David Goggins’ net worth is $5 million in 2024 and he earned his keep from diverse sources, including endurance sports, book sales, public speaking, and more. In addition, David earned a good salary during his days in the US Air Force and as a Navy SEAL.
Goggins has not always been rich. His early days were marked with financial instability when he had to be put to work at the age of six, organizing roller skates for their clients at his father’s roller skating shop. This was where he first imbibed the rudiments of hard work which saw him become a huge success through his career in the military, sports, and more. David does not make money for his pocket alone. The former Navy SEAL once embarked on a long-distance running competition that saw him raise over $2 million which was channeled into charitable courses for the children of fallen heroes.
How Much Money Does David Goggins Have?
David has $5 million as his current net worth. However, what the retired Navy SEAL rakes in on a monthly and annual basis has never been publicized. David started building his bottom line from scratch and thanks to hard work and dedication, he is today listed among the most famous men to ever grace the US Navy SEAL and earns a spot on the list of the toughest SOBs alive.
David Goggins’ Income sources
David Goggins earned his massive wealth from diverse sources. He made his first money as a salary earner from the US Air Force and as a Navy Seal. At the end of his career in the military, he went on to become a sportsman majoring as an ultramarathon runner, triathlete, and ultra-distance cyclist.
An accomplished author, David has two books under his belt. He is also a public speaker and earns a lot of money as a motivational. He later became a sportsman and earned huge sums from running marathons, including the one he did for charity.
David is big on social media with a presence on multiple platforms and with his followers running into millions. It comes as no surprise that he earns big from his social media activities.
David Goggins Learned the Rudiments of Work Ethics very Early in Life
Though he did it for his family, David Goggins started experimenting with work at a very early age. He reportedly just clocked six when his parents put him to work at a roller skating rink owned by his father. The reason he had to help out his family was that they were facing a lot of economic hardship and money was in short supply. Thus, all hands had to be on deck before they could manage to make ends meet.
At the East Buffalo, New York-based roller skating rink called Skateland, David would take the night shift and his job was to organize roller skates for their clients. Goggins only left the job after his alcoholic father made life impossible for his mother and she decided to take her kids with her to Brazil, Indiana.
Goggins Scored his First Employment with the United States Air Force
Goggins was barely 16 when he made the conscious decision to enlist with the United States Air Force. His grandfather, who retired from the Air Force, was the one who encouraged him to join a pararescue jump orientation course and that sealed his fate.
While undergoing training for his job at the United States Air Force, David Goggins had to be removed temporarily after his diagnosis showed that he had sickle cell trait.
Being the kind of person who does not quit, David went to join TACP (United States Air Force Tactical Air Control Party) training in the United States Air Force in 1994. He eventually spent five years at TACP where he was opportune to work alongside British counterparts such as Flt Sgt Jones, Flt Stg Nair, Pvt Noble, and more. He eventually left TACP in 1999.
When he completed his time with the US Air Force, David was feeling unsuccessful and had nothing much to do. The former SEAL gained a lot of body mass, up to 300 pounds. Though his earnings with TACP were not mentioned, it wasn’t so bad as David was managing to get by. However, after he left, Goggins had to fall back to low-paying jobs and was fleeting from one to the other just to have enough to put food on the table.
However, a day came when David became disgusted with his overweight body and his financial situation, and going forward, he decided that things must change and it was a huge challenge to himself. His first target was to shed 100 pounds within three months and with hard work and perseverance, David Goggins was able to achieve that within recorded time. He did not just lose weight, the American author crafted a chiseled body with buffy bulging muscles. With his new look, David felt the time had come to go ahead and do something that mattered and that was when he opted to enlist with the NAVY SEAL.
With his New Body, David Met the Requirements to Join the Navy SEALs
Before any other thing, David’s newly chiseled form had him looking like a SEAL, which paved the way for him to be enlisted. Prior to that, he had an exterminator job that he promptly quit.
He first joined the reserves and by the time he lost 106 lbs of body mass, he was considered to have met the weight requirement. Thus, his training commenced immediately. His BUD/S training (Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL) was conducted with BUD/S class 235 and he graduated in 2001. After his SQT (SEAL Qualification Training) and the necessary probation period which he completed, David Goggins received the NEC 5326 and became a Combatant Swimmer (SEAL). This was when he was assigned to SEAL Team 5.
He later joined the Army Ranger School, graduating in 2004, which conferred on him the “Enlisted Honor Man” award. He equally received a 100% peer evaluation. David eventually served 20 years in the military, touring different parts of the world, including Afghanistan, Iraq, and more.
He is listed as the 36th Afro-American Navy Seal in the history of the United States Navy Seal. In 2018, he received the VFW Americanism Award in recognition of his long years of service in the US Armed Forces.
To date, the exact amount that David was paid as a member of SEAL has never been disclosed but reportedly, it was way above what he was getting during his days with TACP.
Cycling, Marathon, and Ultra-marathon Running Formed David Goggins’ Career Preoccupation after Leaving the Navy SEAL
He made a name as a marathon and Ultra-marathon runner. With his career in the US Military done and dusted, David Goggins didn’t waste time on embarking on the next chapter of his life, and this time around, the former SEAL decided to do something totally different and became an ultra-endurance athlete.
David made a remarkable transformation from a Navy SEAL to a world-class athlete, emphasizing the power and influence of a determined mind.
In 2005, he launched his career as an endurance sportsman by joining the San Diego One-Day Ultramarathon. David completed his race of 101 miles within 18 hours and 56 minutes, setting the pace for better things to come in the endurance sports world.
