Apple CEO Tim Cook Gets Pay Raise

A spike in Apple’s profits helped boost Cook’s compensation plan by nearly 30%

Apple CEO Tim Cook received a higher compensation package in 2020 compared to the previous year as global work-from-home policies due to the coronavirus pandemic helped boost Apple’s profits for the year.

Cook earned $14.8 million in 2020, a nearly 28% increase from last year’s $11.6 million, according to the company’s proxy statement. Apple's top five executives — Cook, CFO Luca Maestri, general counsel Kate Adams, retail chief Deirdre O'Brien, and COO Jeff Williams — were paid a combined $119.8 million, an average bump of around 13% compared to 2019.

Cook’s compensation package included $3 million in salary, a $10.7 million non-equity incentive plan, and $1 million in other compensation, including $470,246 for security expenses and $432,564 for use of a private aircraft.

Apple said Cook earned 256-times the average Apple employee, whose compensation was $57,783 in 2020. This compares to last year’s CEO pay ratio of 200-to-1. In 2019, CEOs of S&P 500 companies received, on average, $14.8 million in total compensation, according to The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO). The average S&P 500 company CEO-to-worker pay ratio was 264-to-1.

Cook’s pay increase comes after Apple posted record earnings for 2020 despite the impact of the pandemic, which forced the tech giant to temporarily close retail stores and delayed the launch of the iPhone 12. Apple reported $274.5 billion in total net sales for fiscal year 2020, which ended Sept. 26, a 5.5% increase compared to 2019’s $260.2 billion. In addition, the company reported net income of $57.4 billion, up nearly 4% from $55.3 billion in 2019.

Shares in Apple have jumped 73% over the past 12 months.

Apple share price chart

Shareholders will vote to approve Apple’s executive compensation package at the 2021 virtual annual meeting on Feb. 23. During the 2020 annual meeting, 94% of the votes cast supported Apple’s executive compensation program.

Article Sources
Investopedia requires writers to use primary sources to support their work. These include white papers, government data, original reporting, and interviews with industry experts. We also reference original research from other reputable publishers where appropriate. You can learn more about the standards we follow in producing accurate, unbiased content in our editorial policy.
  1. SEC. "Apple Inc. Definitive Proxy Statement."

  2. Business Insider. "Apple CEO Tim Cook's pay soared nearly 30% last year to almost $15 million as the iPhone maker thrived amid the pandemic."

  3. AFL-CIO. "Executive Paywatch."

  4. SEC. "Apple Inc. 2020 Annual Report."

Take the Next Step to Invest
×
The offers that appear in this table are from partnerships from which Investopedia receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where listings appear. Investopedia does not include all offers available in the marketplace.
Service
Name
Description