Serena Williams boosts women's presence among highest-paid tennis players of 2026

Serena Williams’ return to the court placed the American back among tennis’s biggest names, though this time her presence also impacted the sport’s financial figures. For the first time, women outnumbered men on the list of the ten highest-earning tennis players over the past year.

Collectively, the ten highest-paid athletes amassed $333 million, a 17 percent increase over the $285 million recorded in 2025. This figure also approaches the record of $343 million set in 2020, when Roger Federer topped the rankings with earnings of $106 million.

Federer’s absence following his 2022 retirement and Rafael Nadal’s departure in 2024 had removed two figures who, for years, generated a significant portion of tennis’s commercial revenue from the rankings. The 2026 list now reflects a new distribution, with Jannik Sinner at the top and four women among the top ten.

Serena Williams returns to the list of highest-paid tennis players

Sinner, the current ATP world number one, also claimed the top spot in the annual earnings ranking compiled by Forbes. The Italian overtook Carlos Alcaraz, who had led the list for the previous two years.

Serena Williams holds third place, with estimated earnings of $40.1 million over the last twelve months. The majority of this amount comes from endorsements and off-court business ventures, given that she had participated in only four tournaments prior to her return at the US Open.

The 44-year-old tennis player returned to competition after an absence of nearly four years; she played mixed doubles alongside Carlos Alcaraz and prepared for her appearance in the women’s event with her sister, Venus Williams. Women gain ground in tennis earnings rankings

Aryna Sabalenka reached fourth place with estimated earnings of $36.1 million, while Coco Gauff earned $35.5 million. Both ranked among the highest-earning athletes on the list.

The results reflect the commercial clout that several female figures have gained in tennis, although the prize money gap between the men’s and women’s tours persists. The WTA plans to match prize money at combined 1000 and 500-level tournaments with the ATP starting next year, while standalone events in those categories are set to reach parity by 2033.

The 2026 rankings confirm that the tennis business is entering a new phase, with female stars capturing an increasingly large share of the revenue generated by the sport.