Suzanne Somers Net Worth From 'Three's Company' to the ThighMaster
Suzanne Somers
Suzanne Somers' net worth was due to her following her passions, and for as rich as she became, she was pretty humble about her earning power.
One of the first highly publicized actresses to ask for equal pay to the male stars on set, Somers was ostracized from Hollywood for years before making an acting comeback—but it wasn't acting that made her massively wealthy. It was the infamous ThighMaster.
"Anybody can do it," Somers told Hollywood Raw in 2022. "People are always calling me and wanting to know 'How do I do this?' You can't decide to make money. You have to have a passion about whatever you're selling. It has to be a fit. I can't sell baseball bats. But I wanted to keep my legs looking great for those Manolo Blahnik shoes. So there was a weird, kind of strange, passion there."
Find out Suzanne Somers' net worth in 2023 and how the late star earned it.
Related: Suzanne Somers Dies at 76
How did Suzanne Somers become famous?
Suzanne Somers was born and raised in California, where she was a cheerleader growing up. She started her career as a poet and writer, and her first TV appearances were on talk shows to promote her debut poetry book. She began acting in the 1960s and 1970s in bit parts and guest roles, but it was her starring role of Chrissy Snow in Three's Company that made her a star. She was fired from the show in 1981 for reasons we'll go into later!
In 1980, Somers sued Playboy magazine for publishing nude test photos of her from 1971, claiming she declined to pose nude for her actual Playboy pictorials and that she'd only posed for the magazine at all in hopes of raising enough money to pay medical bills for her son, who'd been injured in an accident. Somers said she was worried that her son, 14 at the time, would be embarrassed at his mom posing nude. She settled with Playboy for $50,000, which she donated to charities including Easter Seals.
Despite her lawsuit, Somers agreed to pose for Playboy again in 1984, reportedly after discussing the issue with her family, in an effort to revive her acting career post-Three's Company.
"I had to have 100% control [over the photos]," Somers told UPI at the time. "Any magazine would choose the most revealing rather than the best pictures. I made sure there were no gynecological shots. It killed the magazine to give me final approval of all photos because they were afraid it would set a precedent. But they were gents and lived up to the bargain. They redeemed themselves in my eyes."
Post-Playboy, Somers became a spokeswoman for ThighMaster, then starred in sitcoms She's the Sheriff and Step By Step. She also had her own Lifetime talk show, The Suzanne Show, and competed on Dancing with the Stars in 2015.
Related: Where to Watch and Stream Three's Company
What is Suzanne Somers' net worth in 2023?
At the time of her death in October 2023, Suzanne Somers' net worth was estimated at $100 million.
How much is Suzanne Somers worth?
Suzanne Somers' net worth was estimated at $100 million when she died in October 2023.
How much did Suzanne Somers make per episode?
When Somers signed on to Three's Company, she agreed to $3,500 per week, which felt like a lot of money to her at the time (and in 1970s numbers, it was). Once the show became a hit, Somers dared to ask for pay parity with co-star John Ritter, which would have taken her Season 4 salary from $30,000 per episode to his $150,000 per episode. Instead of giving it to her, producers offered her a $5,000 raise, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Somers turned down the offer, and she was fired.
"The show’s response was, 'Who do you think you are?' They said, ‘John Ritter is the star,'" Somers recalled to PEOPLE.
Related: The Best Sitcoms of All Time
Where did Suzanne Somers make her money?
Somers made most of her money from her ThighMaster sales, as well as her acting career. She also is a published author and an avid proponent of hormone therapy, despite most experts saying her theories had no basis in science and could potentially be harmful.
How much money did Suzanne Somers make off ThighMaster?
Shrinking thighs grew her wallet.
In an interview with the podcast Hollywood Raw in 2022, Somers revealed she made around $300 million from the ThighMaster, and that at that point she made even more per sale of the fitness gear because she owned the ThighMaster and its rights "outright." (She also admitted to being a big spender, though, which is likely part of why her net worth is about 1/3 of that amount!)
"We had partners—50/50—and they got drunk on money when it all started selling. They overspent to the point where they could no longer afford to be in their side of the business so we bought them out," she said. "We have 100%."
Why did Suzanne Somers sell her Palm Springs house?
Somers and her husband Alan Hamel sold their Palm Springs house in 2021 in favor of a property that they said was "greener" and had less chemicals. Their Palm Springs home had five different villas on the property and more than 100 stairs.
Somers told The New York Post, "It sold because I finally let it go — emotionally, spiritually and physically. ... It was not the right home anymore.”
Related: See Inside Suzanne Somers' Palm Springs Estate
How much did Suzanne Somers make on Three's Company?
At her peak Three's Company salary, Somers made $30,000 per episode—a whopping 80% less than co-star Ritter.
