Strictly Instagram rich list: Who is the highest earner?

New study reveals that Fleur East is the highest earning contestant from this year’s Strictly Come Dancing, earning up to £3,524 per sponsored post.

Research conducted by comparison site JohnSlots examined the social media profiles of every contestant and professional dancer on the current season of Strictly Come Dancing, as well as influencer marketing calculators to establish which star is the most influential on social media and how much they can earn per sponsored post.

The research revealed that Fleur East is the highest earning contestant on this year’s Strictly Come Dancing. The singer and radio presenter has an Instagram following of almost 800K, the highest follower count of all the contestants, which allows her to earn up to £3,534 per sponsored Instagram post. Since the star rose to fame on The X Factor, Fleur has partnered with brands such as Birchbox and MAC Cosmetics, consequently enhancing her influential social media presence.

Kym Marsh is revealed as the second highest earning contestant on Strictly Come Dancing, partnered with professional dancer Graziano Di Prima. The Coronation Street actress has the second-highest Instagram following of 520K, allowing her to earn a potential of £2,299 per sponsored post.

Will Mellor can earn up to £1,566 per sponsored post, making him the third highest earning star of the current series of Strictly Come Dancing. The actor has 361,000 Instagram followers, the third highest of the cast, and an engagement rate of 2%, making his Instagram account ideal for sponsorship deals.

The fourth highest social media earner is TV presenter Helen Skelton, who is paired with professional dancer Gorka Marquez. Helen can expect to earn up to £1,518 per sponsored post due to her 348,000 followers and 3% Instagram engagement rate. Helen also has previous experience with Strictly, having participated in the show’s Christmas Special in 2012.

The most influential contestants and professionals on Strictly Come Dancing

When combining both contestants and professionals, six of the top ten highest earning Strictly members on Instagram are resident Strictly Come Dancing professionals, while the remaining four are contestants. This suggests that some Strictly pros are potentially more famous than their celebrity partners.

The research revealed that Dianne Buswell is the highest earning professional dancer on Strictly and the highest earning 2022 cast member overall, ranking higher than all this year’s celebrity contestants. Joining the show in 2017, Dianne has the highest number of followers on the show, a huge 867K Instagram follower count, and an engagement rate of 2%, placing her firmly in the top spot and allowing her to earn up to £3,872 per sponsored Instagram post. Like the other pros, Dianne tops up her earnings through the Strictly tours, various media appearances and her YouTube channel.

The research revealed that Giovanni Pernice is the second highest earning Strictly professional dancer and the second highest earning Strictly member overall. On top of his £50,000 salary and his 807K Instagram followers, Giovanni is one of the most famous dancers off-screen and rakes in an average of £3,598 per sponsored Instagram post. Giovanni has also signed lucrative deals with We Are Feel multivitamins and Visit Argentina, contributing to his social media influence. Giovanni and his partner Richie Anderson were the second pairing to be voted off this year’s show, as part of Movie Week.

A spokesperson for JohnSlots commented on the findings: “With the 2022 series of Strictly Come Dancing in full swing, this research dives into the earnings of both the contestants and professional dancers on the show, to reveal how much they can earn outside of our screens every Saturday night.

Millions of viewers will tune in every week to watch the hit BBC series, suggesting that the contestants and professionals can expect to gain an even higher follower count across social media, which will in turn increase opportunities and influence for the star’s outside of the dancing season.”