LeBron James’ net worth: The billionaire superstar is entering what could be his final NBA season. Here’s how he makes and spends his money.
LeBron James and his wife, Savannah James.Evan Agostini/Invision/AP
LeBron James is a four-time champion, four-time MVP, 19-time All-Star, and the highest-paid NBA player of all time.
He signed a two-year, $97 million contract with the Lakers that will pay him $50 million in 2024-25.
King James has amassed amazing cars and houses en route to becoming a billion-dollar athlete, and he still has time for his surprisingly ordinary family.
LeBron James is one of the most accomplished athletes in the history of sports.
King James is a four-time NBA champion, four-time league MVP, and 19-time All-Star. He has also broken virtually every record the NBA has to offer — including passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the league’s all-time scoring crown during the 2023 season.
However, after the Los Angeles Lakers’ loss in the 2023 Western Conference Finals, James hinted at retirement for the first time even despite his past insistence on playing alongside his sons in the pros. Though he ultimately opted to suit up in purple and gold for the 2023-2024 campaign, there’s reason to believe this could be the final season of his illustrious NBA career.
James, who refers to himself as “just a kid from Akron,” has set himself up for life after achieving his goal of becoming a billion-dollar athlete. He’s amassed amazing cars and houses, taken glorious vacations, and dressed to the nines, all while maintaining a somewhat ordinary family life.
Take a look at the fabulous and, at times, surprisingly normal life of LeBron James:
Tony Manfred and Emmett Knowlton contributed to this report.
James is one of the wealthiest athletes of all time.
LeBron James. Michael Owen Baker/AP Images
James has made $479.5 million during his 21-year NBA career, per Spotrac. He also signed a two-year, $97 million extension with the Lakers with a payout of $47.6 million for the 2023-2024 season and $51.4 million the following year.
The extension has made James the highest-earning player of all time.
LeBron James. Mark J. Terrill/AP Images
When his latest extension is up, James will have made more money via NBA salaries than any other player in the history of the league. His $97.1 million contract extension will push him to a stunning $532 million guaranteed over the course of his entire career, per ESPN.
In addition to his NBA salary, James makes many millions of dollars a year in endorsements off the court.
LeBron James. YouTube/Kia Motors America
The King led all athletes with $126.9 million in on- and off-court earnings in 2022, per Sportico. He earned $36.9 million from the Lakers and another $90 million from sponsors and other off-court ventures.
In 2023, James ranked fourth on Forbes’ list of highest-paid athletes — just behind five-time Ballon d’Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo, World Cup champion Lionel Messi, and French soccer star Kylian Mbappé — with $119.5 million total earnings.
His endorsements include AT&T, Walmart, Intel, Kia, and more.
LeBron James stars in an AT&T commercial. AT&T
LeBron’s been featured in many commercials for those brands over his decades of superstardom.
He has a longtime sponsorship with Beats by Dre and even gifted headphones from the brand to players on his favorite college football team.
LeBron James wearing Beats by Dre. AP Photo/Charles Krupa
At one point, James — an Ohio native and massive fan of the Ohio State Buckeyes — gifted the entire football team new $350 Beats headphones. Ahead of the 2023-2024 NBA season, the brand signed the rest of James’ family — including his wife Savannah, basketball-playing sons Bronny and Bryce, and 9-year-old daughter Zhuri — to endorsement deals of their own, per Adweek.
James also has a massive deal with Nike that’s only grown over his career.
LeBron James with Nike. Visual China Group via Getty Images/Visual China Group via Getty Images
As soon as James left high school for the pros, Nike signed him to a seven-year, $93 million deal. The sponsorship was wildly successful for both parties so, in December 2015, Nike signed him to a lifetime deal.
James’ limitless agreement with the brand goes far beyond the standard shoe endorsement. And Maverick Carter — the King’s longtime business partner — seemingly confirmed to GQ Style that James inked the deal for north of $1 billion.
Nike has even built a building for the superstar.
Photos of the “LeBron James Innovation Center” on Nike’s campus. Nike
The King’s logo is pasted on virtually every surface of the facility on Nike’s Beaverton, Oregon, campus. Dubbed the “LeBron James Innovation Center,” the building serves as a hub for improving the athlete experience through research, engineering, and more.
Thanks in large part to his Nike deal, James is officially a billionaire.
Fishermen Labs’ Nike x LeBron James AR lens for Snapchat. Fishermen Labs
According to Forbes, James officially hit the 10-figure mark in 2022 when his net worth hit exactly $1 billion. The outlet estimates that he has earned “upwards of $900 million in income from endorsements and other business ventures.”
James is active on Instagram, which is another source of income for The King.
