Alex Honnold Talks Netflix Payout After Risky Taipei 101 Stunt Without Safety Equipment

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Alex Honnold has explained how much he was paid for his incredible free solo climb of Taipei 101, a truly risky achievement. The 40-year-old climber scaled the 101-story building in Taiwan in a little over 90 minutes, and the climb was watched live by millions on Netflix.

There was a lot of talk about how much money Alex Honnold made, with some people guessing around $500,000. He recently discussed it on the podcast The Diary of a CEO with Steven Bartlett.

I’ve done a lot of work without getting paid throughout my life,” Honnold explained, emphasizing that he values pursuing his passions more than earning large sums of money. “It’s just how I approach things – I enjoy the process itself,” he said, adding that he doesn’t worry too much about the financial details.

Honnold also noted that he often benefited financially in unexpected ways. He explained that soon after his climb, he received numerous offers for things like public speaking, sponsorships, and other related work.

He explained that while immediate payment isn’t necessary – everything evens out eventually – what truly motivates him is giving a great performance.

In a recent interview with the New York Times, Alex Honnold described his payment for climbing Taipei 101 as surprisingly low, noting that professional athletes often earn millions. He later explained to Tom Bartlett that he wasn’t actually upset about the money. “I would have done it even without getting paid,” Honnold said, adding that his agent was the only one who might have wanted a larger sum.

Since his daring climb in January, Honnold has gone back to regular rock climbing and continued his work with the Honnold Foundation, which supports solar power projects in communities that need them. He doesn’t have any plans to climb another skyscraper right now, but he still appears in adventure films and actively promotes environmental causes.

The Netflix special, Skyscraper Live, with commentary from Elle Duncan and Mark Rober, was a huge hit for the platform. It was one of their most popular live events and helped make climber Alex Honnold famous to a wider audience.

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2026-02-21 11:22