The typical CEO compensation package rose nearly 6 percent in 2025 to $17.7 million, as company boards rewarded their top executives for bigger profits and higher stock prices, according to data compiled by major compensation tracking firms.
The increase, reported by NBC New York, reflects a broader trend of executive compensation growth that has outpaced wage gains for typical workers. The median employee at these companies earned $89,744, reflecting a 4.7 percent increase, meaning the CEO-to-worker pay ratio continued to widen.
For New York’s financial services industry, which includes many of the country’s largest banks and investment firms, the compensation data provides insight into how corporate boards are structuring executive pay. The increase suggests that boards are using compensation to retain top talent amid competitive labor markets, particularly for executives with experience navigating complex regulatory and technological transformations.
The compensation packages include salary, bonuses, stock awards, and other incentives. Stock awards have become an increasingly large portion of CEO pay, tying executive compensation to shareholder returns. This structure has drawn both praise for aligning executive and shareholder interests and criticism for incentivizing short-term stock price optimization.
New York-based compensation consultants note that the 6 percent increase in median CEO pay is moderate by historical standards. In some years, CEO compensation has grown by double digits. However, the increase comes amid public debate about income inequality and the appropriate ratio between executive and worker pay.
The data also reveals significant variation across industries. Technology and finance companies tend to offer the largest compensation packages, while retail and service companies pay less on average. Some individual compensation packages were described as eye-popping, though specific details vary by company and reporting period.
Shareholder advisory firms in New York have been increasingly scrutinizing executive compensation packages, with some institutional investors pushing for greater transparency and moderation in pay practices. Say-on-pay votes, which give shareholders a non-binding voice on executive compensation, have become more contentious at companies where pay increases significantly outpace performance metrics.
The growth in CEO pay also has implications for New York City’s tax revenue, as high-income earners contribute disproportionately to city and state tax collections. The top 1 percent of New York City taxpayers account for roughly 40 percent of income tax revenue, making the city’s budget sensitive to changes in executive compensation trends.
Corporate governance advocates argue that boards should better balance executive rewards with worker compensation and long-term investment in the business. They point out that the gap between CEO and median worker pay has grown significantly over the past several decades, raising questions about fairness and sustainability.
