Formula One isn’t just about speed anymore — it’s about serious money. As the 2025 F1 World Championship continues, we look at this season’s driver salaries from the lowest to the highest paid on the grid. With the sport more popular than ever, thanks partly to Netflix’s Drive to Survive and a wave of global interest (especially from U.S. fans), salaries have soared up and down the paddock in recent years. 2025 is no exception.
What To Know?
- Max Verstappen tops the 2025 salary list with a $65 million base pay from Red Bull.
- Lewis Hamilton earns $60 million at Ferrari, with total income nearing $100 million.
- Four rookies — including Jack Doohan and Isack Hadjar — earn $1 million or less.
- The complete 2025 F1 driver salary list includes base pay only, excluding bonuses and sponsorships.
This year, 18 of the 20 drivers will reportedly take home at least $1 million in base salary — and that’s before you even factor in performance bonuses, sponsorship deals, or brand endorsements. From world champions like Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton to rookies like the ever-promising Isack Hadjar trying to prove themselves, the paycheck gap across the grid is as fascinating as the title fight.
So who’s earning what in 2025? Here’s a full breakdown of every F1 driver’s salary for the current season — with figures sourced from RacingNews365.
Who is the highest-paid F1 driver in 2025?
No surprises at the top — the two most successful active drivers in Formula One are also the two highest earners in the 2025 F1 World Championship.
Max Verstappen continues to lead the financial race, commanding a reported $65 million annual base salary from Red Bull Racing. The 27-year-old Dutchman’s earnings reflect his dominance on the track: four consecutive world championships and 53 race wins in just four seasons. While his nine victories in 2024 may have been a dip by his lofty seasons prior, Verstappen still proved untouchable over the course of the season — fending off rising stars like Lando Norris to secure yet another title.
Hot on his heels is Lewis Hamilton, now racing in red. The seven-time world champion makes his long-awaited Ferrari debut in 2025, earning a reported $60 million salary. At 40 years old, Hamilton brings unrivalled experience and a record-breaking résumé: 105 career wins, 202 podiums, and an eye on that elusive eighth title. After a two-win swan song with Mercedes in 2024, the move to Maranello marked a bold final chapter in his storied career.
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There’s a steep drop after the top two, but a few more names break the $20 million threshold. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc will earn $34 million, while Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso and McLaren’s Lando Norris each take home $20 million.
Leclerc, still just 27, entered 2025 with eight wins, 43 podiums, and a long-term contract that reflected Ferrari’s faith in him as a future champion. Alonso — now the grid’s elder statesman at 43 — remains a potent force with 32 wins and two world titles to his name. Norris, meanwhile, finally broke through in 2024 with four victories and played a pivotal role in McLaren’s 2024 Constructors’ Championship win.
These salary figures, compiled by RacingNews365 from inside sources across the paddock, represent only drivers’ base pay — bonuses and personal endorsements not included. But even before the champagne sprays or trophies are lifted, it’s clear who’s already winning off the track in 2025.
Who is the lowest-paid F1 driver in 2025?
While the stars at the front of the grid rake in tens of millions, four drivers will line up in 2025, earning a fraction of that — all first-year full-timers with everything to prove.
Alpine’s Jack Doohan and Racing Bulls’ Isack Hadjar share the distinction of having the lowest reported base salaries on the grid, estimated between 0,000 and million. That’s the price of entry into F1 sometimes, and both rookies would be out to show they belong. Unfortunately for Doohan, he lasted just five races, with former Williams stand-in, Franco Colapinto, taking his place at round six of the season.
Doohan, 22, made his Formula One debut at the 2024 season finale, finishing 15th. After two years as Alpine’s reserve driver, the Australian finally got his full-time shot in 2025.
Hadjar, 20, steps up after an impressive four-win campaign in Formula 2 last year. A longtime Red Bull junior, he served as test and reserve driver for both Racing Bulls and Red Bull in 2023 and 2024. Now, he got his full-time call-up to the rebranded Racing Bulls outfit.
Two other newcomers will earn $1 million each in 2025: Oliver Bearman at Haas and Liam Lawson at Red Bull.
