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Caitlin Clark's WNBA salary has been a consistent source of intrigue -- and frustration -- since she entered the league in 2024.
Clark -- now a US international and newly minted as the MVP of the FIBA Women's World Cup qualifying tournament -- has been tied to her rookie contract since the Indiana Fever selected her at the top of the 2024 WNBA Draft.
Though she missed all but 13 games in 2025 due to a series of soft tissue injuries, Clark was named the league's Rookie of the Year in 2024 and has helped the Fever reach the WNBA playoffs in both of her professional seasons. The Fever reached the WNBA semifinals last season and are thought to be a serious championship contender entering 2026.
MORE: What is the WNBA's minimum salary? New CBA sees players clinch 10x increase since 2003
And there will be a full-length 2026 season, after the WNBA and the Women's National Basketball Players Association reached a verbal agreement over a new collective bargaining deal on Wednesday morning.
Large player salary raises are key to understanding the new CBA, in addition to a gross revenue sharing component between the league and the players' union. But even with a revised salary, Clark still won't be making the WNBA average.
The WNBA's new average salary will be around $600,000, a fivefold increase from the 2020 CBA. Clark -- in the middle of a four-year, rookie-scale contract worth $338,056 -- will see her salary rise, too.
However, as she is only set to make $85,873 this year, a fivefold increase in Clark's salary will net her roughly $429,000.
Clark will be eligible to sign a $1.4 million supermax contract in 2027. But until then, most of Clark's earnings will come from her myriad of off-court sponsorship and branding deals
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