Former ICC umpire Anil Choudhary reveals the significant earnings of cricket umpires in the IPL and international games. He details that umpires can earn between INR 45–50 lakh in a single IPL season, with additional income from domestic tournaments, and contrasts this with the earnings of cricketers.
Former ICC umpire Anil Chaudhary reveals the staggering figures that the Indian Premier League (IPL) and international cricket offer to match officials. The umpires are the backbone of the sport, ensuring fair play and order on the field, and their duty has often been viewed as a thankless one.
Unlike the cricketers, the umpires might not gain fame or recognition, as they largely remain behind the scenes. The umpires usually begin their careers by officiating at district and state-level matches before progressing to domestic tournaments, laying a pathway to the IPL and, eventually, international cricket under the ICC.
Certain umpires who are selected for the BCCI's elite panel go on to officiate in the IPL. At the same time, the best performers are elevated to the ICC's International or Elite Panel to officiate international matches, where they earn significantly higher match fees and allowances.
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Anil Chaudhary Breaks Down Umpire Earnings
Anil Chaudhary, who had officiated in international cricket for over a decade and worked in the IPL since its inception in 2008, provided a detailed look at the compensation structure in a recent podcast.
Speaking on a podcast with journalist Sushant Sinha, the former ICC umpire revealed that the match officials earn between INR 45–50 lakh in a single IPL season and those who also umpire leading domestic cricket tournaments earn an additional INR 20–25 lakh. He further added that the umpires earn around INR 2 lakh per T20I match and INR 8 lakh across five days of a Test match.
“It is 4000 dollars per match. If you do playoffs, it is 6000 dollars. If you do the final, it is 8000 dollars. Plus, the DA (daily allowance) is around 6,000 dollars. An average umpire who officiates in the IPL ends up earning around Rs 45-50 lakh in one season. Plus, if you are doing domestic cricket and are one of the leading umpires, that is another Rs 20-25 lakh,"
“You get around Rs 2 lakh for a T20I game. Rs 8 lakh for a Test match. It does not matter if the match is abandoned. The umpire's payment will not be dependent on whether the match takes place or not," he added.
Anil Chaudhary breaks down the salary highlights the stark contrast between officiating the domestic matches, including the IPL, and the international games, where higher match fees and allowances make umpiring at the highest level significantly more rewarding financially.
The umpiring job is one of the most gruelling and demanding roles in cricket, and the figures revealed by the former ICC umpire, who retired from his role in 2025, underline how years of experience and consistent performances are rewarded at the highest level.
How Umpires' Pay Differs from Cricketers' Match Fees?
Umpiring and playing cricket are two different professions with distinct career trajectories. While the cricketers often command multi-million-dollar salaries through endorsements and brand deals due to their individual fame, umpires operate under a fixed, professional fee structure that rewards consistency, precision, and the ability to maintain the spirit of the game under immense scrutiny.
Indian cricketers earn INR 15 lakh, INR 6 lakh, and INR 3 lakh per Test, ODI, and T20I match, respectively, as match fees, in addition to their annual central contracts, IPL salaries, performance bonuses, and endorsement deals. Umpires, on the other hand, rely primarily on match fees and daily allowances, with their earnings increasing as they progress from domestic cricket to the IPL and international assignments.
The Indian cricketers’ salary changes depend on their BCCI central contract category, IPL contracts, and endorsements, while the umpires' fees largely hinge on the level of the matches they officiate at the domestic, IPL, and international levels, with higher panels and elite assignments offering significantly better remuneration.
Therefore, while cricketers enjoy far greater fame and name recognition due to their individual brilliance, umpiring offers a structured career progression with steady match fees that increase substantially as officials rise through domestic, IPL, and international panels.
