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Scroll down to watch our fantastic new darts show about how much players earn

How much do darts players earn and is it easy for the top professionals to become millionaires?

By Sporting Life

Darts

Mon March 31, 2025 · 3w ago

Have you ever wondered how much money professional darts player can earn and whether the top stars are really enjoying a millionaire life of luxury?

There's currently around £17,000,000 of prize money up for grabs in the PDC every season, although that will be increased to a whopping £25million in 2026, with the winner of the World Championship next January scooping an unprecedented £1million (full tournament breakdown further down).

On top of that, layers will also be earning money from sponsorships, endorsements and the exhibition circuit.

Luke Littler shot to darting stardom when reaching the PDC World Darts Championship final at the age of just 16 and just over 12 months later his career earnings have crashed through £1.5million barrier thanks to a whole host of titles including the Grand Slam of Darts, Premier League, UK Open and of course this year's World Championship that saw him bank £500,000.

World number one Luke Humphries has also collected well over £2million thanks largely to his major-winning exploits in the 2023 World Championship, World Grand Prix (2023) Grand Slam of Darts (2023), Players Championship Finals (2023 & 2024), World Matchplay (2024) and World Masters (2025) over the past 18 months.

A full breakdown of what players can earn on the PDC Tour in 2026 is listed further down but in this video - released last year prior to the PDC's big prize money announcement - former major winner and leading darts commentator Paul Nicholson joins Sporting Life's Chris Hammer and Dom Newton to lift the lid on the realities of playing for your livelihood - such as dealing with HMRC.

Unless you're a Luke Littler or a player ranked very highly, it's not quite as lucrative as you may think and there is a lot of advice that aspiring dart players must take on board and be wary of to ensure they take of their earnings and be a 'smart business person' during a career that's far from easy.

WATCH: HOW MUCH DO DARTS PLAYERS EARN

HOW MUCH MONEY DO DARTS PLAYERS EARN AND CAN TOP PROS BECOME MILLIONAIRES?

Show chapters

0.00: How is the PDC prize money spread out?
1.50: How high up the rankings gives you a comfortable lifestyle?
2.35: What do players lose in tax and other expenditure?
5.25: Players who get in trouble with money
7.20: No guaranteed wage in darts
9.00: Other ways of earning money including exhibition fees
11.50: Pressure of playing for money and costly missed darts
13.00: A missed dart that cost £125,000
14.00: Players who care about money or titles
14.37: Players who have second careers
16.30: Easier to make a living in darts now or in the past?
17.40: Career after darts

Prize money up for grabs in 2026

The World Darts Championship will become bigger than ever before from the 2025/26 event, with an expanded 128-player field competing for a £5 million prize fund – including a huge £1 million for the winner.

The Premier League prize pot will increase to £1.25 million from 2026, with £350,000 for next season’s champion.

A £1 million prize fund will be on offer at the World Matchplay and Grand Slam of Darts, with the latter also expanding to a 48-player field next year to mark the 20th staging of the unique tournament.

Four other Premier events – the World Grand Prix, Players Championship Finals, European Championship and UK Open – will all increase to a £750,000 prize fund next year, with the World Cup of Darts and World Series of Darts Finals each adding a further £50,000 to their respective prize funds.

European Tour event prize funds will increase to £230,000 for the 14 tournaments to be held next year, while the 34 Players Championship events will rise to £150,000 each.

World Darts Championship

Winner: £1,000,000
Runner-Up: £400,000
Semi-Finalists: £200,000
Quarter-Finalists: £100,000
Last 16 losers: £60,000
Last 32 losers: £35,000
Last 64 losers: £25,000
Last 128 losers: £15,000
Total: £5,000,000

Premier League

Winner: £350,000
Runner-Up: £170,000
Semi-Finalists: £110,000
Fifth in Table: £95,000
Sixth in Table: £90,000
Seventh in Table: £85,000
Eighth in Table: £80,000
Nightly winner bonus: £10,000
Total: £1,250,000

World Matchplay

Winner: £225,000
Runner-Up: £125,000
Semi-Finalists: £65,000
Quarter-Finalists: £35,000
Last 16 losers: £22,500
Last 32 losers: £12,500
Total: £1,000,000

Grand Slam of Darts

Winner: £200,000
Runner-Up: £100,000
Semi-Finalists: £60,000
Quarter-Finalists: £35,000
Last 16 losers: £20,000
Second in Group: £12,500
Third in Group: £5,000
Total: £1,000,000

World Grand Prix

Winner: £150,000
Runner-Up: £80,000
Semi-Finalists: £50,000
Quarter-Finalists: £35,000
Last 16 losers: £20,000
Last 32 losers: £7,500
Total: £750,000

Players Championship Finals

Winner: £130,000
Runner-Up: £70,000
Semi-Finalists: £40,000
Quarter-Finalists: £27,500
Last 16 losers: £15,000
Last 32 losers: £7,000
Last 64 losers: £4,000
Total: £750,000

