In 1999, Forbes printed their first-ever richest list and out of 100 of the highest celebrity earners in the world only five models appeared. They were - Kate Moss, Claudia Schiffer, Cindy Crawford, Niki Taylor and Christy Turlington. Sixteen years on, only Kate Moss still appears on the list of highest earning models 2015.
Forbes list pretax earnings for those who receive the majority of their income from modeling. These stunning ladies can make big money from cosmetic deals, releasing fragrances, advertising campaigns, product endorsements and runway appearances.
How can they command such a high pay? Senior vice president of IMG models, Ivan Bart, explained to Forbes that it could be down to just how many followers they have online. He revealed, "The first question from brands these days is immediately, ‘How many followers do they have?' Models can be more famous than a lot of celebrities out there because they have such a large following."
Between these following twenty models, they earned a collective $143.5 million between June 2014 - June 2015, here we reveal who tops the list.
20 Edita Vilkeviciute - $3.5 million
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Lithuanian born beauty Edita Vilkeviciute has become one of the world's highest earning models after landing contracts as the face of Calvin Klein, H&M and Roberto Cavalli. She is often referred to as a young Claudia Schiffer.
The 26-year-old told The Telegraph how her big break almost didn't happen. She revealed, "Every day they would give me flyers to come to a (modeling) competition, but my Dad didn't go for it. Then after researching the agency he woke me up one morning and asked if I wanted to go see them. And I thought, why not?" She has since moved on to become one of fashions most sough-after faces.
19 Jourdan Dunn - $3.5 million
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Last month at Burberry's summer/spring 2016 show at London Fashion Week, Jourdan Dunn continued to turn heads with her never-ending, toned legs. The 25-year-old has previously walked in shows for Marc Jacobs, Ralph Lauren, Louis Vuitton and Valentino. In 2008, she had a record-breaking year after walking in an astonishing 75 shows during the summer/spring season.
The British-born model who was discovered during a shopping trip with friends at just 16-years-old, is a role model for single mothers around the world. Her six-year-old son, Riley, suffers from sickle cell anemia and her work to raise awareness for the cause landed her the Inspiration Award at the Glamour Women of the Year Awards 2015.
18 Kate Upton - $3.5 million
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Blonde bombshell Kate Upton began her career as the face of GAP in 2010. A year later at a Los Angeles Clippers game, she uploaded a video of her performing a hip-hop dance called the Dougie, the then 19-year-old became an internet sensation overnight and her popularity increased ten-fold.
The Michigan born model has only pulled in half of what she made last year but still remains amongst the high-earners in her league. She has an ongoing contract with Bobbi Brown cosmetics and appeared in a Super Bowl commercial for Game of War which reportedly cost $40 million to produce.
17 Hilary Rhoda - $3.5 million
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Hilary Rhoda has one of the most enviable bodies in the fashion industry but she deserves it as she never takes a day off from the gym. The 28-year-old told Elle magazine, "I make workouts more of an appointment rather than something that's optional so that I can't really bail on it." It's her killer physique that has landed the model three appearances in Sports Illustrated magazine.
Rhoda, who was a ballerina for eleven years, turned to modeling after being spotted when she was just 18-years-old by a model scout in Washington D.C. She has since appeared on the cover of Vogue, Vogue Italia, Vogue Paris, Harper's Bazaar, Time and W.
16 Kendall Jenner - $4 million
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At just 19-years-old, Kendall Jenner has been the ultimate breakthrough star of the Kardashian/Jenner family. She led the Chanel Spring/Summer 2016 Chanel show at Paris Fashion Week proving that her striking appearance is still a powerful one. Kendall was handpicked by Karl Lagerfeld to walk in the show, he labeled the young reality television star his "muse" and she has walked in his shows since 2014.
Her proud mother, Kris Jenner, could be seen close by supporting the young supermodel who was the victim of several bullying rumors last year. Reportedly Kendall's quick rise in the modeling game has not gone down well with other models who have turned their backs on her. With this much support from family and fans, she won't be letting the haters get her down.
15 Daria Werbowy - $4.5 million
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Daria Werbowy is often referred to as one of the most beautiful women in the world. The Polish-born, 5ft 11" beauty was discovered at just 14-years-old after she won a national modeling competition and has since worked with Lancôme, Prada, Yves Saint Laurent, Pepe Jeans, Roberto Cavalli, Gucci, Hermès, Valentino, Missoni,Versace, Louis Vuitton and Chanel.
