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If you’re a fan of one of America’s largest families, the Duggars, you probably watch their show Counting On. The program gives viewers a peek inside the family’s life and shows how they cope with raising such large families. One thing you might wonder is how much money the Duggars make for their appearance on the hit TLC show. Here’s how much money the Duggar family makes per episode for Counting On.

The Duggar family on Good Morning America | Ida Mae Astute/ABC via Getty Images
The Duggar family on Good Morning America | Ida Mae Astute/ABC via Getty Images

How the Duggars make money

So, how do the Duggars earn a living? Television isn’t the only way the Duggar family makes money. The Duggars make a living from sources outside their television show. One source of income is real estate. Jim Bob Duggar is a successful real estate agent. He made most of his money from real estate investments, resulting in a net worth of roughly $3.5 million as of this writing. Book sales, influencer marketing, speaking engagements, and family businesses also contribute to the family’s wealth.

How much Michelle and Jim Bob Duggar spent on groceries

Back when 19 Kids and Counting was on the air, the biggest question viewers had was about the family’s grocery bill. Exactly how much did Michelle and Jim Bob Duggar spend on groceries? During a 2012 interview, Michelle told Today’s Savannah Guthrie they spent roughly $3,000 a month on groceries. That begs another question: how did they afford it? The family matriarch said they were able to feed all the members of their massive family by carefully planning meals and buying items in bulk.   

Guthrie ran down a list of the items on the shopping list for a typical day in the Duggar family household. Their daily food list includes three dozen eggs, five pounds of turkey bacon, 20 biscuits, 10 oranges, four pounds of  grapes, three loaves of bread, three pounds of potatoes, three pounds of green beans, two bags of family size lettuce, and one gallon of vanilla ice cream. That’s not even the entire list.

Humble beginnings

Michelle and Jim Bob Duggar | Matt McClain/ The Washington Post via Getty Images
Michelle and Jim Bob Duggar | Matt McClain/ The Washington Post via Getty Images

The Duggars weren’t always doing well financially. When Michelle and Jim Bob first married, they started out small. Jim Bob worked at a grocery store and Michelle held different jobs, including substitute teaching and serving as a Girl Scout leader, according to the Duggar Family fan blog. They later started a car lot business, and then a towing business, which was sold after a few years. After TLC made them reality TV stars, more income-generating opportunities came their way.

 How much money the Duggars are paid per episode of Counting On

The Duggar family is paid quite well for their appearance on their hit reality show. According to In Touch Weekly the Duggars make roughly $25,000 to $40,000 per episode of Counting On. One episode takes about four days to film, so this translates to roughly $6,250 to $10,000 a day.  

Read more: The Duggars Get Hilarious Fashion Advice from the People of Reddit

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