Highest Paid Talk Show Hosts and TV stars in the US

No wonder a lot of kids want to be TV celebrities when they grow up. A Yahoo! article shows that several US TV stars are indeed paid a lot.

Leading the pack is perennial top-paid talk show host Oprah Winfrey, who earns $315 million per year for her The Oprah Winfrey Show.

Judge Judy Sheindlin may be an unknown TV personality in other parts of the world, but she has no reason to worry because she is paid $45 million per year for her courtroom reality show Judge Judy. Another reality show host earning big bucks is Ryan Seacrest, who takes home $15 million a year for hosting the hugely popular American Idol franchise.

For TV drama series, Hugh Laurie of House, M.D. gets $400,000 per episode while Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (SVU) partners Christopher Meloni and Mariska Hargitay each get $375,000 per episode for their role. The ladies of Desperate Housewives don’t feel desperate as they each earn $400,000 per episode.

Below is the list of the highest-paid TV stars per category.

Highest Paid Talk Show Hosts (per year)

1. Oprah Winfrey (Oprah Winfrey Show) – $315 million
2. Judge Judy Sheindlin (Judge Judy) – $45 million
3. David Letterman (The Late Show) – $28 million
4. Jay Leno (The Tonight Show) – $25 million
5. Conan O’Brien (The Conan O’Brien Show) – $10 million
6. Ellen DeGeneres (The Ellen DeGeneres Show) – $8 million
7. Jimmy Kimmel (Jimmy Kimmel Live) – $6 million
8. Chelsea Handler (Chelsea Lately) – $3.5 million
9. George Lopez (Lopez Tonight) – $3.5 million

Highest Paid TV Drama stars (per episode)

1. Hugh Laurie (House) – $400,000+
2. Christopher Meloni & Mariska Hargitay (Law & Order: SVU) – $395,000 (each)
3. David Caruso (CSI: Miami) – $375,000
4. Marg Helgenberger (CSI) – $375,000
5. Mark Harmon (NCIS) – $375,000
6. Laurence Fishburne (CSI) – $350,000
7. Kyra Sedgwick (The Closer) – $350,000
8. Denis Leary (Rescue Me) – $350,000
9. Gary Sinise (CSI: NY) – $275,000
10. Patrick Dempsey (Grey’s Anatomy) – $250,000
11. David Boreanaz (Bones) – $200,000
12. Jeffrey Donovan (Burn Notice) – $200,000
13. Julianna Margulies (The Good Wife) – $175,000
14. Dana Delany (Body of Proof) – $150,000
15. Lauren Graham (Parenthood) – $150,000
16. Jada Pinkett Smith (HawthoRNe) – $150,000
17. Jimmy Smits (Outlaw) – $150,000
18. LL Cool J (NCIS: Los Angeles) – $125,000
19. Chris O’Donnell (NCIS: Los Angeles) – $125,000
20. Mark Feuerstein (Royal Pains) – $125,000
21. Jason Lee (Memphis Beat) – $125,000
22. Joe Mantegna (Criminal Minds) – $125,000
23. Tom Selleck (Blue Bloods) – $125,000
24. Michael Weatherly (NCIS) – $125,000
25. Matt Bomer (White Collar) – $100,000
26. Nathan Fillion (Castle) – $100,000
27. Thomas Gibson (Criminal Minds) – $100,000
28. Jon Hamm (Mad Men) – $100,000
29. Cole Hauser (Chase) – $100,000
30. Alex O’Loughlin (Hawaii Five-0) – $100,000
31. Timothy Olyphant (Justified) – $100,000
32. Scott Caan (Hawaii Five-0) – $80,000
33. Angie Harmon (Rizzoli & Isles) – $75,000
34. Anna Paquin (True Blood) – $75,000
35. Blair Underwood (The Event) – $75,000
36. Zachary Levi (Chuck) – $60,000
37. Ian Somerhalder (The Vampire Diaries) – $40,000
38. Shailene Woodley (The Secret Life of the American Teenager) – $40,000
39. Ashley Tisdale (Hellcats) – $30,000

Highest Paid TV Comedy stars (per episode)

1. Charlie Sheen (Two and a Half Men) $1.25 million
2. Jon Cryer (Two and a Half Men) $550,000
3. Marcia Cross (Desperate Housewives) $400,000
4. Teri Hatcher (Desperate Housewives) $400,000
5. Felicity Huffman (Desperate Housewives) $400,000
6. Eva Longoria Parker (Desperate Housewives) $400,000
7. Dan Castellaneta (The Simpsons) $400,000
8. Julie Kavner (The Simpsons) $400,000
9. Tina Fey (30 Rock) $350,000
10. Jeremy Piven (Entourage) $350,000
11. Steve Carell (The Office) $297,000
12. Angus T. Jones (Two and a Half Men) $250,000
13. David Duchovny (Californication) $200,000
14. Kevin Dillon (Entourage) $200,000
15. Adrian Grenier (Entourage) $200,000
16. Miranda Cosgrove (iCarly) $180,000
17. Edie Falco (Nurse Jackie) $175,000
18. William Shatner ($#*! My Dad Says) $150,000
19. David Spade (Rules of Engagement) $150,000
20. Ed O’Neill (Modern Family) $100,000
21. Patrick Warburton (Rules of Engagement) $85,000
22. Betty White (Hot in Cleveland) $75,000
23. Kaley Cuoco (The Big Bang Theory) $60,000
24. Johnny Galecki (The Big Bang Theory) $60,000
25. Ty Burrell (Modern Family) $50,000
26. Jane Lynch (Glee) $50,000
27. Jim Parsons (The Big Bang Theory) $40,000
28. Matthew Morrison (Glee) $30,000
29. Selena Gomez (Wizards of Waverly Place) $30,000
30. Dylan and Cole Sprouse (The Suite Life of Zack and Cody) $20,000 (each)
31. Rico Rodriguez (Modern Family) $15,000

Highest Paid Reality TV stars (per year)

1. Ryan Seacrest (American Idol) $15 million
2. Joel McHale (The Soup) $2 million
3. Piers Morgan (America’s Got Talent) $2 million
4. Kate Gosselin (Kate Plus 8) $250,000 per episode
5. Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi (Jersey Shore) $30,000 per episode

Source: Yahoo! TV