The 21 Highest Paid TV Hosts

Michael Strahan joined Kelly Ripa to co-host "Live!" in 2012.

How does Jon Stewart's paycheck compare to that of morning hosts Kelly Ripa or Matt Lauer? TV Guide has rolled out its annual list of television's highest-paid stars.
From television actors and reality celebrities to daytime and late-night personalities, the four-page report gives a broad look at more than 160 salaries according to numbers from television executives and industry insiders.
To make sense of all the numbers, we've ranked the highest-paid daytime, primetime, and news host salaries.
Maury Povitch's daytime infamous "You are not the father!" segments have led him to receive a paycheck higher than journalists Ann Curry, Anderson Cooper, and Diane Sawyer.
While Jay Leno and David Letterman once commanded the highest salaries on late night, Viacom is reportedly pouring even more money into "The Daily Show" host Jon Stewart.

21. Ann Curry: $5 million

After Curry was ousted from the "Today" show last summer, she was offered a position as foreign correspondent for the network that would give her $5 million a year.

20. Queen Latifah: $5-$10 million

Starting September 16, "The Queen Latifah Show" will air daily on CBS. The syndicated program comes from Will Smith's production company, Overbrook Entertainment and Sony Pictures TV.

19. Robin Roberts: $6 million

The "Good Morning America" co-host returned to the show in February after a public battle with myelodysplastic syndrome. Roberts has been a co-anchor since May 2005. She started working on the program June 1995.

18. Rachel Maddow: $7 million

"The Rachel Maddow Show" debuted on MSNBC in 2008. This past May, the show had its lowest ratings since its start.

[TIED] 17. Chelsea Handler: $8 million

The "Chelsea Lately" host is signed to E! through 2014. Lindsay Lohan hosted the show for an evening following her rehab stint.

[TIED] 17. Craig Ferguson: $8 million

The Scottish born "The Late Late Show" host has been doing CBS late-night duties since 2005. Some have speculated he may take over for Letterman once he leaves.

[TIED] 15. Anderson Cooper: $10 million

Cooper's daytime talk show "Anderson Live" wasn't renewed last year for a third season; however, the CNN host's "Anderson Cooper 360" is still thriving.
If he didn't already have his own show, there was a good chance he could have been in the running to co-host "Live!" with Kelly Ripa after Philbin's departure. The CNN anchor was often a fill-in.

[TIED] 15. Katie Couic: $10 million

In 2011, Couric signed a multiyear contract with ABC for daytime talk show "Katie." In January, she was the first to interview Manti Te'o after he was found to be part of a fake girlfriend scandal. The show will begin its second season this fall.

[TIED] 15. Jimmy Kimmel: $10 million

Between parodies of "The Bachelor," an unnecessary and ongoing fake feud with Matt Damon, Kimmel has been a must-watch on late night.

12. Jimmy Fallon: $11 million

Fallon may be looking at a bigger paycheck when he takes over "The Tonight Show" from Jay Leno next year. Seth Meyers will replace Fallon as NBC's "Late Night" host.

[TIED] 11. Conan O'Brien: $12 million

Despite the Conan / Leno debacle of 2010 over "The Tonight Show," O'Brien has been flourishing on his TBS talk show "Conan."

[TIED] 11. Diane Sawyer: $12 million

Earlier this year, there were rumors the ABC World News host may retire due to personal matters.

9. Brian Williams: $13 million

In May, Williams' show "Rock Center" was cancelled amid low ratings. According to a New York Times article, Williams felt "insulted" by the network's decision. Williams still hosts NBC Nightly News.

8. Maury Povich: $14 million

Paternity tests and countless utterances of "You are not the father" transformed the tabloid show into what it is today after its "Who's the Daddy?" paternity segments gained popularity.

7. Bill O'Reilly: $17 million

"The O'Reilly Factor" host announced he's releasing a third book, "Killing Jesus," due out September 24.

6. [TIE] Kelly Ripa: $20 million

Leaving soap operas may have been the best thing for Ripa. After joining "Live!" in 2001, she took over hosting after Regis Philbin's departure from the show in 2011. Michael Strahan joined the show in September 2012 and is receiving a reported $4 million as co-host.

6. [TIE] Jay Leno: $20 million

The "Tonight Show" host is getting replaced next year by Jimmy Fallon in hopes of drawing a younger key demographic to the peacock network. Before the news was confirmed, Leno filled his monologues with a flurry of jokes aimed at NBC execs.

6. [TIE] David Letterman: $20 million

Leno's rival Letterman also receives the same paycheck. This month, "The Late Show" will celebrate its 20th year anniversary. Last year, the late-night host's contract was extended through 2014, making him the longest-running late-night host.

3. Matt Lauer: $22-$25 million

The "Today" show host signed a new contract last April that reportedly landed him a $25 million deal and slowly began to edge Ann Curry from her co-host chair.

2. Jon Stewart: $25-$30 million

Stewart has been hosting "The Daily Show" since 1999. The satirical news host has been on hiatus this summer to embark on a directorial debut.
Stewart returns to the show September 3.

1. Judge Judy Sheindlin: $47 million

The syndicated courtroom judge received a $2 million raise from last year. Her show receives an average of 8-9 million viewers — more than triple the viewers of most of the evening shows.
TV Guide reports "Judge Judy" brought in $230 million in advertising last year.


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