or casual gigs. It would seem that contestants really are hoping that their time in the spotlight will lead to a life-changing career and give them tons of great memories from recording the show and hanging out with the coaches and other contestants.

This is much different from how things work on the rival competition show American Idol, where the Top 24 contestants sign up to become members of AFTRA so they can be paid a performance fee of $1,571 for two-hour performances, $1,303 for one-hour shows, yubi and $910 for half-hour results shows.

There is one Voice contestant who is paid, though, and that’s the eventual winner. The season champion receives $100,000 in addition to a recording contract. According to CinemaBlend, the prize money has remained the same since the show debuted in 2011.

While the contestants don’t receive payment, the exposure of being on national television can lead to lucrative outside deals and record contracts. For example, Morgan Wallen, who was eliminated in the playoffs, went on to sign with Big Loud. His most recent album, One Thing at a Time (2023), topped the Billboard 200 for 19 non-consecutive weeks and broke the record for most songs by an artist on the chart at one time with 36.

How Much Money Does 'The Voice' Season 26 Winner Earn? Cash Prize and Record Deal Details - American Songwriter

Other non-winning contestants who achieved success off the back of the show include Loren Allred (Season 3), who released the hit track “Never Enough,” which featured in The Greatest Showman, and Nicolle Galyon (Season 2), who went on to write songs for Keith Urban, Miranda Lambert, Lady A, Kenny Chesney, Florida Georgia Line, and RaeLynn.

As for the coaches, they are paid a salary, but the amounts vary based on their respective star power. According to StyleCaster.com, Michael Bublé, John Legend, and new coach Kelsea Ballerini are estimated to make around $13 million, while returning coach Adam Levine was previously reported to be making $14 million per season.

The highest-paid coach ever was Ariana Grande, per OK Magazine, who was said to be earning between $20 to $25 million during her time on the show. Former long-time coach Blake Shelton was said to be making around $13 million, while original coach Christina Aguilera was estimated to be paid around $17 million.