RTÉ have released their top ten highest-earning presenters, with Claire Byrne leading the top of the list
Repro Free: Today with Claire Byrne on RTÉ Radio 1. Picture Andres Poveda
RTÉ have released their top ten highest paid presenters, with Claire Byrne ranking Number One on the list.
The presenter topped the 2025 list with reported pay of €280,000.
Patrick Kielty follows behind with €266,323
Miriam O’Callaghan ranked third with €244,797
Brendan O’Connor comes in fourth with €239,988
Ray D’Arcy with €219,992
David McCullagh at €206,393
Derek Mooney, in seventh, was paid €202,264
In eighth, Darragh Maloney at €197,840
George Lee at €194,406
Daithí Ó Sé finished tenth with €192,809
Claire Byrne and Ray D’Arcy both received payments from RTÉ after finishing their on-air roles as part of their contract with the broadcasting service.
In a statement, RTÉ wrote: “RTÉ is today publishing the earnings of its top 10 highest paid presenters for 2025, ahead of the publication of RTÉ’s Annual Report 2025 later this year.
“In line with the implementation of the Government’s Expert Advisory Committee’s recommendations, RTÉ has reconsidered what constitutes a “presenter” for the purposes of compiling the Top Ten Table for 2025. RTÉ has made the decision to consider all personnel holding dual roles (such as producer-presenter, or editor–presenter etc) for inclusion in RTÉ’s top 10 highest-earning presenters for 2025.
“RTÉ’s reconsideration has led to the inclusion of Derek Mooney in the list. He currently undertakes some presenting duties as part of his dual role as producer/presenter and, as such, is included in the Top Ten table. In this context, RTÉ is today also re-presenting the information published regarding the earnings of its top 10 highest-earning presenters for 2024, for comparison purposes with 2025. This revision allows RTÉ to provide a like-for-like comparison with last year’s publication.
“For clarity, in 2020 (and up to and including 2024) Derek was designated by RTÉ as a producer, and not as a presenter, in line with his contract of employment. “
Terence O’Rourke, chair of the board of RTE, said: “The board supports the ongoing commitment by RTE to transparency, as evidenced in today’s announcement.”
Director General of RTE, Kevin Backhurst, said: “In keeping with RTE’s commitment to increased transparency, we are today confirming, and publishing, our decision to include all those presenters who are in dual roles in the annual top ten presenters.”
Want to see more of the stories you love from RSVP ? To add RSVP as a preferred source of news on Google, simply click here
