Bob Saget
Bob Saget rose to fame as Danny Tanner on Full House, one of the most popular sitcoms of all time. Of all the actors on the show, he’s earning the most residual checks.
It is estimated that he earns up to $2,000 per year from the show. It might not seem like a lot, but considering that the show ended in 1995, it’s pretty great to still get that check every year after all this time.
Betty White
The Golden Girls ended in 1992, but it is still one of the most beloved TV shows of all time. This timeless sitcom still generates a large amount of money every year.
Betty White, who is almost 100 years old, has been cashing in around $3 million a year since the show ended, and will continue to do so for the rest of her life.
David Caruso
David Caruso played Detective Horatio Caine on CSI: Miami, which ended in 2012. Because the show was so successful, Caruso will never have to worry about money for the rest of his life.
The show generated over $6 billion in total, and Caruso earns up to $100,000 a year on residuals. Still to this day, it is one of the most-watched shows in the world.
Ray Romano
Ray Romano was the star of the CBS series Everybody Loves Raymond, which had a total of nine seasons. The beloved show’s last episode aired in 2005.
Romano is one of the wealthiest TV actors in Hollywood, thanks to his continued royalty checks. He earns an estimated $18 million a year just from reruns.
Amy Poehler
Parks and Recreation had many memorable characters, but the one who stole the show was definitely Leslie Knope, played by Amy Poehler.
Her role as main actress and producer of the show sent her home with $200,000 after every episode. However, the syndication deal made by the show’s network has left the cast with little to no residuals.
David Hasselhoff
Baywatch was a cultural phenomenon in the 1990s and launched the careers of several stars, such as Pamela Anderson, Carmen Electra, and David Charvett.
Although the show is not aired very much anymore, its stars still make a lot of money from it. Hasselhoff approximately earns up to $4 million a year.
Jim Parsons
The Big Bang Theory was the most-watched TV show on the air for years, with its last episode airing in 2019. Its stars were making $1 million per episode during the show's last season.
It comes as no surprise that reruns of the show generate an impressive amount of money. Jim Parsons, who played Sheldon on the series, reportedly earns up to $10 million a year.
Ed O’Neill
Ed O’Neill rose to prominence as Al Bundy on Married With Children, which ran from 1987 to 1997. The show was controversial yet extremely popular amongst viewers.
Thanks to the success of the show, O’Neill earns up to $10 million from residuals. On top of that, he is also getting checks from Modern Family, so he is basically making millions of dollars just by existing.
Mark Harmon
NCIS is in its eighteenth season and still going strong. Since its first season in 2003, the show has been one of the leading criminal investigative dramas on television.
Mark Harmon earns $125,000 for every new episode of the show, and that’s not counting what he makes from all the previous seasons. It is estimated that he earns up to $60 million a year from reruns.
Jerry Seinfeld
Seinfeld dominated the TV world in the 1990s, and fans of the show were devastated when its final episode aired in 1998. But, even though the show has been over for decades, it is still being watched by millions of people every year.
The cast was making $1 million per episode in the last season. Jerry Seinfeld, creator and star of the series, makes an impressive $110 million a year from residuals alone.
Dr. Phil
Psychologist and sociologist Dr. Phil McGraw has been one of the most popular talk-show hosts on television since 2002. His show, Dr. Phil, has been going strong since then.
On top of earning a generous salary for every new episode that comes out, Dr. Phil reportedly earns up to $10 million from residuals. The show is currently in its eighteenth season and is not going anywhere anytime soon.
Jon Cryer
Two and a Half Men aired from 2003 to 2015. While Charlie Sheen left the show in its eighth season and was replaced by Ashton Kutcher, Jon Cryer stayed until the end.
Cryer’s hard work for twelve seasons paid off, as he is earning up to $20 million per year from reruns. A reboot of the show is also rumored to be in the works.
Sam Waterston
Sam Waterston is an accomplished actor both on the big and small screens, but his most notable work is definitely Law & Order. He was on the show during all of its twenty seasons.
Although the show is still very popular even after a decade since its last season, Waterston earns up to $5,000 a year, which is not nearly as much as other actors on our list.
Alex Borstein
Family Guy’s first episode aired in 1999. It was canceled after three seasons in 2002 and was brought back to life two years later.
After all the ups and downs, the show is still running and is currently in its eighteenth season. Alex Borstein, who plays Lois Griffin, earns $225,000 per episode, plus $10 million a year from residuals.
