World No.1 Viktor Axelsen, winner of six HSBC BWF World Tour events in 2023 including the season finale, was the highest prize money earner on the circuit for the year, with US$645,095.
Axelsen’s triumph at the HSBC BWF World Tour Finals 2023 — the richest prize money event in badminton — earned him US$200,000, taking him ahead of the prolific An Se Young, who finished with US$628,020 after winning eight Tour titles and making the semifinals of the season finale.
Axelsen is the only men’s singles player in the top 10 of prize money earners, while there are three women’s singles players apart from An Se Young. Chen Yu Fei (US$469,220) is third in the list; Tai Tzu Ying, winner in Hangzhou, is fifth with US$367,450, and Akane Yamaguchi, despite missing a few events due to injury, finished sixth with US$358,690.
Interestingly, Pusarla V Sindhu, who is the 16th highest-earning female athlete in sport for 2023 with US$7.1 million, is 99th in prize money earnings with US$54,015.
The top 10 has players from all five categories. Seo Seung Jae, world champion in men’s doubles and mixed doubles, racked up US$375,455 to finish fourth overall. Women’s doubles duo Chen Qing Chen and Jia Yi Fan are joint seventh with US$351,734 each, while mixed doubles No.1 Zheng Si Wei and Huang Ya Qiong are joint ninth with US$342,750 each.
Overall, 14 players made more than a quarter-million US dollars in prize money.
Top 20 Earners
(Click here for the top 100 earners)
1.Viktor Axelsen US$645,095
2.An Se Young US$628,020
3.Chen Yu Fei US$469,220
4.Seo Seung Jae US$375,455
5.Tai Tzu Ying US$367,450
6.Akane Yamaguchi US$
7.Jia Yi Fan US$351,734
7.Chen Qing Chen US$351,734
9.Huang Ya Qiong US$342,750
9.Zheng Si Wei US$342,750
11.Wang Chang US$270,911
11.Liang Wei Keng US$270,911
13.Jonatan Christie US$260,335
14.Carolina Marin US$257,335
15.Shi Yu Qi US$238,610
16.Baek Ha Na US$233,615
17.Huang Dong Ping US$226,972
18.Li Shi Feng US$226,525
19.Lee So Hee US$213,321
20.Feng Yan Zhe US$210,066