How Much Is Sarah Hyland Actually Worth?
For many, it's hard not to love Sarah Hyland, especially if you're one of the millions of people who watched her grow into an adult on ABC's "Modern Family." Hyland was part of the popular sitcom for all 11 of its seasons until it came to an end in 2020. While the New York City native was only 18 when the show premiered in 2009, it wasn't her first foray into the entertainment business. In fact, Hyland was actually somewhat of a child star, having appeared in movies and musicals since she was basically a toddler. Over the years, she's continued to appear in films and TV projects outside of "Modern Family," as well as dabble in music, hosting, and producing, proving she still has a long career ahead of her.
With that said, it should come as no surprise that Hyland's bank account reflects her success in Hollywood considering well... she's pretty rich. How rich, you ask? According to Celebrity Net Worth, as of 2022, her net worth sits at $14 million.
So, how did Sarah Hyland's net worth get to where it is today? And what does she spend some of those millions on? We break it down.
The Modern Family star didn't grow up mega rich
Sarah Hyland may have been a child star but, contrary to what some assumed at the time, she did not grow up with a silver spoon. "All the kids in my elementary school thought I was super rich and chased me around the playground asking me for money," she recalled to Complex. While her dad also worked as an actor, the family didn't lead a luxe A-lister life, and as she told Cosmopolitan, "[He] had to travel the country to do any type of regional theater to put food on the table." That table she's referring to was presumedly in the family's 300-square foot New York City apartment that was apparently so tiny that the bathtub was in the kitchen.
Given how difficult it can be to make a steady living in show business, Hyland's parents weren't necessarily thrilled that she too wanted to pursue acting. As she told Teen Vogue, "They know how tough the entertainment industry can be." While Hyland eventually did find immense success in that industry, she's remained a thoughtful spender. "Shopping stresses me out," she said in Complex. "I don't want to pay $200 for a shirt."
Although these days Hyland can clearly afford designer, she says she still shops retail, telling Cosmopolitan that she even sometimes finds Urban Outfitters too pricey. Despite her millions in the bank, it seems Hyland hasn't forgotten her humble beginnings.
Sarah Hyland started working early
Following in their dad's footsteps, Sarah Hyland and her younger brother got into show business when they were kids. "Since I was four years old, my entire life has been surrounded by work. That's all I ever wanted to focus on," Hyland told Glamour. That apparently was the age Hyland got her first gig, playing Howard Stern's daughter in the 1997 comedy "Private Parts."
Hyland apparently took to the Hollywood lifestyle rather quickly. As she recalled to Yahoo, when a PA asked her if she had any set requests, she replied, "[I want] Blimpie and chocolate-covered strawberries!" When Hyland wasn't enjoying craft services, she was feeling starstruck around her older co-stars, like Paul Rudd, whom she worked with on "The Object of My Affection" when she was 8 years old.
Yet, Hyland says her upbringing was still relatively normal. "I always went to school and when I was working, I had tutoring every day. I still had a childhood," she said to Complex. As she got older, her classmates at the Professional Performing Arts School apparently remained relatively unfazed by her fame.
Modern Family has been good to her bank account
It's safe to say Sarah Hyland has made a pretty penny or two from "Modern Family." While Hyland played a teen on the show, it was her first adult job, having landed the role of Haley Dunphy at age 18 right after moving to Hollywood. She recalled to Teen Vogue, "I gave myself two months to book a job. One month later I was cast on 'Modern Family.'" As one of the "kids" on the show, Hyland's salary started somewhere between $15,000–$25,000 an episode, per Cosmopolitan, before she and the other younger cast members negotiated pay raises in 2012. According to Deadline, their per-episode salaries were upped to $70,000.
"Modern Family" was a massive hit pretty much right away, and Hyland never took the show's success for granted. As she said in Complex, "An actor always hopes, but it was definitely a spectacular surprise." Things seemed to only get better from there too, since in 2017, she and her TV siblings got another raise. Per Deadline, that increase kicked their salaries past the $100,000 mark, with Celebrity Net Worth listing Hyland's at $130,000 per episode.
Even though the show has since ended, Hyland appears to be very happy with how things turned out. As she said in Glamour, "When I signed on for the pilot, though, I never could have predicted we'd be on the air for 11 years ... let alone become a huge success."
She's made money acting outside of TV
While "Modern Family" has been a major boon to Sarah Hyland's net worth, she also made money through other acting jobs over the years, with the success of the sitcom probably leading to more work. As Hyland acknowledged in Glamour, "I'm grateful for the show because it opened so many doors for me." Such doors include films "Geek Charming" and "Struck by Lighting," where, like in "Modern Family," Hyland played high school students. Despite being in her twenties at the time, it was something she didn't seem to mind, telling Channel Guide, "It's kind of fun to be a part of something like that you never got to experience."