Patrick Stewart
Patrick Stewart has had a long career in Hollywood, but his most iconic role was definitely as Jean Luc Picard on Star Trek: The Next Generation. The show ended 26 years ago, and yet it is still very popular.
Because of the show’s impact, you might think Stewart earns a lot of money from it still, but that is actually not true. Surprisingly, he doesn't make any money from residuals.
Lucille Ball
Lucille Ball and her husband, Desi Arnaz, were the stars of I Love Lucy, a comedy show from the 1950s. Although the show aired its last episode in 1957, it is still a huge part of pop culture today.
The show was produced by Ball and Arnaz, so their production company has been earning an impressive amount of money from reruns. Ball passed away in 1989, but her estate is still getting residuals every year. The checks amount to $17 million a year.
Nancy Cartwright
The Simpsons aired its first episode in 1989 and it is still running strong. It is the longest-running animated comedy in television history and is currently producing its thirty-third season.
Nancy Cartwright, the voice of Bart Simpson, is currently making $400,000 per episode. On top of that, she makes up to $20 million a year in residuals. The rest of the cast is also earning a similar amount.
Ricky Gervais
The Office, starring Steve Carell, was actually based on a British show of the same name. It was created by Ricky Gervais, who also played David Brent, the equivalent of Michael Scott.
The show only had two seasons but was very popular. Gervais is currently earning up to $1 million a year from reruns of the show.
Tom Kenny
Spongebob Squarepants aired its first season in 1999. Over the years, it has become one of the most popular children’s cartoons in history.
Tom Kenny, who voices the title character, reportedly earns $75,000 per episode. He also makes up to $11 million a year from reruns. The show is currently in its twelfth season and still going strong.
Sarah Michelle Gellar
Sarah Michelle Gellar rose to fame thanks to her role as Buffy on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The show ran for seven seasons and aired its last episode in 2003.
Even after all this time, the show is still on television, and each of its 144 episodes is still making Gellar money. She has reportedly made $1 million in total in residuals.
George Clooney
George Clooney is one of the biggest movie stars in the world, and he has ER to thank for that. The show, which ran from 1994 to 2009, put him on the map.
Clooney did not stay for the full fifteen seasons and actually left the show in the fifth season. He reportedly earns up to $13 million a year from reruns of the show.
Sofia Vergara
Sofia Vergara stole the viewers’ hearts as Gloria on Modern Family. The show was praised by critics and won multiple awards. Its final episode aired in 2020.
Even though the show has ended, Vergara has nothing to worry about, as she will earn $500,000 a year from reruns. The series has been bought from syndication by several networks, so that amount will probably increase in the future.
Tom Selleck
Tom Selleck played the iconic Thomas Magnum on Magnum, P.I., one of the most popular TV shows in the 1980s. It ran for eight seasons and is still popular amongst TV viewers.
Despite the show’s impressive success and longevity, Selleck has not seen a single cent from reruns. Because of the type of contract he signed when he did the show, he is not entitled to any residuals.
Shelly Long
Cheers was a slow success. It didn’t hit high ratings right away and was nearly canceled after only one season. Luckily, the show was given another chance, and it went on to become a big hit.
Nowadays, the show generates an insane amount of money from reruns. Shelly Long, for example, takes home an estimated $5 million a year thanks to syndication.
Hugh Laurie
Hugh Laurie’s critically-acclaimed role in House earned him worldwide fame. The series was the most-watched show in the world in 2008, and it was distributed to 66 countries.
The show ended in 2012, but Laurie won’t have to worry about money for the rest of his life, thanks to the power of reruns. It is estimated that he earns $1 million a year in residuals.
Ellen Pompeo
Grey’s Anatomy is the longest-running medical drama on television. Even after seventeen seasons, the show is still one of the highest-rated programs on TV.
Ellen Pompeo, the show’s main actress, takes home $575,000 per episode. On top of that, she makes up to $20 million a year from reruns of previous seasons.
Zooey Deschanel
New Girl became popular with viewers right from the moment the first episode premiered. It featured Zooey Deschanel as its lead, and it ran for seven seasons.
At its peak, the show raked in over 10 million viewers. It went into syndication in 2015 and since then, Deschanel has been cashing in $750,000 in residuals.
