Top 10 Filthy Rich Professional Skateboarders (2024)

The highest level of skateboarding is insanely impressive. These guys put their bodies through physical warfare and mental stress just like professional athletes in mainstream sports.

It’s no secret that most professional skateboarders don’t compare to the financial salaries of athletes in organizations like the NFL, NBA, or MLB. However, a select few exceptions of skaters applied their talents, persistence, and marketability to make the big bucks. These are the top 10 wealthiest skateboarders of all time.

The Richest Skateboarders in The World

Professional skateboarders’ massive net worth’s highlight their rarity and impressiveness. On average, they earn $30,000 to $40,000 annually and often need additional jobs to make ends meet.

The challenging journey to becoming a pro skater usually involves gaining recognition. When a skater’s skills surpass their peers, they attract attention. Local skate shops often provide initial sponsorship through sponsor-me tapes or social media platforms like YouTube, paving the way for connections with bigger brands.

So like in many sports and p[professions not all make it and the skateboarders listed here are an exception. Let’s go through 10 of the richest skateboarders in the world.

10. Nyjah Huston (Net Worth: $12M)

Nyjah Huston is one of the most popular skateboarders ever and is still killing the scene at age 28. Nyjah first blasted onto the scene as a little rasta kid with dreadlocks absolutely ripping it for the Element Twigs Team.

A much different image from the short-haired, tattooed, athletic frame he presents today. As he grew older, his skateboarding progressed into some of the gnarliest bangers and video parts ever put out. At this moment, he could arguably be the greatest street skateboarder of all time.

He’s not only a beast in the street skating scene but also a dominant force as a contest skater. He’s won multiple gold medals in X-Games Street Skateboarding and numerous Street League Skateboarding Championships as well.

Nyjah also amasses $800,000 annually from his sponsorships with huge brands like Nike, Diamond Supply, and Monster Energy Drinks. Through combining his endorsements and contest winnings, Nyjah has accumulated a net worth of 12 million dollars.

9. Eric Koston (Net Worth: $15M)

Eric Koston might be your favorite skater’s favorite skater. Unsurprisingly, Koston figured out how to succeed financially in his skateboarding career. He has a great personality, awesome sense of humor and some of the most notorious video parts ever.

I still remember laughing at his classic freak out on the thief that broke into his car in the introduction to his part in Girl Skateboard’s “Yeah Right!” which is one of the most iconic skate videos ever made. Koston is no slouch in the contest world either being that he is an X-Games Gold Medalist.

He’s been endorsed by various sponsors throughout the years such as Nike, Girl, Supreme, Oakley, Spitfire and Independent. Koston made his money through his entrepreneurial qualities though. He founded Fourstar Skate Apparel and owns “The Berrics”, a private indoor skatepark that produces tons of popular skate media with millions of subscribers on social media platforms.

With all these different avenues, it’s no shock that Koston has generated an impressive net worth of 15 million dollars.

8. Tony Alva (Net Worth: $15M)

As skateboarders, we must pay homage to the pioneers of the sport. Skateboarding would not be where it is now if it wasn’t for legendary professionals like Tony Alva. One of the original “Z-Boys” of Dogtown, Alva revolutionized the sport in the 1970’s as, initially, a surfer that mimicked styles on the water into the skating scene.

We can thank Tony Alva and the Z-Boys for showing us that pools were not only meant for swimming, but also for frontside airs. Alva is a skateboard hall of famer and a long-standing sponsor and creator for the iconic skate shoe company, Vans. This decade-dominating, vertical skateboarding originator has paid his dues and reaped the benefits of a 15 million dollar net worth.

7. Chad Muska (Net Worth: $16M)

Speaking of influential and inspirational skateboarders, we now get to Chad Muska. Muska is a clear fan favorite and probably the most selected character in Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater. Who doesn’t want to skate with the guy holding a boombox? Muska is known for his style, cool demeanor and unlikely rise to stardom.

