Since its inception in 2009, the ABC sitcom Modern Family has become a cultural phenomenon. Thanks to witty plot-lines and relatable characters, the show has won a permanent place in the hearts of the nation… as well as a spot in the history books. Not only is the show ABC’s longest running comedy series to date, it’s also one of its most lucrative- during its 3rd season, it became the tenth biggest money maker of 2012, pulling in a staggering $2.13 million per episode.
The financial success of the show has, as you’d expect, translated into some very hefty paychecks for its ensemble cast. In 2012, the checks got even bigger when the adult cast members banded together to sue 20th Century Fox for a pay rise. While they didn’t quite manage the $200 thousand per episode bump they were hoping for, they weren’t left too disappointed by the $150 thousand episode deal they were eventually offered. Not to miss out an opportunity, the show’s kids got in on the action, and in 2017, they negotiated a pretty sweet deal with ABC to take their salaries to at least $100,000 per episode by 2018.
ABC may be drawing the curtains on Modern Family at the end of its 11th season run, but with salaries like these, it’s unlikely the cast will find themselves struggling to keep up with the bills. Let’s look at just how much they’ve managed to accrue in net worth over the years.
12. Jeremy Maguire Net Worth – $150,000
- Character: Joe Pritchard
- 137 Episodes (2015-2019)
7-year-old Maguire joined the ABC sitcom in 2015 as the youngest member of the Pritchard clan, the adorable Jo. While other kids his age are still struggling to tie their own shoelaces, Maguire has managed to pull in a tidy net worth of an estimated $150 thousand. His work on Modern Family may be coming to an end, but we can be sure we’ll be seeing a lot more of this talented youngster in the years to come.
11. Aubrey Anderson- Emmons Net Worth – $6 Million
- Character: Lily Tucker- Pritchett
- 234 Episodes (2011-2019)
Until Jeremy Maguire joined the regular cast in 2015, Anderson- Emmons held the status of Modern Family’s youngest cast member, having joined the show at the age of 4 as a replacement to the original Lily (or, as it turns out, Lily’s), Ella and Jaden Hiller. Unlike the show’s other child actors, Anderson- Emmons didn’t receive a pay raise during the 2012 negotiations, despite her agent pushing for her to do so. However, she’s not let that hold her back from achieving one of the biggest paychecks of any 11 year in Hollywood. According to Celebrity Net Worth the child star is now raking in a not to be sniffed at $70 thousand per episode. With a net worth of $6 million, it’s fair to say the kid’s done good.
10. Rico Rodrigeuz Net Worth – $12 Million
- Character: Manny Delgado
- 282 Episodes (2009-2019)
One thing’s for sure- you can’t accuse Rico Rodrigeuz of being work-shy. The talented youngster has not only appeared on every episode of Modern Family to date, he’s also written a book, 2012’s Reel Life Lessons… So Far, appeared in 7 films (including a cameo as himself in The Muppets), featured in 20 TV shows, and picked up 10 awards for his work on Modern Family. In the process, he’s also managed to accrue an estimated net worth of $12 million.
9 .Nolan Gould Net Worth – $12 Million
- Character: Luke Dunphy
- 282 Episodes (2009-2019)
Thanks to his role as the easy- going youngest child of Claire and Phil Dunphy, Nolan Gould has certainly been raking in the cash the last few years. But then again, would else would you expect of a card carrying Mensa member with an IQ of 150? The 20-year-old actor may have skipped 10 grades in school thanks to his smarts, but he’ll certainly not be skipping out on the bill any time soon… with a take home pay of $125,000 per episode since 2018, Gould has secured himself a neat net worth of $12 million.
