It would come as no surprise that seven-time World Champion Sir Lewis Hamilton earns the most on the 2022 grid based on his yearly salary alone; however, he is joined at the top by soon-to-be double World Champion Max Verstappen.
Whilst the official figures haven’t been released by the teams themselves, a list can be made following figures used amongst the media as to how much each driver earns per season, on their current deals.
Given Hamilton’s status as arguably the greatest Formula 1 driver of all time, based on statistics, it isn’t surprising that he tops the salary standings on a reported salary of £40 million a year, alongside the current championship leader.
Verstappen has been imperious in 2022 and comfortably leads the championship, despite having retired from two of the opening three races.
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The Dutchman, who boasts a 116-point-lead over Charles Leclerc who earns the seventh most on the grid, has won 10 of the last 13 races, further proof of his dominance this season.
The Red Bull driver can seal his second consecutive title this weekend at the Singapore Grand Prix, if Leclerc fails to finish in the top eight and if Sergio Pérez doesn’t cross the line in the top four.
With the Ferrari driver unlikely to finish outside the top eight, it’s more likely that the 24-year-old will seal the title at the following Japanese Grand Prix; however, with thunder and heavy downpours forecast for Singapore anything could happen at the Marina Bay Circuit.
Verstappen’s salary matches Hamilton’s due to his new long-term contract with Red Bull, which he signed at the start of the year and will see him with the Austrians until the end of 2028.
Whilst Hamilton and Verstappen earn £40 million a year, the next highest, Fernando Alonso, earns less than half of this amount.
The double World Champion who will move to Aston Martin next season, earns a reported £15 million a year at Alpine, with Lando Norris interestingly in fourth.
Norris, too, is higher up the order, having signed a long-term deal with McLaren this season.
The Brit earns £12 million per season, more than both Ferrari drivers and Sebastian Vettel interestingly.
Vettel is actually fifth on the list after earning £11 million per season, the same amount as Daniel Ricciardo.
Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz occupy seventh and eighth on the list, respectively, with the pair both earning less than £10 million, somewhat surprisingly.
Incredibly, Sergio Pérez and George Russell are both outside the top 10 on the list, with Russell all the way down in P13, on a reported salary of £4 million a year.
Yuki Tsunoda sits bottom of the table on just £364,900 a year, which interestingly is roughly half of what Mick Schumacher, Guanyu Zhou and Nicholas Latifi all earn.
The trio are joint P17, with Hamilton staggeringly earning almost 55 times this amount.
Full salary list according to The Independent, excluding performance-related bonuses or other commercial add-ons:
=1. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) – £40m, per season
=1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) – £40m
3. Fernando Alonso (Alpine) – £15m
4. Lando Norris (McLaren) £12m
=5. Sebastian Vettel (Aston Martin) – £11m
=5. Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren) – £11m
7. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) – £9m
=8. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) £7m
=8. Valtteri Bottas (Alfa Romeo) £7m
=8. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) £7m
11. Sergio Perez (Red Bull) £6m
12. Kevin Magnussen (Haas) £4.8m
=13. George Russell (Mercedes) £4m
=13. Esteban Ocon (Alpine) £4m
=13 Pierre Gasly (AlphaTauri) £4m
16. Alex Albon (Williams) £1.5m
=17. Guanyu Zhou (Alfa Romeo) £730,800
=17 Mick Schumacher (Haas) £730,800
=17. Nicholas Latifi (Williams) £730,800
20. Yuki Tsunoda (AlphaTauri) £364,900