Past the personal islands, luxurious lodging, and infinite provide of champagne, being a contestant on The Bachelor or The Bachelorette isn’t essentially essentially the most glamorous gig. In fact, there’s at all times the prospect of discovering a possible fiancé(e), however most contestants go house with fairly a little bit of debt. Whereas many followers assume the contestants on the present are paid for his or her time spent filming — which, for some, may very well be greater than two months — the reality is, the contestants aren’t paid a dime.
“You don’t receives a commission as one of many women on The Bachelor,” Ashley Iaconetti revealed in a March Q&A.
And it’s not simply the dearth of a paycheck that hurts their checking account — many should shell out some severe money to be on the present. One of many greatest bills? Wardrobe.
How a lot do contestants spend on garments?
Previous to arriving on the mansion on night time one, contestants are given an intensive “packing record” with nearly each sort of garment for each kind of climate. Not like the lead, who will get a private stylist and costly designer clothes for each rose-giving second, contestants are on their very own with regards to garments. And a few have gone to excessive measures to verify their on-camera debut is picture-perfect.
“I do know that there are girls up to now who cashed out their 401(okay)s for the present,” tv blogger Dana Weiss instructed Mic. “Some have gone into severe bank card debt.”
Former Bachelorette Jillian Harris can attest to this. She admitted that when she was a contestant vying for Jason Mesnick‘s affection again in Season 13, she broke the financial institution on her wardrobe.
“The women do should convey all of their very own clothes and naturally, they wish to be carrying the very best garments EVER to be seen on TV in,” she wrote on her weblog. “I had re-mortgaged my home and I spent one thing like $8,000 on clothes.”
And Jillian’s not alone. Former Bachelor contestant Olivia Caridi could have additionally spent a fairly penny on her wardrobe. In a clip from Ben Higgins‘ season, contestant Amanda Stanton was overheard speaking about Olivia’s expensive threads.
“[She] mentioned she spent, like, $40,000 on garments,” she mentioned within the clip, although Olivia hasn’t confirmed that quantity herself.
Whereas it’s simple to get caught up within the fantasy, contestants do have to fret about their actual life again house whereas they’re off filming the present. Keep in mind these issues referred to as lease and payments? Yeah, these nonetheless rack up even if you’re touring the world trying to find love.
Courtney Robertson, winner of Season 16 of The Bachelor, revealed in her e book, I Didn’t Come Right here to Make Mates, that she needed to put aside sufficient cash to cowl just a few months’ value of lease and payments simply in case she made all of it the way in which to the tip and had her sister take over paying her bills whereas she was gone.
Prior to now, contestants’ contracts barred them from taking model offers till after the present was performed airing. Katie Morton mentioned on the She’s All Bach podcast that she was paid to be on Bachelor In Paradise Season 6. However her contract stipulated that she couldn’t take any model offers till October of that yr when the present ended. She even implied that her contract barred her from taking some other work whereas the present was in-season.
“You’ll be able to’t even do model offers,” she mentioned within the June 16, 2022 episode. Morton needed to go away her job in gross sales to go on BIP Season 6 (she appeared in Bachelor Season 23 initially), after which needed to discover a strategy to reside off of the small quantity she made on BIP for a number of months.
How a lot do Bachelor in Paradise contestants receives a commission?
Morton mentioned she bought $10,000 for her time on BIP, however making that final after the present was not simple. In the identical interview, Morton discovered that costar Blake Horstmann was paid $800 per day whereas on the present, whereas others reportedly solely bought $400 per day. Had he solely been on for someday, he’d solely make $800. However he lasted round 20 days, making his pay round $16,000. Colton Underwood additionally reportedly negotiated for a flat price of $10,000, regardless of how lengthy he stayed on Bachelor In Paradise Season 5.
Franchise members do model offers on a regular basis now, however that was solely as a result of they began negotiating for that allowance as soon as being an influencer turned extra in style, in keeping with Morton.
In her 2025 Instagram Q&A, Iaconetti mentioned she was paid $400 per day for every day she appeared on Paradise in Seasons 2 and three. Whereas she mentioned she didn’t negotiate to make more cash, different contestants have. Dean Unglert revealed in 2021 that he earned $600 a day for his time on Season 6 of BIP, regardless of initially being supplied solely $400/day.
“I begin speaking to some mates, they usually’re like, ‘Nicely, you need to get more cash since you’re … who they need most out of your season to go to Paradise, minus Peter [Kraus],” he mentioned on the Buying and selling Secrets and techniques podcast. He tried to barter for $800, however settled with producers on $600.
In the meantime, Jason Tartick was in talks with manufacturing to seem on BIP in 2018 earlier than he began courting Bristowe. He mentioned he negotiated for $600 a day with a $5,000 assure if he didn’t make it previous the primary week. Nonetheless, he didn’t find yourself showing on the present.
How a lot do contestants make after the present?
However after all there are many perks that come alongside after showing on a present like The Bachelor, such because the potential of rising a considerable following on social media, which may translate to severe money. Bachelor Nation writer Amy Kauffman revealed in her e book that contestants with 250,000 followers on Instagram are simply making $1,000 for a sponsored publish. For individuals who have surpassed a million followers — like Becca Tilley, JoJo Fletcher, and Kaitlyn Bristowe — they’re upwards of $10,000 per advert. Cha-ching.
“In a single day you’ve this big following, so all these manufacturers are like, ‘Right here, do you wish to work with us?’” former Bachelorette Kaitlyn Bristowe instructed The Lower. “So that you get gives to do the Flat Tummy Tea and the enamel whitening and all that. For any person who has labored a daily job earlier than, you’re like, ‘Oh my gosh, you’re going to pay me to do this? Wonderful.’”
And Instagram advertisements are only a piece of the pie. Contestants, relying on their recognition after the present, can capitalize on different alternatives like membership appearances, spinoff reveals, internet hosting gigs, and for the very fortunate ones, televised weddings.
Todd Wawrychuk/ABC by way of Getty Pictures
It’s been rumored that former Bachelor Sean Lowe and his spouse Catherine Giudici had been paid a six-figure paycheck for getting hitched on TV — oh, and that’s on high of the all-expenses-paid marriage ceremony.
Certain, there might not be a paycheck if you join The Bachelor, however the potentialities that come alongside afterward would possibly simply make up for it.
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