Yet Hyland was interested in playing parts that were different from Haley Dunphy, too. She explained to Vanity Fair, "You're in everyone's homes every week as this character ... and then they start to really define you as this character." She continued, "I didn't want to get pigeonholed."
However, that doesn't mean Hyland wasn't happy to have her "Modern Family" job in between films. "My dad ... always said that what you want is that one show that goes on for years, that gives you a steady paycheck," she told Vogue. Despite years of steady paychecks, Hyland apparently still worries about her financial future. She admitted to Cosmopolitan, "The thing as an actor is it's like, 'Will I have a job tomorrow? ... I'm never going to work again. I'm going to have to sell everything and live out of a shoebox.'"
She's established a musical career, too
Some fans may be surprised to learn that Sarah Hyland can sing, even though she's been doing musicals practically since the start of her career. When she was in elementary school, Hyland landed a role in ABC's version of "Annie" and later made her Broadway debut at 16 in "Grey Gardens." She reminisced about that time in 2016, tweeting, "I can't believe it's been 10 years since my actual Broadway days." Yet, even after launching to fame on TV, Hyland still found time for theater, appearing in 2014's "Hair" at the Hollywood Bowl and "The Unauthorized Musical Parody of Scream."
When Refinery29 asked her about this side of her career after she appeared in a remake of "Dirty Dancing," Hyland said, "I'm such a music theatre junkie. Stuff like that is always really great." What's more, she's dabbled in pop music as well. Though she has not put out an album, she has released covers of Maroon 5's "Don't Wanna Know" and The Chainsmokers "Closer" with Boyce Avenue, and was featured on BoTalks' "Know U Anymore."
As far as any album plans go, she told Refinery29, "I've been writing a lot and that's all I'll say." It would probably be a good financial move for Hyland to do so, considering the positive response she received following her duet with Jordan McGraw at the 2019 "Teen Choice Awards." Her fans even apparently ask her to post videos of her singing on Instagram, so the demand is clearly there.
The many side hustles of Sarah Hyland
Sarah Hyland doesn't just rely on acting and singing to make an income, considering the "My Fake Boyfriend" star has her fair share of side hustles. For one, Hyland has taken on hosting, having not only emceed "The Wonderful World of Disney: Magical Holiday Celebration" and "Disney Parks Magical Christmas Day Parade" in 2018, but also the Christmas themed game show "Play-Doh Squished" in 2021. In 2020, Hyland cohosted the CMT Music Awards. That same year, she landed her own EllenTube talk show, "Lady Parts," which focused on women's health issues.
Hyland had also executive produced "Lady Parts" and "Play-Doh Squished," but by that time was no stranger to working behind the camera. That's because she had already served as a producer on four of her movies, including 2019's "The Wedding Year" and 2015's "See You in Valhalla." When it came to producing, she told OK! TV, "It's so exciting to see a project being born."
When "Modern Family" came to an end in 2020, Hyland said in Glamour that she couldn't wait to produce more. In February 2022, she did just that, but off-screen with a scripted podcast called "Bone, Marry, Bury." Hyland and comedian Harvey Guillén both executive produced the project, as well as voiced the main characters. Clearly, Hyland has a lot going on even when not on primetime television.
Sarah Hyland's endorsement deals
Like many celebrities, Sarah Hyland makes money off her famous face through different advertisement deals. It's something she's seemingly been doing since 2011 when she joined Nintendo's "Play As You Are" campaign, which seemed to be a good fit. She told Teen Vogue, "When I found out that Nintendo 3DS made a fashion game, I was drawn to it." Hyland eventually transitioned into a fashion partnership with Candies in 2016, where she was named a creative director. She explained to Refinery29, "It's been really great to be able to evolve with the brand as well as learn the ins and outs of the fashion industry."
By 2019, Hyland entered the beauty world too, partnering with Olay on their #SkinTransformed ads. "I was so excited about this campaign because I really feel that this project is all about being confident and strong," she told Forbes. Hyland then majorly switched gears in 2020 with a Taco Bell commercial. When it came to working with the fast food chain, Hyland said on Instagram, "Dreams do come true!"
That post isn't the only ad content on Hyland's Instagram either, considering she often posts sponsored content whether it's for Hasbro or Petco. Yet these days, she mostly posts endorsements for Sourse, which are vitamin-infused chocolates. That's probably because in 2021, Hyland joined the company as a co-founder and creative director, telling People, "It's actually helping my body. So that's why I encourage everyone to try."
