There’s a monstrous gap between typical salaries in the NBA and the WNBA. That will be incredibly evident as one reads through this list. But these 20 players are bringing home the biggest salaries. It’s also important to note that these figures do not include sponsorships.
20. Natasha Cloud: $200,000
Natasha Cloud was a second-round pick, 15th overall in the 2015 draft. She was drafted by the Washington Mystics. In 2019, Cloud became a WNBA champion. In 2022, she was the WNBA assists leader. The team she plays for now is the Phoenix Mercury.
19. Kelsey Plum: $200,000
Kelsey Plum was the first pick for the San Antonio Stars in the 2017 draft. When the San Antonio Stars relocated to Las Vegas, becoming the Las Vegas Aces, Plum went with them. In 2022, she helped lead the Aces to victory and they won the WNBA championship.
18. DeWanna Bonner: $200,000
DeWanna Bonner started her career with the Phoenix Mercury. She was the overall fifth pick of the 2009 draft. In her rookie season, she helped the Mercury win the championship, and then again in 2014. Bonner now plays with the Connecticut Sun.
17. A’ja Wilson: $200,000
A’ja Wilson was drafted first overall by the Las Vegas Aces in 2018. She also won Rookie of the Year that same year. Wilson got the MVP award for the 2020 season, which was a shortened season due to the pandemic. She got her second MVP in 2022, when the Aces also won the championship. She repeated victory in 2023, when the Aces won the championship again.
16. Nneka Ogwumike: $204,500
Nneka Ogwumike was first overall drafted by the Los Angeles Sparks in 2012. She was given the title of MVP and won a championship all in the same year in 2016. Ogwumike now plays for the Seattle Storm.
15. Breanna Stewart: $205,000
During the 2016 draft, Breanna Stewart was drafted first overall by the Seattle Storm. In the 2016 season, she scored a total of 38 points in one game. Stewart also broke the WNBA record for most defensive rebounds in a season, with a total of 277 defensive rebounds. She now plays for the New York Liberty.
14. Sabrina Ionescu: $205,030
Sabrina Ionescu was drafted in 2020. Since then, she has had quite the record. She is the first player in WNBA history to score over 500 points. In one single season, Ionescu got 200 or more rebounds and 200 or more assists.
13. Kelsey Mitchell: $206,000
Kelsey Mitchell was drafted in 2018 by the Indiana Fever. She still plays for the Fever and has been playing very well for the team. She is a great scorer who scores a lot of points!
12. Kayla McBride: $206,500
Kayla McBride was drafted third overall in the 2014 draft by the San Antonio Stars. In 2018, she went to the Los Vegas Aces. She currently is on the Minnesota Lynx and has been since 2021. McBride also plays overseas on the off-season.
11. Marina Mabrey: $206,667
Marina Mabrey was a second-round pick for the Los Angeles Sparks in 2019. She was then traded to the Dallas Wings before the 2020 season. Mabrey then went to the Chicago Sky and is now on the Connecticut Sun. She also has played internationally.
10. Alyssa Thomas: $209,000
Alyssa Thomas was 4th overall in the 2014 WNBA draft by the New York Liberty. She was immediately traded to the Sun. The 32-year-old power forward was named to the 2014 WNBA All-Rookie Team. She was voted to the 2017 WNBA All-Star Game. In 2023, Thomas was named the Defensive Player of the Year of the 2022–23 EuroLeague Women.
9. Skylar Diggins-Smith: $211,343
Notre Dame alum Skylar Diggins-Smith won the Nancy Lieberman Award as the top point guard in the nation twice. She was drafted third overall by the Tulsa Shock in 2013. Skylar won the 2014 WNBA Most Improved Player Award. She was a 2018 WNBA All-Star. Now with the Seattle Storm, Skylar, age 34, signed a two-year deal in February 2024.
8. Brionna Jones: $212,000
Connecticut Sun selected power forward Brionna Jones 8th in the 2017 WNBA draft from the University of Maryland. Jones, age 28, showed top star potential in 2020. She upped her game in 2021, becoming a WNBA All-Star and was named WNBA Most Improved Player. A ruptured Achilles tendon ended her 2023 season.
7. Erica Wheeler: $222,154
Indiana Fever point guard Erica Wheeler, age 33, played for Rutgers and reached the NCAA tournament in each of her first three seasons. After college, she went undrafted. In 2015, she joined the Atlanta Dream. She signed with the Fever in 2016. In 2019, she became the first undrafted player in WNBA history to be named All-Star Game MVP.
6. Natasha Howard: $224,675
In addition to WNBA play, Dallas Wings power forward Natasha Howard, age 32, has also played in the Women’s Basketball Super League EuroLeague Women. She was named WNBA Defensive Player of the Year in 2019. In college, playing for Florida State University, she finished sixth in the NCAA for field goal percentage.
5. Diana Taurasi: $234,936
Phoenix Mercury point guard/shooting guard Diana Taurasi, age 42, has an impressive resume. WNBA Rookie of the Year, three WNBA championships, six Olympic gold medals, one WNBA MVP, two WNBA Finals MVP Awards, and three FIBA World Cups. She’s been selected to ten WNBA All-Star teams and fourteen All-WNBA teams. In 2017, Taurasi became the WNBA’s all-time leading scorer.
4. Arike Ogunbowale: $241,984
Dallas Wings point guard Arike Ogunbowale, age 27, played college ball at Notre Dame and was named the Most Outstanding Player in the Fighting Irish’s 2018 national title run. Ogunbowale has twice been named the WNBA All-Star Game MVP. She also competed in season 26 of Dancing with the Stars.
3. Kahleah Copper: $245,059
Kahleah Copper, age 29, is a shooting guard/small forward for the Phoenix Mercury. She began with the Washington Mystics in 2016. In 2017, traded to the Chicago Sky in 2017 and spent three years on the bench. She became a starter in 2020 and was named a WNBA All-Star. She won a gold medal at the 2024 Summer Olympics.
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2. Jewell Loyd: $245,508
Jewell Loyd, a.k.a. the “Golden Mamba,” is a 30-year-old point guard/shooting guard for the Seattle Storm. She won gold medals with Team USA at the 2020 and 2024 Summer Olympics. She was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2015 WNBA Draft. Loyd played for Notre Dame and was named ESPN’s women’s college basketball player of the year 2014-2015.
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1. Jackie Young: $252,450
Jackie Young is a shooting guard for the Las Vegas Aces. The twenty-six-year-old signed a two-year, $504,900 contract extension with the Aces. The shooting guard is a two-time WNBA champion. She has 12 Olympic gold medals, one in the Women’s 3×3 basketball at the 2020 Summer Olympics and another in the 5×5 basketball at the 2024 Summer Olympics.
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