Forbes has released their list of the world's highest-paid female athletes, and a few WNBA stars are on the list.

In fact, between the Indiana sensation Caitlin Clark and Chicago Sky star Angel Reese, fans found out who's the higher-paid player.

According to the latest list, the Bayou Barbie is the third-highest paid WNBA player in 2025. She earned $74,909 from her WNBA salary during the 2025 season. But most of her income came through endorsements and other ventures. She has made a total of $9.4 million in earnings for the year.

Reese hosts her own show, Unapologetically Angel. She has walked as a Victoria’s Secret model, appeared as a cover athlete for NBA 2K26, and even made a cameo in the Netflix film A House of Dynamite. However, while Reese ranked third among WNBA players, Caitlin Clark ranked first.

CC earned an estimated $12.1 million in sponsorships and endorsements alone. Her portfolio includes major global brands such as Gatorade, State Farm, Nike, and Wilson, among others.

Her base WNBA salary for the 2025 season was $78,066, and that accounted for only a small fraction of her total earnings. Still, it was enough to place her as the highest-paid WNBA player and the 11th-highest-paid female athlete overall, a spot that reflects her growing commercial pull.

Apart from AR and CC, Sabrina Ionescu showed up too. The New York Liberty star followed close behind Clark, earning $10.5 million in 2025, putting her on the list as the second-highest WNBA player.

But that number may see a big jump with the CBA negotiations.

Since the arrival of the highly anticipated 2024 rookie class, the W has seen unprecedented growth. The league attracted millions in attention, viewership, and cultural relevance. But player pay has not kept pace.

The league and the players' union are currently negotiating a new CBA. And so far, the league’s needle has finally moved. Under the recent proposal, the maximum base salary in 2026 could rise to $1 million.

Do you think Clark can climb to the top of the list next year? Let us know in the comments!

Written by

Yashika Dutta

Edited by

Siddharth Shirwadkar