How Much LeBron James, Cristiano Ronaldo and Other Athletes Make for a Social Media Post

One easy measure of an athlete’s popularity is the amount of social media followers he or she has. It’s a quantifiable measure of a star’s fans.

Read: Athletes Who Make Most of Their Money From Endorsements

Not surprisingly, athletes have learned how to cash in on that celebrity, making money for social media posts. The bigger the name and the more followers, the higher rate of pay.

GOBankingRates looked at the top athletes on the Sports Social Media Richlist from BonusFinder.com, picking out some of the best-known athletes.

The top of the overall list is heavy on soccer, with 20 of the top 22 players from that sport. That makes sense since they are usually international stars.

Read on and check out where top U.S. stars such as LeBron James land.

• Pay per post: $1,247,157

The Juventus striker, one of the greatest soccer players in the world, is also the most followed man in the world on Instagram, with 274 million followers.

See: These Stars Get Paid Obscene Amounts of Money To Post One Picture

• Pay per post: $873,495

Ronaldo’s rival for the title of greatest soccer player in the world, Lionel Messi is far behind him in the amount he’s paid per post. However, with 195 million followers, Messi is good for second on this list.

Find Out: Athletes Set To Earn Big Money in 2021

• Pay per post: $379,485

The first U.S. athlete on the list is four-time NBA champion LeBron James. He’s the preeminent star of one of the league’s most high-profile teams, the Los Angeles Lakers, and he has 81.9 million Instagram followers.

More: How 18 of the World’s Best Athletes Spend Their Fortunes

• Pay per post: $316,399

International soccer superstar David Beckham retired in 2013, but he’s still a huge draw on social media, with 65.7 million Instagram followers.

Read: Who’s Richer: These Sports Stars or Their Significant Others?

• Pay per post: $157,714.50

NBA superstar Stephen Curry has 33.2 million followers, and he’s No. 2 in pro basketball in how much he’s paid per post. As a side note, his wife, Ayesha Curry, is no slouch with 7.3 million followers.

See: 25 of the Richest Former NCAA Tournament Stars

• Pay per post: $69,394.38

Cleveland Browns wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. is the first athlete who doesn’t play soccer or NBA basketball on the Sport Social Media Richlist 2021. The receiver has 14.3 million Instagram followers.

Find Out: Biggest Sports Contracts Ever

• Pay per post: $62,115.25

The first female athlete on the list is no surprise, as Serena Williams is easily the most well-known women’s athlete in the world. Winning 23 Grand Slam titles will do that for you. Williams has 13 million Instagram followers.

More: Richest Athletes Younger Than 40

• Pay per post: $57,262.49

Kevin Durant is considered one of the best players in the NBA, and he has a stellar following of 11.8 million on Instagram. Of course, we’re not counting any possible burner accounts — Durant is known to have more than one Twitter account, so who knows about Instagram?

Read: The Richest Athletes in the World

• Pay per post: $50,468.64

Rafael Nadal, whose 20 Grand Slam titles are tied with Roger Federer for the most in men’s tennis history, tops his longtime rival in Instagram followers (10.5 million to 8.1 million).

See: Injuries Cost These 13 Athletes a Fortune

• Pay per post: $44,645.34

Alex Morgan, the U.S. women’s soccer superstar, is the second-highest ranked female on the list. She has 9.2 million followers.

More From GOBankingRates

• Nominate Your Favorite Small Business and Share With Your Community 
• Should the COVID-19 Vaccine Be Required? Take Our Poll
• What Income Level Is Considered Middle Class in Your State?
• 20 Ways To Pay Less at Costco