The season 34 finale of Dancing with the Stars delivered its usual fireworks, emotional routines and a crowded leaderboard but the real curiosity that grips fans every season remains the same: What do the winners actually take home?
The answer goes beyond sequins, photo ops and the whirlwind of post-finale fame.
No cash prize, just the trophy and major opportunities
Unlike several other reality competitions, Dancing with the Stars doesn’t award its champions a cash prize. The winners and their professional partner, take home only the Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy, a fixture that has become one of the most recognisable symbols in reality television.
As pro Jenna Johnson explained on The Morning After podcast in June 2025, “If you win, it’s not like you win a million dollars and split it with your partner… you’re just getting a cute trophy together.”
Celebrities and pros do receive payment for competing on the show, and finalists are given a performance bonus.
How much is the Mirrorball trophy worth?
Though the trophy looks extravagant under studio lights, its construction has surprisingly simple origins.
In an earlier interview with People, production designer James Yarnell said that the very first Mirrorball Trophy which was created for season 1 in 2005, was built on a tight budget by dismantling a brass lamp and repurposing its pieces.
Even today, the top “mirrorball” remains inexpensive. Yarnell told People that “no matter how much we put into the trophy, how much we spend, it always has a $10 mirrorball on top.”
Season 29 champion Kaitlyn Bristowe revealed on the Trading Secrets podcast in 2023 that her trophy cost around $10,000 to make which is a reminder that the prize is more luxury keepsake than high-value commodity.
What happens after the confetti?
Winning the trophy comes with a short list of post-show duties. Champions appear on Good Morning America the morning after the finale, reflecting on their season and their final performance.
Most winners also join the Dancing with the Stars Live! tour, performing with their pro partners across the country for fans who followed the journey all season.
Why the win matters to celebrities?
For many past winners, the experience leaves a deeper mark than the trophy itself.
Season 21 champion Bindi Irwin said in an interview with E! News in 2015 that the show was “a gift… life-changing for me. I’m truly overwhelmed.”
Season 24 winner Rashad Jennings told People in 2017 that the show pushed him in unexpected ways: “It’s an emotional journey… you have to find that place to truly bring out the art of dance.”
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The Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy may not come with prize money, but for many celebrities, the real reward comes after the final dance:
bigger fanbases, national tours, new offers, and in some cases, entirely new career chapters. It’s the kind of spotlight that can’t be bought, only earned under bright stage lights, week after week.
