What Does Grant Do For a Living From The Bachelor? See His Real Job Before Reality TV
Jason Pham
He may be the most eligible man in America, but there was a time when Bachelor Grant Ellis’ job didn’t involve kissing 25 women and giving our roses on national television.
Grant—a 31-year-old from Newark, New Jersey, and the lead of The Bachelor Season 29—is just one of many Bachelors and Bachelorettes who had regular jobs before their careers on reality TV. Season 28 Bachelor Joey Graziadei was a tennis coach; Season 27 Bachelor Zach Shallcross was a software company sales account executive; Season 26 Bachelor Clayton Echard was a medical device company sales representative; and Season 25 Bachelor Matt James was a real estate broker.
Other past Bachelors include a pilot (Season 24’s Peter Weber); a former NFL player (Season 23’s Colton Underwood); and an auto racing driver (Season 22’s Arie Luyendyk Jr.). Bachelor Nation’s leads come from all walks of life. Read on for what Grant did for a living before The Bachelor Season 29 and his “real” job before his reality TV career.
What does Grant do for a living from The Bachelor?
Grant listed his job on The Bachelorette Season 21 with Jenn Tran as a Day Trader, ” which is defined as “a type of trader who executes a relatively large volume of short and long trades to capitalize on intraday market price action,” according to Investopedia.
Before his current career, Grant attended Iona University in New York City, where he played on the college’s men’s basketball team as a guard/forward. He majored in Criminal Justice and is 6 feet and 5 inches tall, according to his college basketball profile. After playing for Iona University, Grant transferred to Magnus College in Connecticut where he played for the school’s team, the Falcons. “I’ve been playing basketball since I was about 8 years old,” Grant said in The Bachelorette Season 21 premiere. “I love it. I was actually the first Division I signee at my high school.”
He continued, “I ended up graduating from Albertus Magnus College and then I went overseas and played as a professional athlete. But then I got injured, so my career ended.” Grant explained that, after his professional basketball career was sidelined, he took a shot at a new industry and became a day trader. “When life knocks you down, you have to be able to pivot,” he said. “So, I ended up getting into the finance field and then it’s been off to the races from there.”
How much did Grant make from The Bachelorette?
Grant was a contestant on The Bachelorette Season 21 with Jenn Tran, where he was sent home in Week 6. In what could come as a shock to fans, Bachelor and Bachelorette contestants aren’t paid.
Along with not receiving a salary, contestants also pay for their own styling, including their rose ceremony suits and dresses, themselves, which is why many contestants leave The Bachelor and The Bachelorette with significant debt. Many contestants also quit their jobs to be on The Bachelor or The Bachelorette, which can film for as long as three months. “I know that there are women in the past who cashed out their 401(k)s for the show,” TV blogger Dana Weiss told Mic in 2016. “Some have gone into serious credit card debt.”
How much did Grant make as the Bachelor?
Gant is expected to make $100,000 as the lead of The Bachelor Season 29, which is the current salary for Bachelors and Bachelorettes, according to Reality Steve.
Season 14 Bachelorette finalist Jason Tartick confirmed in a podcast in May 2021 that he and his cast mates, Colton Underwod and Blake Horstmann, were all offered $100,000 to be the Season 23 Bachelor. Though most recent Bachelors and Bachelorettes make at least $100,000, that wasn’t always the rate. Like most jobs, there are some Bachelors and Bachelorettes who have been able to negotiate more money than other lead, while others made less than the standard. Dean Unglert, a finalist on The Bachelorette season 12, revealed in a past interview that he was offered $75,000 to be the Season 22 Bachelor.
Emily Maynard, who was the Season 8 Bachelorette in 2012, is often cited as one of the highest-paid Bachelors or Bachelorettes, with a pay of $250,000. In Touch reported at the time that Emily, as a result of intense negotiations, was paid more than any other lead of The Bachelor or The Bachelorette at the time.. “The producers have completely changed the format this season in order to meet Emily’s demands,” a source told In Touch at the time. In Touch also reported that Emily was also specific about the type of men she wanted on her season. “She wanted only the best-looking, most mannered guys,” the source said. “She’s whittling it down to a handful of candidates who she will spend a lot more time with. If she doesn’t like a guy, he’s gone.”
Ashley Hebert, who was the Season 7 Bachelorette in 2011, has also had a controversial past around her Bachelorette salary. Us Weekly reported at the time that Ashley made $30,000 for her time as the Bachelorette, which would’ve been $70,000 less than other leads. Reality Steve, however, denied Us Weekly’s reporting and wrote in a blog post at the time that Ashley made around the standard $100,000. “I’m sorry, but Ashley would have to be the worst negotiator in the history of negotiations if she ever accepted that gig for $30k,” he wrote at the time. As one of the first Bachelorettes, Season 2 Bachelorette Meredith Phillips’ salary was far less than the current standard. The Los Angeles Times reporter Amy Kaufman reported in her 2018 book, Bachelor Nation, that Meredith made $10,000 for her time as the Bachelorette in 2004. The pay was about a tenth of what leads make now. In the book, Kaufman wrote that it would be “incredibly rare for someone to make less than six figures” today.
