The 20 highest paid models of the world revealed

Bernice Ng 18 Sep 2015 updated the 6 October 2015 à 22:28

1/20
Gisele Bundchen
The highest paid model in fashion, Gisele Bündchen continues to out-earn her younger counterparts banking USD44 million.
The versatile Brazilian continues to clock lucrative beauty and fragrance contracts with Chanel, Carolina Herrera and high fashion campaigns for Emilio Pucci and Balenciaga.
She has 5.5 million Facebook fans and 6 million Instagram followers.
2/20
Cara Delevingne
Cara Delevingne joined the Highest-Paid Models ranking in 2014 but she is already number 2 on the list because of her various modeling stints and now acting, causing her earnings to leap to USD9 million. She has appeared in campaigns for 13 different brands, shooting major adverts with DKNY, Burberry and Topshop, and retaining a money-making beauty deal with YSL.
After a small role in 2012′s Anna Karenina, Paper Towns was the first film from Delevingne.
With 19 million Instagram followers, 3.7 million Twitter followers and 240,000 Facebook fans, Delevingne is one of the most prominent models on social media.
3/20
Adriana Lima
Adriana Lima is Victoria Secret's longest-running Angel in the brand's history, first posing for them in 2000.
She adds to her portfolio Marc Jacobs, H&M and Desigual contracts and now banks USD9 million thanks to recent deals with Maybelline and Vogue Eyewear.
With 5.4 million Instagram followers, 2.1 Twitter followers and 6 million Facebook followers, she is one of the most visible supermodels around.
4/20
Doutzen Kroes
Doutzen Kroes may no longer be modeling for Victoria's Secret but she still makes a pretty penny from a lucrative L'Oréal cosmetics contract.
The face of Tiffany & Co., she also models for Samsung and starred in a steamy Calvin Klein fragrance ad.
The 30 year-old has her own line of cashmere sweaters which she regularly promotes to her 3.4 million Instagram followers and 1.7 million Facebook fans.
She earns USD7.5 million.
5/20
Natalia Vodianova
Natalia Vodianova promotes for two fragrances: Calvin Klein Euphoria, which she first spritzed on in 2006, and Guerlain Shalimar Souffle de Parfum.
She also has a Guerlain cosmetics contract and designs a line for European lingerie makers, Etam.
The 33 year-old Russian is the face of Stella McCartney and Theory. These deals earn her USD7 million.
6/20
Miranda Kerr
Banking USD5.5 million is Miranda Kerr as the face of Escada Joyful Fragrance, Swarovski jewelry and Clear Haircare products.
With 7 million Instagram followers, 4 million Twitter followers and 7.4 million Facebook fans, she is one of the most prominent models on social media.
The 32 year-old also has a cosmetics line, Kora Organics, and fans can also drink from a Kerr-endorsed teacup she released for Royal Albert.
7/20
Joan Smalls
Coming in at USD5.5 million is Joan Smalls who has retained Estée Lauder and H&M contratcs while adding new brands to her roster, including ads with Calvin Klein and Marc Jacobs.
She also walks more catwalks than most other models on the highest-paid list.
8/20
Lara Stone
Lara Stone added to her L'Oréal cosmetics contract a Calvin Klein underwear and fashion campaign, plus Stella McCartney and Tom Ford fragrances.
The 31 year-old also makes money from Barneys and Kurt Geiger adverts, and those add to her paycheck of USD5 million.
9/20
Alessandra Ambrosio
Alessandra Ambrosio has her Victoria's Secret contract that brings in USD5 million, in addition to her Schutz and Dafiti contracts.
The 34 year-old Brazilian mother of two has her own swimwear line and a joint clothing line with Planet Blue.
She recently made her acting debut in a Brazilian soap opera Verdades Secretas.
She ties with a few others with USD5 million.
10/20
Candice Swanepoel
South African Candice Swanepoel has a Max Factor deal and Versace fragrance contract to thank for a portion of her USD5 million paycheck.
The rest of her earnings come from a money-making Victoria's Secret gig, plus adverts for Free People and Givenchy, amongst others.
11/20
Karlie Kloss
Though Karlie Kloss is no longer a Victoria's Secret Angel, the 23 year-old is swamped with deals with L'Oréal, Joe Fresh and Kate Spade, that earn her USD5 million.
