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Reported per-episode pay by point in the series
| Period | Reported pay | Who and what the figure means |
|---|---|---|
| Season 1 | About $95,000 per episode | Ed O’Neill, according to a Variety figure repeated in BuzzFeed’s 2023 retrospective. This is an estimate. The Los Angeles Times reported in July 2012 that O’Neill’s early pay was more than $100,000, without specifying the same season 1 figure. Los Angeles Times, July 24, 2012; BuzzFeed, 2023. |
| Season 1 | $30,000–$60,000 per episode | A reported range for most of the other adult cast, attributed by BuzzFeed to Variety. It is not an individually verified amount for every actor; Julie Bowen’s exact first-season salary was not established in that retrospective. BuzzFeed, 2023. |
| Season 1 | About $20,000 per episode | Eric Stonestreet, in a report BuzzFeed attributes to The Hollywood Reporter. This differs from the broader range reported for most of the remaining adults, underscoring that starting rates varied and sources report different individual deals. BuzzFeed, 2023. |
| Before the season 4 deal, as reported in July 2012 | $60,000–$70,000 per episode | The Los Angeles Times described this as the rate for most adult cast members; it separately said O’Neill made more than $100,000. Los Angeles Times, July 24, 2012. |
| Upcoming season 4, under the reported 2012 deal | About $160,000 per episode; bonuses put average pay above $175,000 | Reported terms for Sofía Vergara, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Eric Stonestreet, Julie Bowen and Ty Burrell. The same report said they had sought $200,000, the studio initially offered $150,000, and their final contract year was expected to top $300,000 per episode. Those were reported deal terms, not publicly released contracts. Los Angeles Times, July 27, 2012. |
| Seasons 10–11 | $500,000 per episode | Reported rate for the six adult stars by the final two seasons. BuzzFeed’s 2023 retrospective gives this figure, and The Daily Beast’s August 2026 recap reports it for Ferguson in season 11. BuzzFeed, 2023; The Daily Beast, August 26, 2026. |
| Before season 9 and later, including season 11 coverage | Over $100,000 per episode | Reported later rate for the four younger cast members, based on a pre-season-9 raise reported by Deadline and summarized by BuzzFeed. The available reporting does not verify one exact final-season figure for each young actor. BuzzFeed, 2023. |
All amounts are nominal U.S. dollars as reported at the time; none is adjusted for inflation. Per-episode pay is not the same as total season income, lifetime earnings, residuals, endorsements or take-home pay after representation and taxes.
| # | Preview | Product | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
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Modern Family: The Complete Series (DVD) | $119.88 | Buy on Amazon |
| 2 |
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Modern Family Complete Seasons 1-10 DVD | $120.00 | Buy on Amazon |
| 3 |
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Modern Family: Complete Seasons 1 - 9 DVD | Buy on Amazon | |
| 4 |
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Modern Family Season 1 | $10.76 | Buy on Amazon |
Why the cast did not start at the same rate
The initial cast included performers with different levels of name recognition and negotiating leverage. O’Neill’s reported early rate was above the rates described for most of the other adults. Ferguson later explained the disparity in an interview quoted by The Daily Beast: “Because I wasn’t someone who was well-known and we all were being paid different prices because, you know, certain people were very famous and certain people were not.” The Daily Beast, August 26, 2026.
The season 1 numbers should therefore be read as a patchwork of reported estimates and ranges, not a uniform rate card. They also come from different reporting: the $95,000 estimate for O’Neill and the $30,000–$60,000 range for most other adults are attributed to Variety, while the lower Stonestreet estimate is attributed to The Hollywood Reporter.
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How the season 4 negotiations changed adult-cast pay
By July 2012, the Los Angeles Times reported that most adult cast members were earning $60,000–$70,000 per episode, with O’Neill above $100,000. Five adult stars—Vergara, Ferguson, Stonestreet, Bowen and Burrell—then negotiated a new deal. The paper put their upcoming season 4 rate at about $160,000 per episode, with bonuses pushing average pay above $175,000; it also reported a final contract year expected to exceed $300,000 per episode. These figures describe the reported terms at the time, not a full accounting of every form of compensation.
Co-creator Steve Levitan welcomed the settlement, telling the Los Angeles Times: “They’re a huge part of the success of ‘Modern Family,’ and I’m happy they’re going to get what they deserve.” Los Angeles Times, July 27, 2012.
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What the final-season figures do—and do not—establish
By seasons 10 and 11, reports put the six adult stars at $500,000 per episode. The younger actors’ later pay was reported above $100,000 per episode, but that threshold is not an exact, actor-by-actor final-season payroll. In particular, BuzzFeed’s 2023 retrospective said it could not find a reliable source for Aubrey Anderson-Emmons’s salary and identified the often-repeated $70,000 figure as an unsourced estimate. It should not be treated as established pay.
There is no complete public ledger of the cast’s contracts in the reporting cited here. The amounts are press-reported estimates or deal terms, and precision depends on the actor, season and source. A reported per-episode rate also does not reveal bonuses, syndication participation or other compensation unless a report specifies them.
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