Highest Paid Cricketers in the World: Who Earns the Most?
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Virat Kohli is the highest-paid cricketer in the world as of 2026, earning a reported £28.5 million (around $38 million) a year. His income blends a BCCI central contract, an IPL salary with Royal Challengers Bengaluru, and the largest endorsement portfolio in the sport. Australia’s Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc, plus India’s Rohit Sharma, follow close behind.
What drives cricketer earnings?
A Test-match fee barely registers next to what a top player makes from a single boot deal. National boards still pay the base salary, but the auction room and a handful of sponsorship contracts decide who actually gets rich. Four levers move the numbers most:
| Income source | Who benefits most |
|---|---|
| National board contract | Top internationals (BCCI’s Grade A is the top tier after A+ was scrapped for 2025–26) |
| IPL auction / retention | Both Indian and overseas players; overseas slots are fiercely contested |
| Other T20 leagues | Non-Indian players: SA20, BBL, The Hundred, PSL, MLC |
| Brand endorsements | Stars with mass-market appeal — by far the biggest in India |
| Media / commentary | Retired or dual-career players |
The highest earners at a glance
These are the cricketers most consistently named at the top of 2025 earnings estimates. Figures are annual and approximate, blending salary, franchise fees, and endorsements.
| Rank | Player | Est. 2025 earnings |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Virat Kohli (India) | ~£28.5M / $38M |
| 2 | Pat Cummins (Australia) | ~£23.2M |
| 3 | Mitchell Starc (Australia) | ~£22.6M |
| 4 | Steve Smith (Australia) | ~£21.5M |
| 5 | David Warner (Australia) | ~£20.5M |
| 6 | Rohit Sharma (India) | ~£20.2M |
The players who define cricket’s rich list
Virat Kohli
Cricket’s most bankable name and the sport’s top earner as of 2026. He holds a BCCI contract and an IPL salary of about ₹21 crore with Royal Challengers Bengaluru, but the bulk of his money comes from endorsements with Puma, MRF Tyres, HSBC India and Myntra. Even after retiring from Tests and T20 Internationals in 2025, his commercial pull remains unmatched.
Pat Cummins
Australia’s Test and ODI captain is the highest-earning non-Indian cricketer, reportedly on around £23 million a year. His total leans on a Cricket Australia contract, a high IPL fee with Sunrisers Hyderabad, and a growing endorsement slate — proof that a player can sit near the top without India’s board system.
Mitchell Starc
The Australian fast bowler held the IPL’s most expensive bid on record after his ₹24.75-crore signing at the 2024 auction, a mark since passed at the 2025 auction. Endorsements with Hublot and Kookaburra add to franchise and international income, keeping him among the world’s best-paid players.
Rohit Sharma
India’s veteran opener stays a high-value IPL asset as the face of Mumbai Indians, with endorsements from Adidas, Hublot and CEAT on top. He retired from Test cricket in May 2025, handing the captaincy to Shubman Gill, but continues to earn heavily across ODIs, the IPL, and commercial deals.
MS Dhoni
Even in semi-retirement, Dhoni commands one of the highest IPL fees as Chennai Super Kings’ talisman, and his brand value in India has barely dimmed. Long-running deals with the likes of Gulf Oil and India Cements keep him a fixture on earnings lists years after leaving international cricket.
Ben Stokes
England’s Test captain earns from an ECB central contract, IPL interest, and the growth of The Hundred, which has opened a new revenue stream for English players. His all-round value and captaincy profile keep him among the highest earners outside the Indian and Australian pay bands.
Babar Azam
Pakistan’s leading batter earns through a PCB central contract plus strong demand across the PSL, SA20, and other franchise circuits. His ceiling is capped by the absence of Pakistani players from the IPL, but he remains his country’s most commercially valuable cricketer.
The IPL effect: 2025-26
The IPL is the single biggest driver of cricketer wealth, and the 2025 mega auction underlined it. Rishabh Pant became the most expensive player in league history when Lucknow Super Giants signed him for ₹27 crore, narrowly ahead of Shreyas Iyer at ₹26.75 crore to Punjab Kings — five players entered the all-time top ten in one night in Jeddah. A single retention or auction result can be worth several years of board-contract income, and strong IPL form is the credential other leagues pay a premium for. Kohli, meanwhile, finally won his first IPL title with Royal Challengers Bengaluru in June 2025 — the franchise’s maiden crown in 18 seasons — top-scoring with 43 in the final and further lifting his commercial value.
Endorsements: India’s unique multiplier
For Indian players, endorsement income routinely dwarfs playing fees outright. A cricket-obsessed population and heavy advertiser spending mean the top stars can earn several times their board salary from commercial deals alone — something no other cricket market comes close to matching. It is why Kohli out-earns players who command bigger auction cheques, and why India’s biggest names top the global list even as Australia dominates the tier just below.
The bottom line
Board contracts set the floor, but the IPL auction and the endorsement market set the ceiling. As of 2026, Virat Kohli leads the world thanks to India’s commercial engine, a cluster of Australians led by Pat Cummins headline the overseas earners, and the record IPL price tags keep climbing. For a modern cricketer, where you play and who you sponsor now matters as much as how you perform.
Frequently asked questions
Who is the highest-paid cricketer in the world?+
Virat Kohli is the highest-earning cricketer as of 2026, with reported annual earnings of about £28.5 million (roughly $38 million). His total combines a BCCI contract, an IPL salary with Royal Challengers Bengaluru, and the sport's largest endorsement portfolio.
How do cricketers earn money beyond their national contracts?+
Players earn through T20 franchise leagues such as the IPL, SA20, BBL, PSL and The Hundred, plus brand endorsements, appearance fees, and occasionally media, commentary, or business ventures. For most global stars these outside sources now dwarf their national board retainer.
Who is the most expensive player in IPL history?+
Rishabh Pant holds the record after Lucknow Super Giants signed him for ₹27 crore at the IPL 2025 mega auction. Shreyas Iyer was next at ₹26.75 crore to Punjab Kings, and both figures topped the previous record held by Mitchell Starc.
Do T20 leagues pay more than national contracts?+
A top IPL bid can be worth several years of a national board retainer in a single signing. For non-Indian players especially, the IPL and other T20 leagues represent by far the largest slice of playing income they can earn.
Are Indian cricketers the highest-paid in the world?+
In terms of total earnings, yes at the very top — Kohli and Rohit Sharma both rank among the highest earners. This is driven less by salary than by India's enormous endorsement market, where a cricket-obsessed audience and heavy advertiser spending push commercial income far above playing fees.
How much of a top cricketer's income comes from endorsements?+
For leading Indian players, endorsements often make up the large majority of total earnings. Kohli's playing income is a fraction of his commercial deals with brands like Puma, MRF and HSBC India, and a single sponsored social post can reportedly fetch six figures in US dollars.
Do retired cricketers still earn big money?+
Some do. MS Dhoni, retired from internationals, still commands a high IPL fee as a Chennai Super Kings figurehead and keeps strong endorsement value. Franchise appearances and long-term brand partnerships can sustain very high earnings well after international retirement.
Which non-Indian cricketers earn the most?+
Australia's Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Steve Smith and David Warner rank highest among overseas players, each reportedly earning over £20 million a year. Their income leans on IPL deals, Cricket Australia contracts, and endorsements rather than the endorsement scale Indian stars enjoy.
Sources
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