Pay Discrepancy Between ‘Dancing With the Stars’ Pros and Troupe Revealed by Source

The Dancing With the Stars pros might be the stars of the show (um, other than the titular Stars), but there’s no denying that the troupe are hugely important. Not only do they provide super fun and innovative dance breaks, they give vital support in the group dances! But apparently they’re getting paid a lot less than their pro counterparts.

A source just confirmed to The Sun that “Brand new troupe members make $600 an episode, but the average is roughly $800 per episode.” Meanwhile, “the most veteran pros make over $5,000 an episode. The less experienced dance pros make less, but they still make at least thousands per show.”

There are 10 to 15 episodes of DWTS per season, which means the most a troupe member is making is $12,000. Meanwhile, pros are making more like ~$75 per season.

The troupe’s salary details have previously been kept under-wraps, but Lindsay Arnold told Jason Tartick (via Us Weekly) that when she pivoted from pro to troupe, her salary got cut by “more than half” and it’s simply not enough to live on: “I guess it depends on the kind of life that you live,” she said, “but living in L.A., paying rent, buying food there, paying for gas, like, you’d be really tight.”

Dancing With the Stars does make sure to highlight the troupe members, which hopefully leads to more followers and paid opportunities, but nothing is guaranteed. Troupe members also often go on to become pros, but the promotion isn’t baked in. Here’s to hoping they get a much deserved pay increase in seasons ahead!