7 Of The Richest News Anchors In The U.S. & Some That Don't Actually Make A Lot

Despite them being the people who are supposed to be only sharing what's interesting, the public can't help but be fascinated by news anchors themselves. Whether they're speaking out after getting fired, moving networks, engaging in illicit affairs behind the scenes, or doing things most people do like get married and have children, it's interesting to know what the faces behind the news desks are up to when they're out in the world. 

For better or worse, it's interesting to know what these news anchors are (reportedly) earning. For some anchors — those who've been with their networks for a decade or more or who've risen in popularity — the payments are almost unbelievably high figures. For others, though, the salaries are far less than one might think considering they're on national television every day. Take a closer look at some of the richest news anchors in America and some that don't actually make a lot. 

Sean Hannity's got real money, and he knows it. The Fox News anchor and host of "Hannity" has a staggering estimated net worth of $250 million, per Celebrity Net Worth, with his reported yearly salary coming in at $45 million. The star anchor routinely garners millions of viewers to his program, capitalizing on election cycles and breaking news. The former radio host has, clearly, earned millions from Fox News for years now as his eponymous show has aired since 2009. He also earns good money from his speaking engagements.

According to experts, Hannity has also benefited monetarily from his relationship with and coverage of former president Donald Trump. The anchor's popularity has increased since Trump was in office, largely due to the fact that Hannity was one of a few people in the media whom the president would agree to be interviewed by. Hannity has routinely gotten exclusive interviews with Trump at important historical moments, like after Trump met with North Korea's supreme leader, Kim Jong Un. All of this has resulted in major pay spikes for Hannity. Moreover, the anchor recognizes he's got extreme wealth. "Like most media people on TV, I am overpaid. I know this because of my blue-collar roots, for which I am grateful," Hannity said to Us Weekly.

If any woman in broadcast journalism needs a role model for negotiating a high salary, they should look to Diane Sawyer. Sawyer, one of the co-anchors of "ABC World News Tonight with David Muir," has been reporting the news for decades and padded quite the bank account. Sawyer's net worth is an estimated $80 million, per Celebrity Net Worth, with her yearly salary a reported $22 million. It should come as no surprise that Sawyer has so much money because she's been making millions every year since the late '80s. In 1986, the anchor reportedly signed a contract increasing her pay from $840,000 per year to $1.2 million per year. In today's dollars, that's a bump from about $2.4 million to $3.4 million.

Sawyer's salary hasn't increased just because — the host has worked tirelessly to gain exposure and earn credibility, taking various extra anchoring gigs, interviewing some of the world's most famous people, and filling in as a guest host when needed. While we expect that Sawyer doesn't complain about her high salary, she's stated before that her earnings aren't what she cares about. "I didn't get into this business for the money — I got into it for the work," Sawyer told the Los Angeles Times.

A successful woman, Robin Roberts has had many big career moments. She's been a host on "Good Morning America" for over 20 years, and it's brought her loads of cash. According to Celebrity Net Worth, Roberts has an estimated net worth of $55 million and reportedly earns $18 million per year. Her high earnings put her head and shoulders above some of her "GMA" co-hosts. 

According to Celebrity Net Worth, Ginger Zee, for example, only brings in a reported $500,000 per year, while Lara Spencer earns a reported $3 million per year. Roberts even edges out her male counterpart Michael Strahan in earnings, as his yearly salary is a reported $17 million.

Roberts puts in plenty of effort to earn her high salary. The anchor wakes up at 3:15 a.m. to get ready for work and leaves her home by 5:00 a.m. to make it to the studio on time, and she's got plenty of wisdom for others who want to find the success she's found. "There are so many incredibly talented people out there who are afraid. I just want to shake them and say, we all are. Every one of us is. My sister Sally said it best: 'Don't let fear keep you from your destiny,'" she told The Cut.

Anderson Cooper has had plenty of moments we can't forget about. The host of CNN's "Anderson Cooper 360°" and "The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper" is one wealthy broadcaster. According to Celebrity Net Worth, the anchor is estimated to be worth $50 million with a reported salary of $12 million. But he had a head start in life; Cooper is the son of Gloria Vanderbilt, a bygone artist and writer who was the granddaughter of the famously wealthy Cornelius Vanderbilt II. However, both Gloria and Cooper have said that neither of them became wealthy because of money they inherited. The pair worked to build their fortunes — although Gloria did reportedly inherit a multimillion dollar trust fund.

