The main six cast members of Friends started at about $22,500 per episode in season 1 and eventually reached $1 million per episode each in the final two seasons.

Per-episode pay by season

Season range| Pay per episode
---|---
Season 1| $22,500 35
Season 2| $40,000 35
Season 3| $75,000 35
Season 4| $85,000 35
Season 5| $100,000 35
Season 6| $125,000 35
Seasons 7–8| $750,000 35
Seasons 9–10| $1,000,000 35

What that means

All six stars were paid equally by the later seasons, which was unusual for TV at the time and became a landmark deal in salary negotiations.

The short version: Friends went from “solid sitcom pay” to “historic TV money” over its run.

Extra context

Some later reports say the cast also continued earning large amounts from syndication and reunion-related deals, but the classic per-episode figure most people refer to is the $1 million each for seasons 9 and 10.

TL;DR: each of the six main Friends cast members ended the show making $1 million per episode , after starting at $22,500 per episode.