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Each of the six principal Friends actors was reported to earn $1 million per episode in seasons nine and ten. They did not earn that amount throughout the series: their reported pay began at $22,500 per episode, then rose over successive seasons. Rerun and syndication compensation was separate from the episode-salary figures.
How the cast’s reported pay changed by season
The Television Academy’s 2024 anniversary oral history reports this progression for Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, David Schwimmer, Matthew Perry and Matt LeBlanc. These are historical figures, not current earnings.
| Season or deal | Reported pay per actor |
|---|---|
| Original contract | $22,500 per episode |
| Season two | Different salaries; no single shared amount stated |
| Season three | $75,000 per episode |
| Season four | $85,000 per episode |
| Season five | $100,000 per episode |
| Season six | $125,000 per episode |
| Seasons seven and eight | $750,000 per episode in the Television Academy’s retrospective summary |
| Seasons nine and ten | $1 million per episode |
The figures come from the Television Academy’s oral history, which includes accounts from former NBC president Warren Littlefield and the show’s creators. Its season-two entry does not give one common salary, so it would be misleading to assign the group a single figure for that season.
What the $750,000 and $1 million figures mean
The pay language varies across reports, and the figures should not be treated as an all-in account of every dollar the actors received. The Television Academy summarizes seasons seven and eight at $750,000 per episode. A contemporaneous Washington Post report from May 2000 described the new deal differently: each actor was to receive $750,000 a week for 24 weeks per season, plus a share of syndication revenue. The paper said their previous rate was $125,000 per episode and that they had initially sought $1 million per episode for the next two seasons.
In February 2002, the Los Angeles Times reported that the next season’s salary was believed to exceed $1 million per cast member per episode, while noting that the parties would not disclose the specific terms. The report also described advances against rerun profits as part of the cast’s compensation. The Television Academy’s later summary gives seasons nine and ten as $1 million per episode. These accounts refer to different dates and compensation terms; they do not establish one exact per-episode total that combines salary, advances and syndication participation.
Why the six negotiated as a group
Before season three, the six actors chose to negotiate collectively, despite Warner Bros.’ preference for individual deals, according to the Television Academy oral history. Littlefield recalled Schwimmer saying he did not want a workplace in which one cast member earned more than the others. The ensemble sought equal treatment as its bargaining position.
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A 2023 TVLine report says Aniston described how unequal pay might have harmed the group and reports that she and Schwimmer accepted a pay cut going into season three so their pay would align with their castmates. That is attributed reporting about the negotiations, not a publicly available contract record.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Salary per episode is not the same as rerun income
An episode rate answers how much an actor was paid under a reported salary arrangement for an episode. It does not by itself state the value of syndication participation, later rerun payments or advances against profits. The 2000 and 2002 reports describe rerun-related compensation in addition to salary, but the public accounts cited here do not establish the cast’s exact residual percentages or individual accounting.
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For comparisons with another show, check that both figures refer to the same season and measure: base salary per episode versus broader compensation, and each actor versus the cast as a whole. A $1 million season-nine salary figure is not directly comparable to another show’s contract package if that package includes rerun or profit participation.
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