She's made some major purchases
It appears that when it comes to spending money, Sarah Hyland doesn't mind dropping some of her hard-earned cash on real estate. That's because the "See You in Valhalla" star owns not one, not two, but three homes in Los Angeles. According to Dirt, one of those is a sprawling 5,872 square-foot Studio City estate that Hyland purchased for $3.92 million in 2020 with her fiancé, Wells Adams. The home not only has five bedrooms and seven bathrooms, but boasts a movie theater and a large pool equipped with a spa.
While that appears to be her most expansive residence, Hyland's other properties include a $1.9 million home in Valley Village, and a Studio City property that she bought for $715,000 in 2013. When Hyland isn't at one of her luxurious abodes, she's been seen driving another impressive asset, her Audi A5 convertible, which is reportedly worth around $51,000.
What's more, Hyland likes to dish out dough on travel, like when she took trips to South Africa and Ireland in 2021. All in all though, it seems Hyland isn't really into expensive purchases; she told Cosmopolitan that she had to talk herself into splurging on a Dior bag when she was in the City of Lights. "I was like, I can't go to Paris and not buy something. I never buy myself anything expensive," she said.
Sarah Hyland gives back
Sarah Hyland makes it a point to give back. For example, in 2012, she started working with George Lopez's charity, the George Lopez Foundation. Per Variety, the nonprofit, which works with people impacted by kidney disease, hit close to home for Hyland, who suffers from kidney dysplasia herself. Over the years, Hyland has continued to bring attention to kidney dysplasia as well as endometriosis, which she also struggles with. As she said in Self, "It affects so many women, and so many women go undiagnosed."
Outside of organizations relating to her health issues, Hyland has been involved with other charities as well, doing events for Toys For Tots, the ASPCA and Stand Up to Cancer. In 2018, People reported that she also donated a large sum to Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) after her cousin was killed by a drunk driver. However, when she donated $1,000 to the family's GoFundMe, per the Daily Mail, and urged fans to donate as well, she faced backlash from people who thought she had enough money to help the page reach its $25,000 goal on her own. Hyland responded to the controversy by tweeting, "I'd like to ask those who have negative thoughts or opinions about the tragedy that happened to my family, to keep them to themselves."
Her wedding expenses with Wells Adams
Sarah Hyland and Wells Adams will probably spend a pretty penny on their nuptials. Hyland and her beau are expected to tie the knot sometime in 2022, after they postponed their wedding twice due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The former "Bachelorette" star popped the question back in 2019, with a ring expert telling E! News (via Cosmopolitan) he could've dropped anywhere from $175,000 to $200,000 on a ring designed by famed jeweler Lorraine Schwartz.
If the couple decides to have a luxurious, celebrity wedding, it will almost certainly set them back a few bucks — assuming they haven't already lost money from postponing. While they've kept their plans private, Adams did tell ET in 2021, "We kind of set up this big wedding. ... We're kind of so committed that we're like, 'Well, we got to have the big wedding.'" However, they may make some of what they spent back at the event, considering that he quipped, "We have a lot of rich friends. We want them to give us gifts."
Yet, if Hyland and Adams are forced to postpone again, they may go a cheaper route. "If something else crazy happens this year, then we're just going to go to Vegas," Adams told ET Canada in 2022. Whatever they choose to do, it they'll probably be able to handle the budget: Even though Hyland is worth more at $14 million, Adams has a reported $400,000 net worth of his own, which is not too shabby either.
Sarah Hyland on her success
You could say Sarah Hyland's mother knew from the moment she was born that her daughter was destined for success, despite her health issues. Hyland told Seventeen (via Hola), "Doctors told my mother I would never have a normal life. And she said, 'You're right, she won't — but it won't be because of her health." Hyland went on to dream big and go after her goals, and it clearly panned out.
Hyland's work has been both lucrative and gratifying, and though she landed the role of a lifetime when she was still a teenager, it only happened after she'd hustled for almost her entire life. As she said in Seventeen. "It didn't come easily or fast or free: It took me 14 years to land a gig like ['Modern Family']." And while she has become a household name, that was never the end game. "I don't want to look like I want to be in the public eye," she told Vanity Fair. "I didn't become an actress to be famous."
Even though she is rich and famous now, Hyland has not forgotten about the hurdles she faced early on in her career, whether they be rejections or projects that didn't take off. As she said in Seventeen, "Proving someone wrong who said you'd never make it is one of the best feelings in the world."