Formula 1 is one of the most lucrative sports in the world, where driver salaries run into the tens of millions, and sponsorships with global brands add even more to the pot.
Some of the younger names on the 2026 grid are only just breaking into the million-dollar club, while veterans such as Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso have built fortunes that rival Hollywood stars and tech CEOs.
Hamilton sits clear at the top, worth an estimated $630m AUD, and no one else on the grid comes close. Below him the numbers drop away fast.
For Australian fans, Oscar Piastri is the local story. He led the drivers’ standings for large stretches of 2025, and a long-term McLaren deal has already lifted him well into the millions, with plenty more to come.
The salaries are not an exact indication of on-track performance, but they do help explain the F1 betting odds you see each weekend, and add useful context if you’re learning how to bet on F1 .
The list below counts up from the grid’s newest arrivals to its wealthiest names. Net worth figures are estimates, pulled from public salary and sponsorship data, so treat them as a guide rather than an audited bank balance.
Arvid Lindblad Net Worth 2026: ~$1m AUD
Lindblad is the only true rookie on the 2026 grid, stepping up with Racing Bulls after climbing the junior ranks. There is next to no F1 money in the bank yet, which is why he sits at the very bottom of this list.
What he does have is a seat, and that is the hard part. Everything from here depends on what he makes of it.
Isack Hadjar Net Worth 2026: ~$1.5m AUD
Hadjar earned the biggest promotion of anyone on the grid, moving up to partner Max Verstappen at Red Bull for 2026. His wealth still sits in the low millions, but a seat at a front-running team changes the trajectory completely.
The salary and sponsor interest that come with a Red Bull drive should push those numbers up quickly.
Oliver Bearman Net Worth 2026: ~$1.8m AUD
Bearman’s net worth is modest by F1 standards, but he is still one of the youngest drivers in the field and has time on his side. A second full season at Haas gives him the platform to turn early promise into stronger contracts and bigger sponsorships.
Liam Lawson Net Worth 2026: ~$2.2m AUD
Lawson is no longer the new kid. The New Zealander keeps his Racing Bulls seat for 2026 as the more experienced head alongside rookie Arvid Lindblad, and the resilience he showed through a bumpy 2025 is exactly what sponsors back.
Steady performances should lift his finances well beyond this entry-level stage.
Kimi Antonelli Net Worth 2026: ~$4m AUD
Antonelli has gone from prospect to the story of the season. The young Italian leads the 2026 championship for Mercedes, and a run like that rewrites a driver’s commercial value in a matter of months.
His actual fortune is still small against the grid’s big earners, because he is only in his second year, but he is comfortably the wealthiest of last season’s rookie intake and climbing faster than anyone. If he stays in the title fight, the sponsorship money follows.
Alex Albon Net Worth 2026: ~$4.1m AUD
Albon has rebuilt his reputation after earlier setbacks in his career. That resilience has not only kept him on the grid but has also attracted new commercial opportunities. Williams may not match the top teams for salary, yet his steady growth continues.
Gabriel Bortoleto Net Worth 2026: ~$4.3m AUD
Bortoleto’s wealth reflects how early he is in his career. The team he joined as Sauber now races as Audi’s works outfit in 2026, and being part of a full manufacturer project gives him room to learn, improve, and build both his racing credentials and his financial profile.
Franco Colapinto Net Worth 2026: ~$5.8m AUD
Colapinto sits higher than his experience alone would suggest, largely thanks to heavy sponsorship backing out of Argentina. A confirmed Alpine seat for 2026 gives him stability, and that platform could turn him into one of the stronger financial performers among the newer generation.
Oscar Piastri Net Worth 2026: ~$6.5m AUD
For Australian fans, Piastri is the one to watch. He led the drivers’ standings for long stretches of 2025 and has established himself at the front of the McLaren garage, which has already lifted him well into the millions.
His long-term McLaren contract and growing global profile mean his net worth should keep climbing over the next few seasons.
Nico Hülkenberg Net Worth 2026: ~$13.9m AUD
Years of experience have given Hülkenberg staying power, and he carries that into Audi’s first works season in 2026. He finally broke through for a maiden podium in 2025, and while a race win still eludes him, his longevity has translated into steady contracts and solid sponsorships.
