FOOTBALL · LEAGUE ONE · 416 SENIOR PLAYERS

How much does a League One player earn?

The median League One player earns £4,100 a week — £213,200 a year — across the 416 senior players at 24 clubs whose wages we hold. The mean is £5,927.

MEDIAN WEEKLY £4,100

MEAN WEEKLY £5,927

MEDIAN YEARLY £213k

BEST PAID £58,000

255 of the 416 senior players earn under £5,000 a week. The handful above them pull the mean £1,827 clear of the median, and the median is the number that describes the league: Boubakary Soumaré on £58,000 out-earns 197 Premier League seniors and tells you nothing about the other 415 players here.

What a League One player actually earns

Senior players by weekly wage band

Median £4,100 · mean £5,927

£0-£2,000

55 13%

£2,000-£4,000

131 31%

£4,000-£6,000

109 26%

£6,000-£8,000

46 11%

£8,000-£10,000

39 9%

£10,000+

36 9%

A quarter earn £2,900 or less, half earn £4,100 or less, and a tenth clear £9,000. The lowest senior wage we hold is £410.

Every League One club, by median wage

The middle senior earner at each club — not the wage bill

24 clubs

The 20 best paid in League One

Weekly wage, senior players

#	Player	Weekly	Yearly	Club	Age
01	Boubakary Soumaré	£58,000	£3,016,000	Leicester City	26
02	John Lundstram	£52,000	£2,704,000	Leicester City	31
03	Oliver Skipp	£49,000	£2,548,000	Leicester City	24
04	Bobby De Cordova-Reid	£48,000	£2,496,000	Leicester City	32
05	Wes Morgan	£46,000	£2,392,000	Leicester City	36
06	Caleb Okoli	£42,000	£2,184,000	Leicester City	24
07	Harry Souttar	£36,000	£1,872,000	Leicester City	26
08	Wout Faes	£36,000	£1,872,000	Leicester City	27
09	Luke Thomas	£35,000	£1,820,000	Leicester City	24
10	Alex McCarthy	£27,000	£1,404,000	Leicester City	35
11	Woyo Coulibaly	£26,000	£1,352,000	Leicester City	26
12	Barry Bannan	£23,000	£1,196,000	Sheffield Wednesday	35
13	Conor Chaplin	£22,000	£1,144,000	Leicester City	28
14	Emil Riis	£21,000	£1,092,000	Leicester City	27
15	Jakub Stolarczyk	£20,000	£1,040,000	Leicester City	24
16	Daniel Barlaser	£20,000	£1,040,000	Milton Keynes Dons	28
17	Alfie May	£19,000	£988,000	Doncaster Rovers	32
18	Ben Osborn	£19,000	£988,000	Stockport County	30
19	Steve Cook	£18,000	£936,000	Wycombe Wanderers	34
20	Wes Burns	£16,000	£832,000	Leicester City	30

By position

Average weekly wage, senior players

Goalkeepers

£5,034

Defenders

£5,700

Midfielders

£6,405

Attackers

£5,492

By age

Average weekly wage — every age we hold, not just seniors

16-19

£0

20-22

£3,476

23-25

£5,406

26-28

£6,452

29-31

£6,051

32-34

£6,737

35+

£11,286

How that compares

Median senior wage, the leagues we have published so far

Premier League

£61,000 Bundesliga

£25,000 Saudi Pro League

£16,000 Championship

£13,000 Major League Soccer

£7,100 League One

£4,100 League Two

£2,300

Where these numbers come from

Averages count only players aged 22 and over. Our squad lists run down to academy age — the League One carries 1219 players, of whom 416 are senior — and averaging all of them measures how deep a club's youth data goes rather than what the league pays.

Frequently asked questions

League One wages

How much does the average League One player earn?

The median is £4,100 a week (£213,200 a year) and the mean is £5,927, taken across the 416 players aged 22 or over whose wages we hold. The median is the better answer: a small number of very large contracts pull the mean above what a typical player earns.

Who is the highest paid player in League One?

Boubakary Soumaré of Leicester City, on £58,000 a week — £3,016,000 a year.

What does the lowest paid League One player earn?

The lowest senior wage we hold in League One is £410 a week. A quarter of the division earns £2,900 or less.

Which League One club pays the best?

Leicester City, on a median senior wage of £27,000 a week. Bromley has the lowest at £1,850.

Why do these figures only count players aged 22 and over?

Our squad lists run down to academy age — the League One carries 1219 players, of whom 416 are aged 22 and over. Averaging all of them measures how deep a club's youth data goes rather than what the league pays, and it is not comparable between leagues, so every average here is taken over senior players only.