How much do UFC ring girls make per event? Potential earnings of Luciana Andrade, Arianny Celeste, Brittney Palmer, and more

UFC ring girl Luciana Andrade [Image courtesy @lucianaandrade on Instagram]
UFC ring girl Luciana Andrade [Image courtesy @lucianaandrade on Instagram]

Top UFC ring girls like Luciana Andrade, Arianny Celeste, and Brittney Palmer are as popular as the fighters with the MMA fan base. Ring girls have been a prominent feature of premier promotion since UFC 40 in 2002 when Nichole Miller first walked the famed octagon.

With the widespread popularity these ring-side beauties enjoy, fight fans might be wondering how much they earn for their UFC duties. Take a look.

Per a report by mediarefree.com, ring girls get paid $1000 for every fight they work on and $5000 for each event they are a part of. Additionally, they will rake in significantly higher amounts if they appear on pay-per-view events.

The ring girls are also paid a performance bonus akin to the fight bonus received by the athletes. Their overall pay might also vary depending on the hype and popularity of the fight they appear in.

Per the report, Arianny Celeste is the top earner among the ring-side divas. The 37-year-old rakes in upwards of $1 million from her modeling endeavors, social media career, and UFC duties.

Two-time Ringcard Girl of the Year award winner Brittney Palmer reportedly earns around $30,000 from the UFC. She's one of the longest-serving ring girls in the promotion, having signed with the organization in 2005.

Luciana Andrade has previously mentioned that most ring girls in the US get to work only once a month. Going by that theory and assuming each ring girl gets to work at least two fights per event, Andrade will take home a minimum of $24,000 annually.


When Luciana Andrade dispelled rumors of ring girls earning more than fighters

UFC has long been criticized for its abysmal fighter compensation. To make matters worse, earlier in 2022, reports emerged that a few ring girls in the promotion were making significantly more than many lesser-known fighters on the roster.

Per veteran ring girl Luciana Andrade, these are false rumors. During an interview with Ariel Helwani, the 37-year-old dismantled the false narrative saying:

"This is the tale as old as time, far away from the truth. It's the internet right, you can finish the show here and go and write an article saying that I make two million dollars an hour and people are going to believe it. It is not true, we don't get paid more money than the fighters."

Furthermore, she broke down the potential pay scale of the ring girls detailing the number of opportunities they get to work in a year:

"Let's talk about the US girls, we're six total, we rotate... So you work once [or] twice a month if you're lucky. Let's use common sense, do you really think we'd be making more money than the fighters... to walk around a few rounds, obviously not."

Catch Luciana Andrade's comments below:

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