LeBron James uses his phone. Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images
The Hustle estimates that James makes about $428,000 per sponsored Instagram post, and with an audience of 158 million followers, it makes sense that brands would want to capitalize on all of those eyes.
James used to have an endorsement deal with McDonald’s.
LeBron James stars in a McDonald’s commercial. Brandon McNulty/McDonald’s/YouTube
He gave up $15 million when he chose not to renew the deal with the Golden Arches in 2017, according to Forbes.
Instead, he became a spokesman for Blaze Pizza, a company where he was a founding investor.
LeBron James steps behind the counter at Blaze Pizza. Screenshot via Blaze Pizza/YouTube
James is pretty savvy with his money, and he’ll often opt for a long-term investment opportunity over a short-term chunk of change. Such was the case when he opted to buy into Blaze Pizza rather than sticking with McDonald’s.
The Lakers star invested in the chain early on and, once his deal with the burger giant ended, he chose to use his likeness to promote the company. He’s made back his initial investment 25 times over.
Much like Chipotle or Subway, Blaze Pizza emphasizes customization. Customers build pizzas, choosing from seven cheeses, eight proteins, 20 vegetables, and three sauces, Jim Mizes, the president and chief operating officer, told Insider.
He made a similar move in 2021 when he left longtime sponsor Coca-Cola — or Sprite — for a deal with rival PepsiCo and its Mountain Dew brand.
LeBron James speaks at an event promoting Sprite. Aaron Davidson/Getty Images for Sprite
James had first agreed to a partnership with PepsiCo’s main competitor, Coca-Cola, during his rookie season in 2003. He long endorsed its Sprite and Powerade brands, and even boasted his own custom soda: “Sprite 6 Mix by Lebron James.”
But in 2021, six years after Coca-Cola’s 28-year reign as the official food and beverage partner of the NBA came to an end, James followed the league’s lead and inked a deal with Pepsi. Since then, he’s become the face of Mountain Dew for the brand.
James is an investor in Lobos 1707 tequila.
LeBron James (center) with Sheron Barber (right). TBG Press Team (The Brand Guild)
He likes to carry around a bottle in a custom leather satchel designed by Sheron Barber, as was the case at the 2022 NBA All-Star Game. A bottle of Lobos 1707 tequila can go for up to $160.
Economists have estimated he was worth as much as $500 million to the city of Cleveland.
A massive poster of LeBron James. AP Photo/Mark Duncan
Cleveland residents didn’t just lose out on the money they’d paid for the jerseys they burned after James left the Cavaliers to join the Los Angeles Lakers in the summer of 2018; experts asserted that his departure was a huge blow to the city’s economy.
Unsurprisingly, the franchise sells far more seats for games when the point-forward is a member of their team. But James’ impact transcended the team itself, with one economist telling TIME he was worth half a billion to Cleveland’s economy.
A study led by Harvard professor Daniel Shoag calculated that James increased employment in food and beverage establishments the area surrounding Cleveland’s home arena — Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse — by a whopping 23.5%.
James has made a number of shrewd investments — including in various sports franchises.
Liverpool FC
James bought a 2% stake of Liverpool FC, the esteemed English Premier League club, for about $6.5 million. His share has grown to be worth many, many times that initial investment.
He doubled down in 2021, buying into Fenway Sports Group — Liverpool FC’s parent company — to become a part-owner of the Boston Red Sox. Prior to making the deal, James was an outspoken fan of the New York Yankees — the Red Sox’s famed rivals.
Warren Buffett approves of James investment strategy.
Kim Klement/USA TODAY Sports/Reuters
“People really do have minds that function better than other people’s in certain areas that you can’t give a test for,” the famed investory told USA TODAY Sports. “And LeBron, in addition to a lot of other talents, he has a money mind. And he gets stuff.”
“He can separate out the cream from the crap, and you get more of the latter proposed to you than you do of the former,” Buffett added of James. “You really have to be able to suss it out.”
James’ media venture got $16 million from Warner Bros mere months after it launched.
LeBron James (left) with a group of famous comedians. Duane Prokop/Getty
James and his business partner, Maverick Carter, launched their media company, “Uninterrupted,” early in 2015. Blending the worlds of sports and lifestyle, the platform took inspiration from “The Players Tribune” by offering original and exclusive content directly from star athletes themselves.
The venture immediately caught the attention of several giants of the industry and, by the end of the year, Warner Bros. Entertainment — along with existing partner Turner Sports — made a multi-million-dollar investment in the brand.
James started a production company called SpringHill.
LeBron James. Christian Petersen/Getty Images
The Lakers superstar sold a “significant” minority stake of the company in a 2021 deal that valued SpringHill at a whopping $725 million, per Deadline. The new partnerships were meant to enable James and company to expand into new markets, including the metaverse.
