Big bucks in The Big Bang Theory and beyond
American sitcomThe Big Bang Theory(TBBT) spanned 12 epic seasons between 2007 and 2019. Thanks to the show's success, the lead actors’ combined salaries topped $130 million (£102m) by the time the show drew to a close, making them rich as well as famous the world over.
Since the show ended, its stars have gone on toother lucrative projects, from starring inspin-offsto hosting the game showJeopardy!
But which of them has come out on top financially?Read on to discover which star ofThe Big Bang Theorytook home the biggest paycheque and who's made the most money since.All dollar values in US dollars.
Unaired pilot to primetime viewing
The Big Bang Theory didn’t start out as a massive success; the first pilot episode, which featured only Jim Parsons (Sheldon Cooper) and Johnny Galecki (Leonard Hofstadter) from the final cast, neveraired on TV.
ADVERTIsem*nT
Writers Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady reworked the concept and freshened up the cast, and The Big Bang Theoryas we know it todayburst onto screens on CBSin Americain 2007.
The show's 2019 finale drew in almost 18 million viewers,a significant increase on the 8.31 million who regularly tuned in during season one.
Melissa Rauch aka Bernadette Rostenkowski: worth $20 million (£15.7m)
Melissa Rauch was the second female to join the core cast, taking on the role of Penny’s Cheesecake Factory colleague and microbiologist Bernadette, who eventually became Howard’s love interest.
The science-based sitcom wasRauch's big break. Before The Big Bang Theory, the 4’11" actor had a couple of minor TV roles and a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it part in the rom-com I Love You, Man.
Melissa Rauch aka Bernadette Rostenkowski: worth $20 million (£15.7m)
Having joined the cast later than the core five actors, Melissa Rauch reportedly earned$175,000 (£137k) per episode,considerably less than her co-stars.
In later seasons of TBBT,Rauch made $200,000 (£157k) per episode. Thenin 2018, the original five actors – Jim Parsons, Kunal Nayyar, Simon Helberg, Johnny Galecki, and Kaley Cuoco – took a pay cut from an estimated $1 million (£784k) per episode to $900,000 (£706k) to help even out Melissa Rauch and Mayim Bialik’s salaries.
As a result, Rauch is believed to have earned around $425,000 (£333k) per episode by the show's final season, which boasted 24 episodes in total.
Melissa Rauch aka Bernadette Rostenkowski: worth $20 million (£15.7m)
During her time onTBBT,Rauchco-wrote the 2015 filmThe Bronzeand voiced characters inIce Age: Collision CourseandBatman and Harley Quinn. As the show was wrapping, she also released a free children’s book calledThe Tales of Tofuin an attempt to make healthy eating fun and accessible.
Rauch is currently starring in the sitcom Night Court, a revival of the original 80s series, and is also anexecutive producer on the project.
With many TV and movie credits to her name, it’s no surprisethe starlethas amassed a reported fortune of around $20 million (£15.7m).
Mayim Bialik aka Amy Farrah Fowler: worth $25 million (£19.6m)
Mayim Bialik (pictured second from left) made her firstBig Bang Theory appearance as Sheldon’s love interest, Amy Farrah Fowler, in the season three finale in 2010.
Before making her debut on the show, Bialik was already an established actor, having played the main character in NBC’s Blossomfor four years in the early 1990s.
Thatshow didn’t come with the same riches asTBBT, with Bialik confirmingon Jaleel White’s Ever Actorpodcastthat she "did not have the kind of financial success that would’ve set [her] up for the rest of [her] life". Luckily, playing the role of Amy Farrah Fowler was considerably more lucrative…
Mayim Bialik aka Amy Farrah Fowler: worth $25 million (£19.6m)
Like Melissa Rauch, Bialik reportedly earned$175,000 (£137k) per episode of The Big Bang Theory, which rose in the show’s later seasons to$200,000 (£157k) per episode.
Bialik also benefited from a big pay increase in the show’s final season when her co-stars negotiated their own salary cuts.For season 12, she received $425,000 (£333k) per 20-minute episode.
