How much do professional cyclists make in 2026? Cyclist salary guide, top earners, and minimums

Professional cycling has one of the widest pay gaps in modern sport, stretching from global stars earning millions to riders surviving on little more than hope and stipends. In 2026, salaries at the top of the men’s World Tour have reached historic highs, driven by rising team budgets and powerful sponsors. At the same time, many riders lower in the hierarchy remain on minimum wages or below, especially outside the top tier. Understanding how much professional cyclists make today requires looking not just at headline contracts, but at the full structure of the sport, from World Tour stars to Continental riders, and from salaries to sponsorships.

FAQ:
1: How cycling's pay scale works in 2026
2. Cycling's richest compared to other sports
3. Average World Tour salaries
4. Team budgets and inequality within the World Tour
5. Minimum salaries and neo-pro contracts
6. Life outside the World Tour
7. Where a cyclist's income actually comes from
8. How cyclists' pay has changed over time
9. Gender pay and women's cycling

Professional cycling does not operate on a centralised salary system. Riders are employed directly by teams, which negotiate individual contracts based on results, reputation, role, and market demand. The UCI sets minimum salaries for World Tour and Women’s World Tour riders, but beyond that, pay varies enormously.

At one end of the scale are a small number of riders whose contracts would have been unthinkable a decade ago. At the other are hundreds of professionals racing full calendars while earning less than a typical office salary, or in some cases nothing at all. The result is a steep pyramid, with wealth concentrated at the top and thinning rapidly as you move down the peloton.

At the very top of the men’s WorldTour, cycling now pays its biggest names at a level that reflects their global value, even if it still falls short of football, F1 or basketball. According to Cyclingnews last year, in 2025, an estimated 65 male riders earned €1 million or more per year. That figure alone shows how much the market has changed, as only a handful of riders crossed that threshold in the early 2010s.

The highest-paid rider in the sport is widely reported to be Tadej Pogacar, and the four time Tour de France winner has a base salary sitting around €7–8 million per season. He has also signed a long-term extension reportedly worth around €8.2 million per year through 2030. Jonas Vingegaard follows closely, earning roughly €6–6.5 million annually, while Remco Evenepoel is believed to be on €5–5.5 million.

Below them, but still firmly in the elite bracket, are riders such as Primoz Roglic at around €4.5 million, Mathieu van der Poel and Wout van Aert at roughly €4 million, and Tom Pidcock at approximately €3.5 million. These salaries represent the new ceiling of the sport. Over a decade ago, Alberto Contador earning about €5 million in 2011 was considered extraordinary, with most other stars far below that level.

Even with these eye-catching numbers, cycling’s biggest salaries remain modest compared to global team sports. Team budgets have risen sharply, with the median men’s WorldTour budget climbing from around €18 million in 2019 to roughly €25–28 million by 2024. This growth allows teams to pay star riders more, but it does not change cycling’s position in the wider sporting economy.

As Tejay van Garderen observed, “If you look at the NBA, $8 million a year would get you someone to come off the bench. The highest-paid guy, Steph Curry, gets $45 million a year… it’s hard to compare, but still”. In football, players such as Kevin De Bruyne or Erling Haaland earn more than €25 million per year in salary alone, while 4 time Formula 1 world champion Max Verstappen reportedly makes over €50 million per season.

Against that backdrop, “Pogacar’s €8 million [salary] looks like loose change,” van Garderen added. Cycling’s top earners are finally wealthy by any normal standard, but they remain lightweights compared to stars in football, basketball, tennis, or Formula 1.

Compared with football, basketball, tennis, or Formula 1, cycling remains a small player financially. Its top earners make a fraction of what elite athletes in those sports earn. However, cycling compares favourably with many Olympic and endurance sports, where only a handful of athletes earn a full-time living.

As Tao Geoghegan Hart noted, “I have friends in many different endurance sports, and there’s not 1,000 people making a very good living (from those sports), but in cycling there are. And it’s easy to forget that.”

So, overall, professional cycling in 2026 is richer than it has ever been, but also more unequal. A small group of stars earn life-changing money, while many teammates earn modest wages, and riders outside the WorldTour often struggle to survive financially. Salaries have risen, minimum wages are improving, and women’s cycling is moving in the right direction, but the sport remains far behind global heavyweights.

