And The Highest Paid Radio Personality of 2018 Is...

Forbes has released their list of the Highwest Paid Radio Personalities and Howard Stern, the self-proclaimed “King of All Media”, reigns supreme in the radio world.

Howard Stern, on the third year of his eight-figure contract with SiriusXM, earned an estimated $90 million in our 12-month scoring period, before taxes and fees. The shock jock is once again the world’s highest-paid radio host.

# 2 Rush Limbaugh

Stern narrowly beats America’s most-listened-to radio host Rush Limbaugh, who made $84.5 million. Both Stern and Limbaugh are making moves in the digital space. Devoted fans can now watch Stern on SiriusXM’s new video service which features highlights from Stern’s 30-year-plus video library. This past January, Limbaugh released his first mobile app, which gave a subscription boost to his digital platform, Rush 24/7.

#3 Ryan Seacrest

iHeartMedia host Ryan Seacrest rounds out the top three with a $74 million haul, a massive uptick over last year’s $58 million due to the return of American Idol—and his eight-figure paycheck. The host and producer is busier than ever despite an accusation of sexual misconduct surfacing earlier this year. (Seacrest denied the claims; an investigation found insufficient evidence to support the allegations, which came from a former stylist.)

Fox News star Sean Hannity, who places fourth, is one of the few radio hosts whose radio earnings are on the rise. Hannity earned $36 million in our scoring period with contracts for Fox and Premiere estimated at $15 million and $20 million respectively and adding to his bottom line with speaker fees.

Glenn Beck’s earnings stumbled once again, sliding to $8.5 million from last year’s $10 million due to the struggles of his conservative media company TheBlaze.  Beck made the news this week after announcing a merger with fellow conservative host Mark Levin’s CRTV.

Radio's Top Five Wage Earners...

1. Howard Stern - Earnings: $90 million

2. Rush Limbaugh - Earnings: $84.5 million

3. Ryan Seacrest - Earnings: $74 million

4. Sean Hannity - Earnings: $36 million

5. Glenn Beck - Earnings: $8.5 million