Britney Spears Is Worth A Lot More Money Than You Think
As one of the top-selling pop stars, it's obvious that Britney Spears would have a massive fortune to her name, which she does — to the tune of $70 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth. However, fans of Spears know that she didn't always have access to her money as a result of her long-held conservatorship, which gave control of her finances to someone else.
Spears' net worth is impressive, and she's accumulated it from a diversification of interests. From her myriad business endeavors, along with her millions of records sold, Spears has several irons in the fire. Her fortune therefore has nowhere to go but up! Granted, The New York Times says her net worth is actually more like $60 million, but regardless of what actually is in the bank, Spears is still sitting on quite a fortune. That net worth is particularly astounding given that Spears' father, Jamie Spears, claimed her fortune was down to a few million dollars when he launched his conservatorship over her. So how did Spears manage to build such an empire? Let's take a look.
Britney Spears started making money early
When Britney Spears joined the cast of soon-to-be all-stars on Disney Channel's 1993 Mickey Mouse Club reboot "The All-New Mickey Mouse Club," she cemented herself into the American celeb history books. Her castmates included Christina Aguilera, Justin Timberlake, and Ryan Gosling, to name just a few, and introduced Spears to the world. Per The Sun, Spears was 12 when she joined the cast and signed with Jive Records a few years later, in 1997. Although it's unclear how much Spears made from the show, it is clear that Disney can take credit for some of her success. Like many other former "MMC" cast members, Spears' star rose quickly. Entertainment Weekly lists her as one of the most successful former cast members of the show, including the original version, which started in 1955, and the first remake, which launched the careers of stars such as Annette Funicello and Lisa Whelchel.
In 2018, producer and co-choreographer of "MMC" Sarah Elgart told E! News that the Mouseketeers were cast in cities outside of New York and Los Angeles as a way to find all-American, authentic kids. Spears' castmate Tony Lucca also told the outlet that the Mouseketeers were often seeking advice from Spears. He told E! News that the cast members "would always ask Britney how the [dance] combinations went, because she was really great at committing them to memory."
Her music career took off
To the surprise of no one, Britney Spears is one of the top ranked best-selling artists in the country. According to Billboard, Spears is the 18th best selling album artist since Nielsen Music started charting sale numbers in 1991, and her debut album, "...Baby One More Time," is one of only two dozen that have passed the 10 million mark in albums sold. While her subsequent albums weren't able to recapture those exact numbers, they still boast sales in the multiple millions, which means Spears' music career has been lucrative, to say the least.
At the height of her popularity, the pop princess was even pulling multi-million dollar advances for future albums. For "In the Zone," her fourth studio album, Spears grabbed a $10 million advance, per The New York Times. However, album sales are only a small part of how a musician makes money. Spears also conducted extensive tours to promote her albums and has been known to put on elaborate live shows, which have earned her quite a bit. According to Parade, Spears put on 10 tours since launching her career in 1999. The paychecks for them have varied through the years, but the outlet estimates Spears was bringing in between $300,000 and $4 million per show.
She had multiple brand endorsements
When it comes to brand deals, Britney Spears was so popular that Bustle called her "The Queen of Endorsements." Any '90s kids who remember the Got Milk? campaigns with our favorite celebs seen daily in the school cafeteria will also remember how prolific Spears was in the branded marketing campaigns of the 2000s. Parade reported that Spears' 2001 deal with Pepsi was one of her best paid at $8 million, though that was certainly far from the end of her endorsement journey. According to Parade, some of Spears' other iconic placements included Sketchers and Polaroid (anyone else remember the I-Zone camera? So cool).
However, it seems that in 2011 the product placement/brand endorsement deals got to be a little too much for Spears. When the singer incorporated placements for a payday of half a million dollars in her "Hold It Against Me" music video for companies like Sony, Make Up Forever, and Plenty of Fish, she faced some backlash from other celebs. Per the New York Daily News, Katy Perry seemingly called Spears out for the placements. The outlet reported that, in response to a Marina and the Diamonds tweet asking how folks felt about product placements, Perry didn't hold back. "You have to get creative with it," the "Firework" singer tweeted. "Some artists don't care though and you can tell."
The pop singer dabbled in a movie career
If you've never heard of the 2002 film "Crossroads" starring Britney Spears, Zoe Saldana, and Taryn Manning, you're probably not alone. The film about a trio of childhood pals going on a road trip didn't impress critics or audiences, according to Rotten Tomatoes. The site's critics consensus says the film is "a cliched and silly pop star vanity project, 'Crossroads' is strictly for Britney fans only." Like many other films, such as "Rocky Horror Picture Show," however, "Crossroads" became a cult favorite.
Variety reported that the film made $61 million after costing just $12 million to make — far exceeding what folks expected for the film at the box office. Spears reportedly netted $2 million from the project. Director Tamra Davis told Variety in 2022 that she tried over the years to get in touch with Spears, to no avail because of the star's 13-year-long conservatorship. "It just breaks my heart because when I think back to the messages that I was getting back, they never let me get to her," Davis told Variety. "Now, I just realized, oh my god, this was her people just trying to keep everybody away. I feel there were voices that could have helped her."
