Kim Kardashian might make good money for Keeping Up with the Kardashians; however, it’s Instagram which has proven more lucrative for Kim financially.
It seems Kim Kardashian might have just not so subtly confirmed the true reason behind Keeping Up with the Kardashians‘ cancellation — and let’s just say it seems to be all about those Benjamins!
While Kim Kardashian and the Kardashian family have made good money over the course of the years in filming KUWTK, it seems the show is far less lucrative now for the family than it was back in the day. In the early days of the Kardashians’ rise to fame, KUWTK was one of the family’s key sources of income; however, the truth is the E! series is no longer the cash cow it once was.
Instagram makes Kim Kardashian more money than filming KUWTK
During an appearance on Netflix’s My Next Guest Needs No Introduction with David Letterman, Kim Kardashian gave full credit to KUWTK for helping to give her the platform to build the empire she currently oversees. However, in doing so, she also made it clear that the show no longer stands as her biggest source of income.
In fact, Kim revealed she can make more on social media than she does for an entire season of the beloved reality series:
"“We would not be who we are today without Keeping Up With the Kardashians and that’s why we continue to share our lives,” Kim revealed during her apperance, via Us Magazine. “Even if, realistically, we can post something on social media and make more than we do a whole season.”"
Sure we assumed Kim and company have found a way to leverage social media to make a nice chunk of change; however, we never would have guessed Kim makes more through sources such as Instagram than she does filming a season of the hit series!
How much does Kim Kardashian make for a season of KUWTK?
Although KUWTK might no longer be Kim Kardashian’s primary source of income, the show still nets her a significant amount of cash each year.
While E! and the family have never confirmed the exact terms of the family’s KUWTK contract, it was reported by TMZ in 2017 the family had negotiated a $150 million deal to film five additional seasons — taking them through to what will now be their 20th and final season.
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As TMZ reported at the time, the deal was “structured so that the family decides how to split up the money amongst themselves” and rumor has it the family splits their earnings evenly between Kim, momager Kris Jenner and Kim’s sisters Khloe, Kourtney, Kendall and Kylie.
Given the deal was worth $150 million for five seasons, that rounds out to $30 million a season. If the family does indeed divide the money equally amongst themselves, that would mean Kim Kardashian makes roughly $5 million per season of Keeping Up with the Kardashians. That total is before one factors out the rumored 10 percent Kris is estimated to make, which would cut Kim’s total earnings per season to $4.5 million.
For the latest KUWTK news, recaps, rumors and more, follow the Keeping Up with the Kardashians category at Kardashian Dish.