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Deciphering how much F1 drivers earn a complicated task. The F1 wage payers are often reluctant to reveal the official figures. Then there are performance bonuses and sponsorships to factor in.
With some of the biggest car brands in the world competing with lucrative brand deals, the money involved in the pinnacle of racing is dizzying.
So how much do F1 drivers really earn? In this article, expect to find out Max Verstappen’s salary, the top paid drivers in Formula 1 and the numbers involved in the Hamilton/Ferrari deal.
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F1 driver salaries
Max Verstappen sits at the top of the F1 salaries chart, but Lewis Hamilton’s big move to Ferrari may see changes in the table by the 2025 season. The figures in the table below are an estimation calculated by Forbes.
Check out the top 10 list of F1 drivers’ salaries in full below.
| Pos | Driver | Team | Age | Salary (GBP £ – inc. bonus) | Bonuses (GBP £) | Salary (USD $ – inc. bonus) | Bonuses (USD $) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Max Verstappen 🇳🇱 | Red Bull | 27 | £58.9m | £11.8m | $75m | $15m |
| 2 | Lewis Hamilton 🇬🇧 | Mercedes | 39 | £44.8m | £1.6m | $57m | $2m |
| 3 | Lando Norris 🇬🇧 | McLaren | 25 | £27.5m | £18.1m | $35m | $23m |
| 4 | Fernando Alonso 🇪🇸 | Aston Martin | 43 | £21.6m | £2.8m | $27.5m | $3.5m |
| 5 | Charles Leclerc 🇲🇨 | Ferrari | 27 | £21.2m | £9.4m | $27m | $12m |
| 6 | George Russell 🇬🇧 | Mercedes | 26 | £18.1m | £6.3m | $23m | $8m |
| 7 | Oscar Piastri 🇦🇺 | McLaren | 23 | £17.3m | £13.4m | $22m | $17m |
| 8 | Sergio Perez 🇲🇽 | Red Bull | 34 | £15.3m | £5.9m | $19.5m | $7.5m |
| 9 | Carlos Sainz 🇪🇸 | Ferrari | 30 | £14.9m | £7.1m | $19m | $9m |
| 10 | Pierre Gasly 🇫🇷 | Alpine | 28 | £9.4m | £1.6m | $12m | $2m |
It is worth bearing in mind that these figures have not been published by the teams, so it’s impossible to know the exact figures. These numbers are estimations which have been complied by Forbes.
Why it’s difficult to estimate F1 driver salaries
While F1 is the pinnacle of motorsport, it is also a business. When it comes to money, Formula 1 teams and bosses keep their cards close to their chest. Drivers are constantly negotiating new salaries and talking to other teams on the grid, so the exact figures are safely guarded secrets.
Former F1 driver and Sky Sports pundit Martin Brundle has claimed that salary reports in the press are “rarely right”.
But that doesn’t mean that the above estimates don’t offer some indication as to what the best drivers might be pocketing.
How much will Lewis Hamilton earn at Ferrari?
Lewis Hamilton shook the Formula 1 world when it was announced that the British driver would make a shock move to Ferrari for the 2025 season.
Another surprise on top of that news was the speculation that Hamilton was willing to take a pay cut to join the Prancing Horse. Italian paper, La Gazzetta dello Sport, estimate Lewis Hamilton’s salary to be around $55m. They also reported that his first year at Ferrari will see the Hamilton earn around $53.9m – a cut $1.1m a year.
However, the news that Lewis Hamilton would soon be wearing red was enough to see a 6% rise in the price of Ferrari shares. That represents a staggering value increase of around $6.12bn for the company.
Why F1 driver salaries depend on their bonuses
The base salaries of F1 drivers are more than enough to make a lifetime living for many of us. But they offer part of whole package. The complicated world of motorsport contracts means that performance-based bonuses can determine a significant portion of the final wage.
For instance, Kimi Raikkonen made a surprise return to Formula 1 in 2012 when he joined a fledgling Lotus team. Lotus offered Kimi a whopping €50,000-per-point bonus as part of a sweet two-year deal.
What team principal Gérard Lopéz didn’t expect was the performance Kimi would produce. Having scored just 0 points in both preceding seasons, Kimi secured a huge 207 points and a third-place finish in the drivers’ championship in year one. After he collected 183 points in his second year, his bonus alone was worth a whopping €19.5m.
And it’s not just on the track where drivers can grow their bank accounts. Brand deals, corporate appearances, investments and merchandise can all contribute.
On the current grid, Lando Norris is the CEO of entertainment company Quadrant. Lewis Hamilton has a range of investments and was even linked with a contribution towards a Chelsea Football Club bid.
Are F1 driver salaries included in the cost cap?
In 2021, a new cost cap concept was introduced to Formula 1. With limited exceptions, teams were required to keep costs under $145m. This figure reduced to $140 in 2022, and will decrease further to $135m in 2023. This figure will remain in place for the 2024 and 2025 seasons.
One of the listed exceptions to the cost cap is racing driver salaries and fees. This means teams are free to pay their star drivers as much as they can afford with no limits.
Who is the richest Formula 1 driver ever?
Michael Schumacher is thought to be the highest-paid Formula 1 driver of all-time. He is also one of the highest-earning sportspeople ever.
With five consecutive titles and a record-setting seven championships, the German completely dominated the sport in the early 2000s.
In 2017, Forbes published a list of all-time highest paid sportspeople. Schumacher – the highest-ranking non-American on the list – came in in 5th with all-time earnings of an eye-watering $1bn.
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