Being a reality TV star has its perks, but when it comes to being a 90 Day Fiancé cast member, not everyone laughs their way to the bank. One of television’s most loved shows, 90 Day Fiancé premiered in 2014 with its unique concept of Americans finding love internationally. But the trials and tribulations that come before and after a K-1 visa is secured have given the TLC show some of its most memorable moments. Although the cast members are sworn to secrecy, some have revealed how much they get paid for airing their dirty laundry in public. In reality, the cost of losing one’s reputation is often mere peanuts.

If there’s one thing that caused the most fights on 90 Day Fiancé, it’s money. Bank balances have often created high voltage drama in the lives of popular couples of the franchise such as Colt Johnson and Larissa Lima or even Deavan Clegg and Jihoon. Along with the stress of securing a life-long partner within 90 days, these cast members also deal with cultural clashes, communication issues, and the fear of getting scammed. And the icing on the cake? The taunts these love birds deal with online after having exposed their personal lives to the very critical internet. But the question remains: Is the paycheck 90 Day Fiancé participants receive in the end worth all the trauma?

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While their contracts may not have allowed it, several 90 Day Fiancé celebs revealed their earnings to the internet. As InTouch reports, David Toborowsky’s friend, Chris Thienerman, and his wife, Nikki Cooper, once spilled that they weren’t paid at all for their appearances. Additionally, Distractify posted that couples who appear on Before the 90 Days make $500 to $1,000 per episode, while the main 90 Day Fiancé show pays $1,000 to $1,500 per episode. The salary goes up for those on Happily Ever After?, as they are awarded “between $2,000 to $7,500 an episode.” However, the foreign fiancées apparently do not get paid at all because they don't have a US work permit. The source does add the situation could be different if “if filming takes place in their country.”

Karine and Paul Wedding Day Angry

As a Reddit fan notes, “10-25k per episode seems like a fairer compensation for the value” these cast members generate for the network. But they also add that paying them more, especially since the show is technically unscripted, would make it “faker.” Another fan adds how there certainly is some sort of “acting involved” and there have to be “re-takes,” since they’ve never spotted anyone’s microphone fall off or other common mishaps. Even if the stars are paid a percentage of the overall profits, it might conversely prompt the cast to “escalate situations for better ratings” more than they are often seen doing.

Considering the low pay, plenty of 90 Day Fiancé stars have been making a beeline to platforms such as Cameo to earn an extra buck. While some popular stars like Big Ed Brown have cashed in over $100,000 on the video messaging website, there are also cast members who suffer from the “out of sight, out of mind” curse. In the past, 90 Day Fiancé multi-season veterans Danielle Jbali and Paul Staehle admitted to having financial issues. Nicole Nafziger, Deavan Clegg, and Angela Deem are often seen endorsing objectionable slimming products. Larissa Lima, who also launched her GoFundMe once, claimed upon her firing that she made more money on OnlyFans in a week than she made on an entire season.

However, a few 90 Day Fiancé viewers are of the opinion that these cast members have “agreed to the pay” and hence one shouldn’t “feel bad” for any of them. One fan also joked that “they should be paying us for having to listen to their trash stories every week.” Regardless, the fact remains that the paychecks 90 Day Fiancé stars make are wimpy, and it shouldn’t hurt for them to have a regular side hustle to stay afloat. But considering 90 Day Fiancé ratings may have increased significantly over the past couple of years, perhaps the network may think of handing out high checks to their top performers.

Next: 90 Day Fiancé: Big Ed Makes Over $100,000 Making Cameo Vids For Fans

90 Day Fiancé airs Mondays at 8 pm ET on TLC.

Source: InTouch, Distractify, Reddit