‘Naked and Afraid’ Doesn’t Offer Winners a Cash Prize — Are Bragging Rights Enough?

Naked and Afraid became a hit with audiences after taking a tried-and-true reality TV wild survivalist formula and adding a twist: making the contestants brave the elements completely stark naked. Seeing what the teams who subject themselves to these kinds of torments endure in their birthday suits is enough to make you wince in pain. But it also makes you wonder: What do you win on the show if you make it to the end without tapping out?

In short: nothing. Naked and Afraid participants don't win a cash prize for spending 21 days in the wild without any clothes, being left to (mostly) fend for themselves. This is a stark contrast to the show that started it all, Survivor, which gives first-place winners a massive $1 million cash prize, or Alone, which gives individuals $500,000 for outlasting all of the other participants in a given season.

In reality, the only thing that Naked and Afraid participants get is a shot at earning bragging rights and being on TV. However, the spinoff series based on the original premise, Naked and Afraid: Last One Standing, takes a page out of Alone's playbook and awards 12 former survivalists on the series for a chance to earn $100,000.

The dozen cast members all competed against each other for 45 days in a multi-tiered competition for the hundred bands. Ultimately, Waz Addy, a former professional Rugby player from Australia who also served in the military, was able to make it to the end.

Waz was also featured on several other spinoffs of the show, too, like Naked and Afraid XL: Frozen. You're probably wondering if the participants on the show get anything for their efforts. And according to this Yahoo! article, production does consider that the survivalists featured on this program are walking away from their jobs at a chance to test whether or not they can make it in the wild.

The website indicates that folks featured on the show are given "a few thousand dollars" for their time and effort. Additionally, casting director for the show Kristi Russell confirmed in an interview with Channel Guide Magazine back in 2015 that this was indeed the case.

"We're taking them away from their job, and we realize that. And so we give them a weekly stipend to compensate for their lost wages," she told the outlet.

It's also worth mentioning that these figures are several years old and that recurring personalities on the show may negotiate higher salaries.

Speaking from my own personal experience in reality TV, when I was cast on A&E's Ghost Hunters, I was able to negotiate my salary with Pilgrim Studios, the production company behind the reboot. They were ultimately amenable to my requests, and we were able to get a deal on paper that worked out.

Of course, Naked and Afraid participants are also having their travel accommodations booked on behalf of the network, along with any hotel stays required outside of filming in the wilderness.

There is always the promise of leveraging time on a Reality TV show as a way to create other ancillary business opportunities.

Creating survivalist schools/boot camps or bolstering their online social media profiles for other business/sponsorship opportunities are a few avenues Naked and Afraid participants can utilize to make some extra cash. Furthermore, creating book deals or getting interviews on podcasts or speaking engagements can also assist in them earning some extra money, too.