Caitlin Clark’s salary to increase 6x after WNBA agrees CBA but supermax contract still beyond reach

Mar 18, 2026 - 15:45

More than 17 months of intense labor negotiations came to a close early on Wednesday.

The WNBA and Women’s National Basketball Players Association (WNBPA) reached a verbal agreement on the terms of a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA).

Brittney Sykes of the Washington Mystics holds a — A new CBA is expected to transform the WNBA

Just 51 days before the league’s 30th season is set to tip off, the two parties struck a deal that is set to transform salaries and working conditions for some of the biggest names in US sports, after a long standoff.

“It’s (been) a process, but we’re very proud to be leading in women’s sports, and these players are amazing. We’re going to have an amazing 30th season tipping off in May,” WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert announced to reporters, shortly before 3am ET.

“The progress made in these discussions marks a transformative step forward for players and the league, and it’s underscoring a shared commitment to the continued growth of the game.”

Reaction also came quickly from some of the biggest names in the league.

New CBA hailed as ‘transformational’ for WNBA

Four members of the WNBPA executive committee — president Nneka Ogwumike, vice presidents Breanna Stewart and Alysha Clark, and treasurer Brianna Turner — appeared alongside Engelbert to break the news to reporters.

“We’re just really grateful to be able to come to a deal,” Ogwumike said, standing in the lobby of The Langham hotel in midtown Manhattan, where 100-plus hours of bargaining sessions unfolded a week prior.

“We’re proud of ourselves. And quite frankly, we always told you all we were going to stand on business, and that’s what this looks like.”

Stewart, meanwhile, added: “This deal is going to be transformational.

“It’s going to build and help create a system where everybody is getting exactly what they deserve and more, from on the court and off the court aspects. Just excited that we can tell our fans that we’re going to be back.”

The verbal agreement comes 17 months after the players opted out of the previous CBA in October 2024.

How much will Caitlin Clark make under new agreement?

That decision was taken just six months after the 2024 WNBA Draft class, which included superstar Caitlin Clark, entered the league.

Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever reacts on court prior to the 2025 AT&T WNBA All-Star Game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse — Clark is set for a massive payrise under the WNBA’s new CBA

Upon signing with the Indiana Fever, Clark helped launch the WNBA to new heights, and has been credited with bringing women’s basketball to the forefront of American sports conversation.

Thanks to the work of the WNBPA, she will soon play under a deal that reflects her star power.

While full details of the new CBA have not been officially announced, ESPN’s Shams Charania shared a few headline figures from the ‘landmark’ agreement on X.

The WNBA will have a new salary cap in 2026, starting at $7 million. That number is up from $1.5m. There is an average revenue share of nearly 20 percent across the deal, with the supermax starting at $1.4m.

Charania added that the league’s new average salary will be in range of $600,000, with a minimum above $300,000.

Based on those numbers, Clark is expected to earn around $500,000 on a revised rookie contract, according to conservative estimates.

Spotrac confirmed, “WNBA & players have reached agreement on a new CBA that will increase the average player compensation to over $500,000. Salaries last season carried an average of around $107,000 according to our data.”

Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever and Sabrina Ionescu of the New York Liberty wears a shirt saying — Clark is expected to earn between $500,000 and $600,000 per year moving forward

That signals a big jump — around 6x — from the $85,873 salary she was scheduled to earn in 2026, before the new agreement.

Indiana’s superstar initially signed a four-year $338,056 contract when she entered the league as the No. 1 draft pick in April 2024.

However, she will only be eligible for a $1.3 million supermax deal in 2027 at the earliest.

When official, this new CBA will be the sixth in league history, following deals in 1999, 2003, 2008, 2014 and 2020.

A formal term sheet still needs to be finalized, and the agreement is pending ratification by the players and the WNBA board of governors.

Terms of the new CBA need to be formalized in the coming days and weeks

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“I really feel like a lot of what we were at the table for was for the next generation,” WNBPA president Ogwumike said.

“When we consider the next 10 years, this is really going to continue to catapult us.”

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