She often goes bare-faced in many of her modeling campaigns, showing off her to-die-for bone structure and radiant complexion. She told Vogue magazine, "I really enjoy getting my make-up done actually, it's nice when you can be totally transformed once in a while. When I see campaigns with me in - or magazines - I still don't think it's me. It's like a hybrid version of me! I don't think you get used to that, it's just something that's always strange."
14 Liu Wen - $4.5 million
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Liu Wen was the first Chinese model to ever walk in a Victoria's Secret show and became the first Asian spokeswoman for Estee Lauder. In 2012, The New York Times labeled her "China’s first bona fide supermodel."
The 27-year-old is the official face of La Perla underwear and an ongoing contract with H&M, however her earnings are down from a take-home of $7 million last year. Previously she has appeared in campaigns for Calvin Klein, Dolce & Gabbana, Roberto Cavalli, Oscar de la Renta, Hugo Boss, Alexander Wang, Marni, Diesel and Gap.
13 Kate Moss - $4.5 million
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Kate Moss has had a career filled with some of the longest-standing contracts in the business. She has worked with Rimmel for nearly fifteen years and collaborated with Topshop for fourteen seasons when they made a collection together. Although the Jenner sisters have since taken the Topshop spot, London-born Moss still continues to out earn many of the younger models.
The supermodel has just announced that she will be turning her hand to interior design after teaming up with architecture company, Yoo. The model, who had a champagne glass modeled on her own left breast, has proven that she can do just about anything she puts her mind too.
12 Carolyn Murphy - $4.5 million
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Carolyn Murphy has modeled for near enough every designer in the business. Estee Lauder, Oscar de la Renta, Calvin Klein and Versace are just a few of the names she has collaborated with during her three-decade long career. The 42-year-old is still landing lucrative campaigns after she recently signed a deal to become the new face of UGG Australia.
Her 14-year-old daughter, Dylan, has been bitten by the fashion bug too. Her mother told Grazia magazine, "‘She has her own beauty blog - Le Bleue Print - which is amazing. She's also really into health and she's really trying to tell an audience her age how important it is to be kind to your body."
11 Karlie Kloss - $5 million
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Taylor Swift's BFF, Karlie Kloss, is quite a long way off when it comes to matching on earnings, but the pair still can't be separated in every other aspect of life. Together they both took to the cover of Vogue and bought New York apartments next to each other.
Kloss turned in her Victoria's Secret angel wings aged just 23-years-old so she could concentrate on her education as a coder. Earlier this year, the supermodel partnered with the Flatiron School to create a coding bootcamp in New York City, called #KodeWithKarlie. Beauty, brains and a bulging bank account - this girl just has it all.
10 Candice Swanepoel - $5 million
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It's the worst thing that can happen to any model - falling over on the runway. Candice Swanepoel suffered this exact trauma this year at New York Fashion Week during her walk for Givenchy. The 26-year-old appeared to trip over the laces on her boots, tripped and landed flat on her hands in front of the crowd.
After being helped up by members of the crowd, she continued the show until the end despite having quite deep cuts on her knees. Later the Victoria's Secret model posted a photo of her bloody knees with the caption: "Thank you to who ever picked me up off the runway tonight. left with little scratches but mostly a bruised ego #ohwell."
9 Alessandra Ambrosio - $5 million
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Alessandra Ambrosio is one of the world's most recognizable Victoria's Secret angels, she is often walking their runway adorned with feathers and garter belts. Behind the scenes though it's a very different story, as the mother-of-two is often spotted in an over-sized t-shirt, leggings and sneakers when she is with her children.
During Paris Fashion Week, she walked in the Balmain show alongside Gigi Hadid and Kendall Jenner. The Brazilian beauty has also launched her own swim line with Planet Blue and this helps her to keep a steady, enviable income coming in.
8 Lara Stone - $5 million
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Calvin Klein model, 31-year-old Lara Stone, had a quiet one last year but has certainly made up for it now with her earnings reaching to $5 million. She also landed new contracts with L'Oreal, Stella McCartney and Tom Ford. The Dutch supermodel has been modeling since she was spotted by a scout aged just 12-years-old.
Stone recently divorced her husband, British comedian David Walliams, during a hearing which last sixty seconds. Walliams cited "unreasonable behavior" on the models part as the cause of divorce. The pair have a two-year-old son, Alfred, together.
