‘The Amazing Race’: How Much Do Teams Get Paid per Leg?
As we await the next season of The Amazing Race, it’s always fun to brush up on the behind-the-scenes secrets and rules of the CBS reality competition series. And for this article, it’s all about cold hard cash. Every team’s goal in The Amazing Race is to make it to the finale and win. However, the first-place finishers aren’t the only ones who leave with money in their pockets.
Do the second-place and third-place teams earn a prize in ‘The Amazing Race’?
Every Amazing Race fan knows that the team who crosses the finish line first during the finale wins the grand prize of $1 million (before taxes). But what about the racers who fall just short of first place?
Unfortunately, the prize for coming in second and third place is significantly less than what contestants get for winning. According to Mic, the second-place team takes home $25,000, and the third-place pair earns $10,000 in The Amazing Race. As is always the case with reality competition shows, contestants have to pay taxes on their winnings.
There’s a big difference between $1 million and $25,000, but at least they travel around the world expense free.
Do the contestants get paid for appearing on the show?
The three teams that make it to the finale of The Amazing Race aren’t the only ones who get paid for appearing on the show. That’s right, every single contestant leaves with some prize money, even if they finish in last place.
Mic reports that the amount of money dwindles the further down the list you are, but the last-place racers allegedly receive $1,500.
Mark “Abba” Abbattista, who appeared alongside James LoMenzo in The Amazing Race Season 21, told A.V. Club, “It’s certainly not ‘paid,’ but you get some kind of money for the order that you come in. If you’re not on food stamps, you wind up losing money on it.”
Plus, the producers reportedly pay the contestants to be on the show, although that number has never been disclosed. And the teams can win cash, vacations, cars, and more for coming in first place during several The Amazing Race legs before the finale.
Producers give ‘The Amazing Race’ teams money to use during each leg
Although The Amazing Race teams earn money to take home with them, producers must also give them cash for each leg. The racers use the money for transportation, food, and other essential items. And if they run out, then they are out of luck. The money portion used to play a significant role in the show, but in recent seasons, the editors don’t reveal how much cash they get.
The amount of money each pair receives varies from leg to leg and season to season. In The Amazing Race Season 4, producers only gave them $1 for the last two legs; in other seasons, they could acquire up to $500.
And if contestants don’t spend all their money in one leg, it rolls over to the next one.
The Amazing Race is available to stream on Paramount+.
