The Golden Bachelor is here for its hotly anticipated (by me and my grandma) return for season two, which means we’re finally getting a formal introduction to Mel Owens. And if you’ve been following along, then you know the road to get here has been a little bit bumpy.
Following the controversial comments he made about the age of his contestants a few months earlier, Mel nearly got replaced as the season two lead (if you believe the rumors, anyway...) but now that the drama is behind us, we’re here to talk about how much this man is getting paid to find love on reality television. And while we don’t have an exact figure, there’s a lot we *do* know.
First Up, Mel Is (Reportedly) Already Rich
Mel kicked off his career with the Los Angeles Rams and was with them for nine full years between 1981 and 1989. Can’t speak to his specific pay, but the average yearly salary for a NFL player even back in ’81 was ~$90,000, per the Los Angeles Times (and it only went up from there), so seems fair to assume Mel was doing juuuuuust fine.
Plus, he became a sports injury lawyer post retirement. How much does he have in the bank, you ask? Celebrity Net Worth puts Mel’s current net worth at $2 million.
He’ll Make at Least Six Figures for The Golden Bachelor
ABC has never confirmed what they pay talent, but there’s been a lot of information leaked over the years. Amy Kaufman reported in her 2018 book Bachelor Nation that it’s “incredibly rare for someone to make less than six figures.”
There are also rumors that Bachelor Sean Lowe made somewhere between $75,000 to $90,000 for his season, while Emily Maynard made history negotiating $250,000 for her season.
Just keep in mind that Sean and Emily’s seasons aired over a decade ago in 2012/2013, so you’d think rates have only gone up since then. But...maybe not?
More recently (but still several years ago in 2021), Jason Tartick revealed that he, Colton Underwood, and Blake Horstmann were offered $100,000 to star on The Bachelor. And Dean Unglert revealed that he was offered $75,000.
POINT IS: Chances are Mel will likely be paid somewhere around $100,000 for The Golden Bachelor.
He’ll Also Get Paid for His Wedding (If He Gets Married)
If Mel Owens falls in love and agrees to a televised wedding, ABC will write him yet another check.
According to Slate, Ashley Hebert and J.P. Rosenbaum were reportedly paid $250,000 for their wedding in 2012, while Sean Lowe and Catherine Giudici earned six figures for their wedding a few years later in 2014.
FYI, His Contestants Don’t Get Paid At All
While ABC pays their leads, contestants don’t earn money on The Bachelor and The Bachelorette, and there’s no reason to assume The Golden Bachelor operates differently. As Ashley Iaconetti put it, “You don’t get paid as one of the girls on The Bachelor.”
In fact, contestants often lose money to be on the show due to having to purchase their own wardrobe—and in some cases, taking time off or even quitting their jobs! However, they do get paid to go on Bachelor in Paradise (around $400 to $800 a day), and of course there are the inevitable endorsement deals that start rolling in.
The Golden Bachelor season 2 premieres September 24, 2025 on ABC.
