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Final MLB payroll figures published in an AP report on April 16, 2026 and carried by Japan Today show the Los Angeles Dodgers spent a record $514.6 million on payroll and luxury tax in 2025. The total came in the same season Los Angeles won its second straight World Series title and left the club positioned near the top of MLB spending again in 2026.
Key developments
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The Dodgers' 2025 total broke down to $345.3 million in payroll and $169.4 million in luxury tax, beating the previous combined record of $430.4 million set by the 2024 New York Mets, according to AP's breakdown of the commissioner's office figures.
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Even after MLB's accounting discounts for deferred contracts, Los Angeles still spent seven times the Miami Marlins' $68.7 million payroll, the lowest in the sport. The report said the Dodgers also outspent the payroll totals of the bottom six clubs combined.
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Deferred money remained a major part of the story. AP reported that the Dodgers' total would have been roughly $71 million higher without those discounts, and Shohei Ohtani counted at $28.2 million for payroll purposes because $68 million of his $70 million salary is deferred until 2035.
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The spending gap widened across the league, not just at the top. MLB's regular payroll spending rose 3.1% to $5.32 billion in 2025, while the ratio between the five highest-spending and five lowest-spending teams climbed to a record 4.7-to-1. A matching ABC News report said 11 teams finished above $200 million and five stayed below $100 million.
What to watch
The next checkpoint is the final 2026 payroll picture. Opening-day figures cited by AP projected the Dodgers at $487.1 million in combined payroll and tax, narrowly ahead of the Mets at $482.5 million. In-season trades, bonuses and injury replacements can still move those numbers materially before the year closes.
The broader unresolved issue is competitive balance. Four of the top five spenders reached the 2025 playoffs, but the league's record spending spread is likely to keep pressure on MLB's luxury-tax system and on clubs arguing that the gap between top and bottom payrolls is becoming harder to ignore.
Sources
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