SpringHill produced “Space Jam: A New Legacy,” which he also starred in.
LeBron James stars in “Space Jam: A New Legacy.” Warner Bros.
James and the SpringHill company spearheaded a follow-up to Michael Jordan’s iconic “Space Jam” film. Released over the summer of 2021, the highly anticipated sequel featured starred James himself and fellow basketball superstars Dame Lillard, Anthony Davis, Klay Thompson, Diana Taurasi, and Nneka Ogwumike as his “Goon Squad” foes.
Though it disappointed at the box office, James earned rave reviews as a leading man.
He also owns a stake in a New York City building.
Google Maps
James and Arnold Schwarzenegger are part of a group that invested in Georgetown Company and Bill Ackman’s office building in the Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood of Manhattan. Located at 787 Eleventh Avenue, the renovated building overlooks the Hudson River and offers more than 500,000 square feet of luxury office space.
James has long been rumored to own a stake in Klutch Sports Group.
LeBron James (right) with Rich Paul. Erika Goldring/Getty Images for Remy Martin
James’ longtime friend, Rich Paul, founded Klutch Sports Group in 2012. With James as one of the company’s original signees, Kltuch has grown into one of the most powerful agencies in the sports world and represents some of the top athletes in men’s and women’s basketball and beyond.
Rumors have long swirled that James bought into the ownership group as part of his deal to join the then-aspiring agency, but the NBA reportedly investigated such accusations and did not find any evidence that James was, in fact, an owner.
All that financial savvy has allowed James to buy some sweet toys.
LeBron James once owned matching Porsches with Dwyane Wade. @dwyanewade
At one point, he and Dwyane Wade have matching Porsches. It’s unclear who had which color.
He also, at one point, owned a Rolls-Royce Phantom.
LeBron James’ Rolls-Royce Phantom. Instagram/LeBron James
James’ tricked-out car even had TVs in the seats, according to photos posted on his Instagram.
And he bought his mom a Porsche for her birthday.
LeBron James posts a photo of the Porsche he bought his mother. Instagram/LeBron James
James doesn’t just hog the luxury vehicles for himself. As he shared on Instagram at the time, the basketball superstar bought his mother — who raised him on her own — a Porsche of her own for her birthday a few years back.
He also bought a Ferrari Testarossa for his wife.
The Ferrari LeBron James purchased for his wife, Savannah. Instagram
When it came time to celebrate his wife Savannah’s birthday, James pulled a similar move. This time, he gifted one of the most important women in his life a Ferrari Testarossa.
“What A Night and what makes me happy more than anything is putting a smile on your face!” James wrote in his Instagram caption. “Took me a long time to find your masterpiece but I wouldn’t stop until I did and now I can’t wait to watch u cruise off into the sunset on the PCH.”
Don’t worry — he has at least one Ferrari of his own, too.
LeBron James in his Ferrari. The World Cars/YouTube
Insider has previously reported that James may have several Ferraris parked in his garage.
But he insists that he drives a Kia, even to work.
A Kia. YouTube/Cleveland.com
James, who is sponsored by the Korean car brand, drives a custom K900 luxury sedan. The car, which has his personal logo emblazoned on each wheel, is far from your typical Kia.
James also promoted the Hummer EV, the first electric Hummer.
LeBron James driving a Hummer. via GMC/YouTube
In addition to posting about the massive car on Instagram, James has starred in several commercials for the brand.
He appears to own a Porsche 918 Spyder.
LeBron James driving his Porsche. YouTube/TheSuperCarSquad
Fans spotted him driving the speedy sportscar on a highway in Los Angeles.
LeBron also has a much bigger vehicle he’s customized to his liking.
A look inside one of LeBron James’ cars. Instagram
James’ bigger car — likely used for transporting his family — has customized headrests featuring his logo and a big-screen TV that’s perfect for watching “Tom & Jerry” on the go.
James and Maverick Carter’s LRMR Ventures purchased a stake in Canyon Bicycles.
Canyon Bicycles. YouTube/Canyon Bicycles
You might assume that, at 6-foot-9 and 250 pounds, James might resort to other modes of transportation — like his many lavish cars. But he’s famously an avid biker and was even once spotted pedaling his way to a home game in Miami.
James and Carter reportedly spent roughly $30 million to invest in the Germany-based cycling brand back in 2022, per Front Office Sports.
When he joined the Miami Heat, James bought a $9 million home in Coconut Grove.
LeBron James’ home in Miami. Obeo
The six-bedroom home came complete with an infinity pool that overlooks Biscayne Bay, a maze of terraces, a movie room, and a massive primary suite. James later sold the luxurious pad for a $4 million profit.
He also owns a 30,000-square-foot compound in his hometown of Akron, Ohio.
