The world of reality TV is big business, attracting huge audiences and launching the careers of some of the UK’s most recognisable celebrities, from Molly-Mae Hague to Toby Aromolaran.
Thanks to their TV appearances, these reality stars can attract huge numbers of followers on social media, with brands leaping at the chance to get such stars to advertise their products and earn huge sums in the process.
But which UK reality TV stars are raking it in the most on social media?
To find out, the experts at online slots site Spin Genie UK have dived into the data, looking at each reality TV star's estimated earnings per post on Instagram and TikTok and averaging out these earnings to find the reality shows with the highest earners.
The Highest-earning Female Reality TV Stars
1. Molly-Mae Hague
Love Island
11,100,000 total followers
Average earnings per post: £6,779
Molly-Mae Hague takes the top spot as the reality star earning the most from her social media posts. The Love Island alumnus, now appearing in the reality show At Home with the Furys, rakes in an average of £6,779 per post on Instagram and TikTok.
2. Whitney Adebayo
Love Island
1,107,200 total followers
Average earnings per post: £5,828
Up next is Whitney Adebayo, with her army of more than a million fans on Instagram and TikTok, Whitney makes an estimated average of £5,828 across both platforms. Before her stint on Love Island this year, Whitney set up her own wig business and was reportedly the highest-earning cast member before the series began.
3. Gemma Owen
Love Island
3,100,000 total followers
Average earnings per post: £5,554
Love Island continues to dominate the rankings, as Gemma Owen, runner-up on last year's series, takes third place. The international dressage rider, businesswoman and model earns an estimated average of £5,554 per social media post. Despite having more followers than Whitney in second place, Gemma sees a lower engagement rate across her channels, thereby providing for slightly lower estimated earnings.
The Highest-earning Male Reality TV Stars
1. Toby Aromolaran
Love Island
1,667,500 total followers
Average earnings per post: £4,901
Toby Aromolaran can be crowned the highest-earning reality TV star on the list, with the Love Island runner-up earning an estimated average of £4,901 per social post. Alongside his career as an influencer, he is also a semi-professional footballer, playing for the Essex team Hashtag FC.
2. Tyrique Hyde
Love Island
1,209,000 total followers
Average earnings per post: £4,368
Up next is another semi-professional footballer and former Love Island star, Tyrique Hyde. Thanks to his audience of more than 1.2 million followers across Instagram and TikTok he earns an estimated average of £4,368 per post, taking him to second place.
3. Luca Bish
Love Island
2,110,000 total followers
Average earnings per post: £3,185
Taking third place is Luca Bish. The former fishmonger turned influencer and reality TV star rakes in an estimated average of £3,185 per post across Instagram and TikTok, thanks to his audience of more than 2 million followers and an appearance on Love Island last year.
The Highest-earning Female Reality TV Stars on TikTok
1. Molly-Mae Hague
Love Island
£4,336 per post
TikTok is a huge opportunity for advertising, with influencers being paid huge sums to promote products to their fans through sponsored posts. Molly-Mae Hague is no stranger to this business, with the former Love Island star earning an estimated £4,336 per post on the platform.
2. Amber Gill
Love Island
£1,897 per post
Yet another Love Island contestant to grace the list, the winner of series five, Amber Gill, earns an estimated £1,897 per TikTok post. She has also made guest appearances on Loose Women, launched her own clothing line and authored a romance novel.
3. Chloe Burrows
Love Island
£1,568 per post
Rounding out the top three is Chloe Burrows, who starred in the seventh series of Love Island back in 2021. Now hosting her own podcast, Chloe Vs The World, and working as a brand ambassador for JD Sports, her TikTok videos earn her an estimated £1,568 per post.
The Highest-earning Female Reality TV Stars on Instagram
1. Molly-Mae Hague
Love Island
£9,222 per post
When it comes to Instagram, Molly-Mae Hague is the most successful reality TV star again, earning more than £9,222 per post. The star has also branched out into the fashion business, previously being the European creative director of fashion retailer Pretty Little Thing and working as a brand ambassador for the company. She’s also launched her own fake tan line, Filter by Molly-Mae.
