SALARYSPORT
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SHOW JUMPING · WHAT IT COSTS

What it costs to jump for the money

An entry fee is capped per horse per competition, and the cap is the same whether the class pays €300 or €300,000. Everything above the fee is uncapped.

One and two star fee
€440
Three star fee
€495
Four star fee
€605
Five star fee
Uncapped
Charged
Per horse, per class
ONE STAR FEE £376
ONE STAR MEDIAN CHEQUE £34
A WEEK IN FEES £4,513
LEVELS PRICED 5
MEDIAN CHEQUE £85
PAID ONCE ONLY 1,068

The fee against the cheque, level by level

One entry, one horse, one class, against the median that class pays

5 levels priced

Level Fee cap Fee in sterling Median cheque Cheque against fee Median winner
CSI5* Uncapped - £1,124 £7,231
CSI4* €605 £517 £500 1x £3,205
CSI3* €495 £423 £423 1x £3,300
CSI2* €440 £376 £103 0.3x £481
CSI1* €440 £376 £34 0.1x £256

At CSI1* a placed round returns 0.1 times the entry fee that bought it. At 3 levels the median cheque is smaller than the fee, so the middle of the class is paying to be there. The fee is the only line on the bill with a ceiling written into the rules. Everything under this paragraph has none.

Every capped fee

What the rules allow a show to charge

9 caps

Where it applies How it is charged Cap In sterling
CSI1* and CSI2* Per horse, per competition €440 £376
CSI3* Per horse, per competition €495 £423
CSI4* Per horse, per competition €605 £517
CSI5* No cap. The invitation is the control instead Uncapped -
CSI5*-W, World Cup qualifier Capped even at five star, because the class is a qualifier €495 £423
North American shows One flat cap across the levels €605 £517
Young horse classes Per horse, per competition €330 £282
Age classes, children to under 25 Per horse, per competition €440 £376
CSIAm, amateur A global fee for the whole show rather than per class €1,500 £1,282

Five star is the one level with no cap on the fee, and it is also the level a rider cannot enter on their own account: the invitation is the control instead.

What a week actually costs

Entry fees for three horses over four classes each

Fees only

CSI4*, 3 horses £6,205 CSI3*, 3 horses £5,077 CSI2*, 3 horses £4,513 CSI1*, 3 horses £4,513

Three horses and four classes each is an ordinary week for a professional yard, and the fee is charged per horse per competition, so the multiple rather than the cap is the number that matters.

What comes back in

The other side of the ledger, from 22,099 cheques

3,331 riders

What it is Amount
The median cheque, anywhere in the sport £85
The median career on record £262
Cheques under £500 18,059
Cheques under £1,000 19,606
Riders paid exactly once 1,068

Set the two halves side by side and the sport reads differently from the way a Grand Prix broadcast reads. The money at the top is real and it is enormous. Below it, a placed round is a contribution towards a bill that was already paid. What a class actually pays is here.

What the sport pays out each season

Every class of every year added together

8 seasons

Frequently asked questions

How much does it cost to enter a show jumping class?

The fee is capped per horse per competition and the cap rises with the star level: €440 at one and two star, €495 at three star and €605 at four. Five star has no cap on the fee at all, because the invitation is the control instead.

Does prize money cover the entry fee?

Not at the bottom of the sport. At CSI1* the median cheque is £34 against a capped fee of £376, so a placed round returns 0.1 times the fee that bought it, before a single other bill.

What else does a rider pay for?

Stabling for the week, a groom, the lorry and the diesel to get there, the vet, the farrier, the insurance and the horse itself. None of those is capped by anybody, and none of them depends on whether the round places.

How much does a week at a show cost?

Entry fees alone run to about £4,513 for three horses jumping four classes each at one star, and that is the one line of the bill with a ceiling on it.

Do show jumpers get paid to turn up?

No. There is no start money and no appearance fee at the levels on this site. A rider pays to jump and is paid only if the round places, which is about a quarter of the field.

Where to next

The levels these fees buy, and what they pay

Every level

The shows

The fifty richest riders

The rest of the section