Snooker’s prize money has exploded since the days when a world title was worth a few thousand pounds, and the modern game’s biggest names have banked millions on the baize. But ranking snooker’s richest players is trickier than it looks — so we’ve built this list around documented career prize money, the one figure that can actually be verified, with net-worth estimates shown alongside for context.
Important note on the figures: career prize money is sourced from official records (CueTracker / World Snooker Tour). Net-worth figures are estimates from public reporting and are far less reliable — several published snooker “net worth” numbers are demonstrably inflated. Legends such as Steve Davis and Dennis Taylor earned far more from television, commentary and exhibitions than from the table, which prize money alone cannot capture. Treat the net-worth column as directional only.
Richest Snooker Players 2026 — Ranked by Career Earnings
| # | Player | Career Prize Money | Net Worth (est.) | Biggest Achievement |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ronnie O'Sullivan “The Rocket” | ~£15M | ~£20M | 7× World Champion |
| 2 | John Higgins “Wizard of Wishaw” | ~£10.5M | ~£8.8M | 4× World Champion |
| 3 | Mark Selby “Jester from Leicester” | ~£9.25M | ~£10M | 4× World Champion |
| 4 | Judd Trump “The Ace” | ~£9M | ~£10M | World Champion 2019 |
| 5 | Mark Williams “The Welsh Potter” | ~£8.9M | ~£7–9M | 3× World Champion |
| 6 | Stephen Hendry | ~£8.7M | ~£13M | 7× World Champion (record modern era) |
| 7 | Neil Robertson “The Thunder from Down Under” | ~£8M | ~£6–8M | World Champion 2010 |
| 8 | Shaun Murphy “The Magician” | ~£6.8M | ~£5–6M | World Champion 2005 |
| 9 | Steve Davis “The Nugget” | ~£5.5M | ~£26M (incl. TV/DJ/business) | 6× World Champion (1980s) |
| 10 | Ding Junhui | ~£5.3M | ~£3–8M | 3× UK Champion; China's biggest star |
| 11 | Jimmy White “The Whirlwind” | ~£5.1M | ~£6.7M | 6× World runner-up (fan favourite) |
| 12 | Kyren Wilson “The Warrior” | ~£4.7M | ~£6M | World Champion 2024 |
| 13 | Barry Hawkins “The Hawk” | ~£4.4M | est. unavailable | World runner-up 2013 |
| 14 | Stuart Bingham “Ball-run” | ~£4.4M | est. unavailable | World Champion 2015 |
| 15 | Ken Doherty “The Darling of Dublin” | ~£3.9M | est. unavailable | World Champion 1997 |
| 16 | Peter Ebdon | ~£3.6M | ~£3.5M | World Champion 2002 |
| 17 | Marco Fu “The Orient Express” | ~£2.9M | est. unavailable | 3 ranking titles; World No. 5 |
| 18 | Graeme Dott “The Pocket Dynamo” | ~£2.85M | est. unavailable | World Champion 2006 |
| 19 | Luca Brecel “The Belgian Bullet” | ~£2.6M | ~£1.2M | World Champion 2023 (1st mainland European) |
| 20 | Zhao Xintong | ~£2.4M | ~£1.5M+ | World Champion 2025 (1st Asian champion) |
| 21 | Terry Griffiths | ~£1.36M | est. unavailable | World Champion 1979 |
| 22 | Willie Thorne “Mr Maximum” | ~£1.2M | disputed (bankrupt 2015) | 1985 Classic winner |
| 23 | Cliff Thorburn “The Grinder” | ~£1M+ | ~C$2.5M | World Champion 1980 (1st overseas champ) |
| 24 | Dennis Taylor | not documented | ~£18M (est., unverified) | World Champion 1985 (iconic final) |
How We Ranked This List
We ranked by documented career prize money because it is the only reliable, verifiable measure of a snooker player’s on-table earnings. Net worth would be a better measure of true wealth, but published snooker net-worth figures are inconsistent and frequently inflated — some estimates place 1980s stars above Ronnie O’Sullivan, which is almost certainly wrong. Where a credible net-worth estimate exists we have included it; where it does not, we mark it unavailable rather than invent one.
The list also under-states the wealth of the sport’s television-era legends. Steve Davis and Dennis Taylor became household names during snooker’s 1980s ratings boom and earned heavily from broadcasting, exhibitions and other ventures long after their prize-money peak — income this ranking cannot fully reflect.
Who is the richest snooker player?
Ronnie O’Sullivan leads on documented career prize money with roughly £15 million — comfortably the highest in snooker history — and his true net worth, boosted by sponsorship, books, exhibitions and media work, is estimated around £20 million. Seven-time world champion Stephen Hendry and 1980s great Steve Davis are among the wealthiest when off-table earnings are included.
Who has won the most World Championships?
Joe Davis won 15 consecutive world titles in the sport’s early era, but in the modern game Ronnie O’Sullivan and Stephen Hendry share the record with seven world titles each. Steve Davis, John Higgins and Mark Selby follow among the modern greats.
How much prize money does a snooker world title pay?
The World Snooker Championship winner now earns £500,000, part of a total prize fund exceeding £2.3 million — a world away from the £4,000 Terry Griffiths won for the 1979 title. This escalation is why active players like O’Sullivan, Higgins, Selby and Trump dominate the career-earnings list.
Figures last reviewed July 2026. Career prize money from official tour records; net-worth estimates are approximate and compiled from public sources.