For those who reach the top, there has never been a better time to make a living from cycling. For everyone else, the dream remains expensive.

Moving away from the superstars, the financial picture changes quickly. The average male World Tour salary in 2026 is estimated at around €500,000. That figure represents a significant increase from roughly €450,000 in 2024 and about €218,000 in 2011.

However, averages hide more than they reveal. A small number of contracts worth several million euros inflate the mean, while the majority of riders earn far less. Most World Tour rosters include 25 to 30 riders, and only a handful are leaders or protected stars.

A strong domestique or experienced support rider on a top team might earn between €100,000 and €300,000. Others, particularly younger riders or those on smaller teams, may earn closer to €50,000–€80,000. Riders earning between €60,000 and €150,000 make up what has traditionally been considered the peloton’s middle class, but that group is shrinking. Teams increasingly concentrate resources on a few leaders while filling out the rest of the roster with riders on relatively low wages.

This concentration of wealth is closely tied to team budgets. According to Cofidis manager Cedric Vasseur, competing seriously for the Tour de France requires a budget of €50–60 million. Anything less, he said to Velo, means “there is no chance” of signing riders like Pogacar or Vingegaard, along with the support staff and domestiques they require.

Teams such as UAE Team Emirates - XRG, Team Visma | Lease a Bike, and Red Bull - Bora - hansgrohe can afford multiple million-euro contracts. Smaller World Tour teams operate on far tighter budgets, often paying most of their riders near the minimum salary and struggling to retain talent.

As a result, a rider’s earning potential can depend heavily on which team they ride for. A capable climber might earn a comfortable wage as a domestique on a wealthy team, while taking on leadership responsibilities at a smaller outfit for less money overall.

At the bottom of the World Tour pay scale are riders on the UCI-mandated minimum salary. In 2026, a veteran male World Tour rider must be paid at least €44,150 if employed directly by the team. Neo-pros, defined as riders in their first two seasons, have a lower minimum of €35,721.

For riders classified as self-employed contractors rather than employees, the nominal minimums are higher, around €72,000 for veterans and €58,000 for neo-pros, to account for insurance and benefits. In practice, most World Tour riders now earn at least a living wage. Compared to earlier eras, this represents genuine progress. But the World Tour is only the top layer of professional cycling.

Velora has reported that the men’s WorldTour minimum salary will remain unchanged for the 2026 season, staying at 2025 levels after negotiations between teams and the riders’ union failed to produce a new agreement in time. CPA president Adam Hansen confirmed there will be no automatic increase next year, ending a planned run of two consecutive 5% annual rises. As a result, the existing minimums carry over to 2026.

According to Hansen, the freeze reflects a strategic focus on broader structural reforms within the Joint Agreement rather than salary alone, with hopes of revisiting pay increases in 2027.

Below the World Tour, salaries drop sharply. ProTeam riders are not bound by the same minimums, and many earn under €100,000 per year. Some earn less than €40,000. At the Continental level, pay often disappears altogether.

There are 178 men’s Continental teams worldwide, with more than 90 based in Europe. These squads are filled with young riders chasing WorldTour contracts and older riders extending careers for personal reasons. At this level, many of them essentially pay to compete.

Development riders often receive stipends of €10,000–€15,000 per year, if anything at all. Research into Continental teams found that most European riders earn between €11,000 and €22,000 annually, with an average closer to €14,000–€15,000. National regulations vary, with minimums around €25,000 in France, €24,700 in Belgium, and as low as €3,600 in Italy.

As Mihkel Räim explained to Cyclingnews, “In our team we have many youngsters who don’t receive a salary. There is no rule we have to pay them… they get a bike, a place to live if they need it, food and prize money. This is the deal for most young riders on European teams.”

The financial strain at this level is significant. “I often feel like riders are exploited for the love of the sport and sold a dream that isn’t reality. It’s really unfair,” said one Continental rider.

British rider Harrison Wood described earning around €12,000 per year after dropping from the World Tour to a Portuguese Continental team. “We lost a main sponsor at the start of the year, so we haven’t got the budget we anticipated,” he said. “Without the sponsors I got for the Tour of Britain, we wouldn’t have been able to make it to the start line.”

These stories underline how fragile professional cycling careers can be once riders fall outside the World Tour structure.