After completing the San Diego ultramarathon, David joined the Las Vegas Marathon and after completing it, he qualified for the Boston Marathon. The year 2006 saw him join the HURT 100 in Hawaii. David was invited to Badwater-135 in 2006 and made the 5th position overall.
Before the end of the year, the endurance sportsman joined the Hawaiian Ultraman World Championships Triathlon and in the 3-day, 320-mile race, he placed 2nd.
He was at the ultra-distance invitational Cycling Race called the Furnace Creek-508 in 2009. Prior to that in 2007, David Goggins emerged in the third position for the Badwater-135 and his next Badwater-135 context came in 2013 after he took a break for six years and the long gap was why he finished in the 18th position.
His latest endurance sports was recorded in 2020 at the Moab 240 ultramarathon where he placed second during the 241-mile event with 63 hours and 21 minutes. The winner was Michele Graglia and David was approximately 95 minutes behind him. The exact amount he received from each race is not recorded but there is prize money attached to all of them depending on an athlete’s finishing position.
David’s efforts in the world of endurance sports have not gone unnoticed as the former Navy SEAL has received a lot of compensation in the form of awards and accolades. In 2008, Runner’s World named him a “Hero of Running”. 2016 was when he emerged winner of the Infinitus 88k in 12 hours. Before the year ran out, he was declared winner of the Music City Ultra 50k including Strolling Jim 40 Miler. His induction into the International Sports Hall of Fame became a reality in March 2019. His name has entered the Guinness World Record for completing 4,030 pull-ups in 17 hours. David has received the 2018 VFW Americanism Award.
He Extended Some of his Marathon Wins to Charity
David Goggins did not pocket all his marathon wins as the endurance sportsman extended a lion’s share of it to charitable courses. In 2005. The helicopter crash that happened in Afghanistan during Operation Red Wings killed many of his friends in the military and in a bid to lend a helping hand, David decided to raise some funds for the the Special Operations Warrior Foundation through his long-distance running.
He eventually donated over $2 million which was used to grant the children of the fallen heroes scholarships and grants.
David Goggins is an Accomplished Author
As an author, David Goggins has two publications under his belt. The circumstances that led him to publish his first book happened after he retired from the Navy Seal. American entrepreneur, Jesse Itzler, hired David to live in his house for 31 days following which he published a blog post with details of their experience living under the same roof. According to the American businessman, it totally transformed his life.
The write-up, which was tagged Living With A SEAL, wasted no time in selling out as millions of people rushed to read it. It was at this point that the need to pen a self-help memoir dawned on David Goggins. Thus, on the 4th of December 2018, his first publication “Can’t Hurt Me: Master Your Mind and Defy the Odds” hit the book stand.
One thing I am most proud of with Never Finished is that the knowledge you will gain from this book isn’t some cookie cutter knowledge. This is real knowledge that you can not get from some brainstorming sessions. This knowledge comes only from living in the grip of life. pic.twitter.com/RKAriTL9Yg
— David Goggins (@davidgoggins) November 20, 2022
According to what David called the 40% rule in the book, people fail to use their full capabilities as most would be satisfied with tapping into a paltry 40%. When the book eventually started selling, it soon became a bestseller, selling over 3 million copies, and in the process, acquired a tidy fortune for Goggins. Reportedly, the royalties he earned from that singular publication were three and half times higher than what other authors of his ilk earn.
The massive success recorded by his first book led David to write a sequel and on the 4th of December 2022. His book, Never Finished: Unshackle Your Mind and Win the War Within was released. Through the sequel, the former SEAL covered important topics like discipline, mental toughness, and striving for perfection.
No doubt, David is a testament to the power of mental toughness and determination.
He Rakes in a lot of Funds from Public Speaking
Public speaking is one of David Goggins’ income-generating avenues. With his wealth of knowledge, it comes as no surprise that Goggins went on to become an accomplished public speaker and his speeches have been responsible for a few digits of his bottom line.
His speaking engagements are quite lucrative and reportedly, the motivational speaker is paid between $100k to $150k per speaking engagement depending on various variables like location, traveling expenses, length of time, and more.
Most of the topics for his speeches range from leadership to health, productivity, and a disciplined mind frame.
David Goggins’ Social Media Activities are Another Income Generating Avenue for the Former Navy SEAL
It goes without saying that David’s popularity robbed-off on his social media activities and the resultant massive followers translates to income for the former Navy Seal.
On Instagram, alone, the social media influencer has accumulated over 9 million followers with 423 posts. The kind of posts to expect from his Instagram @davidgoggins page are videos and images of his workout sessions including those taken during his days as an overweight man. Through his IG page, the endurance sportsman collaborates with brands who leverage his popularity in selling their product and these sponsorship deals constitute a huge part of his bank balance.
David Goggins joined the Twitter platform in July 2016 and since then he has accumulated over 860.5k followers and has tweeted 678 times. The former Navy SEAL’s Twitter handle @davidgoggins is suffused with images and videos of his public speaking engagements and there are videos of his podcasts.
Goggins has also gained massive popularity on his self-titled, Facebook page. At the last count, his followers came to 1.6 million and still counting. The posts to see on his Facebook page include motivational reels, working out, self-improvement content, and many more.
Another potential avenue of huge income generation for David Goggins is his YouTube channel which he launched on the 19th of June 2023. Though the channel is relatively new, it is already starting to accumulate views and at the last check, he had 2,042 views with eight subscribers.
The videos he shares via YouTube include inspirational videos and his training routines.
