Julie Chrisley is an American reality TV personality, wife, mother, and grandmother who is known for her down-to-earth attitude, typical Southern charm, and her relationship with her family. Viewers of the show ‘Chrisley Knows Best’ will know that Julie is rich, but just how did she make her money?
Julie Chrisley makes most of her money through her show, ‘Chrisley Knows Best’, its spin-offs, and merchandise. Other than the show, Julie has amassed a healthy net worth by making clever property investments, guest appearances, sponsored social media posts, and from her web series.
Julie has a net worth of USD $4 million, which leads many to wonder how a girl from a rural South Carolina area ended up in a Tennessee McMansion. Let’s take a deep dive into how Julie Chrisley made her millions, what her sources of income are, and how different the lavish lifestyle she leads today differs from her childhood.
The Cash Cow: Chrisley Knows Best
The vast majority of Julie’s wealth comes from the show she stars in with her family, ‘Chrisley Knows Best’. The show follows the lives of the Chrisley family as they go about their day-to-day business.
Since its inception in 2013, the show has won many awards and has maintained a steady viewership. It has also seen to it that the Chrisley family smiles their way to the bank each month.
The family’s finances are a closely guarded secret, and no episode-by-episode salary analysis is available to the public. However, what is public knowledge is that Julie is the richest member of the family — by far!
While salary information is private, it’s been widely reported that USA Network, the network that produces the show, pays Julie an annual salary of USD $260,000.00.
The family also sells ‘Chrisley Boxes’ for USD $149.95 each. These boxes contain an assortment of products that have been hand-picked by Julie and her family.
In What Other Ways Does Julie Chrisley Make Money?
‘Chrisley Knows Best’, its spin-offs, and related products generate the most income for Julie and her family, but the star doesn’t keep all of her eggs in one basket.
In fact, Julie is so wealthy in her own right that her husband Todd Chrisley took a whopping USD $4.4 million loan from her instead of from a bank. When this was revealed, Julie’s lawyer commented, “She is well-off. She has her own money. This is money that she lent him over the years for his business.”
But just where did this money come from? It’s thought that, excluding what she earns from the show, most of Julie’s money comes from a handful of clever property investments.
For instance, in June of 2019, Julie purchased a USD $3.4 million Nashville home and sold it for USD $4.7 million just two months later.
Julie also stars in her own USA Network web series called ‘What’s Cooking with Julie Chrisley’, but it’s unknown how much dosh she makes from cooking nosh.
As if that wasn’t enough, she has also made guest appearances on a number of shows including FabLife and The View.
And finally, much like many others who share her celebrity status, Julie uses her social media to generate income. Along with other brands, she has enjoyed a long-term paid partnership with Nutrisystem.
Was Julie Chrisley Always Rich?
In contrast to the lavish lifestyle she’s become known for leading, Julie was not born rich and her beginning was most definitely a humble one.
Julie and her parents, Pam who was a teller at a local bank, and Harvey who was a mechanic, reportedly lived in a double-wide trailer on a dirt road called Charis Drive, in Winchester, South Carolina.
Approximately 22.1% of South Carolina’s population live below the poverty line, so it’s not unusual that Julie’s family was not — financially speaking — well off.
In 2014, an anonymous source told Radar Online, “Julie claims she has family money, but all you have to do is look at that trailer — which her parents still own! — to know the truth about where she came from.”
Despite rarely talking about her financial status before meeting Todd, it’s clear that her life has changed for the better. Julie’s humble childhood is a far cry from the childhood that she has provided for her own children.