The stars of the NBC sketch series make … how much?!

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When Saturday Night Live first premiered on NBC in October 1975, no one could’ve imagined what the sketch variety show would become.

Now in its milestone 50th season, SNL has made major stars from its cast of comedians over the years. Just some of the names who went on to have iconic careers after being on the show include Adam Sandler, Eddie Murphy, Will Ferrell, Tina Fey and Amy Poehler. With all the incredible talent on the show, it makes us wonder: How much do Saturday Night Live cast members get paid? Well, we decided to do some research, and what we found actually came as a surprise.

NBC

How much do Saturday Night Live cast members get paid?

When New York Magazine asked several former cast members — including Pete Davidson and Jason Sudeikis — about the splurges they made with their first paychecks, Pete revealed SNL cast members make $3,000 per episode (or $60,000 for a 20-episode season, if we count how many installments were in season 49 from 2023-2024).

“Do you guys know what they pay us?” he asked in a video posted on Instagram on December 4. “It’s like three grand an episode.”

Jason shared a similar sentiment about how little SNL cast members get paid in the clip as well. “I mean, you don’t make enough money to make big purchases. So, I think New York rent was probably the biggest purchase I made after writing my first year on SNL.“

While Pete explicitly stated a number on how much SNL cast members get paid each week, StyleCaster had a slightly deeper breakdown into how the salaries work on the show. According to the outlet (and Celebrity Net Worth), SNL cast members get paid on a tiered system depending on how long they’ve been working on the show. When a cast member joins for their first season (where they’re known as “featured players”), they reportedly make $7,000 an episode or $147,000 over a 21-episode season. Once they make it to their second year as full-time cast members, they get an extra $1,000 added to their salaries, making it $8,00o per episode or $168,000 per season. By a cast member’s fifth season, they make $15,000 per episode or $315,000 per season.

NBC

Which SNL cast member gets paid the most?

That would be the longest-running SNL cast member, Kenan Thompson.

According to Parade, his salary isn’t exactly a known thing for starring on SNL. Having been on the show since 2003, it’s reported he makes around $2 to $3 million a year, meaning he likely makes $95,238 per episode. While it seems like a high number compared to his co-stars, he has put in the most time on the show.

Even though Kenan makes a large amount of money on SNL, he has spoken out about the disparity of how little cast members as a whole make. As he told Variety in December 2024, the stars know the real appeal of being on the show.

“It’s pretty notorious that it’s more so about having the job than getting paid for the job,” he stated at the time. “You gotta pay your dues a little bit, yeah.”

NBC