Top 100 Most Overpaid CEOs in 2025: $3.8 Billion Paid Despite Poor Shareholder Returns
Discover how the highest-paid CEOs in 2025 are failing to deliver value to shareholders, with $3.8 billion paid to the top 100 overpaid executives who underperformed significantly.
In 2024, a comprehensive analysis by the corporate accountability organization As You Sow reveals a troubling trend among the highest-paid CEOs. Despite receiving exorbitant compensation packages, many of these executives have failed to generate satisfactory returns for their shareholders.
Key Insights
- As You Sow identified and ranked the 100 most overpaid CEOs based on their pay relative to company performance and employee wages.
- Collectively, these top 100 CEOs earned $3.8 billion in 2023, yet their companies underperformed in delivering shareholder value.
- The ranking factors included shareholder returns, the ratio of CEO pay to average employee salary, and the percentage of shareholders opposing their pay packages.
Shareholders are increasingly questioning the value received for the massive executive salaries at certain firms. As You Sow’s report highlights that many CEOs are compensated far beyond what their companies’ financial results justify.
Leading the list is David M. Zaslav, CEO of Warner Brothers Discovery (WBD), who earned nearly $250 million in 2022 but oversaw a five-year annualized total shareholder return of -11.6%. This stark contrast between pay and performance exemplifies the growing disconnect.
The report concludes, “As a group, these overpaid CEOs have not delivered the financial outcomes expected given their substantial compensation.”
Out of the $7.7 billion total CEO compensation paid annually to S&P 500 companies, $3.8 billion was allocated to the top 100 most overpaid CEOs, exceeding their justified pay by over $2 billion.
Explore the detailed list of the top 20 most overpaid CEOs and their company performance below.
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