The Highest-Paid Head Coaches in the NFL

Three Super Bowl wins and nine division titles later, Andy Reid sits atop the list of the NFL’s highest-paid coaches. 

Reid officially earned that status after signing a five-year extension in early 2024. The deal is reported to be worth $20 million per year, eclipsing the previous highest earner—Bill Belichick—before he left New England after the 2023 season.

Reid is fourth all-time in wins (279) and fourth in games over .500 in his career (122). He is also the only coach on the list with multiple Super Bowl wins. 

Second is Broncos head coach Sean Payton. His $18 million salary doesn’t include bonuses for performance.

Payton was the AP Coach of the Year in 2006 and won the Super Bowl in 2009—both with the Saints. He briefly retired after the 2021 season, but returned to coach the Broncos two years later, with Denver sending a first-round pick to New Orleans for Payton’s rights.

Jim Harbaugh of the Chargers is third, earning $16 million annually. Harbaugh made a high-profile return to the NFL in 2024 after leading his alma mater Michigan to its first college football national championship since 1997. He made an instant impact in L.A., leading the Chargers to an 11 win season, a six win improvement from the year prior.  

Rounding out the $15 million-and-above club are Sean McVay and Nick Sirianni, who both earn $15 million.

McVay was the youngest coach in the NFL when he was hired at just 30 years old in 2017. He won the Super Bowl with the Rams in 2021 and has won more than 10 games in seven of his nine seasons.

Sirianni more than doubled his salary from $7 million to $15 million in an extension after winning Super Bowl LIX in 2025. He has never missed the playoffs as head coach of the Eagles, winning his third division title this season.

Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn, the former Lions’ offensive and defensive coordinators, respectively, were two of three first-time head coaches on the list. Johnson and Glenn both signed five-year deals, with Johnson’s paying $13 million annually and Glenn’s coming in slightly below at $12 million. They had varying levels of success in Year 1, with Johnson’s Bears earning the No. 2 seed in the NFC, while Glenn’s Jets finished with the No. 2 pick in the upcoming draft.

Liam Coen rounds out the list of newcomers on the list, earning $10 million a season in his deal with the Jaguars. Coen, the former Buccaneers offensive coordinator, outperformed expectations in his first year, winning 13 games on the way to an AFC South title.

Two names who recently exited the list are Mike Tomlin and John Harbaugh, former head coaches of the Steelers and Ravens, respectively. 

Tomlin was the longest-tenured head coach in the NFL before stepping down as Pittsburgh’s head coach after the team’s loss to the Texans in the wild-card round. He spent 19 years with the Steelers and never had a losing season, tying Belichick for second all-time to Tom Landry for most consecutive non-losing seasons.

Harbaugh inked a three-year extension before the season that was supposed to keep him in Baltimore through 2028, until owner Steve Bisciotti relieved him of his duties after the team’s week 18 loss to Pittsburgh. Harbaugh won a Super Bowl in 2012 and reached the playoffs 12 times with the Ravens.

NFL coaches earn some of the highest salaries in sports, including college football. Nine NFL coaches earn more annually than Kirby Smart and Lane Kiffin, who are the highest paid college football coaches at $13 million.

Ranking the Highest-Paid NFL Head Coaches

Here is the list of the highest-paid NFL coaches of 2025, based on publicly reported data. The list was compiled with data from Pro Football Reference and Sportico.

• Updated: Jan. 6, 2026

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