How Man Utd’s Wage Bill Compares to Arsenal, Liverpool, Man City’s

INEOS have been successful in trimming Man Utd’s hefty wage bill.

Man Utd have some of the Premier League’s highest-paid players. | Charlotte Wilson/Offside/Offside/Getty Images

INEOS’s cost-cutting measures at Manchester United had targeted workforce reductions and the removal of some perks, such as free meals at Carrington, for the staff that remained.

Finally, it would appear that the club’s minority owners are making a more significant and impactful push to mitigate their astounding £1.3 billion ($1.75 billion) debt by reducing a hefty wage bill.

United are not merely Europe’s highest net-spenders over the past five years, but they’ve also committed to some foolish contracts that Sir Jim Ratcliffe would argue forced their hand.

A constant chopping and changing of the figurehead in the home dugout at Old Trafford has led to major monetary commitments to an array of “projects,” with Erik ten Hag and Ruben Amorim each having huge sums to spend and thus build their respective United teams in their images.

Carrick, or whomever replaces Amorim long-term, will, too, get that chance. However, INEOS must learn from previous mistakes and adopt a far more sustainable wage structure that helps mitigate their long-standing debt.

Here’s how United’s wage bill compares to their fiercest Premier League rivals.

---

Man Utd’s Wage Bill Compared to Premier League’s Biggest Clubs

Liverpool’s wage bill blows United’s out of the water. | Paul ELLIS/AFP/Getty Images

Premier League Rank	Club	Wage Bill
1.	Liverpool	$574 million
2.	Man City	$547 million
3.	Arsenal	$453 million
4.	Man Utd	$420 million

---

According to The Times, Manchester United’s wage bill, tallying a reported $420 million (£313 million), is the fourth-highest in the Premier League.

The Red Devils have two of the division’s top-five highest-paid players in Bruno Fernandes and Casemiro, but the latter, who’s had an excellent season, will be leaving the club this summer, trimming their wage bill further. The Brazilian has been making a base weekly wage thought to be in the region of $471,000 per week.

Shifting that should help ease United’s current financial burden.

Still, their bill is dwarfed by the soon-to-be dethroned champions, who are spending a whopping $574 million on player salaries. Liverpool also embarked on a historic transfer window last summer, but did earn more than $942 million in annual revenue for the 2025 financial year.

The Reds beat out Manchester City in the wage bill table, with the Cityzens, who are said to be paying Erling Haaland $706,000-a-week, dishing out $547 million in player salaries.

United also rank just below Arsenal on this front. The Gunners have spent almost $942 million on transfers under Mikel Arteta, and have been forced to increase their wage bill as the Spaniard’s project has evolved due to an array of deserved contract extensions.

Arsenal’s total bill is $453 million, around $33 million more than United’s.

---