How Much Did The Big Bang Theory Cast Get Paid For The First & Final Episodes?

The Big Bang Theory quickly became one of the most popular television shows in the world, breaking records, and drawing a huge audience, and the Big Bang Theory cast salary reflected the demand for the series. The quirky sitcom lasted a whopping 12 seasons, and famously, by the end of the series, the main Big Bang Theory cast was pulling in a huge salary per episode – over one million per episode by the final season (via ET Online).

The Big Bang Theory followed a group of scientists in different fields who became friends with the woman who lived across the hall. Their lives and relationships changed drastically as a result. With twelve years of their lives invested in making people laugh as nerdy scientists and hilarious friends, there’s no doubt that the cast only continued to make more and more money as the series gained popularity and continued at the top of everyone’s radar. The difference between the first and last season’s Big Bang Theory cast salary, though, is incredible.

Wil Wheaton: $20,000

Character: As Himself

As far as secondary characters go, salaries didn’t usually exactly go up or down as the show went on. Wil Wheaton was no exception, and even though he literally played himself, The Kiwi Report initially reported he was making $20,000 per episode throughout the course of the show in an article that has since been removed from the website. Other frequent guest stars earned $50,000 or more for a single episode appearance, so it is possible that his earnings were higher.

However, while Wheaton might be a big name in certain pop culture spheres thanks to his roles in the likes of Star Trek and Stand By Me, he is not a household name so it makes sense he didn’t receive as high of a payday. With only 17 episodes under his belt during the run of the series, he definitely made an impression. Self-professed geeks who are fans of the show already know and love the Star Trek icon, even if his character was one of the least likable in The Big Bang Theory.

Kevin Sussman: $50,000

Character: Stuart Bloom

There’s no indication that Kevin Sussman ever got a salary increase, even though he actually became a pretty prominent character as the series progressed. Everyone loved Stuart Bloom as a secondary character, of course, especially as he became such a big part of Howard and Bernadette’s lives. Stuart started as simply an acquaintance of the group who ran a comic book store and became a trusted member of their circle.

Sussman had already established a respectable career in movies and television by the time he joined the cast of The Big Bang Theory in a supporting role. Still, given that he made sporadic appearances early on in the show, his salary would be normal. Though it is likely there was some increase as the role got bigger. From the beginning to the end, Kevin Sussman was reported to be making $50,000 per episode (via Affair Post). He appeared in 84 episodes, so while this is lower than the main The Big Bang Theory cast salaries, it’s still a big paycheck.

John Ross Bowie: $50,000

Character: Barry Kripke

Much like Kevin Sussman, John Ross Bowie’s secondary character of Barry Kripke was raking in around $50,000 per episode, starting in 2009 for his first appearance, which was reported to stay the same until his last appearance in 2019 (via Tuko). Unlike Sussman, his role didn’t become as intertwined with the main cast as the series went on. However, he was a memorable part of the show from his introduction.

His salary remained pretty steady, but so did his role in the show…

He appeared in 25 episodes over the course of the show, and Bowie became iconic as Barry Kripke. As one of the most intelligent supporting characters in The Big Bang Theory, he is a rival and a wonderfully annoying nemesis for the main characters. His salary remained pretty steady, but so did his role in the show, even if Barry did become more of a friend over time instead of an underdeveloped villain.

Mayim Bialik: $45,000 – $425,000

Character: Amy Farrah Fowler

Mayim Bialik joined the show as a secondary character and love interest for Sheldon in season 3, but she was still getting a decent salary from the start. However, over time, she became a core character in the show. From becoming a close friend to Penny to her relationship with Sheldon, Amy ended up with some of the best story arcs on The Big Bang Theory.

Mayim Bialik also appeared in and directed the movie
As They Made Us
(2022).

Out of the rest of the main cast, Bialik was the last to join the ensemble. However, her growth in salary is a testament to how big of a role she ended up playing. She was still pulling in about $425,000 per episode by the end (not quite on par with the other major characters), but their lack of appearance in the earlier seasons definitely made a difference to their growing pay (via THR).