Mayim Bialik aka Amy Farrah Fowler: worth $25 million (£19.6m)
Bialik has more in common with her character than you mightexpect. Shehas a PhD in neuroscience and has been known to tweak the show’s often technical script if writers didn't nailthe science. The long-time vegan also became the co-owner of the plant-based restaurant Bodhi Bowl in Los Angeles when it opened in 2017, and haspenned a vegan recipe book in collaboration with the restaurant’s chef, Ali Cruddas.
In addition to her cookbook, Bialik has written a parenting guide, two children’s books, and a collection of facts about superhero The Flash, who's adored by her on-screen partner, Sheldon. The brainy star has also hosted the long-running quiz show Jeopardy!
Bialik, who will reprise her role as Amy Farrah in the final episode ofTBBTspin-offYoung Sheldon in May,has an estimated total fortune of$25 million (£19.6m).
Kunal Nayyar aka Rajesh 'Raj' Koothrappali: worth $45 million (£35.3m)
Kunal Nayyar shot to fame playing hopeless romantic astrophysicist Rajesh 'Raj' Koothrappali on The Big Bang Theoryin 2007.
Before landing thebreakout role,Nayyar first hit the big screen as a pizza delivery driver in the rom-com movie S.C.I.E.N.C.E in 2004.
Kunal Nayyar aka Rajesh 'Raj' Koothrappali: worth $45 million (£35.3m)
The actor is said to havemade a mere $45,000 (£35.3k) per episode in the first season of the show, which was hiked to $150,000 (£118k) for seasons two to four, and increased by a further $100,000 (£78.4k) for seasons five to seven. Nayyar was reportedly paid around $600,000 (£470k) per episode in later seasons.
Kunal Nayyar aka Rajesh 'Raj' Koothrappali: worth $45 million (£35.3m)
After The Big Bang Theory, Nayyar scored a vocal role in the smash-hit Trolls film series. He's also tackled more dramatic roles, including TV shows Criminal: UK and Apple TV+ thrillerSuspicion (which he's pictured filming here).
Most recently, he appeared in thescience fiction movieSpaceman(2024) alongside Adam Sandler.
Having been catapulted to fame by TBBT, Kunal Nayyar is now worth around $45 million (£35.3m).
Simon Helberg aka Howard Wolowitz: worth $55 million (£43.1m)
Simon Helberg was already an established actor before landing the role ofHoward Wolowitz in The Big Bang Theory.
His previous credits include the Hilary Duff movie A Cinderella Story(2004) and the 2005 George Clooney blockbusterGood Night, and Good Luck.
Simon Helberg aka Howard Wolowitz: worth $55 million (£43.1m)
Taking up a similar supporting role inthe show to Kunal Nayyar, Simon Helberg’s salary saw the same incremental increases from $45,000 (£35.3k) in season one to a high point of $1 million (£784k) per episode in later seasons.
Withsimilar paycheques, it’s no surprise Nayyar and Helberg shared third place in the list of the highest-paid TV actors in the world during the show’s final season in 2018.
Simon Helberg aka Howard Wolowitz: worth $55 million (£43.1m)
Alongside filming forThe Big Bang Theory, Helberg featured in aKung Fu PandaTV series between 2011 and 2016andstarred alongsideMeryl Streep in 2016'sFlorence Foster Jenkins(pictured).
To the delight of fans, Helberg reprised the character of Howard Wolowitz as a voice role in the TBBTspin-offYoung Sheldon in 2021. More recently, he's appeared in TV projects such as Poker Face and Space Oddity.
Theactor is believed to have a net worth of$55 million (£43.1m) today.
Johnny Galecki aka Leonard Hofstadter: worth $100 million (£78.4m)
Johnny Galecki secured his first paid acting role aged just 12 when he featured inMurder Ordainedin 1987.
Hewent on to rack uproles in big-name movies and TV shows, includingNational Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation,Roseanne,andBlossom, alongside futureTBBTco-starMayim Bialik.