She created a fragrance empire
Five years into her career as a pop sensation, Britney Spears started down a path that many other celebs have taken as well — branded products. For Spears, it was 2004, and she launched her first of over two dozen perfumes. "I'm so excited about doing my new fragrance with all of you," she said of her first perfume, Curious, per InStyle. "It smells amazing, and it is in department stores, so I seriously suggest to be sexy and go out and get it. Seriously." The outlet also noted that Curious became the top-selling fragrance of that year after amassing more than $100 million in sales. Through the years, publications have ranked Spears' various fragrances, but one thing is certain — they've garnered her a fortune.
Although celebrity created fragrances aren't the hot commodity they once were, Spears' perfume empire cannot be overstated. Spears didn't just build a billion dollar fragrance brand, she built one in the multi-billions. According to Spears' brother, Bryan Spears, in a 2020 interview with the "As NOT Seen on TV" podcast, the pop star's collaboration with Elizabeth Arden garnered over $100 billion in sales. Newsweek reported that Spears earned $52 million from that Elizabeth Arden deal. That smells like success to us!
Britney Spears made many TV appearances
Britney Spears had some difficult years in the late 2000s, which were only exacerbated when she made live appearances like her 2007 VMAs performance. Still, the world of music wasn't willing to let her go, even when her managers told people she was medicated. When she appeared alongside Simon Cowell on "American Idol" in 2007, Cowell didn't know why her behavior was erratic and he didn't care, according to The U.S. Sun. "It all starts now," Cowell said of Spears' appearance for the 2012 season of his American "X-Factor" series, according to the outlet. "From now on we're going to have fun. We all look so good together. It's incredible. It's going to be a new decade."
The outlet reported that Cowell saw Spears joining his show as a huge opportunity for the series, as well as the singer. So the pop star was paid a cool $15 million to appear for just one season. To put that price in perspective, MTV broke down other salaries. For example, Jennifer Lopez was earning $12 million on "American Idol," whereas Christina Aguilera was making roughly $10 million per season on "The Voice." The U.S. Sun reported that Cowell defended Spears' work on his show, saying that she wasn't in it for the money, rather, she was proving she still had the work in her. A decade later, finally free from her conservatorship, Spears continues to show everyone what she's capable of.
Her real estate investments helped her diversify
When you reach the level of success Britney Spears has, it's almost expected that you would buy yourself a massive mansion. While the singer has, indeed, purchased some impressive homes in the past, she's also made a small fortune from her real estate portfolio. Spears got things rolling in back 1999, when she "first bought a custom house in Kentwood, Louisiana, for her mom, which they named 'Serenity,'" Insider explained while noting that the star's "mom reportedly still lives there." In 2001, Spears bought her first Hollywood home for $2.9 million, which she then sold to Brittany Murphy in 2003 for $3.9 million. From there, Spears picked up four homes in various areas of California, as well as a penthouse in NYC. While that likely took a chunk out of the singer's overall fortune, she then pocketed some serious cash when she "sold them all for a collective $29 million."
In 2015, she also paid $7.4 million for a 13,264-square-foot house in Thousand Oaks, California, as per the New York Post, which came with almost 21 acres of land. Shortly after her marriage to Sam Asghari, Spears purchased a Tuscan-style mansion in Calabasas for $11.8 million, according to Architectural Digest. AD further reported that the seven bed, nine bath home is in a double-gated community with other celeb neighbors such as Kourtney Kardashian and Travis Barker.
She made bank with her Las Vegas residency
From 2013-2017, Britney Spears was working nonstop during her residency in Las Vegas. In those four years, her "Britney: Piece of Me" show earned a whopping $138 million over her 250 performances, according to Billboard. Even so, the singer didn't get to enjoy it. "I was thinking about when I did shows in Vegas ... the four years I was there I went out only two times !!!! Unfortunately I'm not lying," Spears said on a now-deleted Instagram video in August 2021, per Billboard. Elle Australia estimated that Spears was making about $350,000 per performance of her residency.
The New Yorker reported that, in 2015, Spears extended her residency for another two years in a $35 million deal. The publication further reported that Spears was going to do another residency called "Domination," which was announced in 2018, but the singer ended up cancelling it due to concerns with her father's health. While Vegas residencies have been hugely beneficial for Spears' career in the past, she doesn't seem to be planning on doing one anytime soon. That hasn't stopped the star from enjoying Sin City from time to time though. Good for her!
Her conservatorship impacted her finances
Being under a conservatorship for 13 years was hard on Britney Spears in more ways than one, but particularly when it came to her finances, as it seemed everybody wanted a piece. The New Yorker did a deep dive into Britney's conservatorship and was told by an insider that even the singer's business managers were taking money from her on the down low. Another source told the magazine that, when the conservatorship was established, Britney was down to a few million dollars. Regardless of what she was making, she was only allowed a $2,000 weekly allowance under her conservatorship, per The New York Times. At the same time, the paper reported, Jamie Spears (the estate conservator) was getting a salary of $16,000 a month plus $2,000 for his office. Jamie also reportedly received 1.5% of revenues from his daughter's Vegas residency, which got him about $2 million, according to Parade.
