How Much Money Did The Duggars Make During Their Decade-Plus Reality TV Run?
Though they're plenty popular in the headlines, the Duggar family isn't necessarily a reality TV favorite. During their early days on TLC, viewers were intrigued and a bit miffed by the family's daily lives and their beliefs. Over time, viewers grew concerned about the sheltered lives the Duggar kids appeared to lead, especially when the older kids began courting and getting married.Then came Josh Duggar's scandal and subsequent prison sentence; the family may have even lost friends over that scandal and its reach. TLC canceled the family's show, subsequently launching and later canceling a spinoff as well. Yes, a lot has changed for the Duggars, as reality TV opportunities have come and gone. But through it all, the Duggars do have one thing: their money. Just how much, though, did they earn from TLC before they were canceled for good, and did Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar share the wealth?
What Is Michelle And Jim Bob's Net Worth?
Though reality TV was no doubt a boon for the Duggars' net worth, they also have other income streams — or at least, they did when 19 Kids was filming. Long-time viewers might recall that Jim Bob often took the kids with him to their rental properties, whether to clean up after tenants who moved out or to renovate newly purchased properties for habitation.
The Duggars were also illustrated as being very frugal on their show. Michelle would discuss cheap meals for her growing family, talk about thrift store shopping, and note that hand-me-downs were part of life (why wouldn't they be, with that many kids!).
When they built their current home, both Duggar parents talked about how they had cut costs by essentially DIYing the build from a pre-purchased kit. Sure, the Arkansas home is giant, with over 97 acres of land, and also offers living spaces for multiple Duggar kids' families. But it wasn't built too expensively, for the amenities it offers.
In terms of their current net worth, that house might be part of the total $3.5M net worth that Distractify reports.
Yet the net worth also spans multiple rental properties, as well as properties the Duggars have flipped and sold.
While most of their income used to come from reality TV, the Duggars did make a sweet mansion in Arkansas and got all their cash back. The home was sold to them for $230K, and they listed (and sold) it post-renovation at $1.53M.
Though the Duggar parents might have significant cash flow, their kids have quite a bit less, even the adult ones with regular jobs.
Most Of The Duggars Have Modest Net Worths
Though the matriarch and patriarch of the Duggar family were more than likely raking in the cash for 19 Kids and Counting, their kids have managed to make some money on their own. Apparently, it was necessary, seeing as the Duggar parents allegedly didn't give their kids a cut of the earnings.
However, the now-adult Duggar kids who appeared on Counting On, which ran for 11 seasons before it was canceled, seemingly earned their own money. They're not quite millionaires, though; for example, Jessa and Ben Seewald have a shared net worth of around $400,000.
Josh Duggar, at the time of his incarceration, apparently had the lowest net worth of the family. He and his wife Anna were worth about $200K at last report.
How Much Did Michelle And Jim Bob Duggar Make For 19 Kids And Counting?
Multiple publications reported the end of 19 Kids and Counting as if the millionaire era was ending for Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar. But it seems that might not be the case. Though The Sun reported that the couple sold off some of their Arkansas property after Josh's legal issues, they still own their family home and countless other properties.
And after earning so much cash from TLC over the years, they're probably still sitting pretty.
Though the Duggars themselves haven't confirmed their earnings, multiple sources suggest they were making hundreds of thousands of dollars per season; The Sun claims they made $850K per season.
But there are also complications; it's likely Jim Bob raked in more than that amount even after 19 Kids was canceled. As InTouch reported, Jill Dillard claimed she wasn't paid for that show orCounting On until she quit and hired an attorney.
That aligns with reports from 'sources' that say Jim Bob took all the money, paid out what he wanted, invested some, and perhaps sat on the rest.
It's hard to estimate a complete figure, not knowing how much Jim Bob paid anyone, plus the fact that the early seasons of the show may have earned the family less per episode or season.
But all told, the Duggars likely raked in nearly $18 million during their time with TLC, based on the estimate of $850K per season for a total of 21 seasons (10 of 19 Kids and 11 of Counting On).
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