Landing the role of Leonard Hofstadter eventually led to Galecki being named the second-highest-paid TV actor in the world in 2018.
Johnny Galecki aka Leonard Hofstadter: worth $100 million (£78.4m)
Johnny Galecki is believed to have started out on a $60,000 (£47k)-per-episodedeal when The Big Bang Theoryfirst aired in 2007, and as the show grew in popularity, his salary skyrocketed.
Galecki earned a million dollars(£784k) per episode in later seasons before agreeing to take a $100,000 (£78.4k) pay cut for the final season.
Johnny Galecki aka Leonard Hofstadter: worth $100 million (£78.4m)
Post-Big Bang, Galecki hasn’t been in the limelight as much as his former co-stars, though he did appear in the 2019 family flickA Dog's Journey and sitcom The Conners.
The star can certainly afford to take a break, though, as he's built up quite the fortune. His estimated net worth today is$100 million (£78.4m).
Kaley Cuoco aka Penny Teller: worth $110 million (£86.2m)
Kaley Cuoco was already an established actor before landing the role of Penny Teller in The Big Bang Theory.
The starlet had a leading role in the comedy series 8 Simple Rules, which ran between 2002 and 2005. But it wasTBBT that shot her to fame, and by 2017she was the world’s second-highest-paid female TV actor.
Cuoco described herBig Bangsalary as "life-changing", as it rocketed from $60,000 (£47k) per episode in season one to an astonishing $1 million (£784k) in later seasons.
Kaley Cuoco aka Penny Teller: worth $110 million (£86.2m)
During later seasons ofThe Big Bang Theory, Cuoco, along with Johnny Galecki and Jim Parsons, negotiated a deal that would land each of them 1% of the show’s backend equity.
It may not sound like much, butgiven Warner Bros was believed to be generating $1 billion (£784m) every year at the show’s peak, it meant the trio received an additional $10 million (£7.8m).
As the show was part of the Screen Actors Guild, the cast was alsoentitled to 80% of their paycheques during the show’s first year of re-runs. They'll continue to profit while the show remains on streaming sites and is aired on TV networks worldwide.
Kaley Cuoco aka Penny Teller: worth $110 million (£86.2m)
In an interview on British chat showThe One Show, Cuoco revealed she'd been anxious about finding another role after the huge success ofTBBT.
She needn’t have worried, as she went on to land theleading rolein HBO’s hugely popular comedy-dramaThe Flight Attendant (pictured), which she starred in between 2020 and 2022.
Cuoco, who most recently starred in the 2024 comedy flick Role Play, has an estimated total fortune of $110 million (£86.2m).
Jim Parsons aka Sheldon Cooper: worth $160 million (£125m)
Undoubtedly the face ofThe Big Bang Theory, leading man Jim Parsons brought the quirky Sheldon Cooper to life.
Forbes namedParsonsthe world’s highest-paid TV actor in 2018 thanks to his starring role in the hit series.
Jim Parsons aka Sheldon Cooper: worth $160 million (£125m)
BeforeThe Big Bang Theoryreally hit its stride, Jim Parsons was on the same salary as Johnny Galecki – $60,000 (£47k) per episode. His salary followed the same upward trajectory as Galecki's, and he accepted the same pay cut to $900,000 (£706k) for the final season of the show.
Parsons comes out on top as the highest-earning cast member thanks to additional endorsem*nt deals, including a seven-figure agreement with Intel.He also boasts a plethora of film and TV credits, including the starring role in the 2015 animated filmHomeand a cameo inThe Simpsons.
Jim Parsons aka Sheldon Cooper: worth $160 million (£125m)
Sheldon Cooper was such a popular character that he got his own spin-off in 2017 called Young Sheldon. Although Young Sheldonfeatures Iain Armitage (pictured left) as Cooper’s childhood self, Jim Parsons narratesthe show.
However, Parsons will reprise his role as Sheldon Cooper in the final episode of the spin-off series, which airs in May.
It's estimated that the star has a net worth of $160 million (£124.4m).
Now discover what the Brat Pack did next and who's richest today
