Top CNN News Anchor Salaries

Those perfectly made-up faces that we turn to for the most recent updates on everything from politics to kitten rescues—have you ever wondered just how much they're making? Is it enough to justify their perfectly coiffed hair and impeccable wardrobes?

Well, let's not mince words here, my friends. These anchors are raking it in. We're not talking millions of dollars, we're talking buckets of cash. And before you start ranting about their hefty salaries, let's not forget that these aren't just any old news-readers; they're celebrities who make their networks millions of dollars each year.

Here are the CNN news anchors who currently rake in the most—and a few who have left but clearly made their mark and walked away with millions.

• Salary: $6 Million
• Net Worth: $20 Million

Erin Burnett, an American news anchor and television personality, has become a household name as the host of Erin Burnett OutFront on CNN, covering the latest developments in politics, business, and global events. With a background at CNBC and Bloomberg, Burnett brings a wealth of experience and a refined journalistic approach to her work.

Her coverage of the 2008 financial crisis even earned her an Emmy Award. Burnett's incisive reporting and engaging interview style have made her a respected figure in the media landscape, offering insightful analysis that helps viewers make sense of the news around them. 

• Salary: $2 Million
• Net Worth: $6 Million

Harlow is a seasoned correspondent who has covered a broad range of topics throughout her career, including business, finance, politics, and breaking news events. Prior to joining CNN, she demonstrated her expertise as a correspondent for Forbes Video Network and as a business news anchor and reporter for Bloomberg Television.

Harlow is also known for her ability to conduct high-profile interviews with top business leaders, policymakers, and celebrities. In fact, her coverage of the Flint water crisis earned her a Gracie Award, among other awards, for her outstanding journalism.

• Salary: $162,000
• Net Worth: $5 Million

S.E. Cupp is a prominent figure in American conservative media and an influential contributor to the national conversation on politics. As the host of S.E. Cupp Unfiltered on CNN, she provides a sharp analysis of the latest news and events related to politics, culture, and society at large. Her ability to communicate effectively with viewers and guests from a variety of political perspectives has earned her a reputation as a thoughtful commentator who can provide valuable insights on complex issues.

Prior to joining CNN, Cupp worked as a columnist for the New York Daily News and as a contributor for Fox News and has authored several books. 

• Salary: $169,000
• Net Worth: $1.8 Million; $4 Million

Kaitlan Collins is an accomplished American journalist and a White House correspondent for CNN. In this role, she is responsible for covering the latest breaking news and important developments from the White House, including presidential announcements and press briefings. With previous experience as a White House correspondent for The Daily Caller and as a reporter for One America News Network, Collins is no newcomer to the world of political journalism. 

She has reported on numerous high-profile events, including the 2016 presidential campaign, the Trump administration, and the 2020 election. Collins has been recognized for her exceptional journalism with multiple awards, including the prestigious Merriman Smith Award from the White House Correspondents' Association for her coverage of President Trump's Oval Office meeting with Russian officials.

• Salary: $5 Million
• Net Worth: $25 Million

Wolf Blitzer is an accomplished American journalist and news anchor who has garnered widespread acclaim for his coverage of global events. Currently the lead political anchor at CNN, he hosts the popular news program The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer. Over the course of his career, he's reported on some of the most prominent events that have shaped our world, including the Gulf War, the 9/11 terrorist attacks, and the Iraq War.

Blitzer's talent and dedication as a journalist have allowed him to moderate several presidential debates and interview numerous high-profile figures in politics, including world leaders and U.S. presidents. For his exceptional work in reporting and analysis, Blitzer has earned several awards, including Emmys and a Peabody Award.

• Salary: $2 Million
• Net Worth: $5 Million

John Berman is a prominent television news anchor and journalist in the United States. He is currently an anchor of New Day on CNN, having previously co-anchored Early Start and At This Hour on the same network. Berman's impressive career has seen him cover a wide range of news topics, including politics, business, and breaking news events.

Prior to his time at CNN, he worked for ABC News, where he served as a correspondent and anchor for several news programs, including World News Now and Good Morning America. Berman has received numerous accolades for his reporting, including an Emmy Award for his coverage of the Boston Marathon bombing.

• Salary: $2.4 Million
• Net Worth: $3 Million

Kate Bolduan is an accomplished American journalist and television news anchor. Currently, she anchors At This Hour on CNN, having previously co-anchored New Day on the same network. Throughout her career, Bolduan has covered a broad spectrum of news topics that span politics, business, and breaking news events. With an impressive background in journalism, she previously worked as a congressional correspondent for NBC News and as a general assignment reporter for WTVD-TV in North Carolina.

