Ellen Pompeo Ranks as TV’s Highest-Paid Woman in 2025
Who else’s life has been transformed by Grey’s Anatomy? You could totally rewatch it all from the beginning, couldn’t you? It’s definitely one of our favorite comfort shows to play in the background when we want a little background noise around the house.
But, did you know Ellen Pompeo remains the highest-paid woman on television in 2025? That’s quite impressive, isn’t it? …especially when you consider it’s currently in its 21st season.
Ellen Pompeo’s Grey’s Anatomy Reign Continues With $20M
After a recent appearance on the Call Her Daddy podcast, Ellen shared a really empowering story about a conversation she had with the show’s creator, Shonda Rhimes.
Back in 2017, Ellen knew she was going to go to the showrunners to ask for more money – a lot more money. She knew Shonda didn’t have any say over the matter, but she wanted to show her due respect before making any potential waves.
Shonda’s response was, “No one’s going to give it to you. You have to ask for it.” With Shonda’s blessing in hand, Ellen made her move and secured a $20 million deal, coming in at about $575,000 per episode.
Beyond that, she also landed a seven-figure signing bonus and two full backend equity points on the series. Those are estimated to bring her in an additional $6 million to $7 million. Eye-popping, right?
It’s All About Independence
Sure, seeing those deposits in her bank account must feel like – dare we say it – a million bucks. But, it’s not about the bottom dollar for Ellen. She told the folks at Call Her Daddy that the independence means a lot more.
“I don’t have to do anything I don’t want to do,” Ellen said. She believes that financial freedom is true independence and stated that she learned at an early age that people with money have the real power.
Life Before Grey’s Anatomy
If you’ve ever wondered about Ellen Pompeo’s movies and TV shows, her breakout role was in the 2002 film Moonlight Mile. She starred as the love interest to Jake Gyllenhaal’s character. But, by 2004, her movie career had stalled, and she was skating close to poverty. Right on time, however, her agent brought her the script for Grey’s Anatomy.
Initially, Ellen balked at it, saying she wasn’t going to be stuck on some medical show for five years. Sure enough, twenty years later, she not only remains the star of the show, but rakes in more money than any other woman on television.
Today, Ellen Pompeo’s net worth is around $80 million, if you believe the reports on sites like Celebrity Net Worth. And Ellen Pompeo’s husband is no slouch, either. He’s a record producer and writer with about 25 years in the business.
He has co-writing credits on songs like “Cheers (Drink to That)” by Rihanna. Ellen says her real-life McDreamy is “her favorite person” and that she’s only had eyes for him since they first met back in 2003. It seems like the 2002 – 2004 span of her life was filled with plenty of ups and downs – more ups than downs.
Ready to Tune In?
The second half of Season 21 started on Thursday, March 6th. We can expect new episodes to air nightly at 10 pm EST on ABC. If you have Hulu, the episodes also become available there the following day.
Let’s see where season 21 takes us! Right now, the longest-running drama is Law and Order. It’ll be interesting to see where Grey’s lands in the scheme of things.
And, while we wait, keep coming back for more on the latest entertainment news. We’ll keep you posted on the happenings over on Grey’s Anatomy, as well as all our other favorite TV shows and movies.