Emily Deschanel
Zooey Deschanel’s older sister, Emily Deschanel, was the star of the comedy-drama Bones, which had a total of twelve seasons. It appears that the acting gene runs in the family.
For her work in 246 episodes of the show, Deschanel has earned an estimated $10 million in total. She is reportedly not receiving any more money because the show is currently being streamed for free on different platforms.
Jason Bateman
Arrested Development ran for five seasons and won several accolades, including six Emmys and a Golden Globe. After its cancelation, Netflix picked up the show and gave it a reboot.
Jason Bateman received $125,000 per episode. Since the show ended, he has been earning $50,000 a year from reruns and his deal with Netflix.
Steve Carell
Steve Carell became the most famous leading man on television when The Office came out. Although it had a slow start, the show quickly became the most-watched show of its time.
One might think that Carell would be earning an impressive amount of money for his role on the show, but that’s far from the truth. In fact, he has reportedly made $250 per episode from reruns which, compared to other stars of his caliber, is really not that much.
Evangeline Lilly
There was a time when Lost was the biggest TV show in the world. As soon as the show started blowing up, the entire cast got a pay bump. Evangeline Lilly, for example, received a significant increase in pay in season four.
She went from earning $80,000 per episode to $150,000. There are still reruns of the show on television, but it is not known how much the cast earns from that.
Zach Braff
Zach Braff gained recognition for his role as J.D. on the medical comedy Scrubs. The show ran for nine seasons and was almost canceled a couple of times. Despite the ups and downs, it always had a loyal fanbase.
Since the show ended in 2010, Braff has been cashing in about $2,000 a year from reruns. It is not much, but thanks to his successful career as a movie actor, he doesn’t need to worry.
Bryan Cranston
Breaking Bad is considered by many to be the best TV show of all time. Both critics and viewers absolutely adored it, and even years after it ended, it is still getting new fans every year.
Bryan Cranston played the central character, Walter White. He reportedly earned $225,000 per episode and is now cashing in $1.8 million a year from reruns.
Kat Dennings
2 Broke Girls was a sitcom that ran for six seasons and ended in 2017. It was a very polarizing show, with some critics loving it and others who only had bad things to say about it.
Regardless of what critics said, viewers loved it. The show’s first episode had the highest rating ever for a premiere since 2001. Kat Dennings reportedly earns $1.7 million from reruns.
Debra Messing
Debra Messing played Grace on Will & Grace, one of the most famous shows of the early 2000s. The show was considered quite revolutionary, as it had two LGBTQ main characters.
After it ended in 2002, Messing earned an estimated $250,000 an episode from reruns for a few years. However, the show is not being rerun as much anymore, so that number has dropped considerably.
Alec Baldwin
30 Rock was a satirical sitcom created by Tina Fey, who was also part of the cast. The show was received well by critics, but it struggled with viewership throughout its seven seasons.
Alec Baldwin, along with the rest of the cast, has not seen a lot of money since the show ended. Although you can still see reruns of the show nowadays, the cast is only getting $10,000 a year.
Jared Padalecki
Supernatural follows two brothers, played by Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles, who hunt all sorts of monsters, demons, and other paranormal creatures. It had an impressive run for fifteen seasons, making it the longest-running fantasy TV series in history.
Although they were both lead actors, Ackles’ salary was higher than Padalecki’s thanks to his work as the director of a few episodes. Padalecki reportedly makes $125,000 from reruns.
Mariska Hargitay
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit is the most successful Law & Order spinoff. The show already has 21 seasons, many accolades, and millions of fans all over the world.
Mariska Hargitay plays Olivia Benson, the main character on the show. As the longest-running cast member, Hargitay receives up to $4 million in residuals, plus $500,000 for every new episode.
Kathie Lee Gifford
Seeing Kathie Lee Gifford on this list might be odd, probably because daytime talk shows don’t usually run in syndication. However, The Today Show is an exception.
Not only is the show still coming out with new episodes after 68 seasons, but it is also syndicated. Thanks to this, Gifford takes home $100,000 a year.
Jennifer Aniston
Jennifer Aniston became a household name thanks to her role as Rachel on Friends, arguably the most famous sitcom of all time. The show ended in 2004 and it is still generating millions of dollars every year.
Aniston, along with the rest of the cast, earns up to $20 million a year from the show. A Friends reunion is scheduled to come out this year, which will probably help make those residual checks even fatter.