And Cooper was fine with it. Prior to his mother's death, he shared that he knew he wouldn't be receiving a large inheritance upon her passing. "I don't believe in inheriting money ... I think it's an initiative sucker. I think it's a curse," he said on an episode of "The Howard Stern Show" in 2014. "Who's inherited a lot of money that has gone on to do things in their life? From the time I was growing up, if I felt that there was some pot of gold waiting for me, I don't know if I would have been so motivated." Stern pointed out that Gloria was an example of someone who inherited money and still became successful, which Cooper said is rare. Cooper didn't get nothing when his mother died — she reportedly left him nearly all of her property.

There's lots people don't know about Rachel Maddow, but she knows what she's worth, and so do multiple media outlets. The anchor has been working as the host of the popular MSNBC program "The Rachel Maddow Show" since 2008, and her work has garnered her an estimated $45 million net worth, according to Celebrity Net Worth, and a reported $30 million salary (though other sources have said her yearly earnings are closer to $10 to $15 million).

Maddow could've made even more per year in outright earnings had she taken another contract offer — the star anchor was reportedly offered a $40 million deal from SiriusXM amid contract negotiations with NBC. Maddow negotiated with her current employer to stay on, but she now has more flexibility, hosting her eponymous show less than she used to. But her colleagues are happy she couldn't be bought. "I'm just glad she's staying in any capacity. We all felt that kind of pit-in-the-stomach panic," Joy Reid said to Vanity Fair of the potential of Maddow leaving.

Maddow insists that her contract negotiations with NBC weren't particularly difficult — she just had firm requirements. "What I asked for, and I realize it's a really hard thing to ask for from a big corporate entity, is flexibility, fluidity, and forgiveness ... And I want my staff to all stay employed, and I want them to be able to shift between different types of projects, just as I am," she said.

George Stephanopoulos started his career in politics and has made a successful transition into broadcast journalism, especially when measured by dollars. The former Clinton advisor has an estimated net worth of $40 million, per Celebrity Net Worth, and he reportedly makes anywhere from $15 to $17 million per year. This comes after he signed a massive four-year deal in 2019, which retained him as an anchor for ABC's "Good Morning America" and "This Week."

Stephanopoulos' high salary hasn't come without responsibility, though. The anchor was tasked with interviewing President Joe Biden in 2024, a particularly important duty at the time as Biden had yet to end his re-election campaign at the time the interview was conducted. Soon after the interview, Stephanopoulos was stopped in the street by TMZ and was asked his opinion on Biden. The anchor said, "I don't think he can serve four more years." The statement picked up traction, leading Stephanopoulos to address it. "Earlier today I responded to a question from a passerby. I shouldn't have," he said through a representative, as reported by CNN. Stephanopoulos' employer got involved, too, releasing its own statement: "[Stephanopoulos] expressed his own point of view and not the position of ABC News."

Lester Holt is one of the rare television anchors who's known by a span of generations. The television personality has hosted "NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt" since 2015 (prior to that, beginning in 2004, he was a substitute host for Brian Williams), and the gig has made him one of the most famous and well-respected news anchors in America. It's also made him one of the richest. Holt has an estimated net worth of $35 million, per Celebrity Net Worth, and makes a reported $10 million per year for his work at NBC. Holt also hosts "Dateline NBC" and "NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt: Kids Edition" and anchors "Today" occasionally.

As if all of Holt's hosting duties at the network weren't enough, in 2021, he negotiated his contract to include a new responsibility: managing editor of "NBC Nightly News." While we're not sure what it added to his salary, the promotion certainly offered more power to Holt's position. "There is simply no journalist held in greater esteem. We are so fortunate to have [Holt] not only in front of the camera, but guiding the 'Nightly' team in their outstanding work," then-president of NBC News Noah Oppenheim said of Holt in a memo to his employees, as reported by Deadline.

