No one wants to be the first one to go home in “The Challenge,” especially if you’re a newbie. According to a source, they only get $1,000 per week, while vets make $3,000 to $5,000 weekly, per Us Weekly. Super “elite” competitors (we’re guessing Johnny “Bananas” Devenanzio and Cara Maria Sorbello), get up to $80,000 just for being on that season. Some of that money goes to expenses as well. When viewers see the players enjoying drinks at a local bar, they’re not paid for by production so the cast members have to shell out for their own libations.
Read Related Also: Lady recounts how she survived after bike man pushed her into highway for turning him down
Veteran and “The Challenge: Ride or Dies” winner Tori Deal confirmed that the contestants do make at least some money. “‘Do we get paid?’ Don’t know if we can really answer it, but we’ll give you this much. I promise you, we don’t go on the show for free. My a** is not going on a 40-foot platform, hanging over a helicopter, eating cabbage for no reason, OK. You’re gonna pay me. And the more shows we do, the more we get paid,” she stated on “MTV’s Official Challenge Podcast” (via In Touch Weekly). Of course, the paycheck is just the cherry on top and the real prize is the big one at the end — and there are just a few that have made it big from the show.
