'Teen Mom' Stars Earn $60,000 Per Season

By Rob Shuter Posted Oct 28th 2010 05:30PM

The young parents of MTV's hit show 'Teen Mom' are making a pretty good living for being a bunch of teenagers. A series insider exclusively tells Life & Style magazine that the "stars earn $60,000 to $65,000 per season." That's more than many reality stars, but not as much as their fellow MTVers at the 'Jersey Shore' or 'The Hills,' whose stars used to make between $90-125,000 per episode.

"It's a monster hit," an insider tells me. "With ratings like that they deserve to be well compensated."

Indeed it's one of the biggest shows on the network and judging by amount of magazine covers they grace, the 'Teen' stars are arguably more bankable than those 'Jersey' boys and girls.

The $60k a year is enough money to provide on-again off-again couple Amber Portwood and Gary Shirley with comfortable lives, but neither one seems to be a good saver. "Gary says he's broke," Gary's best friend, Jordan Sanchez, tells Life & Style. "The money is the only reason he's willing to do the show. You can't walk away from money like that."

Which is exactly the case and Amber and Gary have already started filming the next season of the show.

"They're filming in Tennessee," Jordan says, but they are talking about moving to Florida, where Amber's uncle owns a business.

Amber has another reason to need more cash flow: lawyers fees. As you may have heard, the fiery teen is being investigated for domestic violence by police in Anderson, Ind. and the state Department of Child Services for incidents ON THE SHOW where she physically hit her then-boyfriend in front of their daughter, Leah.

When confronted about the situation by Dr. Drew Pinsky on the 'Teen Mom' reunion show last week, Amber broke down in tears and claimed to have "blacked out" during the incident, saying she only remembers striking Gary once.

Please make this stop. Please.

Teen Mom (Season 2) - MTV Shows

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Tags: teen mom

Comments

(124)

Saturday 30 October

By Jonathan

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They make 60k??? lol, and here we are "feeling sorry" for them.

Friday 29 October

By vickie

I pray that catlin and her boyfriend graduate....I feel for both of them because they haven't had good home life....they are good kids and deserve better....It has to be hard for them to walk away from their daughter....she looks like both of them....If any couple would of made good parents it would of been those two ...but...they were smart enough to know they were not ready...

By gbort

KUDDOS!! Soo agree! They are so smart to know that they couldnt provide for her the life she deservered! I hate they had to make that difficult decision, but hope the adoptive parents will continue to let them be apart of her life!

By Bryan

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Huh....
maybe I should have got a girl pregnant in high school and mailed MTV about it. -__-
Damn it!

By dave

we as viewers have the power to make this HORRIBLE show disappear STOP watching-low ratings equals cancelation. i myself have watched maybe 10 min once, it was all i could stand. came off way to fake.

By Bob

The Jersey Shore MTV goof balls are rarer than teen age parents, who are a dime a dozen that's why they get the big money. I know that's cold but it's all about supply and demand. They could drop them young couples and find others in no time at all. Both groups are a sad reflection of the segments of society that they represent.

By virginia

Low Ranked Vote down Vote up Report this

i think the teen moms and boyfriends should be making a 100.000 an episode, not a lousy 60.000 a season. you know how much money the network is making on those kids. plenty. how much money do you think the duggars are being paid for the brood. more than you can count.

By lelee

I disagree w/ you about the pay raise. Actually if this was REAL REALITY they shouldn't be paid a thin dime! They chose to have babies through whatever careless action they made upon themselves. And we wonder why these kids (in the day and age of the 21 century) are STILL HAVING BABIES!!!!! Society like cheesey MTV is coaxing these KIDS to believe this f--ked up lifestyle is one way to get ahead for themselves. That's why there is another season w/ NEW VICTIMS-- and these batch of teenagers look more trifling than the last ones. (More down-n- out and look like they got knocked-up ONLY TO BE ON MTV!) As if they were guaranteed a spot on the show if they knock-up at a specific deadline? Perish the thought!