European Championship

Winner: £150,000
Runner-Up: £80,000
Semi-Finalists: £50,000
Quarter-Finalists: £35,000
Last 16 losers: £20,000
Last 32 losers: £7,500
Total: £750,000

UK Open

Winner: £120,000
Runner-Up: £60,000
Semi-Finalists: £35,000
Quarter-Finalists: £20,000
Last 16 losers: £12,500
Last 32 losers: £7,500
Last 64 losers: £3,000
Last 96 losers: £2,000
Last 128 losers: £1,250
Total: £750,000

World Masters

Winner: £100,000
Runner-Up: £50,000
Semi-Finalists: £30,000
Quarter-Finalists: £17,500
Last 16 losers: £10,000
Last 32 losers: £5,000
Preliminary Rounds Last 16 losers: £2,500
Preliminary Rounds Last 32 losers: £1,000
Preliminary Rounds Last 64 losers: £750
Total: £500,000

World Cup of Darts

Winners: £50,000 each
Runners-Up: £24,000 each
Semi-Finalists: £15,000 each
Quarter-Finalists: £10,000 each
Last 16 losers: £5,000 each
Second in Group: £3,000 each
Third in Group: £2,500 each
Total: £500,000

World Series of Darts Finals

Winner: £100,000
Runner-Up: £60,000
Semi-Finalists: £30,000
Quarter-Finalists: £17,500
Last 16 losers: £10,000
Last 32 losers: £5,000
Total: £450,000

European Tour Events

Winner: £35,000
Runner-Up: £15,000
Semi-Finalists: £10,000
Quarter-Finalists: £8,000
Last 16 losers: £5,000
Last 32 losers: £3,500
Last 48 losers: £2,000
Total: £230,000

Players Championship Events

Winner: £15,000
Runner-Up: £10,000
Semi-Finalists: £6,500
Quarter-Finalists: £4,000
Last 16 losers: £3,000
Last 32 losers: £2,000
Last 64 losers: £1,250
Total: £150,000

World Series of Darts Events

Winner: £30,000
Runner-Up: £16,000
Semi-Finalists: £10,000
Quarter-Finalists: £5,000
Last 16 losers: £1,750
Total: £100,000

Challenge & Development Tour Events

Winner: £3,000
Runner-Up: £2,000
Semi-Finalists: £1,000
Quarter-Finalists: £750
Last 16 losers: £350
Last 32 losers: £250
Last 64 losers: £100
Total: £20,000

Women’s Series Events

Winner: £2,500
Runner-Up: £1,000
Semi-Finalists: £750
Quarter-Finalists: £500
Last 16 losers: £300
Last 32 losers: £200
Last 64 losers: £75
Total: £15,000

Women’s World Matchplay

Winner: £15,000
Runner-Up: £8,000
Semi-Finalists: £4,500
Quarter-Finalists: £2,000
Total: £40,000

World Youth Championship

Winner: £15,000
Runner-Up: £7,000
Semi-Finalists: £3,400
Quarter-Finalists: £2,000
Last 16 losers: £1,500
Last 32 losers: £800
Last 64 losers: £600
Third in Group: £400
Fourth in Group: £200
Total: £100,000

ALSO WATCH: RANKING THE MAJOR WINNERS AT THEIR PEAK

There have been well over 50 different winners of ranked majors in the world of darts since the sport's popularity exploded in the 1970s but if they were all in their absolute prime today, what would the world's top 10 look like?

RANKING THE BEST DARTS PLAYERS OF ALL TIME!

ALSO WATCH: NEW TOURNAMENT IDEAS IN DARTS

Does the darts calendar need a little more variation when it comes to tournament formats rather than the standard 501 played over legs? Here, former major winner and leading commentator Paul Nicholson joins Sporting Life darts expert Chris Hammer and host Dom Newton to runs through some ideas that could be popular with fans and players including a Royal Rumble and a Ryder Cup!

A 'ROYAL RUMBLE' IN DARTS? NEW TOURNAMENT IDEAS INCLUDING A 'RYDER CUP' AS WELL!

ALSO WATCH: BUILDING THE PERFECT DARTS PLAYER

Paul Nicholson joins Dom Newton and Chris Hammer to combine the talents of some of the greatest players past or present in an effort to create an unbeatable darting monster. We look at prolific 180 hitters, clinical finishers and show-stopping 100+ checkout merchants as well as other categories such as on nerves of steal, stage presence, crowd popularity and walk-on music.

BUILDING THE PERFECT DARTS PLAYER FROM 180 HITTING TO WALK ON MUSIC!

ALSO WATCH: HOW TO BECOME A DARTS PROFESSIONAL

Leading pundit and former major winner Paul Nicholson joins host Dom Newton and Sporting Life's darts expert Chris Hammer to discuss the 'darting pyramid', the importance of averages, how to crack Q School and other factors such as choosing sponsors, nicknames and walk-on music.