He has one of the most popular professional skateboards of all time, Shorty’s “Muska Silhouette”. Muska skated professionally for companies like Shorty’s, Circa, E’s, Fury, and Toy Machine over the years. On top of high-level skateboarding, Muska’s creativity helped generate his wealth.

He started the shoe company Supra with Angel Cabada in 2006, and the company gained so much popularity that the likes of Jay-Z, Kanye West, and Justin Bieber were seen wearing their shoes. It’s hard to believe that Muska was at one point homeless, sleeping on the beach and now claiming a net worth of 16 million dollars.

6. Steve Rocco (Net Worth: $20M)

Steve Rocco is a perfect example of what can happen when you apply a business-oriented mindset into the world of skateboarding. Rocco co-founded some of the biggest companies in skateboarding such as Plan B, Duffs, Big Brother Magazine and Blind.

Where he really made his fortune was his founding and selling of the extremely popular brand, “World Industries”, which was known for their hilarious graphics starring the constantly fighting cartoon foes, “Wet Willy” & “Flame Boy”. World Industries sales peaked in 1998 when Rocco and his partners sold the company for a massive $29 million profit.

It also doesn’t hurt when your business partner is Rodney Mullen, who we’ll get to later on this list. Rocco’s sales-focused decision-making is responsible for his current net worth of 20 million dollars.

5. Stefan Janoski (Net Worth: $20M)

Anyone unfamiliar with Stefan Janoski, I strongly encourage you to watch his part in Habitat’s “Mosaic” because he absolutely rips. But a sick video part is not enough to load your bank account. Janoski owes his financial status to his sponsors, such as Habitat, Mob Grip, Bones Bearings, and, most importantly, Nike.

Janoski’s Nike shoe was so popular among skateboarders that the royalties he acquired from its success were staggering. He made millions from the sales of his transcendent model, The Nike SB Zoom Janoski.

To put its popularity into perspective, I was shopping at my local Zumiez TODAY and I wanted to ask if a specific Nike shoe was in stock and when I was trying to come up with the name of the model, the clerk asked me, “the Janoskis”? I think it’s safe to say that Nike has played a massive role in Janoski’s net worth of 20 million dollars.

4. Rodney Mullen (Net Worth: $30M)

Rodney Mullen is so crucial to the progression of skateboarding. He is perhaps the most important skateboarder in the entire history of the sport. Mullen is responsible for inventing almost every flip and spin trick in the 1970’s specializing in freestyle street skateboarding.

The control that he has of his board is unbelievable. Considering his career started so early, he’s had plenty of time to enjoy the perks of multiple sponsors throughout his reign. He’s skated for brands like Enjoi, Globe, Plan B, Bones, and Tensor.

It’s no shock that his creativity and inventiveness transitioned off his board and into his pockets. He co-founded the popular company, Almost Skateboards as well as World Industries, with fellow top ten wealthiest skateboarder, Steve Rocco.

As I mentioned earlier, World Industries sold for 29 million dollars, so that sale and Mullen’s long-tenured, highly successful professional career have propelled his net worth to a respectable 30 million dollars.

3. Jamie Thomas (Net Worth: $50M)

Jamie Thomas is another extraordinary example of someone who knew exactly how to combine business with professional skateboarding. Thomas is no stranger to taking risks, evident when he attempted to ollie the bone-shattering, 19-foot-tall leap of faith.

Thomas is one of the greatest, most influential skateboarders who always stayed true to his style. He had various sponsors throughout his career like Circa, Toy Machine, Thunder, Spitfire, Fallen, Bones and most notoriously, Zero, which he founded in 1996.

Thomas built his team to the precise image he’d like to display which was evident by the looks of the Zero team. The dark, hardcore look of Zero was a big draw in the skateboard community which amplified its colossal success. His nickname isn’t “The Chief” for nothing. Thomas is now worth a monumental net worth of 50 million dollars.

2. Rob Dyrdek (Net Worth: $100M)

I always found it funny when I would see Rob Dyrdek on “Ridiculousness” making fun of people wiping out because I can’t help but to think of him in “The DC Video” 50-50ing a 20 stair rail to escape hundreds of adoring female fans along with his security guard, Big Black.

