Which Athletes Earn the Most Per Hour?

Sports fans have had a tough go of it over the last few months. Not only have they been trapped at home, but they have been trapped at home with no sports. Every major league has either canceled or shortened their seasons — aside from the NFL — and for most pro athletes, that means smaller paychecks.

See: 13 Ways To Support Sports Teams Without Attending a Game

The pros don’t get paid by the hour, but if they did, what exactly would that look like? In this study, GOBankingRates took the highest-paid athletes across the NBA, NFL, NHL and MLB and broke their salaries down by the money they earn per hour of game time. Additional calculations were made to determine how much each athlete earns per hour of an entire year and per hour of total broadcast for a game. All figures were prorated to account for the shortened seasons.

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NBA and NFL players dominate the day. Not a single hockey player made the list, and only two MLB players squeaked in. One glaring omission is the NFL’s Patrick Mahomes; the quarterback’s recently signed $503 million mega-contract doesn’t start until next year, which caused him to miss the cut here.

Keep reading to learn about the athletes who earn the most money per hour.

Last updated: April 16, 2021

50. Giancarlo Stanton

Player info:
- League: MLB
- 2019-2020 team: New York Yankees
- Position: DH/OF
- 2019-2020 payroll salary: $26,000,000
- Games played in 2019-2020: 18
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $468,469
- Per hour for a year: $2,968
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $385,185

Read: The Highest-Paid Player on Every NFL, MLB and NBA Team

49. Andre Drummond

Player info:
- League: NBA
- 2019-2020 team: Cleveland Cavaliers
- Position: C
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $22,156,123
- Games played in 2019-2020: 57
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $485,880
- Per hour for a year: $2,529
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $175,355

Read: Injuries Cost These 13 Athletes a Fortune

48. Tobias Harris

Player info:
- League: NBA
- 2019-2020 team: Philadelphia 76ers
- Position: PF
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $25,954,583
- Games played in 2019-2020: 65
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $499,127
- Per hour for a year: $2,963
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $180,136

47. Andrew Wiggins

Player info:
- League: NBA
- 2019-2020 team: Golden State Warriors
- Position: SF
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $21,802,920
- Games played in 2019-2020: 54
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $504,697
- Per hour for a year: $2,489
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $182,146

46. Damian Lillard

Player info:
- League: NBA
- 2019-2020 team: Portland Trail Blazers
- Position: PG
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $23,624,300
- Games played in 2019-2020: 58
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $509,144
- Per hour for a year: $2,697
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $183,751

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45. Kevin Love

Player info:
- League: NBA
- 2019-2020 team: Cleveland Cavaliers
- Position: PF
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $22,942,981
- Games played in 2019-2020: 56
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $512,120
- Per hour for a year: $2,619
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $184,825

44. Nikola Vučević

Player info:
- League: NBA
- 2019-2020 team: Orlando Magic
- Position: C
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $22,195,600
- Games played in 2019-2020: 54
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $513,787
- Per hour for a year: $2,534
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $185,427

43. Khris Middleton

Player info:
- League: NBA
- 2019-2020 team: Milwaukee Bucks
- Position: SF
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $24,259,353
- Games played in 2019-2020: 55
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $551,349
- Per hour for a year: $2,769
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $198,983

42. Jimmy Butler

Player info:
- League: NBA
- 2019-2020 team: Miami Heat
- Position: SF
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $25,954,583
- Games played in 2019-2020: 54
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $600,801
- Per hour for a year: $2,963
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $216,830

41. Felix Hernandez

Player info:
- League: MLB
- 2019-2020 team: Seattle Mariners
- Position: SP
- 2019-2020 payroll salary: $27,857,142
- Games played in 2019-2020: 15
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $602,317
- Per hour for a year: $3,180
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $495,238

40. Chris Paul

Player info:
- League: NBA
- 2019-2020 team: Oklahoma City Thunder
- Position: PG
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $30,524,088
- Games played in 2019-2020: 63
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $605,637
- Per hour for a year: $3,484
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $218,576

Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP / Shutterstock.com

39. LeBron James

Player info:
- League: NBA
- 2019-2020 team: Los Angeles Lakers
- Position: PG
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $29,676,197
- Games played in 2019-2020: 60
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $618,254
- Per hour for a year: $3,388
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $223,129

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38. Joel Embiid

Player info:
- League: NBA
- 2019-2020 team: Philadelphia 76ers
- Position: C
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $21,802,920
- Games played in 2019-2020: 44
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $619,401
- Per hour for a year: $2,489
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $223,543

37. James Harden

Player info:
- League: NBA
- 2019-2020 team: Houston Rockets
- Position: SG
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $30,280,347
- Games played in 2019-2020: 61
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $620,499
- Per hour for a year: $3,457
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $223,939

36. Kawhi Leonard

Player info:
- League: NBA
- 2019-2020 team: Los Angeles Clippers
- Position: SF
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $25,954,583
- Games played in 2019-2020: 51
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $636,142
- Per hour for a year: $2,963
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $229,585

