WTA Finals 2026 prize pool cut as event moves to Indian Wells
On Nov. 8, 2026 the WTA Finals moved from Riyadh to the Indian Wells Tennis Garden in California for the 2026 edition, with organisers setting a $10 million total prize pool, down 35.48% from the $15.5 million offered in 2025.
The tournament keeps its unchanged format of two round-robin groups of four players each. The $10 million pool represents the first reduction since 2021 after three consecutive annual increases. Every singles participant receives a $220,000 participation fee, with an additional $230,000 awarded for each group-stage victory; the participation fee is prorated by matches played.
A semi-final win adds $820,000 to a player’s earnings and a final victory brings another $1.64 million, meaning an undefeated singles champion would collect $3.37 million. That total is 35.63% less than the $5.235 million Elena Rybakina earned in 2025. Defending champion and World No. 1 Elena Rybakina withdrew less than 24 hours before her first-round match due to sickness.
Singles Group 1 comprises Marta Kostyuk, Coco Gauff, Jessica Pegula and Wimbledon champion Linda Noskova. Singles Group 2 is headlined by World No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka and includes Mirra Andreeva, Elina Svitolina and Karolina Muchova, with Andreeva entering as the 2025 Indian Wells and 2026 Roland Garros champion and Muchova making her singles debut at the event.
In doubles, Group 1 pairs top seeds Gabriela Dabrowski and Luisa Stefani with Guo Hanyu and Kristina Mladenovic, Hsieh Su-wei and Jelena Ostapenko, and Zhang Shuai and Elise Mertens. Doubles Group 2 features top seeds Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend alongside Cristina Bucsa and Nicole Melichar-Martinez, Demi Schuurs and Ellen Perez, and the Italian pairing of Sara Errani and Jasmine Paolini.
Organisers provided approximate rupee conversions for the prize money: the $10 million pool equals about ₹93.91 crore, the singles champion’s $1,640,000 equals about ₹15.40 crore and an undefeated singles champion’s $3,370,000 equals about ₹31.65 crore. The doubles champion will earn $330,000 (₹3.10 crore), rising to $725,000 (₹6.81 crore) if unbeaten.
With the groups confirmed, the event will follow the round-robin phase into semi-finals and a final, with the stated prize increments applied at each knockout stage.