Chris Brown Net Worth

Chris Brown’s net worth is $48.6 million. The Chris Brown net worth total would be tens of millions higher if not for his assault conviction against Rihanna. Most big name stars can earn anywhere from $5 million to $25 million a year in endorsement deal money. That income often dwarfs their earnings from other sources. Adele’s net worth is a lot lower than it could be simply because she considers it a point of honor not to sell out to corporate brands. The Chris Brown net worth figure takes a similar hit, not because of a commitment to musical integrity but because very few companies want a spokesperson who’s been convicted of assaulting a romantic partner.

Even without the big endorsement deals, Brown is still a very rich man. He has earned $134 million in his lifetime from sales of albums, singles, merchandise and concert tickets. He also owns 14 Burger King restaurants and does some acting and producing. Finally, the star has taken in $28 million in ad revenue from YouTube videos. Taxes and expenses eat up $91 million of that money. Numbers are current as of 10/5/16.

Chris Brown Net Worth Facts

Chris Brown Net Worth Facts
Chris Brown Net Worth $49,630,513
Chris Brown net worth vs Drake net worth 40% smaller
Chris Brown net worth vs Justin Bieber net worth 1/4th as big
Chris Brown net worth vs Usher net worth 1/3rd as big
Chris Brown net worth vs 50 Cent net worth 3 times bigger
Chris Brown net worth vs Bruno Mars net worth 40% smaller
Chris Brown net worth vs Kanye West net worth 20% smaller
Chris Brown net worth vs Miley Cyrus net worth 20% smaller
Chris Brown net worth vs Barack Obama net worth 16 times bigger
Chris Brown net worth vs typical American family net worth 787 times bigger

 

As the table above shows, the Chris Brown net worth sum is low compared to other artists in his category. Brown has 40% less wealth than Drake at $88 million. His net worth is only 1/4th the size of Justin Bieber’s $219 million and 1/3rd the size of Usher’s $180 million. The Chris Brown net worth fortune is three times bigger than 50 Cent’s net worth of $16 million, but that’s largely because 50 famously spent himself down to bankruptcy court in a shockingly short time. Bruno Mars has 40% more money than Chris Brown with $89 million and Kanye West has 20% more with $66 million, provided he isn’t in the same boat as 50 Cent. When it comes to the U.S. President, Brown does a lot better. The singer has 16 times more money than Barack Obama’s $3.4 million. Finally, Chris Brown’s net worth is 787 times bigger than the typical American’s net worth of $68,000.

Chris Brown Net Worth Timeline

Chris Brown Net Worth Timeline

Chris Brown Net Worth by Year
Chris Brown net worth 2005 $973,357
Chris Brown net worth 2006 $2,124,991
Chris Brown net worth 2007 $4,127,782
Chris Brown net worth 2008 $6,043,266
Chris Brown net worth 2009 $10,208,249
Chris Brown net worth 2010 $12,611,847
Chris Brown net worth 2011 $21,575,647
Chris Brown net worth 2012 $28,068,973
Chris Brown net worth 2013 $31,160,768
Chris Brown net worth 2014 $34,574,322
Chris Brown net worth 2015 $45,835,562
Chris Brown net worth 2016 $49,630,513

 

There’s no denying that the Chris Brown net worth trajectory has been on an aggressive course since 2005. That said, it could have been even more aggressive with a more solid endorsement deal roster. Brown’s conviction for assaulting then girlfriend Rihanna effectively cut him off from one of the biggest sources of celebrity income. Brown has still commanded respectable earnings since 2005, when he released his first album, Chris Brown, which went 2x Platinum and put an estimated $2.2 million in his pocket. A solid pace of an album every two years since then has kept his net worth notching up. Concert tours accompanying those albums have provided another steady source of Brown income. The steeper slope in the chart above since 2010 reflects Chris Brown’s investment in 14 Burger King restaurants around that time and the launch of his very popular YouTube channels.

Related: Rihanna Net Worth

Chris Brown Net Worth Sources

Chris Brown Net Worth Sources: Albums, Concerts, YouTube

Chris Brown Net WorthTwo main sources feed the Chris Brown net worth engine: concerts and YouTube. As the table below shows, Brown has made $56 million from concerts and $30 million from YouTube as of 10/5/16. That’s $86 million total and that’s 63% of Brown’s entire lifetime earnings. Sales of albums and singles account for another $16 million. Business income pumps in almost $17 million and sales of merchandise adds $8 million. Other, smaller sources like acting, producing, appearances and endorsements chip in another $8 million together. Chris Brown’s average salary is $11 million, though he will earn an estimated $7.4 million in 2016.

