Carrie Underwood richest among all American Idols

Cover of Carrie Underwood

Singer Carrie Underwood has been named the highest earning American Idol contestant by Forbes magazine.

Since winning the season 4 American Idol, Underwood has released two full albums and become a Broadway star as her albums becoming hot seller of the year and earned enough to start her own clothing line.

The 28-year-old singer earned over $20 million in the last year alone, which is equal to five most successful Idol alumni combined.

“American Idol kick-started me in my career. It gave me an amazing fan base money can't buy. Some industry insiders have speculated that Idol makes as much as $1 billion per year,” Contactmusic quoted Underwood as telling Forbes.

The list of highest-paid American Idol contestants is:

1. Carrie Underwood- $20 million
2. Chris Daughtry — $16 million
2. Adam Lambert - $6 million
4. Fantasia Barrino — $4 million
5. Jordin Sparks — $3 million.