CARRIE Underwood’s American Idol salary has been revealed to be millions less than Katy Perry’s massive paycheck, The U.S. Sun can exclusively reveal.

The ABC series is seemingly saving a fortune by slashing the amount it’s paying out to the singing competition’s on-camera talent following Katy’s abrupt exit.

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Carrie Underwood makes her debut as a judge on American IdolCredit: ABC

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Katy Perry poses on her last season of IdolCredit: Getty
Katy, 40, joined the American Idol judging panel in 2018 when the show was being rebooted from Fox to ABC.

It’s been reported that the Teenage Dream songstress’ Idol salary was upwards of $25 million per season – allegedly more than double what her co-judges Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie were pocketing.

Now, it seems Carrie, 41, will be making close to what Luke, 48, and Lionel, 75, are being paid – which is far less than Katy’s payday.

“For her first year, Carrie is making substantially less than Katy,” a source told The U.S. Sun.

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“Carrie’s salary is in the $10-12 million range, so less than half of what Katy was getting.

“Depending on Carrie’s performance and how she’s responded to by the viewers, there is room to boost that number up if she were to return next year.”

The insider claimed the Grammy winner signed a one-year contract so she is “not obligated” to return.

However, they added that if “everything continues to go how it’s been,” the team will “want Carrie back, no question.”

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(L-R) Luke Bryan, Lionel Richie, Carrie Underwood, and Ryan Seacrest pose for a photo during American Idol Season 8 Judges Photo CallCredit: Getty
Last week, The U.S. Sun reported that the Idol crew is overjoyed with Carrie’s performance – especially after years of controversy with Katy on the judging panel.

A source claimed that Carrie has been a “godsend” for the show – which has already completed filming its nationwide auditions ahead of the March 9 premiere.

“It’s actually it’s like is a ray of sunshine after a chaotic and stormy few years with some of the on-camera talent,” the source said of having Carrie on set.

During her years on the show, Katy was embroiled in controversy – including kissing a younger contestant who later said the move made him “uncomfortable” as well as being accused of “mom shaming” a woman auditioning for the show.

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American Idol crew prefers Carrie Underwood to ‘chaotic’ and ‘stormy’ years with Katy Perry as judge in show shakeup
“To put it bluntly, everyone in the crew, the studio suits, all the producers – really everyone is much happier and more comfortable now with Carrie on the panel.

“Katy never fully fit in, there was something always off about her dynamic with the rest of the Idol team. There was also an unpredictability factor there that did not sit right with people.

“Even with Luke and Lionel, it got better but it never quite felt right. Carrie is very professional and a natural.

“She’s been close with Luke for years, knows and adores Ryan and she’s known many of the producers for years too. She hits it off great and bonds well with Lionel.”

‘VERY EMOTIONAL’

According to the insider, “everyone who works on the show 100% prefers working with Carrie to Katy” and in their view, it is “not even a question” of who the better judge is.

The source revealed that filming this season so far has been “very emotional” for Carrie as her career started on that very same set.

However, since the judging panel is different now than it was back in 2005, the moment that hit Carrie the hardest was seeing Ryan Seacrest – who has hosted every episode of the show since it premiered in 2002 – interacting with the hopeful contestants.

“This season was really emotional for her after starting out on that same set.

Who are the past American Idol winners?

The previous American Idol winners include:

Kelly Clarkson (2002)

Ruben Studdard (2003)

Fantasia Barrino (2004)

Carrie Underwood (2005)

Taylor Hicks (2006)

Jordin Sparks (2007)

David Cook (2008)

Kris Allen (2009)

Lee DeWyze (2010)

Scotty McCreery (2011)

Phillip Phillips (2012)

Candice Glover (2013)

Caleb Johnson (2014)

Nick Fradiani (2015)

Trent Harmon (2016)

Maddie Poppe (2018)

Laine Hardy (2019)

Just Sam (2020)

Chayce Beckham (2021)

Noah Thompson (2022)

Iam Tongi (2023)

“Since the judges are different from when she was on the show, it didn’t really hit her until she saw Ryan mingling with the contestants getting ready to audition because that was her, that was Carrie not too long ago and now she’s on the other side of the desk.

“A lot of tears were spilled, Carrie was very emotional,” the insider added.

The U.S. Sun has reached out to an Idol rep for comment.

In February, Katy first announced her departure from idol to focus on music and months later, released her latest album Lifetimes.

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ABC announced shortly after Katy’s exit that country-pop superstar Carrie would be sliding into her place on the judging panel exactly 20 years after she won season 4.

Season 23 of American Idol premieres on Sunday, March 9, 2025 on ABC.

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Lionel Richie, Katy Perry, Ryan Seacrest and Luke Bryan at the American Idol finaleCredit: Getty

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Singers Carrie Underwood (L) and Katy Perry arrive at the 51st Annual Grammy Awards held at the Staples Center on February 8, 2009Credit: Getty

Topics

American Idol
Exclusives
Pop Music
Carrie Underwood
Katy Perry