Women’s sports are commanding attention, and that shift has been impossible to miss in the WNBA since Caitlin Clark’s arrival. Over two years, the league has seen a sharp rise in viewership, attendance, and merchandise sales, and as a result, the Indiana Fever star continues to lead the pack in income generated.

According to Forbes’ annual report, Clark remains the highest-earning athlete representing the W. She ranks No. 11 overall among other female stars across sports. The stunning part, though, is that she earned just $0.1 million on the court and an eye-popping $12 million off it. That off-court brand-value dominance comfortably places her ahead of stars like Angel Reese, Sabrina Ionescu, and Paige Bueckers, who also feature on the list.

Clark spent most of last season on the sidelines, missing 31 of the Fever’s 44 regular-season games and all eight playoff matchups. But the star never faded from the spotlight. The 23-year-old recently returned to the floor with Team USA and said last month, while competing at the Annika golf pro-am, that she’s finally feeling 100% again.

The event was another reminder of her gravitational pull as the Golf Channel expanded its coverage to live-stream her warm-up and follow her progress mid-round.

Speaking of the Fever star’s impact, Clark sold more jerseys on Fanatics last fall than any other pro basketball player, other than Stephen Curry.

Add in her eight-year, $28 million Nike endorsement deal, the richest in women’s basketball history, and it becomes clear why she’s the biggest draw in the W.

Right behind her at No. 13 is Sabrina Ionescu, who racked up $10 million in off-court earnings. An additional $0.5 million came from her salary and on-court income. The large sum comes from a growing portfolio that includes partnerships with FinTech firm Ant International and Away luggage, a stake in the ownership group of NWSL side Bay FC, and appearances in two Super Bowl commercials for Michelob Ultra and Nike.

Ionescu’s signature shoes also remain among the most popular, earning a high-profile co-sign from Curry, who recently took the floor in them.

Angel Reese sits at No. 15 on the list with $9.4 million. $9 million came in off-court earnings, and $0.4 million likely came from her salary with the Chicago Sky. This year, her signature shoe deal with Reebok, partnerships with brands like Amazon, Beats by Dre, and Cash App, and a signature meal collaboration with McDonald’s fueled her account.

Reese took her star power to another level this year, appearing in the Netflix film ‘A House of Dynamite’, walking the runway at the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show, and becoming the cover athlete for NBA 2K26.

Paige Bueckers is the final WNBA star to appear on the list, coming in at No. 16 with $9 million in off-court earnings ($0.1 million on-court), the same total as Bayou Barbie. The reigning WNBA Rookie of the Year boasts 16 partnerships with brands such as Coach, DoorDash, and Intuit.

Bueckers also holds an equity stake in Good Eat’n, a snack brand founded by NBA star Chris Paul, and is set to produce and star in an upcoming Apple film, Jess & Pearl.

But while these superstars did well to crack the top 20 highest-paid female athletes of 2025, one glaring issue still stands out…

The list is dominated by tennis players, who pulled in millions in on-court income, while Caitlin Clark and the other WNBA stars who made the cut don’t even earn a million in base salary.

Sadly, that’s been the reality in 2025. The WNBA minimum salary was $66,079 for players with two or fewer years of service and $78,831 for those with three or more years of service. Even at the top end, the regular max was just $214,466, with ‘supermax’ deals hovering around $250,000.

Ionescu led the four WNBA players on the list in on-court salary, earning $0.5 million. And that gap is exactly why players are pushing so hard for a better CBA.

Clark’s rookie season in 2024 sparked a seismic shift across the league, with TV viewership jumping 300%, attendance rising 48%, and merchandise sales exploding by 601%. Yet players are still earning only a fraction of the revenue they help generate.

While the details of the new revenue-sharing structure remain unclear, all signs point toward higher numbers for women’s basketball players in the coming years. And speaking of higher numbers, Clark showed up on yet another list of the highest-paid female athletes, but this time landed inside the top 10.

Caitlin Clark among Sportico’s top-earning female athletes of 2025

Sportico placed Caitlin Clark much higher in its list, ranking her sixth overall. The report released earlier this month also cited different figures for off-field earnings compared to Forbes.

Sportico has Clark earning $119,000 in salary and bonuses, with her off-court income jumping to $16 million, noticeably higher than the $12 million Forbes figure. When you look at the list, she’s also the only WNBA player on it, with Reese, Ionescu, and Bueckers nowhere in sight.

The one thing that remains constant, however, is the huge influx of tennis players on the list.

At the end of the day, it really comes down to which list you trust, since both reports use different numbers. What’s clear, though, is that Clark remains the WNBA’s top income generator, whether she’s on the floor or not.

The Caitlin Clark effect is already here for everyone to see. It’s only getting bigger.