Unlike sports built around prize money or individual contracts, cycling is primarily salary-driven. A rider’s income typically comes from several sources.

Team salary forms the foundation. To recap, WorldTour contracts in 2026 range from the €44,150 minimum to €6–8 million for the biggest stars. Most riders sit somewhere between €200,000 and €1 million, depending on their role and results.

Prize money exists, but it is relatively small and usually shared among the team. The Tour de France winner receives €500,000 from a total prize pool of about €2.3 million, but that money is divided among teammates and staff. Stage wins and one-day races add bonuses, but prize money is rarely a primary income source.

Sponsorship and endorsements benefit only a small group of riders. A globally marketable star can earn significant sums, with one estimate suggesting Pogacar’s total income including endorsements could reach €10–12 million. Peter Sagan reportedly continues to earn around €2 million per year from sponsorships and for being an ambassador. For most riders, personal sponsorship income is minimal.

Additional income can come from appearance fees, post-Tour criteriums, speaking engagements, media work, and increasingly social media. These streams can supplement salaries, particularly for high-profile riders, but they are secondary for most of the peloton.

Cycling salaries have risen sharply over the past decade. In the early 2010s, few riders earned more than €1 million. In 2026, dozens do. The average World Tour salary has more than doubled since 2011, while minimum salaries have climbed from around €30,000 to over €44,000.

This growth has been driven by increased sponsorship, new investors, and a rapid rise in team budgets. The total men’s World Tour budget pool rose from around €430 million in 2022 to approximately €570 million in 2026. As one observer put it, “big budgets buy the best riders and staff.”

Despite this growth, cyclists still receive no direct share of television rights or race revenues, which belong to organisers. At one point, the combined salary bill of all top teams was lower than that of a single mid-tier European football club.

One of the most significant changes in recent years has been the introduction and rapid growth of minimum salaries in women’s cycling. In 2026, the Women’s World Tour minimum salary stands at €38,000 for veterans and €31,768 for neo-pros. These figures are rising faster than the men’s minimums as part of an effort to close the gap.

At the top end, women’s salaries remain far lower. The highest-paid female riders are believed to earn in the low-to-mid six figures, with reports that Demi Vollering was offered a contract approaching €1 million. Average Women’s World Tour salaries are around €85,000 and increasing.

Below that level, the picture remains difficult. Surveys found that many women outside the World Tour earn under €20,000 per year, and a significant proportion receive no salary at all. The financial trajectory is improving, but parity remains distant.

In 2026, World Tour professional cyclists earn anywhere from the UCI minimum of around €44,000 per year to more than €7 million for the very top stars. Most riders in the peloton earn well below the average, with salaries clustered closer to the minimum than the top end.

Tadej Pogacar is widely reported to be the highest-paid professional cyclist, with a base salary estimated between €7 and €8 million per year as of 2026. His total earnings increase further through personal sponsorships and bonuses.

The UCI minimum salary for a male World Tour rider in 2026 is approximately €44,150, with a lower minimum for neo-professionals. Women’s World Tour riders have a minimum salary of around €38,000.

Prize money exists but is usually shared among the entire team, meaning individual riders keep only a fraction. For most cyclists, prize money is a bonus rather than a major source of income.

Top riders earn additional income through personal sponsorships, endorsements, appearance fees, and media work. Lower-tier riders usually have limited or no access to these opportunities.

Women’s salaries are significantly lower than men’s, with top female riders earning in the high six figures at most. The gap is narrowing as minimum salaries rise and investment in women’s racing increases.

Most World Tour riders earn a living wage, but many Continental and development riders earn very little or nothing at all. Some riders at lower levels rely on family support, sponsors, or second jobs.

Cyclists earn far less than athletes in football, basketball, or tennis, even at the top level. However, cycling pays better on average than many Olympic and endurance sports.

Cycling offers financial stability mainly for World Tour riders with secure contracts. Outside the top level, careers are often short and financially uncertain.

Yes, both average and top salaries have increased significantly over the past decade due to larger team budgets and stronger sponsorship. The growth has been uneven, with most of the increase concentrated among top riders.

Cycling offers financial stability mainly for WorldTour riders with secure contracts. Outside the top level, careers are often short and financially uncertain.