Bolduan has received recognition for her exceptional journalism and has been bestowed with several awards, including an esteemed Emmy Award for her coverage of the Supreme Court's ruling on same-sex marriage. She is admired for her sharp interviewing skills, her ability to cut through political spin, and her engaging on-air presence. 

• Salary: $150,000
• Net Worth: $1 Million

Zain Asher is a  British Nigerian news anchor for CNN International who anchors for the primetime global news show One World with Zain Asher. On top of that, she's a published author of her memoir Where The Children Take Us.

Asher was an Oxford University graduate with a degree in French and Spanish, before attending graduate school at Columbia University in New York.  After earning her master's degree from the Graduate School of Journalism there, she worked as a receptionist at a production company and a freelance reporter before she finally met with a CNN executive that would change her life.

• Salary: $3 Million
• Net Worth: $8.5 Million

Alisyn Camerota is the host of CNN Tonight and a former anchor for the CNN morning show New Day  as well as the co-host for CNN Newsroom. During her career, she has been nominated twice for an Emmy Award.  Camerota has covered everything from the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey in Houston to the Paris and Brussels terror attacks, and the Parkland school shooting. 

On top of that, she has been actively involved with political coverage as well, having held dozens of panels with Donald Trump supporters and covering the Me Too movement. She as also hosted the primetime specials Tipping Point: Sexual Harassment in America and The Hunting Ground: Sexual Assault on Campus. Camerota was formerly a presenter at Fox News.

• Salary: $6 Million
• Net Worth: $12 Million

Chris Cuomo is currently a television journalist anchor at NewsNation but was formerly a CNN anchor for the morning show New Day and Cuomo Prime Time, which aired from 2018 to 2021. Cuomo was let go of CNN shortly after sexual harassment allegations against his brother, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, surfaced.

Due to the conflict of interest, Cuomo refused to cover the allegations against his brother. On top of that, there were allegations against Chris Cuomo himself that led to his firing. During his career, Cuomo had also been a news anchor for Good Morning America and a co-anchor for ABC's 20/20.

• Salary: $80,000
• Net Worth: $2 Million

Laura Coates is not only a Chief Legal Analyst for CNN, but an educated attorney, having received her J.D. from the University of Minnesota Law School in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She served as an associate attorney at  Faegre & Benson, and later  Kasowitz, Benson, Torres & Friedman based in New York City.

Later she worked for the United States Department of Justice as a federal prosecutor, also serving as a trial attorney in the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice during the Bush and Obama administrations. It was in 2016 that she became a CNN legal analyst.

• Salary: $4 Million
• Net Worth: $16 Million

Jake Tapper is a journalist, author and cartoonist who anchors for the CNN show The Lead with Jake Tapper.  He's also the co-host of the Sunday program  State of the Union. As an ABC senior white house correspondent, Tapper earned three Merriman Smith Memorial Awards from the White House Correspondents' Association. 

And those aren't the only accolades Tapper has earned over the years. Additionally, Tapper helped cover the inauguration of President Obama, which earned him an Emmy Award for Outstanding Live Coverage of a Current News Story. Educated at Dartmouth College,  he has come far now as the lead anchor for all major Washington events at CNN. 

• Salary: $3 Million
• Net Worth: $9 Million

Journalist, news anchor and host of Inside Politics, Bash co-anchors the State of the Union on CNN. Having graduated from George Washington University, Bash had served as an intern for NBC, CBS, and CNN.  After college, she became producer or Late Edition, Evans & Novak, and Inside Politics.

Her current position as host Inside Politics was previously filled by her ex-husband John King. Bash was also the host of the 2019 Democratic presidential primary debate and a former trustee of Jewish Women International, a position she resigned over its abortion-rights advocacy due to pressure from conservative voices.

• Salary: $7 Million
• Net Worth: $25 Million

As the son of 60 Minutes journalist Mike Wallace, Chris Wallace has had quite the name to live up to and has certainly been doing well for himself. Over his 50-year-long career, he has served as either a correspondent, moderator, or anchor on CBS, ABC, NBC, Fox News, and currently, CNN.