Melissa Rauch: $45,000 – $425,000

Character: Bernadette Rostenkowski-Wolowitz

Like the actors behind Raj and Howard, Amy and Bernadette’s actresses were often partnered together when it came to salaries and their growth. Melissa Rauch, who played Bernadette, joined the series in season 3 as Howard’s love interest. Her character was slowly fleshed out over time, and Bernadette eventually married and started a family with Howard. She ended the show by making over $425,000 per episode.

In fact, the other five main cast members all gave up $100,000 of their own salaries so that Bialik and Rauch could earn a more fair rate (via The National Post). The salaries reflect the bigger role Bernadette played in the rest of the series, moving from a simple love interest to a character in her own right. Rauch’s performance also helped land her the lead role in her next sitcom, Night Court. Like Mayim Bialik, Rauch’s salary never matched the rest, but they were still making some very decent salaries by the time the series took its final bow.

Kunal Nayyar: $45,000 – $1,000,000

Character: Rajesh Koothrappali

Raj and Howard have the sweetest friendship on the show, and they are also definitely the fourth and fifth biggest characters on The Big Bang Theory. The core trio of Sheldon, Penny, and Leonard often led the “A” storylines. Surprisingly, though, they were not always earning as much as Sheldon, Penny, and Leonard, despite being around from the beginning. To start, Kunal Nayyar was making $45,000 per episode to play Raj, which is still a great starting salary for a sitcom (via TV Overmind).

This tripled to $150,000 by season 2, and then skyrocketed all the way to $600,000 by the eighth and ninth seasons, before managing to hit that one-million mark by the 12th season, when the main cast negotiated for salary increases all around. Though some fans were not happy with the end of Raj’s storyline on The Big Bang Theory which was deemed less complete compared to the others, the character was still a huge part of the main cast from the beginning.

Simon Helberg: $45,000 – $1,000,000

Character: Howard Wolowitz

There’s no surprise that Simon Helberg had the exact same salary increase as his co-star, Kunal Nayyar. There were no major disparities between the two of them in terms of character size and screen time, and everything was kept the same throughout the show’s entire run. These two actors also joined the list of top-paid actors on television in the later seasons, and they were earning over $20 million a year.

Beyond that, the introduction of Bernadette made Howard stand out in the ensemble with some bigger storylines.

From the beginning, Howard was made an essential voice in the series largely due to his combative nature with Sheldon Cooper. While the two were good friends throughout the series, Sheldon showed little to no respect for Howard’s intelligence or career, despite the fact that he would eventually literally go into space. Beyond that, the introduction of Bernadette made Howard stand out in the ensemble with some bigger storylines.

Kaley Cuoco: $60,000 – $1,000,000

Character: Penny

The main three members of this cast, as reflected by their salaries, have been widely known as Johnny Galecki, Kaley Cuoco, and Jim Parsons (Leonard, Penny, and Sheldon respectively). Kaley Cuoco is the perfect Penny, and is arguably the main character of the show – without her, none of the major stories of the series would have even happened.

Salary negotiations for Cuoco, Parsons, and Galecki happened at the same points in the show’s run.

Salary negotiations for Cuoco, Parsons, and Galecki happened at the same points in the show’s run. She had a similar rise in salary to Parsons and Galecki, and ended up hitting the one million mark in The Big Bang Theory cast salaries – and becoming the second-highest-paid actress in the world at the time. Interestingly, despite getting a huge payday in the end, Cuoco wasn’t the original Penny in The Big Bang Theory pilot as Canadian actor Amanda Walsh was originally cast as the female lead.

Johnny Galecki: $60,000 – $1,000,000

Character: Leonard Hofstadter

Johnny Galecki had a similar salary from start to finish as his co-star, Jim Parsons. As Leonard, he was one of the core characters, and that was reflected as the series progressed. His career and relationship with Penny grew throughout the series while Penny found herself along the way. By the final season, like all the Big Bang Theory casts’ salaries, his salary greatly increased – all the way to one million dollars per episode.

Johnny Galecki received several nominations for his role as Leonard Hofstadter on
The Big Bang Theory,
including a Primetime Emmy in 2011 and a Golden Globe in 2012, and won a Satellite Award in 2012.

