Yahoo Lifestyle 
Revealed: Here's how much The Block stars get paid
It's much less than you would think.
If you’ve ever wondered just how much contestants are paid to compete on The Block, Sarah-Jane has provided the answer. In a candid Instagram Q&A with her followers, the reality star admitted she is constantly asked how much Channel Nine pays couples on the show.
“So lot of questions about ‘do you get paid’ and ‘how did you lose money?’,” she said, before making the big reveal. The bubbly blonde claims that contestants were paid “$100 a day” per person, so the couple took home $1400 total per week.
This is actually much less than what participants on Nine’s dating show Married At First Sight earn, with multiple former brides claiming to earn approximately $150 per day.
Domenica Calarco admitted she received “$150 per day” during a TikTok live, and another bride anonymously confirmed to Yahoo Lifestyle that they received the same fee.
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“I still had bills, had to pay my rent, and I had to pay, you know, whatever,” Domenica remarked.
Appearing on the Kyle & Jackie O Show earlier this year, Domenica said she did not get paid enough for what she went through and her salary was “about minimum wage”.
Sarah-Jane and Tom reveal $100K bombshell loss
Later in the Q&A, Sarah-Jane told followers that going on the show actually drained their savings. Although they ended up winning $20,000 at auction, the reality TV stars lost an eye-watering $100,000 all up.
The couple's daily $200 stipend from Channel Nine barely covered Cleo’s daycare cost at $120 per day, and the remainder wasn't enough to cover the rest of their bills.
“[After childcare], straight away we were left with $80 combined to cover all of our bills at home — our rates, mortgages, utilities, pay for food for ourselves the whole time, feed and clothe our daughter, just everything.”
Sarah-Jane and Tom ended up having to dig into their savings accounts during the show and estimate that they spent $40,000 to make up the difference.
She adds that Tom lost approximately $40,000 by not working for three months, and claims she would have also earned around $20,000 during that time.
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The pair were slammed on social media after complaining about their loss, with many saying they didn’t feel sorry for them.
“If Tom is clearing $40K in three months, [approximately] $13.3K a month or $160K after tax, plus her $20K or [approximately] $6.6K a month, they have a combined take home of [around] 20K a month, they aren't exactly on struggle street. Yes it’s an absolute shame that their gamble only made them $20K when they were hoping for a couple of hundred thousand,” one person pointed out.
“It’s a reality show, you’re not guaranteed [money] it’s an opportunity,” another added.
“Should have done her homework before signing on the dotted line. No pity at all for them,” a third chimed in.
“Why would you not crunch the numbers BEFORE accepting the show? Seriously it’s a game of chance, crying poor now after doing this show is just plain pathetic,” another remarked.
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