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CEO.com assembled a list of 10 “big-time CEOs” who earn a base salary of just $1 a year. At a time when most CEOs are notorious for enormous pay packages (on average $10.5 million, according to Forbes), these 10 have opted for something less lofty. They do have one thing in common: all are entrepreneurial with all but one—Eddie Lampert—having founded a business. Yes, Virginia, founder-entrepreneurs do think differently than manager-CEOs.
CEO.com assembled a list of 10 “big-time CEOs” who earn a base salary of just $1 a year. Chrysler CEO Lee Iacocca is credited with pioneering the $1 a year salary. In 1978, he made a statement with his salary slash the reverberated throughout the country. Sure, there were ulterior motives; Iacocca wasn’t exactly hurting financially, but small pay can equal big success. With a CEO’s near-future earnings primarily tied to performance, the concession is meant to be a grand gesture of confidence that everything possible will be done to grow the company.
None of these ten CEOs are hurting in the wallet. Many still make millions in bonuses, stock options and other perks. Whether they’ve done it for years like Google CEO Larry Page or during company crisis like Hewlett-Packard CEO Meg Whitman, CEO.com identified these CEOs that currently earn just one buck a year for their executive duties.
1. Larry Ellison, Co-Founder and CEO of Oracle
Since 2009, Larry Ellison’s salary has amounted to just $1 a year. But, don’t feel too bad for the guy—he’s also the fifth richest person in the world with a net worth of $43 billion. Last year, Ellison raked in a package valued at $96 million, mostly from perks, stock options and performance cash bonuses.
2. Richard Fairbank, Co-Founder and CEO of Capital One
Richard Fairbank has worked for a base salary of $0 since 1997, but he did earn $15 million in stock and options last year, along with a deferred bonus of $2.19 million (his first cash compensation in 15 years).
3. Jeffrey Katzenberg, CEO of DreamWorks Animation
In 2009, Jeffrey Katzenberg renewed his $1 salary to run through 2013, reduced his usual $1 million short term-incentive compensation to zero while gaining 900,000 shares of stock. Apparently, he was banking on some major company success to boost stock values. In 2011, Katzenberg earned $4 million in stock awards. A few months ago, Katzenberg also secured a deal to stay on as CEO through 2017, with more eligibility for equity incentives and cash bonuses.
4. Richard Kinder, Founder and CEO of Kinder Morgan
With no salary and no bonus, Richard Kindler’s compensation for 2012 still came to a whopping $60.94 million in stock gains. The ex-executive from Enron has a net worth of $9.8 billion and currently ranks as America’s fourth highest-paid chief executive.
5. Edward Lampert, CEO of Sears
A regulatory document filed yesterday revealed Edward Lampert would join the club of CEOs earning a salary of $1. At the end of the year, however, the billionaire will most likely be handsomely rewarded with a bonus of up to $2 million and up to $4.5 million.
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FAQs
Or, as put by The Hustle: “CEOs who take a $1 salary can afford to do so because they tend to be extraordinarily wealthy: 30% are on the Forbes 400 list of richest Americans, and the majority of them retain a much higher equity stake in their company than non-$1 salary CEOs.”
How much does a CEO of a $1 billion company make a year? ›
US CEO compensation
By company size, base, bonus, and total cash compensation all rise as revenue does, with total median cash compensation coming in at $1,639,000 at companies with revenue above $1 billion. By industry, CEOs at financial services firms are paid the most: $1,013,000 in median total cash compensation.
How much does a CEO of a $5 million company make? ›
Salaries Levels by Venture Funding Raised
| $0 - $2m | $5m - $10m |
|---|
| Average | $106,000 | $171,000 |
| Min | $0 | $0 |
| Max | $350,000 | $450,000 |
Apr 11, 2024
CEO pay outpaced previous year's growth.
In 2023, median total compensation for Equilar 100 CEOs jumped to $23.7 million, marking an 11.4% increase in pay for the same set of companies in 2022. Last year's Equilar 100 CEOs* experienced an increase of just 7.7% from the previous year. Broadcom CEO Hock E.
Why was Steve Jobs' salary $1? ›
Jobs' $1 salary was symbolic, demonstrating his commitment to Apple's revival and growth.
What is Amazon CEO salary? ›
Amazon CEO Andy Jassy's compensation for 2023 totaled $29.2 million, including his base pay, the value of shares that vested during the year, and security costs, according to a new filing by the company. That was down 12% from $33.2 million in compensation in 2022.
Who is the 1st highest paid CEO? ›
Highest Paid US CEOs: Top Salaries in 2024. In 2021, Elon Musk received the highest compensation till date as a CEO. This compensation was a mix of salary from the company and stock options awarded to him by the company.
How much is a 1 figure salary? ›
How much does a 1 Figure make? As of Jul 5, 2024, the average annual pay for a 1 Figure in the United States is $167,480 a year. Just in case you need a simple salary calculator, that works out to be approximately $80.52 an hour. This is the equivalent of $3,220/week or $13,956/month.
How much is $1 an hour annually? ›
$1 hourly is how much per year? If you make $1 per hour, your Yearly salary would be $2,080.
Who is the highest paid hospital CEO? ›
At the top of that list was UnitedHealth Group CEO Andrew Witty, who brought home about $23.5 million in compensation last year. We've reviewed data in annual filings from Centene, CVS, Cigna Group, Elevance Health, Humana and UnitedHealth Group. Here's a deeper look into what each of these CEOs earned in 2023.
Over 20 CEOs earned over $100 million in 2021, notes C-Suite Comp.
How rich is the average CEO? ›
In the past 10 years, CEO pay at S&P 500 companies increased by more than $5 million to an average of $16.7 million in 2022. Meanwhile, the average U.S. worker saw a wage increase of $15,460 over the past decade, earning on average just $61,900 in 2022.
Which CEO makes $1 a year? ›
For example, in 2010–11 Oracle's founder and CEO Larry Ellison made only $1 in salary, but earned over $77 million in other forms of compensation. In some cases, in lieu of a salary, the executives receive stock options.
How much does the CEO of McDonald's make? ›
Chris Kempczinski got a raise before he got a new title. The CEO and now chairman of McDonald's was paid $19.2 million last year in salary, bonuses and stock, according to federal securities filings. That was an 8% increase over 2022.
Why do US CEOs get paid so much? ›
Why are CEOs paid high salaries? One key factor that fueled the surge in CEO salaries is the shift towards shareholder capitalism. In the late 20th century, there was a growing emphasis on maximizing shareholder value, which led to a change in the way CEOs were compensated.
What CEO paid everyone $70,000? ›
On April 13, 2015, with reporters from The New York Times and NBC News in attendance, Price told Gravity Payments staff that he was raising the company's minimum salary to $70,000 and reducing his own compensation from $1.1 million to $70,000. The story quickly went viral.
When did CEOs start getting paid so much? ›
Realized CEO compensation grew strongly throughout the 1980s but exploded in the 1990s. It peaked at the end of the stock market bubble in 2000 at about $25.2 million—a 362% increase over just five years earlier in 1995 and a 1,211% increase over 1978.
Do CEOs determine their own salary? ›
The board of directors assembles an executive compensation committee that determines fair compensation for the CEO's responsibilities. Creating a fair CEO compensation package is especially important for publicly-traded companies because they have to report how much the CEO earns.
