Esports has evolved far beyond the stereotype of "earning money by playing games." Today, it’s a multi-billion-dollar industry with professional players earning impressive prize money. While sponsorship deals and salaries are significant, this article focuses solely on prize earnings, highlighting the top players across various games.
Dota 2
Dota 2 players dominate the earnings charts, largely thanks to the game's massive prize pools, particularly from The International. Danish player Johan ‘N0tail’ Sundstein leads with over $7.1 million in career earnings. His success includes winning four Majors and two Internationals, primarily with OG, the team he co-founded.
In second place is JerAx, also from OG, with approximately $6.5 million. Both players have benefited from the consistently high stakes in Dota 2 tournaments.
Fortnite
Fortnite's prize pools were groundbreaking in the early years, particularly with the Fortnite World Cup. The highest-earning Fortnite player is Kyle ‘Bugha’ Giersdorf, who earned $3 million from winning the 2019 World Cup Solo competition. Adding subsequent earnings, Bugha’s total exceeds $710,000, placing him at the top of Fortnite’s earnings list.
David ‘aqua’ Wang and Emil ‘nyhrox’ Pedersen, who won $1.5 million for the 2019 World Cup Duos, follow with around $2.2 million each.
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS)
In CS, players from the Danish team Astralis have amassed the most significant earnings. Peter ‘dupreeh’ Rasmussen tops the list with $2.2 million, thanks to five Major victories. His teammate Andreas ‘Xyp9x’ Højsleth has earned just over $2 million. Notable non-Astralis players include NAVI’s Oleksandr ‘s1mple’ Kostyljev with $1.71 million and FaZe Clan’s Finn ‘Karrigan’ Andersen with $1.56 million.
League of Legends
League of Legends players generally earn less in prize money compared to other top esports. Lee ‘Faker’ Sang-hyeok, regarded as one of the best players ever, leads with around $1.71 million. The second highest is Lee ‘Duke’ Ho Seong, who has earned approximately $955,000.
Arena of Valor and Honor of Kings
Arena of Valor and its Eastern counterpart, Honor of Kings, feature substantial prize pools. Luo ‘HuaHai’ Siyuan is the highest earner in this genre with $1.8 million, largely from victories in international championships. Peng ‘Fly’ Yunfei follows with about $1.6 million.
PUBG MOBILE
PUBG MOBILE has surpassed the original PUBG in terms of prize money distribution. Zhu ‘paraboy’ Bocheng, a standout player for Nova Esports, has earned around $1.39 million since 2019.
VALORANT
VALORANT is still growing, but several players have already made significant earnings. Corbin ‘C0M’ Lee, the 2023 VALORANT Champions winner, leads with $327,300, followed by Ethan ‘Ethan’ Arnold with $288,300.
Rocket League
Rocket League’s top earner is Evan ‘M0nkey M00n’ Rogez, who has accumulated over $795,000, thanks to victories in major tournaments like the RLCS World Championship and the Esports World Cup 2024. Other notable players include Jacob ‘JKnaps’ Knapman with $575,000 and Yanis ‘Alpha54’ Champenois with $572,000.
Women’s Esports
While women’s esports prize earnings trail behind their male counterparts, progress is being made. Canadian player Sasha ‘Scarlett’ Hostyn tops the list with over $470,000 earned from StarCraft II. Chinese Hearthstone player Li ‘Liooon’ Xiaomeng has earned $241,000, and Russian CS2 player Ksenia ‘vilga’ Klyuenkova follows with $123,000.
This snapshot of top esports earners showcases the impressive financial rewards available to elite players across a range of games. As esports continues to grow, these figures are likely to expand, reflecting the increasing importance and popularity of competitive gaming.