Bearman, just 19, made waves in 2024 with three appearances — two with Haas and a standout debut for Ferrari, where he finished seventh in Saudi Arabia. The British driver now takes on his first full season in F1.
Lawson’s journey has been a longer one. After years in the Red Bull system and 11 career starts across two seasons, the 23-year-old finally landed a full-time seat with the senior team. He’d already scored six career points, all with Racing Bulls, and will look to build on that in 2025. Sadly for Lawson, the Red Bull car was too much and was swapped with Yuki Tsunoda after just two rounds, sent back to the Racing Bulls team.
For these four drivers, the paycheck might be modest by F1 standards, but the opportunity is massive.
2025 F1 Driver Salaries: Full List
Here’s how much each of the 21 full-time drivers is earning as seen in the 2025 Formula One season — all figures are in USD and reflect base salary only (excluding bonuses and sponsorship deals):
| Rank | Name | Team | Reported salary |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Max Verstappen | Red Bull Racing | $65 million |
| 2. | Lewis Hamilton | Ferrari | $60 million |
| 3. | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | $34 million |
| T-4. | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | $20 million |
| T-4. | Lando Norris | McLaren | $20 million |
| 6. | George Russell | Mercedes | $15 million |
| T-7. | Carlos Sainz | Williams | $10 million |
| T-7. | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | $10 million |
| 9. | Alexander Albon | Williams | $8 million |
| T-10. | Nico Hulkenberg | Sauber | $7 million |
| T-10. | Esteban Ocon | Haas | $7 million |
| 12. | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | $6 million |
| 13. | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | $3 million |
| T-14. | Yuki Tsunoda | Red Bull Racing | $2 million |
| T-14. | Kimi Antonelli | Mercedes | $2 million |
| T-14. | Gabriel Bortoleto | Sauber | $2 million |
| T-17. | Oliver Bearman | Haas | $1 million |
| T-17. | Liam Lawson | Racing Bulls | $1 million |
| T-19. | Jack Doohan | Alpine | $500,000 to $1 million |
| T-19. | Isack Hadjar | Racing Bulls | $500,000 to $1 million |
| T-19 | Franco Colapinto | Alpine | $500,000 to $1 million |
What does Max Verstappen earn in 2025?
As the reigning four-time world champion, Max Verstappen tops the 2025 salary list with a reported $65 million base pay from Red Bull Racing. And based on his form, it’s hard to argue he isn’t worth every penny — especially after standout performances like his 16th-to-1st comeback win in Sao Paulo last season.
Verstappen isn’t just dominating the track; he’s also become one of the sport’s most marketable stars. Alongside Lewis Hamilton, he’s the global face of modern Formula 1, with top-tier sponsors like EA Sports, Heineken, and Viaplay all backing him — adding serious heft to his income beyond racing.
On top of his salary and endorsements, Verstappen is also eligible for performance bonuses under his Red Bull contract, meaning wins, podiums, and potentially another title could boost his earnings even higher.
But with Hamilton’s high-profile move to Ferrari, the pressure — and the paycheck rivalry — is far from over.
Does Verstappen earn more than Hamilton and Leclerc?
Yes — Max Verstappen holds the top spot when it comes to base salary in 2025, with a reported $65 million from Red Bull Racing.
Lewis Hamilton, now at Ferrari, isn’t far behind with an estimated $60 million base salary. While that figure puts him second on the pay scale, his overall earnings — boosted by bonuses and a portfolio of high-end sponsorships — are believed to bring his total annual income close to $100 million.
That comfortably puts Hamilton ahead of his new teammate Charles Leclerc, who remains on a reported $34 million for 2025 — the same figure he earned last season. Still, that’s well above most of the grid and reflective of Ferrari’s long-term faith in the 27-year-old Monégasque driver.
Next in line is Fernando Alonso, earning $20 million with Aston Martin. The two-time world champion, now 43, continues to defy expectations — and age. With a contract that includes options through 2027 and a fresh engine partnership with Honda beginning in 2026, Alonso shows no signs of slowing down.
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