With another season of The Bachelor Australia looming, we have a lot of questions…
From what our brand new Bachie Locky Gilbert does (and who he’s dated), to who each of the women vying for his heart actually are – and there’s always one curly question we’re always asking: How much do Bachelor contestants really get paid?
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The cost of finding true love is priceless but having to take extended leave from work – or in many cases, quitting your job all together – is a huge risk to take.
Sure, you might get some Instagram sponsorships upon leaving The Bachelor mansion (we’re pretty sure ex-Bachie stars are keeping the teeth whitening industry in business), but your actual work salary isn’t matched.
Here, we break down exactly how much The Bachelor contestants get paid!
How much do the contestants get paid on The Bachelor Australia?
As one anonymous star revealed it to News Corp, you don’t star on The Bachelor for money.
“You don’t get paid a wage as such, you get given a weekly expense allowance which is under $100 a day. It is below minimum wage,” the reality star told the publication.
“It’s ridiculous what you get paid. A lot of the girls were excited to get that amount a week, but I was like ‘are you serious I wouldn’t get out of bed for that,'” they claimed.
Minimum wage never looked so good! Apparently stars of The Bachelor get paid “under $100 a day.”
(Source: Network Ten)Around $100 a day could still go a long way for contestants who have sacrificed their incomes all together on their quest for true love.
In 2016, Bachelorette runner-up Matty J told us after he went through “six interviews” and intense aptitude tests and psychiatric tests, he finally landed his dream job in marketing.
But just three weeks into the role of a lifetime, he quit so he could take on another plum gig – starring as one of the contestants on Georgia Love’s season of The Bachelorette… and we all know how that ended!
“I lost my job for the show,” he told us at the time.
WATCH: The Bachelor 2020 trailer:
However the exposure a stand-out star like Matty can get will pay off in dividends.
Fast forward to 2018 and the Bondi babe landed his own season of The Bachelor, several ambassadorships for brands like Tommy Hilfiger and Oakley, and even a TV WEEK Logie Award nomination for Best New Talent thanks to his foray into hosting on The Living Room plus a new gig on his own radio show, Matt, Sarah and Matty J on NOVA – not to mention his personal life is at an all-time high with an engagement to Laura and the birth of their first child, Marlie-Mae.
Similarly season one Bachelor/BIP star Ali Oetjen ended up as the 2018 Bachelorette, which no doubt served as a huge platform to promote Ali’s eight-week healthy lifestyle e-book.
Ali’s predecessor Sophie Monk’s role as The Bachelorette helped relaunch her career in Australia and this year will return to our screen for a second season as the host of Love Island 2019.
So while you might be putting a lot on the line for very little cash in the bank, it’s a slow burn that can definitely end up converting to a hefty pay day if your business savvy is up to scratch.
A rosy gamble! Matty J not only found his fiancée Laura Byrne, he ended up with a slew of ambassadorships, a TV WEEK Logie nomination and a radio gig.
How much do the lead stars get paid?
If you’re handing out the roses, it’s a completely different story.
After all, The Bachelor or Bachelorette are the draw card and will be (hopefully) commanding the viewers, ratings and advertisers.
So how much is our 2020 main man Locky Gilbert earning?
If you’re handing out the roses, you’ll be getting more cashola in the honey pot!
(Network Ten)Unfortunately, the answer isn’t that clear cut.
If we look at predecessors Nick and Matty J, their lives, therefore their cheques, were so vastly different to each others, let along a former relity TV star like Locky.
Matty, as we all know, was the runner-up of the Bachelorette, and Nick, an ARU Wallaby.
In an interview on the Shameless Podcast, Brooke Blurton (the second runner-up on Nick’s season) came out with a sensational claim that the Honey Badger was paid $500,000 for his stint on the hit show.
If this is true, and with a slew of commercial partnerships already under his belt, it’s estimated the former Wallabies player’s net worth is now around over a million.
Nick’s stint on the Bachelor was reportedly worth $500,000.
(Source: Network Ten)The year before, Matty J was rumoured to rake in a cool $200,000 pay cheque, however, Ten were quick to deny MJ’s handsome pay pack saying at the time: “The contractual arrangements between Matty Johnson and the producers of The Bachelor Australia, Warner Bros, are confidential. But the recent claims about the contract are completely inaccurate.”
As for 2017’s Bachelorette Sophie Monk, who started the trend of celeb Bachies, Brisbane’s Courier Mail claimed the pop star took home an eye-watering $300,000 for her season.
While Network Ten declined to comment on the salary rumours, an insider explained, “Sophie will earn a lot more (than previous Bachelors and Bachelorettes) because her management would have negotiated well.”
Of course, the real prize is sweet, sweet lurve.
Which, according to our Bachelor maths, has a 50% chance of surviving once the cameras stop rolling. You can read more about that here!
Of course the real prize is true love, right Locky?
(Instagram)Want more news on The Bachelor? Check out the stories below!
Meet the women set to saunter into Locky Gilbert’s particularly chiselled arms on The Bachelor 2020
Everything we know about our new (and very handsome) Bachelor for 2020, Locky Gilbert
New Bachelor Locky Gilbert reveals the cheeky upside to his extremely tall stature
Lock(y) it in your diaries! We finally have a premiere date for The Bachelor 2020
