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WNBA Salaries Skyrocket: New CBA Brings $7M Cap, $600K Average Pay in 2026
WNBA Salaries Skyrocket: New CBA Brings $7M Cap, $600K Average Pay in 2026
After more than a year of tough negotiations and some marathon final sessions, the WNBA and the WNBPA have reached a verbal agreement on a new seven-year collective bargaining agreement. The deal was struck early Wednesday morning on March 18, 2026, clearing the way for the league's 30th season to start right on time May 8.
The money just got real.
For the 2026 season, the team salary cap is jumping to $7 million. That's more than four times the $1.5 million it was last season, and it's projected to climb past $10 million before this deal is done. The average player salary will now sit around $600,000, up from roughly $120,000. The minimum salary is leaping past $300,000, while supermax contracts will start at $1.4 million.Players are also securing nearly 20 percent of league revenue, more than double the old 9.3 percent share.
The new CBA brings expanded supermax eligibility, tighter rules on core designations starting in 2027, and upgraded benefits for housing, retirement, parental leave, and family planning.
A formal term sheet is expected soon, followed by ratification votes from the players and team owners. Once everything is official, April is going to be absolute chaos with the expansion draft for Portland and Toronto, a massive free agency period, and the 2026 WNBA Draft on April 13.
The WNBA just leveled up in a major way. The salaries are finally catching up to the league's growth, and the product on the court should be better than ever because of it.
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