By Brace

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Reality shows are for ignorant people.

By Welcome Harris

GOOD MESSAGES TO SEND OUT TO TEENS..HAVE WE TOTALLY LOST OUR MINDS AND NO RESPECT FOR EACH OTHER.NOTHING GOOD EVER,ABOUT BABIES HAVING BABIES.NO WONDERWE HAVE TROUBLE KEEPING KIDS IN SCHOOL,THE TV MOVIES AND THE MUSIC GIVES THE WRONG MESSAGES.MTV.SHOULD PAY TO SUPPORT ALL THE UNDERAGE KIDS HAVING BABIES.I AM SO TIRED OF SUPPORTING ALL THE SINGLE PARENT BABIES.IT IS TIME THE FATHER OF ALL THESE CHILDREN,PAY FOR THEIR CHILDREN,THERE IS NOTHING COOL ABOUT HAVING A CHILD WHEN YOU ARE UNDERAGE.

By k

Lowest Rank Vote down Vote up Report this

Everyone get a life and stop b*tching about everyone and worrying about other peoples lives, you guys are all pathetic... grow up! people like you breed these young teens that are having babies to run away from parents like you. You are probably fat ugly people with nothing better to do but write a f*cking blog. haha pitiful!

By Norm Krell

Never SAW that show! Sounds like I can see it in the local mall. NK..

By Barb

What trailer trash. I can't believe a show like this is even on TV. And, what does it say about the morals and IQ's of its viewers and fans!? That there are a lot of trashy teens and unwed twenty-somethings getting knocked up because they can't swallow a pill (ha) or drive to the drug store for protection. Or - just stop screwing around and behaving like dogs. They even have FANS! Oh, that is scary - be a fan of a skank and her accidental child.
TV needs to change.

By Stacey

What GARBAGE! It IS glorifying teen pregnancy and what a disgrace for our society!

By Courtney

I knew they were getting big bucks when I saw Kaitlyn's mom driving a BMW - even an older used model is better than anything else that old drunk could afford to buy on her own!

By Deez Nuts

I heard you were a wh--e Heather. cool cool so you can get Deeezzzzzzzzzzzzzzz Nutssssssssssssssssssss and oh baby the way you better send your child to the babysitters cauz i wouldn't want to wake him/her.

By Gwen Meserko

MY NATURAL MOTHER WAS A TEENAGE MOTHER. SHE LOVED ME ENOUGH ABOUT ME TO GIVE ME A GOOD START. SHE PUT ME UP FOR ADOPTION!! PLEASE DON'T GLORIFY TEENAGE PREGNANCY. WHAT IS GLORIUS ABOUT UNEDUCATED PEOPLE ON WELFARE?

I heard you were a hoe Heather. cool cool so you can get Deeezzzzzzzzzzzzzzz Nutssssssssssssssssssss and oh by the way you better send your child to the babysitters cauz i wouldn't want to wake him/her.

My daughter had her first at just 20yr. old, (and now the child is 5),my daughter has been with the same guy for 8yr, and now they have twin 1 yr. olds! They struggle every day, while going to college and working full time!(with very little help from us parents)! It doesnt matter where you came from, It matters where you priorities are! I think Amber & Gary have problems well before the baby was born, but think the other couples on the show have made very wise decisions for the sake of their children! KUDDOS to the parents that are REALLY making sacrifices for the childrens well beings!!

By Katie

Would't it be nice if young people could learn to control themselves and control their reproductive choices so they could wait until they had a stable environment for a child instead of inviting that child into struggle? How stupid to have children at 20 to have to struggle for upwards of 10+ years when they could have waited and had life a lot easier. Your daughter is not a role model. She is one of the poster children for why women need to be taught we are more than our vaginas and attraction to men. I would never had dreamt doing to my children what your daughter is doing to hers. But it's okay because you got grandbabies, right?

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