Wallace has numerous accolades, including three Emmy Awards, a Peabody Award, a George Polk Award, the DuPont-Columbia University Silver Baton Award, and Paul White lifetime achievement award. Starting out as an assistant to  Walter Cronkite during the 1964 Republican National Convention, Wallace is the host of his own show Who's Talking to Chris Wallace?

• Salary: $40,000 - $110,000
• Net Worth: $1 - $5 million

British journalist Becky Anderson serves as an anchor for CNN International on Connect the World. Previously she hosted Business International, a business news program. After working for Bloomberg and CNBC, Becky Anderson has been with CNN since 1999. 

After earning her degree in Economics at Sussex University in the UK, Anderson is now based in CNN’s Abu Dhabi bureau. Renowned for her interview skills, she has interviewed numerous world leaders including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, South African President Jacob Zuma, Afghan President Hamid Karzai, and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon.

• Salary: $12 Million
• Net Worth: $50 Million

Easily one of the most popular anchors on CNN, Anderson Cooper is also one of the richest, anchoring his very own show  Anderson Cooper 360°. He also serves another network, as a correspondent for 60 Minutes on CBS News.

Anderson Cooper graduated from Yale University with a Bachelor of Arts in 1989 before pursuing journalism with no prior education in the subject. By 1995, he became a correspondent for ABC News and in 1999, a co-anchor for World News Now. The openly gay anchor is the father of two children.

• Salary: $2 Million
• Net Worth: $7 Million

Based in Washington, D.C.,  John King is CNN's chief national correspondent while serving as the weekday anchor for Inside Politics, a roundtable political discussion program. Additionally, he has anchored for the State of the Union and John King, USA.

Born in Boston, King earned his bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Rhode Island. He's been married twice with his second wife being fellow CNN anchor Dana Bash. John King has come a long way from the start of his career as a writer for the Associated Press. 

• Salary: $4 Million
• Net Worth: $12 Million

Don Lemon has a whopping net worth of $12 million, which is only partially thanks to his reported $4 million salary. He started with CNN in 2006, but it wouldn't end how he thought. In 2023, he ended up getting the axe from the network.

After being terminated, he abruptly tweeted, "After 17 years at CNN, I would have thought that someone in management would have had the decency to tell me directly." A reason hasn't been released, but most people are assuming it's due to his recent string of controversial comments.

• Salary: $700,000
• Net Worth: $4 million

Jim Acosta is an anchor and domestic correspondent for CNN that notably served as the network's chief White House correspondent during the Trump administration. He gained wide recognition for his numerous encounters with President Trump, where the two would often butt heads. 

Before the Trump administration, Acosta also served as a correspondent during the Obama Administration.  Since 2021, he has been serving as an anchor and domestic correspondent for CNN. He has two children and a bachelor's degree from James Madison University.

• Salary: $5 Million
• Net Worth: $16 Million

Christiane Amanpour is a British-Iranian journalist recognized for her work as an anchor and correspondent for CNN. Born in London, England, she began her journalism career as an entry-level assistant on the international news desk at CNN's headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia.

On top of her work as Chief International Anchor for CNN and host of CNN International's  Amanpour, she is an outspoken advocate for human rights and the freedom of the press. She also hosts the PBS show Amanpour & Company , a late-night global affairs interview show.

• Salary: $80,000
• Net Worth: $2.5 Million

Pamela Brown is weekend anchor and senior Washington Correspondent for CNN. Previously she worked at ABC Washington, D.C. and affiliate WJLA-TV, and served as a fill-in anchor for numerous shows including CNN's At This Hour With Kate Bolduan, The Lead With Jake Tapper,  Erin Burnett OutFront and The Situation Room With Wolf Blitzer.

Born in Lexington, Kentucky, Pamela Brown is the daughter of former Governor of Kentucky John Y. Brown Jr. and former Miss America Phyllis George. Currently, Brown is the host of the three-hour news show  CNN Newsroom, which airs on the weekends.

• Salary: $55,000 - $100,000
• Net Worth: $2 Million

Victor Blackwell is the current co-host of  CNN This Morning along with Amara Walker.  Before that, in January 2014, Blackwell was co-host of New Day Saturday and Sunday with Christi Paul, and in 2021,  became co-host of CNN Newsroom with Alisyn Camerota.

While earning his bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism from Howard University in Washington, D.C., Blackwell started his career at Howard University’s public television station WHUT-TV, where he honed his skills in broadcast journalism. In 2012, he joined CNN as a correspondent, based at CNN’s southeast bureau. 