8. Ariel Winter Net Worth – $12 Million
- Character: Alex Dunphy
- 282 Episodes (2009-2019)
There’s not many 21 years old that can claim a career than spans 17 years, but then again, Ariel Winter is no ordinary 21 years old. Winter claimed her first acting job at the age of 4 with a 2002 Cool Whip TV commercial. The gig clearly gave the youngster a taste for entertainment, and she quickly followed it with roles in shows such as Freddie, Monk, Bones and ER. Her career in animation began with her casting in Phineas and Ferb, and she’s been lending her voice to the character of Sofia in Disney’s Sofia the First since 2012. You can also hear her dulcet tones in Bambi II, Ice Age: The Meltdown, and the DreamWorks Animation feature, Mr. Peabody and Sherman. For all her success in animation, Winter is without doubt best known for her role as Alex, the smart- as- a- whip youngest daughter of the Dunphy family. Since 2018, Winter has been pulling in an impressive $120 thousand per episode (a hike on her previous pay of $70 thousand per episode). All in all, the sum total of Winter’s efforts in the entertainment industry amounts to a very healthy net worth of $12 million.
7. Sarah Hyland Net Worth — $14 Million
- Character: Haley Dunphy
- 282 Episodes (2009-2019)
28-year-old Hyland kicked off her career with bit parts in such films as Private Parts, Annie and Blind date. In 2009, the actress cemented her future finances (and added her name to the sitcom Hall of Glory) when she landed the role of bubbly airhead, Haley Dunphy. Since then, Hyland has gone onto to claim numerous awards and nomination nods, including four Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series, which she shares with her fellow cast members. Since becoming a household name for her work in the ABC comedy, Hyland has had her pick of movie roles- catch her appearances in 2017’s Dirty Dancing, 2014’s Vampire Academy, and 2015’s Scary Movie 5. Her impressive body of work has seen her earn more in a decade than most of us could dream of in a lifetime…. according to CNW, Hyland can boast a net worth of $14 million.
6. Julie Bowen Net Worth – $18 Million
- Character: Claire Dunphy
- 282 Episodes (2009-2019)
At the time of her casting as matriarch, Claire Dunphy, Julie Bowen already had several big TV and film roles under her belt. Her role as Aunt Gwen in the teen drama, Dawson’s Creek, was the first to bring her to our attention, and she subsequently garnered fame (and not a little fortune) for her roles as Carol Vessey in Ed, and Denise Bauer on Boston Legal. Meanwhile, she was also building herself a nicely lucrative career on the big screen, with such memorable roles as Virginia Venit in Happy Gilmore, Amy Finch in An American Werewolf in Paris, and Nikki in Amy’s org*sm. Her 2009 casting in Modern Family took things next level… by 2014, Bowen was pulling in a $190,000 paycheck for each episode of the show, and by 2018, it had leapt to $500,000. Even if Bowen never works another day again after Modern Family ends, we’re pretty sure she’ll have no problem in keeping up the mortgage payments… not with a net worth of $18 million, that’s for sure.
5. Jesse Tyler Ferguson Net Worth – $20 Million
- Character: Mitchell Pritchett
- 282 Episodes (2009-2019)
Until Modern Family came calling, Jesse Tyler Ferguson’s career revolved largely around roles in off-Broadway and Broadway productions, including the Tony Award winning, The 25th Annual Putnam Country Spelling Bee. TV tended to be more of a sideline to his work in the theater than the main event. He appeared in 2 episodes of Ugly Betty between 2007 and 2010, 19 episodes of the short lived The Class between 2006 and 2007, and a couple of small (and sometimes uncredited) roles in between. All in all, it would be fair to say Tyler Ferguson wasn’t exactly setting the small screen on fire. In 2009, that all changed when he was cast in the role of Modern Family’s, Michell Pritchard. The gig not only elevated him to a household name, it also gave a very healthy boost to his bank balance. Tyler Ferguson was pulling in $190,000 per episode between 2014 and 2018, while 2018 saw his earnings leap to a massive $500.000 per episode. Even if the actor had never earned a dime before Modern Family, the show in itself would have guaranteed him a fortune… and indeed it has. At the time of writing, Tyler Ferguson’s net worth is estimated to be a staggering $20 Mill.
