Top Dogs: Models Sean O’Pry (L) and David Gandy (R) lead Forbes’s Male Model list.
Top Dogs: Highest-earning models Gisele Bündchen (L) and Miranda Kerr have financially outpaced their male counterparts.
They are the only members on the list to have cracked the seven-figure mark. In comparison, the entire female lineup reached the multi-million-dollar range, with the lowest salary ($3.2 million) going to well-endowed supermodel Lara Stone.
Gandy’s female counterpart in second place, Miranda Kerr, finished the year with $7.2 million in earnings, while Nessman’s equivalent in third place, Adriana Lima, took home $6 million.
Followed by: Michael Kors model Simon Nessman (L) and Tommy Hilfiger face Arthur Kulkov (R) reached positions 3 and 4.
Followed by: Adriana Lima (L) and Kate Moss (R) have financially outpaced their male colleagues.
While the top performers among male models are by no means broke, their salaries are ten times lower than the elite female models with lingerie contracts.
In fact, our own calculations show that top earners among average male models make about $7.5 million less per year than a top-earning female supermodel.
The participants on Forbes’ male model list earned an average of $769,000 per year.
Middle Men: Model-turned-actor Noah Mills (L), and long-haired Ryan Burns (R) reached positions 5 and 6.
Next Up: Models Liu Wen (L) and Hilary Rhoda (R) still earned a solid $4 million in positions 5 and 6.
Members of the women’s list, published in August, took an average of $8.3 million this year. Stone’s last-place salary is nearly double O’Pry’s.
By comparison, the lowest earner on the male list, Zara model Tobias Sorensen, took in $265,000.
Then: Ferragamo face Tyson Ballou (L), and Ralph Lauren model Ollie Edwards (R) came in at 7 and 8.
And: Positions 7 and 8 for women went to Carolyn Murphy (L) and Joan Smalls (R), each earning over $3 million.
It’s clear that the fashion industry, notorious for its reluctance to pay large sums, values female models more than their male counterparts—perhaps a nod to the far more lucrative financial power of the women’s fashion sector (not to generalize, but it is known that women buy more clothing than men).
In addition to O’Pry, Gandy, and Nessman, models including Sex and the City 2 actor and Versace model Noah Mills (#5), Tyson Ballou, Ferragamo face (#7), and Ollie Edwards, Ralph Lauren face (#8), also made the list.
Bottom of the List: H&M stud John Kortajarena (L), and Zara face Tobias Sorensen (R) occupy the last spots of the Forbes list at ranks 9 and 10.
And Finally: Lingerie models Candice Swanepoel (L) and Lara Stone (R) closed the list at ranks 9 and 10, each earning over $3 million.
TEN TOP HIGHEST-EARNING MALE MODELS
Sean O’Pry, $1.5 million
David Gandy, $1.4 million
Simon Nessman, $1.1 million
Arthur Kulkov, $905,000
Noah Mills, $740,000
Ryan Burns, $610,000
Tyson Ballou, $425,000
Ollie Edwards, $410,000
John Kortajarena, $290,000
Tobias Sorensen, $265,000
TEN TOP HIGHEST-EARNING FEMALE MODELS
Gisele Bündchen, $42 million
Miranda Kerr, $7.2 million
Adriana Lima, $6 million
Kate Moss, $5.7 million
Liu Wen, $4.3 million
Hilary Rhoda, $4 million
Carolyn Murphy, $3.6 million
Joan Smalls, $3.5 million
Candice Swanepoel, $3.3 million
Lara Stone, $3.2 million
