US Open prize fund rises 20% to a record $108m

A record purse weighted to the early rounds

Second-round losers get $190,000, third-round $290,000 and fourth-round $480,000. Quarter-finalists earn $780,000, semi-finalists $1.45m and the runner-up $2.8m. The champion's cheque of $5.5m is 10% up on the $5m paid in 2025. Qualifying pays $32,000 for a first-round loss, $48,000 for the second and $66,000 for the final round, roughly 15% up on 2025.

The percentage increase is highest in the first round, then falls in every later round. A decade ago champions took 18.3% of singles prize money; in 2026 they take 12.9%.

The $5.5m winner's cheque is nearly double the Australian Open's roughly $2.79m and above the French Open's roughly $3.25m. Wimbledon, at roughly $4.8m, comes closest. Doubles champions still share $1m a pair, unchanged from 2025. Mixed doubles winners also share $1m, but first-round prize money is doubled; first-round losers in the 16-team field take $40,000.

Welfare money and a seat at the table

The purse includes a $2m contribution to a new Player Support Program. The USTA is the first Slam to ring-fence benefit money for players, though it comes out of the overall prize fund. Players asked each Slam for $4m in benefits this year. The money sits in an independent holding account while the details are worked through, and the fund is split equally between men and women.

All four Slams also announced a Grand Slam Player Council, another item on the players' list. The council will give players input into sporting matters at the four tournaments, though its exact framework is yet to be decided. Ben Shelton said having "a seat at the table with the Grand Slams is something we have wanted for some time". Craig Tiley, the USTA chief executive who previously headed Tennis Australia, called the package "a significant first step in a multi-year investment in athletes". Player representatives said they welcomed the announcements and the "substantial increase" in prize money.

The council will launch after the US Open, with players invited to apply.

The 16% question is still open

The players want each Slam to pay 16% of revenue in prize money this year, rising by 1.5% a year to 22% by 2030, matching the ATP and WTA 1000 events. Whether the US Open has hit the first number is unclear. The USTA had not published its 2025 financial statement when it announced the purse, and player representatives had not seen the figures. The Express said the $108m reflects an 18% share of 2024 revenues, and that the tournament could become the first to hit 16% once the 2025 accounts appear. The USTA said the statement would be published before the main draw.

Wimbledon is further back. Its £64.2m fund, a 20% rise, works out at roughly 15% of revenue against the £71m a 16% share would have implied. The Guardian put the revenue share at 14.4%.

The All England Club rejects the metric itself. "Using revenue to determine prize money, it just makes no sense," chair Debbie Jevans said, arguing that a not-for-profit club puts everything back into the sport. She added that revenue "does not take into account the contributions that we give".

What comes next

The four Slams have not said when the revenue formula will be settled. The players' submission set 2030 as the target for 22%.