4. Eric Stonestreet Net Worth- $23 Million
- Character: Cameron Tucker
- 282 Episodes (2009-2019)
Eric Stonestreet shares a number of similarities with his Modern Family character, Cameron Tucker. Both are good ol’ country boys from Kansas, and both have a slightly unsettling obsession with clowns. Fizbo, Cameron’s clownish doppelganger, actually had its origins in Stonestreet’s childhood — by the age of 11, Stonestreet was honing his entertainment skills at children’s birthdays parties, as, you guessed it, Fizbo the Clown. By the early 2000’s, Stonestreet had put his clowning days behind him, and was building an impressive portfolio of work with appearances on shows such as ER, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Bones and NCIS. His 2009 casting in Modern Family, however, saw his career rise to hitherto unseen heights. The doors of Hollywood are now well and truly open to Stonestreet, and he can thank his outstanding performance over 10 series of Modern family for his casting in such films as Bad Teacher and The Secret Life of Pets. He can also thank it for the healthy state of his bank balance: with the cool $500 thousand he’s been pulling in per episode since 2018, Stonestreet can claim an estimated net worth of $23 million.
3. Ty Byrrell Net Worth – $26 Million
- Character: Phil Dunphy
- 282 Episodes (2009-2019)
Two- time Emmy Award winner Byrrell isn’t short of a dollar or two thanks to the healthy $500,000 he’s been raking in for each episode of Modern Family since 2018. But Modern Family isn’t the only show that’s contributed to the actor’s healthy bank balance: prior to his casting as the show’s hapless Phil Dunphy, Byrrell was pulling in respectable acting gigs on films such as Black Hawk Down, Dawn of the Dead, and The Incredible Hulk. While such roles are unlikely to have paid quite as well as Modern Family, if the reports are to be believed, it’s clear that every little helps, as Byrrell can now claim a net worth of a cool $26 million.
2. Ed O’Neil Net Worth – $65 Million
- Character: Jay Pritchard
- 282 Episodes (2009-2019)
Thanks to his long career in TV and film, O’Neil entered Modern Family as the shows biggest name, and was awarded a salary that duly reflected his status. During the show’s first season, O’Neil pocketed a healthy $95,000 per episode, along with a back-end stake in the series. His pay-per episode rose with each season, and by 2012, O’Neil was taking home $200.000 per episode. When his co-stars banded together in 2012 to fight for a salary increase, O’Neil agreed to take a cut in wages to reflect those of the rest of the cast. He did, however, still manage to hold onto a larger share of the bank-end profits. Despite the slight set back, O’Neil’s pay-per episode has increased with each subsequent season, and is now higher than ever. As of 2018, it’s estimated that he’s raking in a massive $500,000 per episode, which adds a healthy contribution to his overall net worth of $65 million
1. Sofia Vergara Net Worth – $160 Million
- Character: Gloria Delgado- Pritchard
- 282 Episodes (2009-2019)
It’s unlikely you’ll be seeing Vergara cashing in a benefit check when the show reaches its conclusion at the end of its 11th season. The Colombian bombshell is box-office gold, and with her list of film and TV credits getting longer by the day, her star seems firmly in the ascendant. Vergara achieved the status of household name in her homeland long before Modern Family, thanks largely to her hosting duties on shows such as Fuera de serie and A que no te atreves.
She was also pulling in a healthy amount of work as both a model and a TV commercial star — her affiliation with Pepsi Co, for example, began all the way back in 1989 when she appeared in her first commercial for them at the age of 17. However, despite a few roles in films such as 2003’s Chasing Papi, and 2005’s Four Brothers, Vergara’s career struggled to gain traction in America…. until her casting as the feisty Gloria Delgado- Pritchard, that is. Within just 3 years of the show hitting our screens, Vergara was being hailed by Forbes as the highest paid television actress in the world. Her fortunes only increased when her pay-per episode on Modern Family jumped from $190,000 to $500,000 in 2018. Combine that kind of healthy pay packet with the fortune the actress pulls in from her endorsem*nts of brands like Diet Pepsi, Covergirl, and Synthroid, and you can see why her estimated net worth is said to be a mind-blowing $160 million.