35. Kemba Walker

Player info:
- League: NBA
- 2019-2020 team: Boston Celtics
- Position: PG
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $25,954,583
- Games played in 2019-2020: 50
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $648,865
- Per hour for a year: $2,963
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $234,177

34. Kyle Lowry

Player info:
- League: NBA
- 2019-2020 team: Toronto Raptors
- Position: PG
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $27,741,564
- Games played in 2019-2020: 52
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $666,865
- Per hour for a year: $3,167
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $240,673

33. Paul Millsap

Player info:
- League: NBA
- 2019-2020 team: Denver Nuggets
- Position: PF
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $24,058,445
- Games played in 2019-2020: 44
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $683,479
- Per hour for a year: $2,746
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $246,669

32. Russell Westbrook

Player info:
- League: NBA
- 2019-2020 team: Houston Rockets
- Position: PG
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $30,524,088
- Games played in 2019-2020: 53
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $719,908
- Per hour for a year: $3,484
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $259,816

31. Gordon Hayward

Player info:
- League: NBA
- 2019-2020 team: Boston Celtics
- Position: SF
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $25,921,837
- Games played in 2019-2020: 45
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $720,051
- Per hour for a year: $2,959
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $259,868

30. Paul George

Player info:
- League: NBA
- 2019-2020 team: Los Angeles Clippers
- Position: SF
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $26,163,504
- Games played in 2019-2020: 42
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $778,676
- Per hour for a year: $2,987
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $281,026

29. Mike Conley

Player info:
- League: NBA
- 2019-2020 team: Utah Jazz
- Position: PG
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $25,771,964
- Games played in 2019-2020: 41
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $785,731
- Per hour for a year: $2,942
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $283,572

28. Allen Robinson

Player info:
- League: NFL
- 2019-2020 team: Chicago Bears
- Position: WR
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $16,000,000
- Games played in 2019-2020: 16
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $1,000,000
- Per hour for a year: $1,826
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $295,567

27. Andrew Norwell

Player info:
- League: NFL
- 2019-2020 team: Los Angeles Rams
- Position: G
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $16,000,000
- Games played in 2019-2020: 16
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $1,000,000
- Per hour for a year: $1,826
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $295,567

Dennis Goodwin/ProSports / Shutterstock.com

26. Andrew Whitworth

Player info:
- League: NFL
- 2019-2020 team: Los Angeles Rams
- Position: LT
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $16,659,168
- Games played in 2019-2020: 16
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $1,041,198
- Per hour for a year: $1,902
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $307,743

25. Odell Beckham Jr.

Player info:
- League: NFL
- 2019-2020 team: Cleveland Browns
- Position: WR
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $17,000,000
- Games played in 2019-2020: 16
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $1,062,500
- Per hour for a year: $1,941
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $314,039

24. Aaron Donald

Player info:
- League: NFL
- 2019-2020 team: Los Angeles Rams
- Position: DT
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $17,108,000
- Games played in 2019-2020: 16
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $1,069,250
- Per hour for a year: $1,953
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $316,034

23. Kyle Fuller

Player info:
- League: NFL
- 2019-2020 team: Chicago Bears
- Position: CB
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $18,000,000
- Games played in 2019-2020: 16
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $1,125,000
- Per hour for a year: $2,055
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $332,512

22. Andy Dalton

Player info:
- League: NFL
- 2019-2020 team: Cincinnati Bengals
- Position: QB
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $16,200,000
- Games played in 2019-2020: 13
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $1,246,154
- Per hour for a year: $1,849
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $368,321

21. Jimmy Garoppolo

Player info:
- League: NFL
- 2019-2020 team: San Francisco 49ers
- Position: QB
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $20,000,000
- Games played in 2019-2020: 16
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $1,250,000
- Per hour for a year: $2,283
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $369,458

20. Jameis Winston

Player info:
- League: NFL
- 2019-2020 team: Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Position: QB
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $20,922,000
- Games played in 2019-2020: 16
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $1,307,625
- Per hour for a year: $2,388
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $386,490

19. Tom Brady

Player info:
- League: NFL
- 2019-2020 team: New England Patriots
- Position: QB
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $21,500,000
- Games played in 2019-2020: 16
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $1,343,750
- Per hour for a year: $2,454
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $397,167

18. Sammy Watkins

Player info:
- League: NFL
- 2019-2020 team: Kansas City Chiefs
- Position: WR
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $19,200,000
- Games played in 2019-2020: 14
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $1,371,429
- Per hour for a year: $2,192
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $405,348

17. Derek Carr

Player info:
- League: NFL
- 2019-2020 team: Oakland Raiders
- Position: QB
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $22,500,000
- Games played in 2019-2020: 16
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $1,406,250
- Per hour for a year: $2,568
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $415,640

16. Philip Rivers

Player info:
- League: NFL
- 2019-2020 team: Los Angeles Chargers
- Position: QB
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $23,000,000
- Games played in 2019-2020: 16
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $1,437,500
- Per hour for a year: $2,626
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $424,877

