For the third straight year, tennis superstar Coco Gauff was named the highest-paid female athlete, Forbes announced on Tuesday in their annual list for 2025.
At age 21, Gauff earned a total of $33 million this past year from $8 million in winnings on the court and $25 million from endorsements off the court. Winning the French Open in May definitely helped increase her annual earnings this year.
This is a slight decrease from Gauff’s earnings in 2024, which was estimated to be $34.4 million. This amount pushed Gauff above a major milestone, she became just the third woman to ever hit a $30 million income in a single calendar year behind fellow tennis stars Serena Williams and Naomi Osaka. In 2023, Gauff led the list with $22.7 million.
Tennis stars were the three highest-paid female athletes in 2025 as Aryna Sabalenka earned $30 million (making her the fourth woman to hit this mark) this season, splitting $15 million from her tennis appearances and $15 million from endorsements. After Sabalenka is Iga Świątek, who earned $25.1 million combined this year.
Eight of the 10 highest-paid female athletes are tennis players this year. Apart from Gauff, Sabalenka and Świątek, stars like Qinwen Zheng (No. 5, $22.6 million), Madison Keys (No. 6, $13.4 million), Osaka (No. 8, $12.5 million), Elena Rybakina (No. 8, $12.5 million) and Jessica Pegula (No. 10, $12.3 million).
Here’s the full list of the 20 female athletes named this year.
| Athlete | Sport | Combined Earnings |
|---|---|---|
| Coco Gauff | Tennis | $33 million |
| Aryna Sabalenka | Tennis | $30 million |
| Iga Swiatek | Tennis | $25.1 million |
| Eileen Gu | Skiing | $23.1 million |
| Qinwen Zheng | Tennis | $22.6 million |
| Madison Keys | Tennis | $13.4 million |
| Nelly Korda | Golf | $13 million |
| Naomi Osaka | Tennis | $12.5 million |
| Elena Rybakina | Tennis | $12.5 million |
| Jessica Pegula | Tennis | $12.3 million |
| Caitlin Clark | WNBA | $12.1 million |
| Amanda Anisimova | Tennis | $11.3 million |
| Sabrina Ionescu | WNBA | $10.5 million |
| Jeeno Thitikul | Golf | $10.3 million |
| Angel Reese | WNBA | $9.4 million |
| Paige Bueckers | WNBA | $9.1 million |
| Jasmine Paolini | Tennis | $8.3 million |
| Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone | Track and Field | $8.2 million |
| Lindsey Vonn | Skiing | $8.2 million |
| Ilona Maher | Rugby | $8.1 million |
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Coco Gauff Named World's Highest Paid Female Athlete for Third Straight Year.