Chris Brown Net Worth Sources
Albums $10,397,254
Singles $6,098,952
Concerts $56,355,000
Acting $1,222,413
Producing $30,000
Appearances $1,065,000
Youtube $30,860,125
Endorsements $6,000,000
Business $16,760,000
Total Chris Brown Earnings $137,241,994
Chris Brown Salary (average) $11,436,833
Chris Brown Salary 2016 $7,787,033
Taxes $72,601,015
Expenses $20,586,299
Chris Brown Net Worth $49,630,513

Chris Brown Net Worth from Albums

Album sales make up $10 million of the Chris Brown net worth figure. Brown has released a solid seven studio albums since 2005. That’s a brisk pace for any singer. Maybe even more impressive is that he’s managed to stay relevant, still selling millions of copies of new albums at an age when many of his peers have seen their fans move on to younger idols. Six of Brown’s seven albums are RIAA certified. 2015’s Royalty has a Gold certification. Fortune in 2012 and X in 2014 went Platinum. Earlier albums Chris Brown, Graffiti and F.A.M.E. all went double Platinum. All in all, Brown has sold nearly 10.7 million copies of his albums.

Chris Brown Net Worth from Albums
Chris Brown Albums Unit Sales (U.S.) Revenue at $10.99 Each Chris Brown Earnings at 8.85%
Chris Brown (2005) 2,280,000 $25,057,200 $2,217,562
Exclusive (2007) 2,280,000 $25,057,200 $2,217,562
Graffiti (2009) 100,000 $1,099,000 $97,262
F.A.M.E. (2011) 2,280,000 $25,057,200 $2,217,562
Fortune (2012) 1,140,000 $12,528,600 $1,108,781
X (2014) 1,140,000 $12,528,600 $1,108,781
Royalty (2015) 570,000 $6,264,300 $554,391
Other Albums (extended plays, compilation albums, box sets) 900,000 $9,891,000 $875,354
Total Chris Brown Net Worth from Albums $10,397,254

Related: Eminem Net Worth: $242 Million

Chris Brown Net Worth from Concerts

Chris Brown Net Worth from ConcertsIt shouldn’t come as much of a shock that the Chris Brown net worth math gets a big bump from concert tours. Concerts are typically the place big musicians really clean up. Brown has earned a total of $56 million from concerts, as the table below shows. The data comes from a MoneyNation analysis of the number of shows per tour, the number of seats per show and average ticket price. Brown’s first two tours, Up Close and Personal in 2006 and UCP Exclusive in 2007 took in an estimated total of $26.5 million in ticket sales. Brown only got paid about 17% of that money, since the tour co-headlined singer Ne-Yo and also featured other artists like Lil’ Wayne and Juelz Santana. The rest of Brown’s tours were headlined by the man himself, which gave him 85% of the revenue, according to figures quoted by music industry analysts.

Chris Brown Net Worth from Concerts
Chris Brown Concert Tour Name Revenues @ $50 per ticket Chris Brown % Chris Brown Earnings
Up Close and Personal Tour (2006) $15,500,000 17% $2,635,000
The UCP Exclusive Tour (2007) $11,000,000 17% $1,870,000
Fan Appreciation Tour (2009) $8,500,000 85% $7,225,000
F.A.M.E. Tour (2011) $18,500,000 85% $15,725,000
Carpe Diem Tour (2012) $10,000,000 85% $8,500,000
Between The Sheets Tour (2015) $11,000,000 85% $9,350,000
One Hell of a Nite Tour (2015) $13,000,000 85% $11,050,000
Total Chris Brown Net Worth from Concerts $56,355,000

Why Chris Brown Earns So Little from Endorsements

Endorsements and Chris Brown Net WorthThe biggest chapter in the Chris Brown net worth story is endorsements, or the lack thereof. A singer of Brown’s calibre should have earned about $70 million by now from endorsement deals. Even after taxes and expenses, that still would have pumped his wealth up by another $25 million, giving him around $75 million total by now. However, big companies don’t like to have their brands linked with convicted criminals in consumers’ minds. Sometimes it works. Stars like Meek Mill and Jon Jones can and do still get endorsement deals even after a conviction. Sometimes a little criminal behavior even works in a star’s favor, serving to pump up a bad boy image. That just doesn’t seem to be the case with someone who admits to beating a girlfriend bloody. Brown’s high profile conviction for hitting girlfriend Rihanna and the high-profile pictures of her bruised, swollen face pretty much rendered him useless for purposes of making shoppers feel warm and fuzzy. He did ink some endorsement deals before his day in court with Wrigley’s gum and the Got Milk ad campaign. We estimate endorsements kick in $6 million total to the Chris Brown net worth total.

Chris Brown Net Worth from Business Deals

Chris Brown Business and Net WorthChris Brown is a smart businessman. Business deals jack up the Chris Brown net worth numbers by about $17 million. There’s no shortage of stories about sports stars, musicians and actors going into business. High profile success stories like Dr. Dre and Jay Z blaze in the public imagination. The rank and file celebrity however tends to invest in less flashy properties like stocks, car dealerships or restaurants. Dr. Dre made it big with his Beats By Dre headphones that sold to Apple and made him $300 million richer. The Rocawear clothing line sale gave Jay Z a nice $204 million payday. Far more common though are stories like 50 Cent’s loss of $157 million to bad business deals or NFL players buying restaurants or car dealerships and watching their heard earned money go down the drain. Brown played it smart, putting his money in a chain of 14 Burger King restaurants. That’s the kind of investment that won’t turn him into a billionaire, but it’ll also most likely never leave him poor. Brown’s Burger King income likely pumps $1.7 million a year into his net worth. Clothing lines started by the singer add an estimated $1 million a year since 2012.

