Revenue, 2025
The 30 clubs took in an estimated $12.5B. The Dodgers brought in $850M, 3.6 times the White Sox' $239M.
Forbes estimates negative operating income for 12 clubs. Its figure counts luxury tax payments as a cost. Add back the 2025 tax bill and four of them come out positive, led by the Dodgers at $149.4M.
All 30 clubs
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| Club | Revenue (estimated) | Operating income (estimated) | Luxury tax paid | Before luxury tax (modeled) | Margin (modeled) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles Dodgers | $850M | −$20M | $169.4M | $149.4M | −2.4% |
| New York Yankees | $710M | −$53M | $61.8M | $8.8M | −7.5% |
| Chicago Cubs | $599M | $58M | $0 | $58M | 9.7% |
| Boston Red Sox | $567M | $78M | $1.5M | $79.5M | 13.8% |
| New York Mets | $553M | −$213M | $91.6M | −$121.4M | −38.5% |
| Philadelphia Phillies | $539M | −$52M | $56.1M | $4.1M | −9.6% |
| Atlanta Braves | $524M | $27M | $0 | $27M | 5.2% |
| San Francisco Giants | $477M | $54M | $0 | $54M | 11.3% |
| Houston Astros | $464M | −$45M | $1.5M | −$43.5M | −9.7% |
| San Diego Padres | $452M | −$1M | $7M | $6M | −0.2% |
| Toronto Blue Jays | $445M | −$71M | $13.6M | −$57.4M | −16.0% |
| Texas Rangers | $398M | −$44M | $190K | −$43.8M | −11.1% |
| Seattle Mariners | $390M | $24M | $0 | $24M | 6.2% |
| Los Angeles Angels | $377M | −$14M | $0 | −$14M | −3.7% |
| Detroit Tigers | $363M | $27M | $0 | $27M | 7.4% |
| Baltimore Orioles | $355M | $23M | $0 | $23M | 6.5% |
| Milwaukee Brewers | $354M | $47M | $0 | $47M | 13.3% |
| St. Louis Cardinals | $350M | $33M | $0 | $33M | 9.4% |
| Cleveland Guardians | $337M | $53M | $0 | $53M | 15.7% |
| Cincinnati Reds | $336M | $26M | $0 | $26M | 7.7% |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | $330M | $48M | $0 | $48M | 14.5% |
| Kansas City Royals | $330M | $25M | $0 | $25M | 7.6% |
| Arizona Diamondbacks | $324M | −$31M | $0 | −$31M | −9.6% |
| Athletics | $320M | $45M | $0 | $45M | 14.1% |
| Miami Marlins | $320M | $53M | $0 | $53M | 16.6% |
| Colorado Rockies | $319M | $20M | $0 | $20M | 6.3% |
| Minnesota Twins | $315M | $11M | $0 | $11M | 3.5% |
| Washington Nationals | $300M | −$15M | $0 | −$15M | −5.0% |
| Tampa Bay Rays | $290M | $31M | $0 | $31M | 10.7% |
| Chicago White Sox | $239M | −$40M | $0 | −$40M | −16.7% |
| League median | $359M | $23.5M |
Figures are reported unless marked: * estimated, † modeled by DugoutIQ. About labels Marks on a column heading apply to the whole column. Revenue and operating income are Forbes estimates: Forbes, Mar 2026. Revenue is net of revenue sharing and stadium revenue used for debt service, and excludes playoff revenue. Luxury tax paid: MLB year-end figures, reported. Before luxury tax and margin are modeled, calculated by DugoutIQ; clubs that paid no tax show the same figure in both columns.
Revenue against operating income
Negative operating income isn't the same as losing money. Forbes' figure covers baseball operations in one regular season, and:
- It's what's left after payroll and the rest of the organization are paid for, not a budget for running it. What those costs are
- It counts luxury tax payments as a cost, so the biggest spenders' figures fall by the amount of their tax bill.
- It leaves out playoff revenue.
- It leaves out the growth in a franchise's value, often the largest return an owner earns.
- It leaves out businesses owners run alongside the club, such as real estate around the ballpark or a stake in a TV network.
- It's an outside estimate. When club books leaked in 2010, Forbes' figures ran higher than the audited ones in 8 of 10 cases.