A photo of LeBron James and his teammates at his home in Akron, Ohio. Instagram/LeBron James
Nearly $10 million can get you a whole lot of space in Akron, Ohio, and James has put it to good use. In the past, he hosted Thanksgiving there for his entire team, according to Instagram.
The 30,000-square-foot pad boasts six bedrooms and 14 bathrooms as well as a ton of unique amenities, including a recording studio, a bowling alley, a barbershop, a movie theater, and an aquarium.
And in 2017 he purchased a $23 million mansion in Los Angeles.
LeBron James’ home in Los Angeles. Trulia
The stunning home — located in Los Angeles’ Brentwood neighborhood — has 10 bedrooms, an onyx bar, and a high-end game room among many other luxury features.
Despite his incredible net worth, James is notoriously cheap.
LeBron James (right) and Savannah James. Christian Petersen/Getty Images
James’ former teammate and close friend, Hall of Famer Dwyane Wade, once called the King “the cheapest guy in the NBA.” James replied that the accusation “is so, so, so, so falsely true.”
The billionaire refuses to use his phone if it is not on wifi.
“No, I’m not doing that,” James once said. “I’m not turning on data roaming, I’m not buying no apps, I still got Pandora with commercials.”
When Pandora heard that, they offered James a free premium account.
But James isn’t cheap when it comes to keeping himself in proper basketball shape.
LeBron James exercising with bands. REUTERS/Ray Stubblebine
James reportedly spends more than $1.5 million per year just to take care of his body, and that’s likely only increasing as he ages. Like many professional athletes, he has a full gym, ice tub and hot tub, and hyperbaric chamber in his home.
But James also employs a team of health gurus, including a former Navy SEAL who serves as his biomechanist, a recovery coach, personal chefs, and masseuses. That’s all in addition to what his team offers at their facilities.
“Where a lot of people don’t do it, he puts a lot of money behind taking care of his body,” his former Cavs teammate, Mike Miller, said, per Bleacher Report. “A lot of people think it’s a big expense, but that big expense has allowed him to make a lot more money for a long period of time.”
James has plenty of tattoos that have cost him a pretty penny over the years.
LeBron James getting a tattoo. Bang Bang
James goes to one of the most exclusive tattoo artists in the country — Bang Bang Tattoos in New York City — for his ink. The brand charges a minimum of $500 per hour.
Keith “Bang Bang” McCurdy’s other customers include Rihanna, Justin Bieber, and Katy Perry, per NPR.
James also isn’t cheap when it comes to those he loves.
LeBron (left) and Savannah James. AP Photo/Chris Pizzello
James reportedly bought his wife Savannah an engagement ring that was worth a whopping $300,000. He posted a photo of her wearing the rock on Instagram.
LeBron and Savannah are high-school sweethearts, and they have three kids together.
LeBron James with his wife, Savannah, and their three children at the 2023 ESPYs. Kevin Mazur/Getty Images
LeBron James Jr. — who publicly goes by “Bronny” — was born during his dad’s second season in the NBA. Next came Bryce James and, a few years later, LeBron and Savannah had daughter Zhuri.
Bronny is turning into quite the ballplayer himself.
LeBron James and his son, Bronny. Jay LaPrete/AP Images
Bronny considered three different Division I programs — all sponsored by Nike, of course — for his collegiate basketball career before deciding to join the USC Trojans. As soon as he stepped foot on campus, he became the highest-paid college athlete in the country through NIL.
LeBron has said that it’s his goal to play in the NBA with his son.
Bronny James. Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
James has publicly expressed his hopes that he can compete alongside Bronny in the NBA. But both James’ wife, Savannah, told Sports Illustrated’s Chris Ballard that they had no idea about James’ plan until he stated it publicly.
“No, we hadn’t talked about it,” Savannah said. “I mean, yes, because obviously you ask the boys what they want to be when they’re 10, 11 years old. I want to be in the NBA. And I think that’s just something that was near and dear to LeBron’s heart.”
He has employed his wealth and business savvy for causes bigger than just himself and his loved ones.
LeBron James’ “I Promise School” in Akron, Ohio. AP Photo/Phil Long
In 2018, James opened the I Promise School, a fully-funded public elementary school in his hometown of Akron, Ohio, that primarily serves at-risk children. The school also offers job placement for parents, an on-location food bank, programs to help students cope with family-related stress, free bikes for every student, and activities to help kids fill time, among other offerings.
James also launched the LeBron James Family Foundation, which pledged about $41 million dollars to send more than 1,000 students to the University of Akron.
Additionally, James has supported “More Than a Vote,” a campaign that encourages voting. The organization even has merchandise, which James rocked before a 2020 playoff game, per Instagram.