7 Joan Smalls - $5.5 million
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Joan Smalls was enjoying a successful run during Spring/Summer Season 2016 Fashion Week. Designers Givenchy, Versace and Marc Jacobs all hired the Puerto Rican beauty to walk in their shows. Well, that was until she got caught up in a bitter copyright battle with photography student, Claire Roche.
Roche photographed the model backstage at a party, Smalls then posted it onto her Instagram without credit, prompting Roche to threaten legal action if the image wasn't removed. Roche gave a statement to the press explaining, "If I had been credited in the first place, I would have received what amounts to major publicity. I've lost what amounts to hundreds, if not thousands of dollars in image licensing fees thanks to one Instagram post." Smalls responded by posting a picture of one finger sticking up. Nice.
6 Miranda Kerr - $5.5 million
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Mother-of-one Miranda Kerr is always uploading her toned stomach to her Instagram often in a difficult yoga pose. Kerr has a close relationship with her ex-husband, British actor Orlando Bloom, as the pair co-parent. She told HELLO! magazine, "Orlando and I are still really close so Flynn will be with his dad for a couple of days, then when I come back, he’ll be with me so that his Dad can travel."
In 2007, Kerr replaced Gisele Bundchen as a Victoria's Secret angel and she has had a colossal career ever since. Since then she has walked in shows for Dior, Lanvin, Chanel, John Galliano, Stella McCartney and Viktor & Rolf.
5 Natalia Vodianova - $7 million
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Russian supermodel Natalia Vodianova is amongst the big earners in the modeling world. She recently put her 18th-century British countryside home, which she co-owns with her ex-husband Justin Portman, on the market for $5 million. This is just a small slice of her property portfolio, which also includes a luxury retreat in Uruguay, as well as lavish apartments in London and New York.
The 33-year-old who has a seven-figure contract with Calvin Klein, told the Daily Mail that her charity, Naked Heart Foundation, is her priority in life. She said, "Well, in terms of what keeps me awake at night, it is my charity. Modeling has been the driving force behind the Foundation but in fact…it is absolutely everything."
4 Doutzen Kroes - $7.5 million
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At 30-years-old, Doutzen Kroes is still the Queen of the runway and one of the highest earners. At a young age, she aspired to be an ice skater but since perusing a career in modeling she has been featured on the covers of Time, Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, Seventeen, Elle, Marie Claire, Glamour, W, Avantgarde, Dazed & Confused, and Numéro.
The former Victoria's Secret angel had walked in eight shows over nine years. Her standout hourglass figure has also secured her campaigns with L'Oreal, H&M, Tiffany & Co., Miu Miu, Bruno Magli, and Emilio Pucci.
3 Adriana Lima - $9 million
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Victoria Secret's longest-serving angel, Adriana Lima, continues to earn head and shoulders above the rest. The 34-year-old Brazilian beauty continues to be an inspiration to many in the fashion industry thanks to her signature sultry look.
Designer Marc Jacobs revealed to Elle magazine that she was the muse behind his new perfume, Decadence. He explained, "I wanted this Liz Taylor–esque, almost squirmy sex appeal, this sultriness, and Adriana does give that." In the commercial, she writhes around the floor of a dark room, showing off her flirty smile and those runway-ready legs.
2 Cara Delevingne - $9 million
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Cara Delevingne doubled her earnings from 2014 by bringing home $9 million this year. Despite big contracts with DKNY and Burberry, she has claimed in interviews that she finds modeling "horrible" and you "don't use your brain." She told the Wall Street Journal, “It’s horrible living in a world where I’ll get a call from someone saying, so-and-so says you were partying a lot and you were looking this way and you need to lose weight. It makes me so angry. If you don’t want to hire me, don’t hire me.”
Now 23-year-old has begun to carve herself out a new career as she continues her transition from model to actress. With starring roles in John Green's Paper Towns, Pan and Suicide Squad, which is due for release next year, she is now becoming one of the most recognizable stars of Hollywood.
1 Gisele Bundchen - $44 million
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Gisele Bundchen still remains the real powerhouse of the modeling world. The 35-year-old Brazilian beauty, who is married to New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, still managed to rake in $44 million this year. Her staggering earnings were down on last year's total of $47 million, but we doubt she's worried.
With work still coming in from H&M, Chanel, Carolina Herrera and Vogue, the mother-of-two continues to step out with a brave face despite being constantly hounded by rumors of a pending divorce. Her six million Instagram followers and ongoing success of her own brand Gisele Bundchen Intimates is enough to keep her smiling alone.
Sources: dailymail.co.uk, hellomagazine.com, vogue.co.uk, forbes.com
