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1Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems2Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches3Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsTim Cook’s Apple salary was $3 million in fiscal 2025, but Apple reported total compensation of $74.3 million, most of it in stock awards. Forbes estimated his net worth at $3.1 billion on July 28, 2026. Cook became Apple’s executive chairman on September 1, 2026, when John Ternus became CEO.
What did Tim Cook earn from Apple in 2025?
Apple reported $74,294,811 in total compensation for Cook for its 2025 fiscal year. That figure is not his salary: it combines base pay, an annual cash incentive, the accounting value of stock awards and other compensation. Apple’s proxy statement reports the following breakdown:
| Component | 2025 amount | What it represents |
|---|---|---|
| Base salary | $3,000,000 | Fixed annual salary |
| Stock awards | $57,535,293 | Grant-date accounting value, not necessarily cash received |
| Cash incentive | $12,000,000 | Annual incentive compensation |
| Other compensation | $1,759,518 | Reported benefits and other items |
| Total | $74,294,811 | Apple-reported total compensation |
Apple says Cook’s $3 million salary has been unchanged since 2016. The total reported compensation was $74,609,802 in fiscal 2024 and $63,209,845 in fiscal 2023. These are annual proxy-statement figures, not a measure of cash deposited in Cook’s account. Apple’s 2026 proxy statement provides the compensation figures and methodology.
Why is his reported compensation so much higher than his salary?
Apple’s compensation structure uses cash pay and equity incentives, rather than relying on salary alone. Equity can support retention and link a portion of an executive’s compensation to company performance and shareholder returns. Cook’s 2025 reported stock-award value was about 77% of his total reported compensation, but that does not mean he received $57.5 million in cash that year.
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The distinction matters because equity compensation passes through several different stages:
- Grant-date value: The proxy’s stock-award figure is an accounting value assigned when an award is granted under SEC reporting rules.
- Vested value: When restricted stock units or performance-based awards vest, the shares’ market value may be higher or lower than the grant-date value. Performance awards can depend on Apple results or shareholder-return measures.
- Realized proceeds: If Cook sells vested shares, the sale produces proceeds at the sale price. Shares may also be withheld or sold to cover taxes.
- Current holdings: Shares he keeps remain exposed to Apple’s share price and are not the same as cash.
Those amounts describe different events and should not be added together as if they were separate annual pay. A grant’s accounting value is not necessarily what the shares will ultimately be worth, and vesting does not itself mean the shares were sold.
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- KNOW YOUR SLEEP SCORE—With advanced sleep tracking, Series 11 gives you a daily sleep score. It’s an easy way to help measure and understand the quality of your sleep, so you can make it more restorative.
- GET HYPERTENSION NOTIFICATIONS—Did you know that Series 11 can spot signs of chronic high blood pressure? By analyzing how your blood vessels respond to beats of the heart, it can notify you of possible hypertension.*
- SAFETY FEATURES—A smartwatch that puts your safety first. Series 11 can detect a hard fall or severe car crash, automatically help connect you with emergency services, and notify your emergency contacts.* Check In can automatically notify a loved one when you’ve arrived at your destination.
- A POWERFUL FITNESS TRACKER—With advanced metrics and motivating features like Pacer, Heart Rate Zones, training load, and Workout Buddy powered by Apple Intelligence from your nearby iPhone*—Series 11 is made to help everyone stay active, from runners and hikers to strength-training enthusiasts.
How did Apple shares contribute to Cook’s wealth?
Cook’s wealth is tied primarily to long-term Apple equity awards, the appreciation of Apple shares, and shares he has retained after sales over time. Forbes estimated his net worth at about $3.1 billion as of July 28, 2026, and reported that he owned more than 3 million Apple shares and had sold more than $1 billion worth of Apple stock over the years. These are Forbes estimates and reporting, not an audited personal balance sheet. Forbes’ Tim Cook profile is the source for that estimate and share information.
Net worth is the estimated value of assets minus liabilities; it is not annual income or a bank balance. The value of retained shares can move with Apple’s stock price, and public estimates also depend on assumptions about taxes, charitable transfers and assets beyond publicly visible shareholdings. Apple’s proxies have reported large long-term equity awards in earlier years as well: for example, a $75 million award for 2022 appears in a prior proxy. That grant-date figure should not be treated as cash received in 2022 or added mechanically to annual compensation totals. Apple’s prior proxy filing documents the award.
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What did Apple report paying for security and private-aircraft travel?
Within Cook’s 2025 “all other compensation,” Apple reported $887,870 for security expenses and $789,991 for personal private-aircraft travel. Together, the reported incremental costs were $1,677,861. These are costs Apple incurred and disclosed, not evidence that Cook personally wrote checks for those amounts or that they represent the full operating cost of an aircraft or security program.