15. Melvin Ingram

Player info:
- League: NFL
- 2019-2020 team: Los Angeles Chargers
- Position: DE
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $19,625,000
- Games played in 2019-2020: 13
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $1,509,615
- Per hour for a year: $2,240
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $446,192

14. Kyrie Irving

Player info:
- League: NBA
- 2019-2020 team: Brooklyn Nets
- Position: PG
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $25,161,883
- Games played in 2019-2020: 20
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $1,572,618
- Per hour for a year: $2,872
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $567,561

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Grindstone Media Group / Shutterstock.com

13. Russell Wilson

Player info:
- League: NFL
- 2019-2020 team: Seattle Seahawks
- Position: QB
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $26,286,668
- Games played in 2019-2020: 16
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $1,642,917
- Per hour for a year: $3,001
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $485,591

12. Von Miller

Player info:
- League: NFL
- 2019-2020 team: Denver Broncos
- Position: OLB
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $25,125,000
- Games played in 2019-2020: 15
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $1,675,000
- Per hour for a year: $2,868
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $495,074

11. Aaron Rodgers

Player info:
- League: NFL
- 2019-2020 team: Green Bay Packers
- Position: QB
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $29,672,000
- Games played in 2019-2020: 16
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $1,854,500
- Per hour for a year: $3,387
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $548,128

10. Blake Griffin

Player info:
- League: NBA
- 2019-2020 team: Detroit Pistons
- Position: PF
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $27,308,486
- Games played in 2019-2020: 18
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $1,896,423
- Per hour for a year: $3,117
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $684,423

9. Kirk Cousins

Player info:
- League: NFL
- 2019-2020 team: Minnesota Vikings
- Position: QB
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $29,000,000
- Games played in 2019-2020: 15
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $1,933,333
- Per hour for a year: $3,311
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $571,429

8. Drew Brees

Player info:
- League: NFL
- 2019-2020 team: New Orleans Saints
- Position: QB
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $22,700,000
- Games played in 2019-2020: 11
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $2,063,636
- Per hour for a year: $2,591
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $609,942

7. Marcus Mariota

Player info:
- League: NFL
- 2019-2020 team: Tennessee Titans
- Position: QB
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $20,922,000
- Games played in 2019-2020: 7
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $2,988,857
- Per hour for a year: $2,388
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $883,406

6. Matthew Stafford

Player info:
- League: NFL
- 2019-2020 team: Detroit Lions
- Position: QB
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $30,700,000
- Games played in 2019-2020: 8
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $3,837,500
- Per hour for a year: $3,505
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $1,134,236

5. Reshad Jones

Player info:
- League: NFL
- 2019-2020 team: Miami Dolphins
- Position: SS
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $17,191,250
- Games played in 2019-2020: 4
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $4,297,813
- Per hour for a year: $1,962
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $1,270,289

4. Eli Manning

Player info:
- League: NFL
- 2019-2020 team: New York Giants
- Position: QB
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $23,200,000
- Games played in 2019-2020: 4
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $5,800,000
- Per hour for a year: $2,648
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $1,714,286

3. Stephen Curry

Player info:
- League: NBA
- 2019-2020 team: Golden State Warriors
- Position: PG
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $31,891,715
- Games played in 2019-2020: 5
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $7,972,929
- Per hour for a year: $3,641
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $2,877,448

2. Cam Newton

Player info:
- League: NFL
- 2019-2020 team: Carolina Panthers
- Position: QB
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $23,200,000
- Games played in 2019-2020: 2
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $11,600,000
- Per hour for a year: $2,648
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $3,428,571

1. Ben Roethlisberger

Player info:
- League: NFL
- 2019-2020 team: Pittsburgh Steelers
- Position: QB
- 2019-2020 cap hit: $26,200,000
- Games played in 2019-2020: 2
Amount made:
- Per hour of game time: $13,100,000
- Per hour for a year: $2,991
- Per hour for total broadcast time of a game: $3,871,921

More From GOBankingRates

Methodology: In order to find which athletes make the most per hour, GOBankingRates first found the top 25 highest-paid players in terms of cap hit/payroll salary for the NFL, MLB, NHL and NBA as sourced from Spotrac 2019-20 data. The cap hit/payroll salary data was prorated for the shortened NHL and NBA seasons. GOBankingRates then found how many games each player played in during the 2019-2020 season as well as the following data: (1) money earned per hour of game time (NFL: 60 minutes, NHL: 60 minutes, MLB: 225 minutes and NBA: 48 minutes); (2) money earned per hour for an entire year (8,760 hours in a year); and (3) money earned per hour of total broadcast time for a game (NFL: 203 minutes, MLB: 225 minutes, NHL: 140 minutes and NBA: 133 minutes). Time per game broadcast data was sourced from Baseball-Reference, Forbes and FiveThirtyEight. All games played data was sourced from Baseball-Reference, Pro-Football-Reference, Basketball-Reference and Hockey-Reference. Only factor No. 1 was used to determine final rankings. All data was collected and is up to date as of July 14, 2020.