2. Whitney Adebayo
Love Island
£5,305 per post
Taking second place is Whitney Adebayo earning £5,305 per post on Instagram. As well as being a successful entrepreneur in her own right, she was the bookie’s favourite to win the tenth series of Love Island, reaching the final but finishing in second place.
3. Charlotte Crosby
Geordie Shore
£5,223 per post
Former Geordie Shore star Charlotte Crosby takes third place, earning £5,223 per post on Instagram. Thanks to her tenure on the show, she’s built a dedicated audience of 8.8 million Instagram followers and she also works as a brand ambassador for fashion label In The Style.
The Highest-earning Male Reality TV Stars on TikTok
1. Joe Baggs
Gogglebox
£2,279 per post
Taking the top spot is former Gogglebox star Joe Baggs, who appeared for a short stint on the show before leaving last year to start a podcast, Not My Bagg. Thanks to his army of 1.7 million fans on TikTok, he earns an estimated £2,279 per post on the platform.
2. George Baggs
Gogglebox
£1,851 per post
Before he found fame on Gogglebox, George Baggs was training to be a plumber, but thanks to his popularity on the show, he’s found a more lucrative career on TikTok and is set to host a Radio 1 show on Christmas Day. Coming second to his brother Joe Baggs, he earns an estimated £1,851 per post.
3. Sam Thompson
Made In Chelsea
£1,658 per post
In third place is Sam Thompson, earning a respectable £1,658 per post on TikTok. The Made In Chelsea star creates sponsored videos on the platform, so it's no surprise he ranks in the top three, with content ranging from prank videos to viral challenges.
The Highest-earning Male Reality TV Stars on Instagram
1. Tommy Fury
Love Island
£5,795 per post
Also known for his boxing career and relationship with fellow Love Island star Molly-Mae Hague, Tommy Fury takes the top spot as the highest-earning male reality TV star on Instagram. His posts on the platform earn an estimated £5,795.
2. Toby Aromolaran
Love Island
£3,836 per post
In second place is Toby Aromolaran, with the former Love Island contestant earning an estimated £3,836 per Instagram post. The former Love Island star had never been in a relationship prior to entering the villa but left with Chloe Burrows as runners-up back in 2021.
3. Tyrique Hyde
Love Island
£3,754 per post
Rounding up the top three is Tyrique Hyde. Despite only leaving the Love Island villa in third place this year, Tyrique has managed to spin his fame into a lucrative career as an influencer, earning an estimated £3,754 per post on Instagram alone.
The Reality TV Shows with the Highest Earners
1. Love Island
Average earning per post: £2,294
Taking the top spot is ITV’s Love Island, one of the most popular shows in the network’s history. Since airing in 2015, the series has spawned 22 different versions across the world and run for a whopping 391 episodes. Thanks to its global popularity, the stars have gained huge audiences of followers on their socials, with the Love Island stars earning an average of £2,294 per post.
2. Gogglebox
Average earning per post: £2,169
Channel 4’s smash hit Gogglebox has run for a whopping 30 series since its debut in 2013, so it’s no surprise a show this popular can provide its stars with huge audiences and even bigger payouts on social media. The show takes second place, with its stars earning an estimated average of £2,169 per social media post.
3. Geordie Shore
Average earning per post: £2,080
The UK spin-off of the hugely popular Jersey Shore following the lives of 12 housemates in Tyneside takes third place. Also broadcast in the US, Australia and New Zealand, the show created an international army of fans, resulting in its stars earning an average of £2,080 per social media post.
Methodology
Beginning with a list of UK reality TV stars, taken from sources such as StrawPoll, we used HypeAuditor to find the earnings per post for each reality star on Instagram. We then used Tikcalculator to find their earnings per post for each reality star on TikTok.
Using this data, which takes into account both follower numbers and engagement rates, we were able to find the estimated average earnings per post on social media for each reality TV star.
To find the reality TV show with the biggest earners, we took an average of the average earnings per social media post grouped by the reality show the stars are best known for.
Data correct as of 16/10/23.
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