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Ryan Seacrest is one of the most famous personalities in the world, and has been a television staple for over a decade. It should then come as no surprise that Seacrest has raked in quite a bite of money over the year.
While estimates of Seacrest’s net worth vary from site to site, most outlets report that the host of Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve has an estimated net worth $380 million. Read on to learn more about where Seacrest makes his money and how he likes to spend it.
1. He Currently Earns $12 Million Per Season As Host of ‘American Idol’
Seacrest hosted all 15 seasons of American Idol on Fox, which ran from June 11, 2002 to April 7, 2016. In 2009, the Hollywood Reporter stated that his American Idol salary jumped from $5 million to $15 million. Seacrest rejoined the series when it came back on March 11, 2018, but his salary dipped slightly to $12 million, with Business Insider citing that Katy Perry’s whopping $25 million salary was the cause. Seacrest is slated to remain the host of American Idol through 2019.
In addition to his Idol duties, Seacrest is currently the host of the morning talk show Live! with Kelly and Ryan opposite Kelly Ripa. He joined the show on May 1, 2017, and he earns an annual salary of $15 million. He is also the host of On Air with Ryan Seacrest, which launched in 2004 but didn’t start its national syndication until 2008. According to OK Magazine, Seacrest earns another $15 million per year from the radio’s parent company, Clear Channel Media & Entertainment.
When asked how he maintains his busy work schedule, Seacrest told GQ that he works fast and efficiently. “Consolidation is something I’ve learned,” he said. “I’ve got a lot of things in the same place. For instance, I’ve got the radio show, but then I can walk across the hall to the TV studio. Another thing that allows me to stay on top of things is that I’ve got a great team. I try to find an expert in each of the places I’m working, and I keep updated through them.”
2. His Menswear Line ‘Ryan Seacrest Distinction’ Hit $50 Million In Retail Sales In 2018
Seacrest told Business of Fashion that his interest in menswear started after he formed a relationship with Burberry designer Christopher Bailey. Bailey custom designed suits for Seacrest during his tenure on American Idol, and inspired him to create a line of his own that was more affordable for the average consumer.
“I wanted to [create] something that provided that same sort of feeling to people when they would put it on,” Seacrest explained. “Something that was accessible in its price point, that really was made of great quality, for the guy who had an eye for detail.” He would go on to launch Ryan Seacrest Distinction in 2014 through an exclusive retail deal with Macy’s. The line provides accessories such as ties, pocket squares, belts, cufflinks and jewelry. In 2017, Seacrest announced that the line would be collaborating with Japan’s Itochu, which also produces sportswear.
Business of Fashion reports that the Distinction line recently hit a whopping $50 million in retail sales. When asked why he thinks the line has proven so popular with consumers, Seacrest chalked it up to accessibility. “My life involves velocity and moving from one thing to the next… whether that be professional or social,” he said. “Because that is part of our DNA, it perhaps appeals to a younger customer that’s living this lifestyle.”
Seacrest also explained the importance of global branding. “At the end of the day…having a presence in culture is important for a brand to grow and a brand to succeed and a brand to gain trust,” he admitted. “Kris Jenner and all of the family are some of the most brilliant marketers in the world, as you’ve been able to see with the empires they’ve been able to build together and individually.”
3. He Executive Produces 12 TV Shows Including ‘Keeping Up With the Kardashians’ & Its Spinoffs
Ryan Seacrest Productions hit paydirt in 2007 with the reality series Keeping Up With the Kardashians. The series became an immediate hit and today remains the company’s flagship program. When asked by Haute Living what his inspiration was, Seacrest said that he was inspired by the Osborne family. “I loved watching The Osbournes, which was really the first show of this [reality] genre,” he said. “I started thinking about what another show could be like or who another show could be about, which is how [The Kardashians] started.”
In addition to producing all of the Keeping Up With the Kardashians spinoffs like Life of Kylie, Khloe & Lamar, and Kourtney and Kim Take Miami, Ryan Seacrest Productions produces produces Bravo’s Shah’s of Sunset, Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution and NBC’s Shades of Blue starring Jennifer Lopez.
Despite the success that the company has seen, Seacrest revealed that he is always striving to innovate and stay ahead of the next popular entertainment trend. “Right now we are exploring more and more in the digital world. I’ve been making investments in quite a few digital companies,” he said. “We will definitely be creating and producing more hours of digital content than ever before soon.”
4. He Launched the Ryan Seacrest Foundation In 2010 & Has Made Donations to Several Other Charities
Seacrest told Haute Living that his good fortune has always served as a reminder to help those in need. “I’m so grateful that I get to do it, and I feel like as long as I have the opportunity, I should do as much as I humanly can,” he reasoned. As a result, he launched the Ryan Seacrest Foundation in 2010. According to their official website, the Foundation is dedicated to inspiring children through entertainment and education focused initiatives.
“Over the course of hosting American Idol, we would go to different hospitals and hang out with kids,” Seacrest said. “I heard stories from the parents about how often their kids ran out of things to do; they got bored, and their parents couldn’t afford to entertain them. They wished their kids had more to do in the hospital during these hard times—something to look forward to and get them out of bed and be active. That’s how I came up with the concept.”
“[My family and I] are building broadcast media centers in pediatric hospitals around the country,” he added. “There are eight of them—soon to be ten in 2015. I’m proud of the work we do helping to give these kids and their families a break from the challenges they are facing, whether it is calling in to the studio to ask Taylor Swift a question, or listening to and watching her perform from their rooms.”
In addition to the Ryan Seacrest Foundation, Seacrest is an honorary chairman of the GRAMMY Foundation, where he helped raise funds for industry colleagues and friends with the Motion Picture and Television Fund in August. He also makes donations to DoSomething.org and Dogs In Danger, according to Desert News.
5. He Earns a $1 Million Salary for Hosting ‘Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve’
In 2005, Seacrest stepped in to co-host Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve on ABC. He took over hosting and producing responsibilities from Dick Clark the following year, and has since earned $1 million annually for his duties. All together, that means he’s earned an additional $12 million to his overall net worth.
During an interview with Billboard, Seacrest reflected on his decade of hosting, as well as working alongside co-host Jenny McCarthy. “My memories from the beginning were that every New Year’s Eve, I would be outside for the majority of it,” he explained. “Jenny would as well, and then we would each come in to see Dick inside. During the commercial break, I always wanted his feedback. ‘How did it go? How did it look?’ I just wanted him to be happy and feel like we did a great job. The memory that sticks out to me is his stamp of approval when we would come in.”
Seacrest also spoke on the legacy of his predecessor, Dick Clark. “Every time we sign on to do this broadcast, we remember working with him for for many years before we did it on our own,” he said. “We have so much respect for the franchise that he built and the kind of guy that he is, and the smoothness in which he makes it all work… There isn’t a moment on this show where I don’t remember vivid memories of working with him.”