Aryna Sabalenka has officially broken the highest single-season prize money record by a female player after her opening win at the 2025 WTA Finals.
Sabalenka kicked off her campaign at the year-end championships with a dominant 6-3 6-1 win over Jasmine Paolini to take control of the Stefanie Graf Group. The victory comes on Sabalenka’s 500th match at the Tour level and on a week when she was confirmed as the year-end No. 1.
But there are more reasons for the Belarusian to celebrate another outstanding season. Sabalenka has shattered Serena Williams’ prize money record in a single season, which was in the Guinness World Record book. The retired 23-time Grand Slam champion banked $12,385,572 in the 2013 season. It was the same year when Williams surpassed $50 million in career prize money and became the first female athlete to do so. Now, Sabalenka has taken one of the legendary American’s records at the year-end championships.
Sabalenka Breaks Serena Williams’ Single-Season Prize Money Record
Before this week, Sabalenka earned $12,313,519 in 2025, thanks largely to her consistent performances at the Grand Slam level, reaching three Major finals and winning this year’s US Open convincingly. That title win in New York yielded a handsome payoff as Sabalenka received $5 million in prize money, the highest amount awarded to a singles champion in a Grand Slam.
After the Asian swing ended, Sabalenka only needed $72,054 to break Williams’ tally from 2013. Her opening win at the WTA Finals guarantees $355,000 in earnings and a minimum participation fee of $230,000 (maximum amount of $340,000 if she features in all three round robin matches). It’s now looking very likely that Sabalenka will at least breach the $14 million mark in prize money at the end of the tournament. No WTA player has earned that much in a single season.
Sabalenka is entrenched in the top three of the highest career prize money earners among WTA players. She has overtaken Venus Williams for third spot and will now battle Iga Swiatek for second spot in that list. Both have earned over $42 million, and the actual figures will be computed after the WTA Finals. Serena, once more, holds the record, earning in excess of $94.8 million in her illustrious career.
Main Photo Credit: Aaron Doster-Imagn Images
