Top 10 highest paid F1 drivers in 2026

Formula 1 has always been a sport characterized by excess. It’s a traveling circus of cutting-edge engineering, high-society glamour, and absolutely huge amounts of money. While teams must strictly adhere to strict budget caps to develop their cars, there is one major exception where the blank check remains. Drivers’ wages remain completely exempt from cost caps, making them the ultimate expression of financial power in the paddock. If you want a proven race winner or generational talent in your garage, you have to be willing to pay the going rate.

With the comprehensive revision of engine regulations and the team about to enter the 2026 season, the driver market has also shown unprecedented explosive growth. Before the new era began, teams scrambled to lock down their core players, resulting in some of the most lucrative contracts in the history of the sport. We saw a fascinating combination of compensating strategies up and down the pit lane. Legacy teams are paying astronomical premiums for guaranteed world championships, counting on their valuable ability to develop new cars. Meanwhile, midfield challengers are handing out massive contract extensions to rising young stars, desperate to prevent bigger fish poaching their homegrown talent.

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The result is a salary landscape that perfectly reflects the current speed, marketability and absolutely brutal hierarchy. From shocking team changes that shake the foundations of the sport, to quiet expansion ensuring the future, the money is as loud as the engine. Here are the ten highest-paid drivers this season, according to Sportrac.

10. Pierre Gasly

Salary in 2026: $12,000,000
team: alps

Gasly has established himself as a tough, resilient competitor who can score from difficult situations. He survived the pressure cooker of his early career and emerged as a highly reliable team leader. Alpine compensates well with his steady hands, excellent feedback and ability to punch above the weight of the car on race day.

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9. Alexander Albon

Salary in 2026: $12,000,000
team: williams

Albon completely resurrected his career and became Grove’s undisputed leader. He towed cars to places that didn’t exist and proved his worth week after week. The team rewarded his consistency with a payday, solidifying his status as the centerpiece of the team’s long-term rebuild.

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8. Carlos Sainz Jr.

Salary in 2026: $13,000,000
team: williams

After a high-profile exit from Ferrari, Sainz brought his tactical brilliance and smooth tire management to his new garage. He is a proven race winner and brings valuable frontline experience to a team keen to climb the mid-table table. His new employer paid to hire a driver who rarely made mistakes and always maximized his strategy.

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7. Oscar Piastri

Salary in 2026: $13,000,000
team: mclaren

Piastri not only survived the rookie hype, he succeeded. He totally verified it. He drives the car with the ice-cold composure of a ten-year veteran and has proven he can handle the pressure of fighting at the front of the grid. McLaren locked in on him early because everyone in the paddock knew he was a guaranteed future world champion.

6. Fernando Alonso

Salary in 2026: USD 20,000,000
team: Aston Martin

For multiple champions, age is really just a number. Alonso remains one of the most brutal and intelligent operators in the sport, extracting maximum performance from any machine given to him. Aston Martin is happy to pay a high price for its unparalleled racing skills and ability to constantly exploit the smallest weaknesses of its competitors.

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5. Lando Norris

Salary in 2026: USD 30,000,000
team: mclaren

Norris is the face of Papaya’s resurgence and one of the few riders who can consistently push the reigning world champion to the limit. He has raw, blistering lap speed and has brought race day consistency to an elite level. McLaren have opened their checkbooks to ensure their franchise star won’t be looking elsewhere for a long time to come.

4. George Russell

Salary in 2026: $34,000,000
team: Benz

With a giant seat vacated in the garage, Russell is officially the undisputed captain of the Silver Arrows. He brings aggressive qualifying speed and a no-nonsense approach to wheel-to-wheel combat. Mercedes paid him elite money to form the basis of their new era and compete for the championship in the new regulatory cycle.

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3. Charles Leclerc

Salary in 2026: $34,000,000
team: ferrari

Leclerc is Maranello’s golden boy, possessing some of the best pure qualifying speed of his generation. He could put the car on pole through an absolutely rough adhesion edge. Ferrari gave him a huge contract extension because his ceiling is astronomical, even if he now has to share the spotlight with the biggest names in the sport.

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2. Lewis Hamilton

Salary in 2026: $60,000,000
team: ferrari

Seeing the legendary champion in red Ferrari remains the most surreal sight on the track. Hamilton brings unrivaled global star power, a championship pedigree and an obsessive drive to capture an elusive eighth title. Scuderia Ferrari spent heavily to make the ultimate dream pair a reality, betting that his racing pace would bring the trophy back to Italy.

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1.Max Verstappen

Salary in 2026: US$70,000,000
team: red bull racing

Verstappen is the undisputed ultimate boss of Formula One. He drove with a machine-like precision that simply broke the spirit of the other racers. Red Bull paid him an astronomical sum because he was a generational talent, guaranteed wins, championships and complete domination of the sport.

price of speed

Formula 1 will always be a lucrative race and having the right person behind the wheel is the ultimate performance upgrade. As the grid adapts to new regulations in 2026, these huge contracts will be put to the ultimate test. A driver’s value is how they perform on Sunday, and in this cutthroat sport, every dollar has to be earned on the track.

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