Forbes on Thursday unveiled its list of the 20 highest-paid podcasters in 2026, from celebrity shows hosted by the Kelce brothers or comedian Amy Poehler to political and true crime podcasts – all of which rake in tens of millions of dollars.
Joe Rogan unsurprisingly reigned supreme as the world’s highest-paid podcaster. Over the past year, the 58-year-old UFC broadcaster earned $82 million from his Spotify show, “The Joe Rogan Experience.”
The show’s three-hour episodes include conversations with scientists, comedians and entrepreneurs – including several controversial figures – at Rogan’s Austin, Texas, studio, and it’s perhaps best known for Rogan’s interview of President Trump ahead of the 2024 election.
Rounding out the top three are John Coogan and Jordi Hays, hosts of the OpenAI-owned tech podcast network TBPN, who earned an estimated $70 million since June 2025, and Steven Bartlett, 33, whose corporate interview show “The Diary of a CEO” earned him $45 million.
Football bros Jason and Travis Kelce brought in $35 million from their Amazon podcast “New Heights,” putting them in seventh place.
The podcast picked up steam in 2023 as Travis started dating now-wife pop superstar Taylor Swift and after his Kansas City Chiefs faced off against Jason’s Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LIX.
Hollywood celebrities, who have increasingly entered the alternative media space, raked in the big bucks – benefiting from already-established fanbases and an ability to nab interviews with their famous friends.
“SmartLess,” the SiriusXM show hosted by comedians Will Arnett, Jason Bateman and Sean Hayes, earned its hosts $37 million – ranking as the fifth-highest paid podcasters.
American actor Dax Shepard, 51, made $25 million from his Amazon show “Armchair Expert” while comedian and producer Amy Poehler, 54, earned $24 million from her Spotify podcast “Good Hang,” which earlier this year won the first-ever Golden Globe award for podcasting.
Internet celeb Alex Cooper, 31, made $32 million from her Spotify show “Call Her Daddy,” which launched in 2018. Reality TV stars-turned-influencers Hannah Berner, 34, and Paige DeSorbo, 33, raked in $18 million from “Giggly Squad,” which launched in 2020.
Ashley Flowers, 36, the so-called “queen of true crime,” made $42 million from her show “Crime Junkie.”
Motivational speaker and wellness influencer Mel Robbins, 57, known for her best-selling book “The Let Them Theory,” made $35 million from her SiriusXM show “The Mel Robbins Podcast.”
Jay Shetty, 38, a Hindu monk-turned-wellness influencer, made $21 million from his podcast “On Purpose” through deals with Spotify and Netflix – hosting guests including Michelle Obama, Selena Gomez, Kevin Hart and Madonna.
Charlamagne Tha God, 48, made $27 million from his podcast network “The Breakfast Club” through deals with iHeart Media and Netflix. He co-hosts the podcast “Brilliant Idiots” with comedian Andrew Schulz.
Political and cultural shows also made the list, with Jon Favreau, Jon Lovett, Dan Pfeiffer and Tommy Vietor making $28 million over the past year from their lefty “Pod Save America” show.
Former Fox News host Tucker Carlson, 57, earned $20 million from “The Tucker Carlson Show,” an independent podcast backed by Red Seat Ventures – which has also invested in titles from Megyn Kelly and Bill O’Reilly.
NYU professor Scott Galloway made $19 million from his network, “The Prof G Pod,” through deals with Vox Media. It includes his show “Pivot” with co-host Kara Swisher, a left-leaning tech journalist.
Podcasts have been stealing views from traditional TV and landing big-name interviews as Hollywood stars and pundits try to reach new audiences.
The media form can be incredibly lucrative, creating a new class of ultra-wealthy influencers who own their show’s underlying IP – meaning major corporations like Netflix are paying millions just to license their content as a distributor.
A $100 million-plus deal from networks like Spotify, SiriusXM or iHeart is the ultimate mecca for most podcasters, since the deals are paid out as a guaranteed advance and any further profits are split using a revenue-sharing model.