For the first time since shareholders approved the massive compensation package for CEO Elon Musk in 2025, Tesla has revealed the total compensation for 2025 for the first time.

(Photo: AFP)

According to filings submitted to regulators on April 30, the total compensation for billionaire Elon Musk in 2025, since shareholders approved the massive compensation package, is estimated to be around $158 billion (equivalent to $200 billion in converted terms).

The figure was announced about six months after investors approved a $1 trillion stock compensation package for corporate leaders. This is considered unprecedented compensation, even as tech corporations increasingly pay high salaries to leaders considered to have strategic vision.

Elon Musk is credited with making Tesla the leading electric vehicle company in the global market, while also propelling himself to the top of the world’s richest man. However, recently, the company has faced increasing competitive pressure, particularly from manufacturers in China, along with a product portfolio that has not seen significant innovation.

Alongside Tesla, the billionaire is also focusing his attention on other areas within his business ecosystem, most notably the aerospace company SpaceX, which is reportedly preparing for one of the largest initial public offerings in history.

Billionaire Elon Musk (Photo: AP)

The published documents also reveal increasingly close ties between the businesses run by Mr. Musk. In 2025, Tesla recorded over $500 million in revenue from the sale of products and services to related companies. Of that, approximately $430.1 million came from transactions with xAI, while SpaceX contributed an additional $143.3 million.

However, Tesla noted that there could be a “significant discrepancy” between the announced compensation value and the actual earnings Musk receives. This is because the entire 2025 compensation package is structured as stock options, which can only be converted into real value once the company meets its market capitalization and performance targets.

In fact, Tesla did not meet the conditions set out in 2025, so Musk’s actual income from this compensation package was $0. He also did not receive a fixed salary from the company for many years.

According to the report, the compensation value was calculated based on the assumption that Tesla would meet all targets, with the fair value of the stock option package alone amounting to approximately $132 billion. The remainder, over $26 billion, relates to an interim bonus approved by the board in August 2025, but canceled in April 2026 when the 2018 compensation package was reinstated.