Apple says its board requires Cook to use private aircraft for both business and personal travel for security and efficiency reasons. Cook recognizes imputed taxable income for personal aircraft use, and Apple does not reimburse him for the related tax. The proxy characterizes security as business-related while also reporting the costs in executive compensation disclosures. Apple reported $783,617 in security expenses and $655,883 in personal air-travel costs for Cook in 2024. The 2025 disclosure also lists a $21,000 401(k) contribution, $2,964 in life-insurance premiums and $57,692 for vacation cash-out; these are separate items within other compensation, not additional salary. Apple’s 2026 proxy details the 2025 items and policy, while its 2025 proxy reports the 2024 comparison.
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- GET SMARTER HEALTH INSIGHTS—Apple Watch SE 3 is an advanced health tracker that helps you better understand your body. The smartwatch sends alerts for an irregular heart rhythm, or an unusually high or low heart rate.* You can view your overnight health tracking metrics with the Vitals app,* track your sleep score, and get sleep apnea notifications.*
- A GREAT FITNESS TRACKER—SE 3 can track your workouts in a healthy number of ways—from running and strength training to simply achieving your 10K steps a day. With real-time metrics and Workout Buddy powered by Apple Intelligence from your nearby iPhone,* you’ll hit your goals like never before.
- KEEP HELP CLOSE AT HAND—SE 3 is a smartwatch that can detect a hard fall or severe car crash and automatically help connect you to emergency services and notify your emergency contacts.* Check In can automatically notify a loved one when you’ve arrived at your destination.
- WOMEN’S HEALTH INSIGHTS—SE 3 has advanced sensors that track your wrist temperature while you sleep. With this smartwatch, you can log your periods and symptoms, get period predictions, and get notified of cycle deviations.*
- GREAT BATTERY LIFE AND FASTER CHARGING—Enjoy a smartwatch with all-day, 18-hour battery life* from sunup to sundown. Then charge up to twice as fast as SE 2* and get up to 8 hours of battery in just 15 minutes.*
What is known about Cook’s home and personal lifestyle?
Forbes lists Cupertino, California, as Cook’s residence. Beyond that, the public record does not establish a detailed household budget or a reliable inventory of his personal purchases. The disclosed aircraft arrangement is not proof that Cook owns a private jet; it is a company requirement to use private aircraft for travel. Claims about a personal fleet of luxury vehicles, yachts, watches, vacation properties or other conspicuous purchases should not be treated as established without reliable documentation.
The defensible conclusion is limited: Cook is a billionaire with substantial company-reported security and travel arrangements, but publicly documented evidence of his discretionary personal spending is sparse. That absence of detail is not proof that his private lifestyle is modest.
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- A FULL-FEATURED HEALTH TRACKER—Apple Watch Series 11 gives you invaluable insights about your body, right from your wrist. Take an ECG anytime* and get alerts for a high and low heart rate or an irregular rhythm*—so you can stay closer to your heart. You can also view your overnight health tracking metrics with the Vitals app* and be notified of possible sleep apnea.*
- KNOW YOUR SLEEP SCORE—With advanced sleep tracking, Series 11 gives you a daily sleep score. It’s an easy way to help measure and understand the quality of your sleep, so you can make it more restorative.
- GET HYPERTENSION NOTIFICATIONS—Did you know that Series 11 can spot signs of chronic high blood pressure? By analyzing how your blood vessels respond to beats of the heart, it can notify you of possible hypertension.*
- SAFETY FEATURES—A smartwatch that puts your safety first. Series 11 can detect a hard fall or severe car crash, automatically help connect you with emergency services, and notify your emergency contacts.* Check In can automatically notify a loved one when you’ve arrived at your destination.
- A POWERFUL FITNESS TRACKER—With advanced metrics and motivating features like Pacer, Heart Rate Zones, training load, and Workout Buddy powered by Apple Intelligence from your nearby iPhone*—Series 11 is made to help everyone stay active, from runners and hikers to strength-training enthusiasts.
What is documented about his philanthropy?
Cook has said he intends to give away his fortune to charity during his lifetime. Apple’s proxy lists his involvement with the Malala Fund Leadership Council, Duke University’s board of trustees, and the National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame, among other civic and educational causes. Those affiliations and his stated intention are evidence of philanthropic involvement and intent; they do not establish how much he has personally donated.
Personal gifts by Cook must also be distinguished from grants or donations made by Apple. The company’s giving is not Cook’s personal giving, and no annual total for his private donations is established by the cited filings.
Why was Cook paid this way, and what is his role now?
Cook joined Apple in March 1998, became chief operating officer and succeeded Steve Jobs as CEO in 2011. As CEO, he led a company whose scale makes executive decisions consequential to employees, investors and customers; Apple’s board uses salary, cash incentives and equity awards as parts of its compensation and retention approach. The equity component also creates a link to longer-term performance rather than making pay solely a fixed salary.
Apple announced that Cook would become executive chairman and John Ternus would become CEO effective September 1, 2026; that transition has now taken effect. The 2025 compensation figures above relate to Cook’s fiscal-year service and do not establish what his pay or benefits will be as executive chairman. Apple’s announcement of the leadership transition sets out the change.
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