The news world stopped when Matt Lauer was fired. The former "Today" host left NBC in 2017 after sexual misconduct allegations, leaving behind a reported $20 to $25 million yearly salary. Lauer is well-off — he's got an estimated net worth of $80 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth — though he reportedly didn't receive any sort of payout from NBC upon his firing. While that choice is reasonable given the circumstances of Lauer's firing, it makes his replacement's salary that much more confounding. Hoda Kotb, longtime NBC anchor and co-host of the "Hoda & Jenna" hour on "Today," stepped into Lauer's previous role and she reportedly penned a $7 million yearly contract, her earnings paling in comparison to Lauer's.

Apparently Kotb wasn't upset by her salary. "Hoda isn't complaining about the money. She has landed the big job she always dreamed of, and most definitely deserves. Plus, Matt's salary reflected the long time he was on the show — 25 years," a source told Page Six. "If things go well, Hoda could ask for more next time if she re-ups her contract. But the figures underline the huge wage disparity at NBC News." Considering how Hoda Kotb struggled in the early days of her career, she's now doing just fine — according to Celebrity Net Worth, she's got an estimated net worth of $30 million.

Norah O'Donnell was a high earner at CBS for years. The host of "The CBS Evening News," O'Donnell has an estimated net worth of $22 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth, and she used to earn a reported $8 million per year. But that all changed in 2022 when O'Donnell's contract was up for renegotiation. The anchor was reportedly offered $3.8 million to stay in her current position, and sources claimed that the pay cut offer was an attempt to drive O'Donnell away in order to hire someone new after disagreements between her and former network executive Neeraj Khemlani.

CBS refuted the claims, though. "Neeraj led the effort to retain and re-sign about a dozen of our biggest anchors and correspondents over the last year including Norah O'Donnell and Gayle King — and recruited a few new ones like Nate Burleson and Robert Costa," a representative said to the New York Post at the time. "While there are huge prime time openings elsewhere in the News industry, CBS News has the No. 1 news broadcasts and finished the season with multiple shows including morning and evenings in their most competitive position ever." O'Donnell eventually did want out, though. In 2024, she announced that she would be leaving CBS after the presidential election.

For years, it seemed like Tucker Carlson was untouchable. The former host of "Fox News Tonight," Carlson had high ratings and high earnings. The anchor reportedly earned as much as $20 million per year from the network, according to Forbes, and his estimated net worth sits at $50 million. When he left Fox News, viewers weren't confident with the slot replacement, Jesse Watters, host of "Jesse Watters Primetime" and co-host of "The Five." It seems that the network might not have had the same confidence in Watters as it did in Carlson — Watters' estimated net worth is $10 million and his reported salary is $5 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth, both of which are mere fractions of what Carlson's earning.

Money aside, Watters knew that taking Carlson's slot at Fox News was a major responsibility given the viewership it had for well over a decade. "I felt a little pressure and it wasn't just Tucker's boots it was [Bill] O'Reilly's boots, too. It's a premiere time slot," Watters said in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter. While Watters' numbers still aren't at Carlson or O'Reilly levels, they are increasing. Perhaps with time he'll find himself signing a Carlson- or O'Reilly-level contract.

Dana Perino is more than qualified for her job. She hosts multiple programs on Fox News, including "The Five" and "America's Newsroom," and she used to host "The Daily Briefing with Dana Perino." Prior to her time at Fox, Dana Perino spent time in the White House, serving as George W. Bush's press secretary, a job that requires both in-depth political knowledge and high communication skills. Given her experience, her transition to providing daily political commentary on television only made sense. Throughout her career, she's amassed an estimated net worth of $6 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth.

While $6 million is nothing to snooze at — it's well beyond what most Americans earn in their entire lives — it's far less than what some of the other anchors at Fox News have earned. For example, Greg Gutfeld, co-host of "The Five" and host of "Gutfeld!," has an estimated net worth of $18 million, per Celebrity Net Worth, and reportedly earns $7 million per year from Fox News, making his yearly earnings more than Perino's lifetime earnings. Meanwhile, Laura Ingraham, host of "The Ingraham Angle," has an estimated net worth of $40 million and reportedly earns $15 million per year, according to Celebrity Net Worth. And that's not to say neither Gutfeld nor Ingraham are qualified for their jobs — Gutfeld is a former political writer and Ingraham was a speechwriter for the Reagan Administration — but the disparity is glaring.