Median CEO compensation at major U.S. companies rose nearly 6% in 2025, while employee pay increased more slowly and large executive stock awards widened the gap between corporate leaders and rank-and-file workers.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
Chief executive pay at large U.S. companies continued climbing in 2025, with the typical compensation package reaching $17.7 million as corporate boards rewarded executives for stronger profits, higher share prices and long-term performance targets.
Median CEO compensation rose nearly 6% from the previous year, according to an Associated Press report based on data analyzed by Equilar. The survey reviewed pay for 337 executives at S&P 500 companies who had served at least two full consecutive fiscal years and whose companies filed proxy statements between Jan. 1 and April 30.
The median employee at companies in the survey earned $89,744, up 4.7% from a year earlier. That increase exceeded inflation in 2025, but many workers continued to face pressure from years of accumulated price increases, forcing some households to reduce spending or rely on credit cards for basic expenses.
The pay gap between CEOs and workers widened slightly. At half the companies in the AP survey, a worker at the middle of the pay scale would need 200 years to earn what the CEO made in one year. That was up from 192 years in the previous year’s survey. Public companies have been required to disclose the CEO-to-worker pay ratio since 2018.
The largest disparities often appeared at companies where CEO pay included large one-time stock awards. The gap was also wide in industries where worker wages tend to be low. At Coca-Cola, the CEO’s compensation was nearly 1,739 times the company’s median worker pay of $17,947. At TJX Cos., the retailer’s CEO made about 1,774 times the pay of the company’s median employee.
Sarah Anderson, director of the Global Economy Project at the progressive Institute for Policy Studies, said in an email that ballot initiative campaigns in San Francisco and Los Angeles are seeking to raise taxes on companies with large gaps between CEO and worker pay.
“At a time when working families are struggling with rising costs, it’s obscene to see CEO pay continuing to skyrocket,” Anderson wrote.
Across the private sector, wages and benefits for U.S. workers rose 3.4% through 2025, according to the Labor Department. The average U.S. worker earns $67,000 annually, or $96,000 when benefits such as health care and insurance are included.
Modern CEO pay packages are driven largely by stock awards rather than salary, bonus payments or perks. Companies have increasingly tied executive compensation to performance metrics after years of shareholder pressure. Those stock grants often cannot be fully cashed in for years and may depend on the company reaching targets such as higher share prices, increased market value or improved operating profit.
When executives meet those targets, boards often approve additional awards to keep them from leaving for other companies. Shareholders are allowed to vote on CEO compensation through annual “say on pay” votes, but those votes are nonbinding and most compensation plans pass easily. Companies in this year’s survey received average support of about 90%.
The biggest compensation package in the survey went to Tesla CEO Elon Musk, whose pay was valued at $132.3 billion, all in stock awards. Musk must meet ambitious goals over the next decade related to Tesla’s market value, electric vehicle performance and future projects including robotaxis and humanoid robots before receiving the shares. Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Welltower CEO Shankh Mitra received the second-largest package, valued at $821.1 million, mostly in stock awards. Mitra became CEO of the health care real estate investment trust in October 2020, and Welltower’s stock price tripled between then and October 2025. Aside from a $110,000 annual salary, the full compensation is available only after a 10-year period.
Broadcom CEO Hock Tan received a package valued at $205.3 million, covering 2028 through 2030. The award is tied to Tan’s ability to significantly increase Broadcom’s revenue from artificial intelligence, making the company one of the few so far to use AI-related benchmarks in executive compensation.
“Use of AI considerations or metrics in incentive plans has not yet taken hold as a majority practice,” Kelly Malafis, founding partner at Compensation Advisory Partners, said in an email. She said that could change in the future.
Warner Bros. executive David Zaslav received a package valued at $165 million, the fourth-largest in the AP survey. The award followed a takeover fight that ended with Warner Bros. being sold to Paramount Skydance for $31 a share, up from $12.54 before reports emerged of Paramount’s interest. Warner credited Zaslav with negotiating a premium deal and exceeding financial and strategic goals. Since becoming CEO in 2007, Zaslav’s total compensation has reached $1.1 billion, according to Equilar.
Bank executives also received large pay packages after years of restructuring and efforts to improve stock performance. Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon received nearly $119 million, including $80 million in stock that can vest after five years. Goldman’s board cited a 57% increase in the company’s shares and a major rise in earnings per share. Solomon also sold the company’s Apple Card portfolio after an unsuccessful consumer banking expansion.
Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser received $95.8 million, the highest compensation for any of the 27 women CEOs in the survey and the highest ever for a woman CEO in the history of the AP survey. Fraser received a one-time $25 million award in restricted stock and options after being named Citi’s chair. She also received a one-time award for leading a major reorganization of the company, including layoffs.
Overall, median compensation for women CEOs in the survey fell 2.6% to $18.1 million. Median pay for male CEOs rose 6.4% to $17.7 million.
Wells Fargo CEO Charles Scharf received a $94.5 million package after leading the bank through efforts to recover from the fake accounts scandal that placed the company under federal supervision. The Federal Reserve allowed Wells Fargo to exit that penalty period last year.
Warren Buffett received $389,488 in his final year as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, down 4% from the previous year.
Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s compensation was valued at $25.1 million, with nearly all of it tied to security costs for Zuckerberg and his family and use of corporate aircraft.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang received compensation valued at $36.3 million, but he was not included in the AP survey because Nvidia filed its proxy after April 30. Nvidia is the most valuable publicly traded company.
The 2025 compensation figures show how stock-based awards continue to dominate CEO pay at the nation’s largest companies. While worker pay rose, the gap between executives and employees remained large, particularly at companies where boards used major equity grants to reward performance or keep top executives in place.
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