Joe Rogan is highest-paid podcaster in 2026
Joe Rogan leads podcasting’s highest-paid stars of 2026, reports Inside Radio.
The post adds that the vast majority of podcast creators “make modest livings, and some creators earn nothing from what is essentially a passion project. But for the top 1% of podcasters, Forbes says the industry can prove lucrative. In a new report it ranks which podcasters have the highest salaries.”
Rogan again tops the rankings, states Inside Radio, “with estimated podcast earnings of $82 million during the past year, thanks largely to his Spotify agreement and the massive audience for “The Joe Rogan Experience.”
“The list also illustrates how quickly podcast companies can create wealth. Based on the Forbes estimates, the top 20 highest-paid podcasters earned a combined $638 million with average earnings of $31.9 million. Rogan alone accounts for about 13% of all the estimated earnings among the Top 20, underscoring just how concentrated podcast economics remain at the very top.
“The Forbes ranking continues to evolve from a year ago. OpenAI’s acquisition of the Technology Business Programming Network (TBPN) vaulted founders John Coogan and Jordi Hays to No. 2 with estimated earnings of $70 million, while independent creator Steven Bartlett ranks third at $45 million after expanding “The Diary of a CEO” into a broader media company.”
The top 15 paid podcasters for 2026, according to Forbes, are:
- Joe Rogan (“The Joe Rogan Experience”) – $82 million
- John Coogan and Jordi Hays (“TBPN”) – $70 million
- Steven Bartlett (“The Diary of a CEO) – $45 million
- Ashley Flowers (“Crime Junkie”) – $42 million
- Will Arnett, Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes (“SmartLess”) – $37 million
- Mel Robbins (“The Mel Robbins Podcast”) – $35 million
- Jason and Travis Kelce (“New Heights”) – $35 million
- Alex Cooper (“Call Her Daddy”) – $32 million
- Jon Favreau, Jon Lovett, Dan Pfeiffer and Tommy Vietor (“Pod Saves America”) – $28 million
- Charlamagne Tha God (“The Breakfast Club”) – $27 million
- Dax Shepard (“Armchair Expert”) – $25 million
- Amy Poehler (“Good Hang”) – $24 million
- Bill Simmons (“The Bill Simmons Podcast”) – $22 million
- Jay Shetty (“On Purpose”) – $21 million
- Joe Budden (“The Joe Budden Podcast”) – $20 million