Related: Kanye West Net Worth

Other Chris Brown Net Worth Sources

Net Worth from Other Chris Brown SourcesBrown’s net worth has other sources. Appearances on talk shows and acting roles in movies and TV shows net him just over $1 million. Brown isn’t a huge star, but he has appeared in some box office successes. 2007’s Stomp the Yard earned $75 million at the world wide box office and paid Brown an estimated $249,000. Other hits include This Christmas with earnings of $50 million, 2010’s Takers with income of $69 million and 2012’s Think Like a Man, which had a haul of $96 million.

Chris Brown Net Worth from Singles

The list below shows all Chris Brown net worth data from sales of singles. Brown released 42 singles from 2005 through 2015 and sold a total of 38 million copies. 18 of those singles are RIAA certified with at least 500,000 copies sold. His greatest hit is Forever from 2008 with 5.7 million copies sold. Other contributors to his net worth are Look at Me Now with 4.6 million sales, No Air, Kiss Kiss, With You and Run It with 3.4 million each and Deuces with 2.3 million.

Chris Brown Earnings from Singles
Chris Brown Single Title Units Sold Revenue at $1.99 each Chris Brown Earnings (8%)
Yo (Excuse Me Miss) 1,140,000 $2,268,600 $181,488
Run It 3,420,000 $6,805,800 $544,464
Say Goodbye 1,140,000 $2,268,600 $181,488
Gimme That 570,000 $1,134,300 $90,744
Poppin 570,000 $1,134,300 $90,744
Kiss Kiss 3,420,000 $6,805,800 $544,464
With You 3,420,000 $6,805,800 $544,464
Forever (Biggest Chris Brown Hit) 5,700,000 $11,343,000 $907,440
No Air 3,420,000 $6,805,800 $544,464
Yeah 3x 1,140,000 $2,268,600 $181,488
Deuces 2,280,000 $4,537,200 $362,976
Look at Me Now 4,560,000 $9,074,400 $725,952
Turn Up the Music 1,140,000 $2,268,600 $181,488
Dont Wake Me Up 1,140,000 $2,268,600 $181,488
Loyal 1,140,000 $2,268,600 $181,488
Love More 570,000 $1,134,300 $90,744
Ayo 570,000 $1,134,300 $90,744
Five More Hours 570,000 $1,134,300 $90,744
Other singles (24 non-certified; 2007 – 2016) 2,400,000 $4,776,000 $382,080
Total Chris Brown Earnings from Singles $6,098,952

Chris Brown Net Worth Calculations

Unfortunately for all of us, net worth has two main enemies: taxes and expenses. Brown’s net worth is dragged down by taxes at a 52.9% rate. That’s 39.6% for federal taxes and California’s top bracket of 13.3%. Brown pays top rates because his earnings are so high. Expenses take another estimated 15%. Those include costs of doing business like concert production, agent fees and staff. The data in the table below show how taxes and expenses affect the Chris Brown net worth calculations every year. Investments add back a total of $5.4 million.

Chris Brown Net Worth Calculations
Year Total Chris Brown Earnings Taxes Expenses (15%) Investments Chris Brown Net Worth
2005 $3,032,264 $1,604,068 $454,840 $0 $973,357
2006 $3,501,952 $1,852,533 $525,293 $27,507 $2,124,991
2007 $6,052,149 $3,201,587 $907,822 $60,052 $4,127,782
2008 $5,603,838 $2,964,430 $840,576 $116,651 $6,043,266
2009 $12,442,994 $6,582,344 $1,866,449 $170,783 $10,208,249
2010 $6,589,136 $3,485,653 $988,370 $288,485 $12,611,847
2011 $26,814,297 $14,184,763 $4,022,145 $356,411 $21,575,647
2012 $18,328,966 $9,696,023 $2,749,345 $609,728 $28,068,973
2013 $7,160,639 $3,787,978 $1,074,096 $793,229 $31,160,768
2014 $7,890,814 $4,174,241 $1,183,622 $880,603 $34,574,322
2015 $32,037,912 $16,948,055 $4,805,687 $977,070 $45,835,562
2016 $7,787,033 $4,119,340 $1,168,055 $1,295,313 $49,630,513
Chris Brown Net Worth Totals $137,241,994 $72,601,015 $20,586,299 $5,575,833

Like reading about the net worth of stars? Check out this post on Rihanna’s net worth or this article on the net worth of Kanye West. All Chris Brown net worth data in this article are based on a deep analysis of income streams and sales figures, plus estimates and media reports.

Sources:

Chris Brown Sued