As the face of Chanel Coco Noir fragrance, Kloss, who is now juggling modeling with classes at NYU, has also partnered with the Flatiron School to create a Kode With Karlie scholarship for young female coders.
Kloss, who has 3.1 million Instagram followers and 1.1 million Facebook fans, was discovered in a charity fashion show.
12/20
Carolyn Murphy
Carolyn Murphy's wholesome all-American look has helped her book campaigns with Gap, Jones New York and Shinola.
The 40 year-old continues to out-earn youthful competition with a longstanding Estée Lauder contract, adding Oscar de la Renta campaigns to her work.
Murphy started modeling as a 17 year-old and has since worked with some of the most eminent names in fashion, from Steven Meisel and Mario Testino to Karl Lagerfeld.
She is banking in USD4.5 million.
13/20
Kate Moss
As one of the most well-known models on this list, the 41 year-old model banks on her deal with luxury jeweler David Yurman, Decorté Skincare and Burberry's fragrance.
She collaborated on 14 seasons of a discontinued line with British retailer Topshop.
Moss earns USD4.5 million.
14/20
Liu Wen
Liu Wen was the first Chinese model to walk Victoria's Secret runway and though she has stopped, Wen still models underwear for La Perla.
The 27 year-old also makes money from Massimo Dutti, H&M and MO&Co campaigns.
She earns USD4.5 million.
With 12.8 million followers on Weibo and 1.1 million on Instagram, Wen also appears on a popular Chinese TV show, "We Are In Love."
15/20
Daria Werbowy
Daria Werbowy earnings have risen to a nice USD4.5 million.
The face of Lancôme, Ukrainian-Canadian Werbowy, also models for H&M, Celine and Equipment.
The 31 year-old has appeared on the cover of international Vogue issues more than 50 times.
16/20
Kendall Jenner
Kendall is a newcomer to the list, making the cut with an estimated USD4 million.
She has an Estée Lauder cosmetics contract and a Calvin Klein deal, which she bolsters with Fendi, Marc Jacobs and Karl Lagerfeld eyewear ads.
17/20
Hilary Rhoda
Earning USD3.5 million, Hilary Rhoda maintains her contracts with Via Spiga, Elie Tehari and Chopard.
Rhoda was selected to model the Hope Diamond in the Embrace Hope necklace on November 18, 2010 for the 50th anniversary on display at the Smithsonian.
She also appeared in Victoria's Secret Fashion Show 2012.
18/20
Kate Upton
The face of Express and Sam Edelmen, Kate Upton earns USD7 million.
She cashed in on several Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue covers with lucrative brand deals and a 2014 silver screen debut, The Other Woman, which grossed USD194 million worldwide.
19/20
Jourdan Dunn
Jourdan Dunn banked USD3.5 million this year thanks to Maybelline and Calvin Klein deals.
Discovered in a west London Primark, the 25 year-old today models for Pepe Jeans, Tommy Hilfiger, Burberry and Ann Taylor.
20/20
Anja Rubik
Polish model Anja Rubik has a slew of fragrance contracts, that add up to her USD3.5 million
She still spritzes for Elie Saab, her own original fragrance, and from Massimo Dutti, Marc Jacobs and Forever 21 ads.
The 32 year-old is also the host and judge of the Polish version of Project Runway.

People look at supermodels strutting their stuff on the runway and say ‘I wish my legs were that long’, but you should be saying ‘I wish my paycheck was that big’ instead!

We see these models everywhere – Instagram, Facebook, magazine covers, TV ads, runways. They’re all very busy and very beautiful, and we know there’s no myth to how they’re raking in the big bucks.

But have you ever wondered how much? According to the latest article by Forbes magazine, these ladies are the 20 most highest paid models in the industry, and they show no signs of slowing down.

The young Kendall Jenner joined the list this year after skyrocketing to fame alongside her sister, Kylie, and well reality-TV famous family. With Kendall’s slender figure and legs for days, she’s been roping in major deals from brands like Calvin Klein, Estée Lauder and Marc Jacobs. Her Instagram is also bursting at the grids with 36.9 million followers.

Now out of all the things we envy about a supermodel, perhaps the one that truly gets us is how big their paycheck gets.

Bernice Ng

Photos: Getty Images

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