That video made it clear that Dyrdek had his eyes set on different goals and a career as not only a professional skateboarder but also a television celebrity. Dyrdek was no scrub in the skateboarding scene having obtained income-producing sponsors like DC Shoes and Alien Workshop.

Still, most of his financial success came from his television shows like “Rob & Big,” “Fantasy Factory,” and, of course, “Ridiculousness.” Dyrdek still showed plenty of love to the skateboarding community by creating Street League Skateboarding which millions of viewers tune in to as it pays out big prizes to the winners in a sport where top professionals are severely underpaid. Dyrdek’s go-getter mindset has been rewarded nicely with a 9-figure net worth of $100 million.

1. Tony Hawk (Net Worth: $140M)

We all knew this was coming. The richest professional skateboarder of all time is no other than Tony Hawk. Initially, Tony Hawk dominated vert competitions with 10 X-Games gold medals. Notoriously, he’s known for being the first ever to land the infamous “900” in the 1999 X-Games.

He earned significant compensation through these competitions as well as his sponsors of Vans, Nixon, Independent, Adio, Quiksilver and Birdhouse(which he founded). After gaining more popularity after landing the 900, he decided to venture into the video gaming industry with Neversoft and created the classic video game, “Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater”.

The game was a huge success and expanded into four more editions. The video game series has produced over $1.3 billion in sales and completely changed Hawk’s life. Tony Hawk is an excellent role model in the skateboarding community and has used his fortune to contribute in many ways.

In 2002, he founded “The Skatepark Project,” which has given over $10 million to skatepark projects worldwide. Considering that Hawk has the highest net worth of any professional skateboarder at a mind-blowing $140 million, I’m glad to see that he’s willing to share the wealth to help create more places in this world for kids to skate. Tony is also without a doubt the most famous skateboarder of all time.

Average Skateboarder Earnings

To put these massive net worth’s into perspective so we can understand how rare and impressive they are, the average professional skateboarder makes somewhere between $30,000 – $40,000 annually. In fact, most of them work another job on top of skating professionally to pay the bills.

This is a shame because the path to becoming a professional is incredibly challenging. Skaters usually go through a similar circuit to achieve professional status. It starts with recognition.

Typically, once a skateboarder starts progressing to the point that they’ve surpassed the talent of those around them, people begin to take notice. In most cases, a local skate shop will sponsor them first via sponsor-me tape or through the evolution of social media platforms like YouTube. This can do wonders for creating connections with more prominent brands.

Shop owners will communicate with representatives of certain companies they carry in the shop. These companies will then “flow” the skater products for free. Flow is the first stage of sponsorship before becoming an amateur. It means you’re unpaid, not technically on the roster, but you’re a prospect they feel comfortable representing their brand through your high-level skating.

As your progress advances, you could put together a solid video part or compete in some amateur competitions; you can then achieve amateur status. This is the sponsorship level directly under professional, and some of these guys are just as talented as the professionals.

Amateur means you’re officially on the team and invited to travel on tour, skate in demos, and get full-length parts in the company skate video. You are still not a salaried team member, and you will only receive compensation through placing in competition.

Once you’ve put in more work, leveled up your talent, and gained more acknowledgment through different avenues, a professional status will be obtained. When you turn professional, you will earn a salary through your sponsors.

Your name will be printed on skateboards, stitched into shoes, and added onto other skate accessories, which you can earn royalties on. There will also be opportunities to compete in higher-level competitions with bigger purses for placing.

Conclusion

Although unlikely, the ten skaters listed above have proven that the sky’s the limit regarding financial gain from professional skateboarding. And sure, everybody would like to make livable wages from doing what they love, but that’s never really been what skateboarding is about.

Skateboarding is about having fun, inspiring creativity, and pushing yourself every day to challenge the limits of what was previously thought impossible. It’s a non-stop grind to get to the top and fulfill professional status, so if you work hard enough to make that dream a reality, that numbing feeling of accomplishment will surely trump any paycheck you receive.