How much has Ellen DeGeneres earned so far? Good enough to never host a talk show again
Ellen DeGeneres has made a huge fortune from her long career, especially from hosting 'The Ellen DeGeneres Show' for almost 20 years. Even though she decided to end the show, her net worth remains strong. She has earned millions from TV and comedy specials, books, and business ventures like her home decor line. According to Celebrity Net Worth, Ellen’s net worth is $500 million. This number can change depending on her income from books, comedy, and lifestyle brands. Still, even without her talk show, she is financially secure. Ellen wasn’t always wealthy. In a 2018 episode of 'The Ellen DeGeneres Show', she told viewers, “I was poor growing up.” Her income now is far beyond what she had as a child.
A big part of her fortune comes from her talk show salary. Variety reported in 2020 that she earned “more than $50 million per year from her Telepictures deal” and got “about 60 percent of advertising, carrying fee, and product placement profits,” according to Business Insider. Forbes estimated her yearly earnings at up to $84 million. Besides her show, she makes money from her production company, A Very Good Production, and brand deals with companies like American Express and JCPenney. Ellen has spoken about growing up without much money.
In a 2011 interview with Good Housekeeping, she said, “We never owned a house when I was growing up. We rented, and we moved about every two years, just far enough to have to start at a new school. My mother was a real estate agent for a little while, so I was always looking at houses with her. We couldn’t afford to buy one, so it was a frustrating thing as a kid. You’re imagining, ‘This is going to be my room,’ and then it was like, ‘Oh, we can’t afford it.’” Her career started in the 1980s as a stand-up comedian, as reported by Stylecaster. One of her biggest early moments was appearing on 'The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson' in 1986. She later starred in her own sitcom, 'Ellen', from 1994 to 1998. In 1997, she made history by coming out as a lesbian on 'The Oprah Winfrey Show' one of the first openly gay actors to lead a TV show. Around the same time, her character on 'Ellen', Ellen Morgan, also came out.
Ellen became a talk show host in 2003 when 'The Ellen DeGeneres Show' launched. Her career took off even more after that. She voiced Dory in 'Finding Nemo' and its sequel 'Finding Dory'. She was briefly a judge on American Idol in 2010 and hosted major award shows like the Oscars, Grammys, and Emmys. Beyond TV, Ellen has built successful businesses. She started her lifestyle brand, ED by Ellen DeGeneres, in 2015, selling clothes, shoes, and home goods. In 2018, she teamed up with Walmart to create a budget-friendly clothing line, EV1. She has also written several books, including 'My Point…And I Do Have One', 'The Funny Thing Is…,' and 'Seriously…I’m Kidding'.
Before she became famous, Ellen worked many different jobs to make a living. Lisa Iannucci’s book 'Ellen DeGeneres: A Biography' describes how Ellen once “sold clothes at the Merry-Go-Round chain store at the Lakeside Shopping Center, served food, painted houses, worked at a car wash, bar-tended, wrapped gifts…sold Hoover vacuums and shucked oysters” to earn money. Ellen’s success today is far from where she started, but her hard work and talent have made her one of the richest women in entertainment.