Simone Biles has been earning prize money for years but still challenges herself to go days without spending anything. Besides the essentials or the occasional trip, she rarely swipes her card. “I never really swipe the [credit] card,” she says. It makes sense when you think about her modest childhood. Nothing has come easy to Simone. Even with everything she’s achieved, a dream home in Texas and seven Olympic gold medals, the 27-year-old still hasn’t gotten paid what she truly deserves.

After stepping back from the 2020 Tokyo Olympics to focus on her mental health, Simone Biles made an epic comeback at the 2024 Paris Olympics, winning four medals, including three gold. But here’s the crazy part: despite all those medals, Simone still earns less than Coco Gauff, who didn’t win any Olympic medals. So, how is that even possible?

Coco Gauff’s tough loss in Paris doesn’t stop her million-dollar year

So, recently, Kurt Badenhausen, the sports business reporter over at Sportico, dropped a tweet revealing the highest-paid female athletes of 2024. And guess who’s still on top? Coco Gauff! She earned a staggering $30.4 million—$9.4 million from her prize money and a massive $21 million from endorsements. Gauff is just the third woman in sports to break the $30 million mark in a single year, following Naomi Osaka and Serena Williams. Not too shabby for a 20-year-old!

Coco Gauff had a rough time in Paris at the 2024 Olympics, losing to Donna Vekic in the third round. Gauff was a point away from winning the first set but couldn’t finish it off, and Vekic came back strong. The turning point came in the second set when Gauff got into a heated argument with the umpire over a controversial line call. The pause in play and emotional moment seemed to throw her off, and she ended up losing 7-6(7), 6-2.

Now, while Gauff had a bit of a rough year in the Grand Slams with only one semifinal appearance, she still managed to win three titles, including a historic victory at the WTA Finals in Riyadh, where she bagged a record $4.8 million. Off the court, she’s killing it with endorsement deals too—she just signed with L’Oreal for their natural hair care brand and joined Naked Juice as their Chief Smoothie Officer. And the endorsement deals just keep coming. But Gauff isn’t the only one making moves.

Eileen Gu occupied the second position at $22.1M with endorsements like Porsche, Iga Swiątek earned $21.4M, fueled by her French Open win and partnerships with On, Zheng Qinwen made $20.6M due to sponsors like Nike and McDonald’s. Aryna Sabalenka hit $17.7M after a stellar season, and Naomi Osaka, back on the court, earned $15.9M through deals with Nike and Louis Vuitton. Emma Raducanu pulled in $14.7M despite injuries, and golfer Nelly Korda earned $14.4M through consistent performance and endorsements.

Meanwhile, Simone Biles was on the list at the number nine position. Biles earned $11.1 million in 2024. Even after snagging four Olympic medals in Paris, including three golds, she still made way less than Gauff. Biles earned $135,000 from prize money in the Paris Olympics, but it’s her endorsements that really pushed her earnings up to $11 million. She’s got big names backing her, like Athleta, Eli Lilly, and Visa, and, of course, her Netflix documentary, Simone Biles Rising, and her corporate speaking gigs helped her bring in more cash. Plus, she headlined the Gold Over America Tour, which added to her paycheck.

But despite all her achievements, Biles’ and Gauff’s earnings difference is 19 million, which puts Biles so low on the list that she’s being compared to college athletes.

Simone Biles and Caitlin Clark both raked in the same amount, but why?

It’s pretty wild that Simone Biles and Caitlin Clark both earned the same amount this year, right? Caitlin Clark, after an epic college career, earned a base salary of $76,535 in her rookie year with the Indiana Fever. But with performance bonuses—like $10,300 for being named to the All-NBA First Team—her total earnings climbed to about $100,000. She’s the first rookie since Candace Parker to get that honor, which is impressive. But here’s the kicker: Gymnast Simone Biles won four Olympic medals in Paris, including three gold and one silver, but she finished the year with the same yearly earnings as Clark.

Although Biles broke records with her medal tally in Paris, the US Olympic bonuses awarded her only $137,000; in other words, as a rule, they gave athletes $38,000 for each gold, $23,000 for the silver, and $15,000 for the bronze. It is much lower compared to what Biles earned in 2023, whereby she earned $7.1 million, most of which was from endorsements.

For instance, Caitlin Clark, who made $11.1 million this year, made her list debut. As long as she played at Iowa, she had signed more than a dozen NIL contracts. She still enjoys support from Nike, Gatorade, and State Farm. But hey, recognition and legacy go a long way, and Biles is undoubtedly one of the most iconic athletes out there!