• Salary: $100,000
• Net Worth: $9 Million

Brianna Keilar is an Australian-born American journalist who served as a co-anchor for New Day before the show was replaced by CNN This Morning. Now, she is currently set to anchor a currently untitled show with Boris Sanchez and Jim Scuitto that is in the works. 

Before joining New Day, she was the host of CNN Right Now with Brianna Keilar. Her other jobs included White House and Congressional correspondent,  senior political correspondent, and general correspondent. For CNN Newsource she was a national correspondent

• Salary: $65,000 - $120,000
• Net Worth: $4 Million

Correspondent and anchor for CNN, Christine Romans is also a published author of the book Smart Is the New Rich: Money Guide for Millennials. After working as a writer for Reuters and Knight Ridder Financial News, she became the chief business correspondent for CNN. 

Now, she anchors Early Start which airs from 5 a.m. to 6 a.m eastern time and the weekend program Your Money. Educated at Iowa State University, Romans also keeps busy as the mother of three children and wife of Reuters editor Ed Tobin.

• Salary: $85,000 - $143,000
• Net Worth: $5 Million

Christi Paul is the news anchor for the HLN basic American cable network and was the weekend anchor for CNN's New Day. She joined CNN back in 2003, anchoring various programs on HLN, CNN's sister station, including filling in for Morning Express with Robin Meade.

After nine years on New Day Weekend, she moved back to Ohio to work at a local news station in Cleveland, WKYC. There she co-anchors What's New on weekdays. The former Miss Ohio runner-up is married and has three children.

• Salary: $750,000
• Net Worth: $3 Million

Bill Weir has served as both a correspondent and anchor for CNN, and is also the creator and host of the global documentary series The Wonder List with Bill Weir. Before this, he was co-anchor for Nightline on ABC television. 

From 2004 to 2010, he served as a co-anchor for the ABC morning show Good Morning America on the weekends. Weir received his education from  Pepperdine University, earning a degree in journalism and creative writing. In his personal life, he's a husband and father of two - his daughter from a previous marriage.

• Salary: $4 million
• Net Worth: $10 Million

Brooke Baldwin is a journalist, television host and author of Huddle: How Women Unlock Their Collective Power. Working at CNN from 2008 to 2021, she anchored CNN Newsroom with Brooke Baldwin, a show that aired weekdays from 3pm to 4pm eastern. She also famously co-anchored CNN's special coverage of the final launch of Space Shuttle Atlantis.

Other notable achievements were her documentary To Catch a Serial Killer, which won a Silver World Medal for Best Investigative Report at the New York Festivals International Television & Film Awards in 2012,  and her coverage of both Obama's and Trump's inaugurations. 

• Salary: $3 million
• Net Worth: $8 Million

Carol Costello is the former host of CNN Newsroom who left CNN in 2017 to join its sister network HLN. She was then let go in 2018 due to a scale cutback on the station's live programming. Where she'll go from here remains to be seen.

Carol Costello started her career at WAKR-TV, where she became an award-winning court reporter. Later, she became an affiliate for both ABC and CBS before working as an anchor for Good Morning Washington and CNN Headline News. upon joining HLN, she had her own show Across America with Carol Costello  until it was canceled.

• Salary: $200,000
• Net Worth: $1.5 Million

British-American journalist Clarissa Ward worked at both ABC and CBS News before becoming chief international correspondent for CNN.  Starting her career as an overnight desk assistant at Fox News, she made her way up the ladder, becoming an assignment editor and field producer for the network.  In 2015, she joined CNN . 

Not only a Yale, graduate, she also holds an honorary doctor of letters degree from Middlebury College. In 2012, she received the Peabody award for her coverage of the Syrian uprising, and in 2015, she won the Murrow Award for International Reporting.  And on top of that, seven Emmy Awards!

• Salary: $100,000
• Net Worth: $5 Million

Fredricka Whitfield anchors the weekend edition of CNN Newsroom. Additionally, she fills in for CNN's At This Hour With Kate Bolduan. While she doesn't yet have her own show to her name, she's certainly making a name for herself, especially with such humble beginnings at  WPLG-TV in Miami. 

Fredricka Whitfield was a subject of controversy in 2014,  after an interview in which she attacked comedian Joan Rivers for her jokes that Whitfield expressed were mean-spirited. Joan Rivers exited the interview abruptly. In 2015, she sparked controversy again when she described the gunman who attacked police in Dallas as courageous and brave.