That career span keeps him well ahead of the grid’s newer names in the wealth stakes.
Esteban Ocon Net Worth 2026: ~$29.2m AUD
Ocon has been a familiar presence on the grid for nearly a decade. His salary is not among the highest, yet smart commercial deals and consistent performances have allowed him to build a strong fortune. His ability to adapt across teams has kept him relevant.
George Russell Net Worth 2026: ~$38m AUD
Russell’s Mercedes seat keeps him in the upper financial tier, and a new multi-year extension signed late in 2025 locks that in. He carries partnerships with global luxury brands, and at 28 he is one of the most marketable drivers on the grid, now the clear senior figure at the team alongside Antonelli.
His wealth should keep climbing from here.
Pierre Gasly Net Worth 2026: ~$45.5m AUD
Gasly has maximised his time in F1 by focusing on partnerships with high-end brands. His earnings from fashion and lifestyle deals have boosted his overall fortune far beyond what his salary alone would suggest. He has shown that business off the track can matter as much as results on it.
Lando Norris Net Worth 2026: ~$55m AUD
Norris backed up his status as McLaren’s key man by winning the 2025 world championship, his first, which lifts both his earning power and his profile. His long-term deal is reportedly worth tens of millions a year.
Beyond the salary, his own Quadrant brand and a stack of major sponsorships give him several income streams, and the title only makes those deals more valuable.
Valtteri Bottas Net Worth 2026: ~$70m AUD
Bottas returns to a full-time seat with Cadillac after a year on the sidelines as a reserve, and he arrives with plenty already banked. Ten race wins and several seasons on strong Mercedes money built a solid fortune during his prime years.
For the sport’s newest team, his experience is worth as much as his pace, and the pay cheque reflects that.
Lance Stroll Net Worth 2026: ~$72m AUD
Stroll has always faced questions about his place in the sport, given his father’s ownership of Aston Martin. Over time, though, he has established himself as a consistent driver. His salary is lower than many peers, but his family background ensures his fortune sits at the higher end of the list.
Carlos Sainz Net Worth 2026: ~$72m AUD
Sainz made the move to Williams after Hamilton’s Ferrari deal reshaped the grid, and he settles into 2026 as one of the team’s cornerstones. His popularity among fans, combined with long-standing partnerships, means his net worth already rivals that of other established stars. He remains a major commercial draw.
Charles Leclerc Net Worth 2026: ~$78m AUD
Leclerc is one of the sport’s most recognisable faces, and a long Ferrari contract that runs to the end of the decade guarantees a significant salary. It is his global marketability that truly expands his wealth, though. Fashion and lifestyle brands line up to work with him, making him one of the most bankable drivers in the paddock.
Sergio Pérez Net Worth 2026: ~$180m AUD
Pérez is the surprise near the top of this list, and it is the commercial side that puts him there. Years of Red Bull salary combined with enormous backing from Mexican sponsors have built one of the biggest fortunes on the grid, comfortably inside the top five.
After a year out, he returns with Cadillac for 2026, bringing race-winning experience to the sport’s newest team. His pace may have dipped in his final Red Bull season, but his bank balance never did.
Max Verstappen Net Worth 2026: ~$300m AUD
Verstappen still commands the largest salary on the grid, reportedly around $100m a year, even after Norris pipped him to the 2025 title by a narrow margin. Four championships and a long list of endorsement deals with major global brands keep his financial profile at extraordinary heights.
He prefers racing to the media circus, but the money follows him regardless.
Fernando Alonso Net Worth 2026: ~$400m AUD
Alonso has been in Formula 1 longer than any current driver, and more than two decades at the top has built a fortune that some 2026 estimates now rank as the largest of any active driver. Even in his forties he continues to earn top salaries and attract leading sponsors at Aston Martin.
His career is a lesson in the value of staying competitive year after year.
Lewis Hamilton Net Worth 2026: ~$630m AUD
Hamilton stands apart from the rest of the grid. His fortune sits north of half a billion Australian dollars, built through record-breaking contracts, fashion collaborations, investments, and a personal brand that reaches well beyond motorsport.
Now settled into his second season in Ferrari red, he remains comfortably the wealthiest F1 driver in the world, and it is not close.