Chief executive pay climbed by almost 6% in 2025, reaching an average of $17.7 million, as corporate boards rewarded leaders for increasing profits and delivering stronger returns to shareholders. Compensation packages were also designed to encourage executives to remain in their roles and sustain company performance in the coming years.

Among the companies reviewed in the AP’s analysis, a worker earning the median salary would need 200 years to match what a CEO earned in a single year. In the previous year’s study, that gap stood at 192 years, highlighting a widening disparity.

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The Associated Press’ annual review of CEO compensation relied on data examined for the AP by Equilar. The study covered pay packages for 337 executives at S&P 500 companies who had served at least two consecutive full fiscal years. The companies included in the report filed their proxy statements between Jan. 1 and April 30.