Unsurprisingly, this also put him on the list of best-paid actors and reflects his importance to the show. From pilot to finale, he’s one of the biggest and most important characters in the comedy, so it’s no surprise that he was earning as much as Cuoco and Parsons were. While Leonard was not the scene-stealing character that Sheldon was and often had to play the straight role to all the wackiness, Galecki’s performance was essential to the success of the show. Along with providing a strong, grounded center, the romance between Leonard and Penny boosted the show early on.

Jim Parsons: $60,000 – $1,000,000

Character: Sheldon Cooper

Jim Parsons will forever be known as Sheldon Cooper in the minds and hearts of all television fans, regardless of whether they’re die-hard fans of this show. Starting off, Parsons made a salary of $60,000. By the middle seasons, he was making about $300,000. However, that nearly quadrupled by the end! By season 8, Jim Parsons was making over 1 million dollars per episode and was the highest-paid actor on television (via Forbes).

While Jim Parsons’ exact pay for narrating the prequel series Young Sheldon is unknown, he was rumored to be making $1.5 million more for the season than his Big Bang Theory cast members in the final season of the flagship series (via The Things). Since the main cast had all negotiated for salary increases for pay parity, that would mean Parsons’ additional income would be coming from Young Sheldon. Whether that is entirely true, or whether the amount has increased, however, is unknown. What is known is that The Big Bang Theory cast salaries changed drastically from the first episode to the series finale.

The Young Sheldon Cast Salaries Compared To The Big Bang Theory

Given the success of The Big Bang Theory, it was inevitable that the network would attempt to capitalize on it and develop some sort of franchise. Indeed, Young Sheldon marked the first spinoff series and served as a prequel, following Sheldon Cooper as a young boy genius before he met the other characters from The Big Bang Theory. The show never quite reached the popularity of the original series, but it did become a success in its own right, leading to a similar story of some gradual salary increases over the course of Young Sheldon‘s seven seasons.

Iain Armitage had some big shoes to fill, playing a younger version of Sheldon Cooper, but he nailed the role. According to The Richest, Armitage started off on the series earning $30,000 per episode, which was the same as his co-stars Zoe Perry and Lance Barber who played his onscreen family. It is also thought that the two actors playing the other Cooper children, Reagan Revord and Montana Jordan were making roughly $10,000 per episode when the show started.

Stream
The Big Bang Theory
on Max.

The Big Bang Theory cast were able to command some of the highest salaries on television the more popular the sitcom became. While Young Sheldon never reached those heights, its popularity allowed the cast to earn ten times the salary they started with by the end of the series. Armitage became the breakout star and was rumored to receive $300,000 per episode by the end as the show’s lead. Barber and Perry received an estimated $150,000 while Revord and Jordan earned $100,000.

The Big Bang Theory Cast’s Highest Salary Since The Show Ended

Considering the fact that the cast of The Big Bang Theory became the highest-paid actors on television by the time the show ended, it would not be surprising if they didn’t manage to surpass that payday ever again in their careers. However, the cast has largely been active since the show’s end, making for some respectable paydays. Kaley Cuoco has been the most active of The Big Bang Theory cast since the show ended with the series The Flight Attendant and Harley Quinn.

While The Flight Attendant and Harley Quinn are popular series, Cuoco’s salary would not likely be anywhere close to the $1 million per episode payday she received on The Big Bang Theory. However, with her lead roles in streaming movies like Meet Cute and Role Play, it is likely that the actor was commanding a payday of around $2 million to $5 million. On the other hand, Johnny Galecki has largely stepped away from acting, with his only post-Big Bang Theory job being guest appearances on The Conners, which would likely pay $100,000 to $300,000 per episode.

Many of the other actors on the show would similarly be paid smaller salaries in the more modest projects they have been in. Simon Heldberg has appeared in the indie movie Annette alongside Adam Driver and guest starred on Poker Face, while Kunal Nayyar starred alongside Adam Sandler in Spaceman and voiced Guy Diamond in the Trolls movies. While these are notable roles, none would fetch a very large payday.

One of the most interesting reported salaries from the cast of The Big Bang Theory comes from Jim Parsons. Parsons has had some notable roles in recent years, such as Hollywood and The Boys in the Band. However, Parsons is also the only actor to have reprised his role from The Big Bang Theory, serving as the narrator of Young Sheldon along with a cameo in the finale. Despite it largely being a voice-over role, Parsons was reportedly paid $1.5 million per season.