In a document obtained from the Los Angeles Court, the amount of money Jamie took from Britney was $6.3 million (via Yahoo! Entertainment). How much (James) Spears Management, Inc. earned varied wildly from year to year, according to the document. The highest grossing year was 2011, when the company earned $1.8 million, while 2008 was the least, with $153,790 (per Yahoo! Entertainment). The publication further reported that Jamie also used estate funds to pay his personal living expenses as well as sold estate property at a loss, which accumulated to over $800,000 in losses.
Britney Spears had to pay a lot in legal fees
The fees for Britney Spears' conservatorship included more than just what her conservators were paid. During the 13 years she was under their control, Britney also paid millions of dollars in legal fees. Legal documents obtained by ET showed just how much she had to pay to keep herself in the conservatorship. In 2019 alone she paid over $1.2 million in fees to her attorneys and advisors (including $128,000 paid to Jamie Spears), per ET. The year before that, her legal and advising fees were $1.1 million (including Jamie's $128,000 fee), the outlet reported.
Then, in November 2021, Britney's mother, Lynne Spears, demanded she pay her $660,000 legal fees stemming from the conservatorship. Jamie also tried to get Britney to cover his $1.4 million legal fees. Page Six obtained court documents that explained Lynne felt she had sped up the process of the ending the conservatorship, so paying the legal fees should be Britney's responsibility. "Within a year and a half of [Britney's] mother's participation, and during the dark days of the COVID-19 pandemic, [Britney's] court-appointed counsel finally moved to bring in litigation counsel for the purpose of removing Jamie Spears," the justification read in part, per Page Six. "Within two years and six months ... [Britney] was finally afforded the right to choose her own legal counsel. Subsequently, she was freed from the conservatorship [in November 2021]." As of April 2022, Britney is still refusing her mother's demand.
She has to pay child support
Less than a year after her divorce from Kevin Federline, Britney Spears was placed in her oppressive conservatorship. According to Yahoo, the divorcees shared custody of their two children, Sean Preston and Jayden James, at the start of their divorce, but that dropped to a 70/30 split in Federline's favor in 2019. Yahoo reported that, after their divorce, Federline received a $1.3 million settlement from Spears. However their child support has been a contentious battle at best.
In 2018, Federline filed for more child support from Spears beyond the $20,000 he received each month until then, according to People. "We think the reasonable needs for the children while they would be in Kevin's custody is probably three times what he's currently receiving," Mark Vincent Kaplan, Federline's attorney, told the magazine. That means Federline is asking for $60,000 a month instead of $20,000. At the time, a source close to Spears told ET that the singer already covers most of their sons' expenses on top of the child support she pays. "We want to know where that $20,000 is going," the source told the outlet. "Kevin wants a raise in money and he can't account for where the $20,000 is going."
The pop princess likes to live large
Coming back from over 10 years of not being allowed to spend the money she has earned, it's no surprise Britney Spears is currently living it up a little. During her conservatorship, Spears was only allowed a $2,000 weekly allowance. According to ET, most of her money spent per year was toward legal and advisor fees, with only $400,000 going to her living expenses. Now that her money is her own again, she is spending it how she sees fit.
ET went on to report that Spears spent about $66,000 per year on household supplies, which covered 80 trips to stores like Target, Bed Bath & Beyond, and Home Depot. The pop star also spent about $70,000 on travel in 2018, which included four nights at the luxurious Montage Beverly Hills for a casual $16,000 (per ET). Given the amount of fuss Jamie Spears caused over his daughter wanting to take a break on a trip to Hawaii in July 2021, Spears should take some time for a longer vacation (per The U.S. Sun).
Britney Spears signed a prenup before marrying Sam Asghari
Finally free from her conservatorship, it makes sense that fans were concerned about whether or not Britney Spears had a prenup for her third marriage to Sam Asghari in June 2022. Asghari was a good sport about the prenup question and even posted, jokingly, to his Instagram Story after getting engaged that they needed a prenup to protect his possessions. "Thank you everyone who is concerned about the prenup!" Asghari posted to his Instagram Story, per People. "Of course we're getting an iron clad prenup to protect my jeep and shoe collection incase she dumps me one day."
Although they seemed to joke about it, after getting married, Spears and Asghari did sign a prenup. According to People, the document protects Spears' income from all of her businesses prior to marrying the personal trainer. Good Morning America reported that Spears filed a report with the court which indicated she was concerned her father would get in the way of her prenup. According to GMA, Spears' attorney, Mathew Rosengart, stated that "Ms. Spears' relationship with that Conservator (her father) is broken, Mr. Spears' continued involvement would impede the ability to negotiate and consummate a contract that we can all agree is in Ms. Spears' best interests." Seems it was drawn up without much negotiation, however, and we hope Spears never has to use it.