5 Ways AEW Contracts Are Different Than WWE Contracts (& 5 Ways They're The Same)

Contracts in professional wrestling are crucial in the business as this is how the talent can make their money and earn a living. WWE and AEW are the two top promotions in the business as far as gaining mainstream attention, and a lot is made of the contracts that each company offers to people.

RELATED: 10 Contracted AEW Wrestlers That Have Disappeared From TV

Ultimately, there are many similarities between any wrestling contract as the nature of the work is often the same, especially when working for television promotions. However, when it comes to how AEW and WWE operate there are certainly plenty of differences as well, which is often one of the reasons wrestlers choose to work for one or the other.

10 Difference: One Night Only Appearances

Something that AEW enjoys doing from time to time is bringing in wrestlers for one-off dream matches to help enhance a certain storyline or just for the sake of entertaining the audience. The likes of The Great Muta, Juventud Guerrera, and Nick Gage have all appeared for just a single match.

They're obviously given a set deal for that time with a one-off price, but that isn't something that WWE offers. The company doesn't bring in talent on a one-night-only basis, which means that this type of deal likely doesn't exist.

9 Similarity: Stars Of The Future

Every wrestling company wants to secure the biggest stars of tomorrow, and while it is impossible to predict which young talents will end up being huge names down the road, WWE and AEW are willing to take risks with that via similar contracts.

WWE has the NIL deals, which sees them secure the futures of talented athletes such as Gable Steveson in a bid to make them the next stars of wrestling. While AEW doesn't have that in place, they do have a similar deal for younger wrestlers to join the company when they turn 18, which has been clear with the Nick Wayne contract.

8 Difference: Talent & Backstage Roles

In WWE, those who are under contract to compete strictly do that, and nothing else. However, that's not the case in AEW and several talents have different roles within the company, which leads to them having unique contracts.

RELATED: The Best Young Bucks Match Every Year For The Past 10 Years

The Young Bucks and Kenny Omega are also Executive Vice Presidents, effectively making them the bosses of everyone else on the roster, while giving themselves a creative say. It's something that can create problems, as was seen via CM Punk's All Out media scrum comments, which is likely why WWE avoids this.

7 Similarity: One-Off Celebrity Deals

While the wrestlers that both promotions sign tend to be under long-term contracts, the same cannot be said for the celebrities that each likes to bring in. Whenever a celebrity appears they often have something to promote, which makes it beneficial, but they also have a fee.

They don't get put under the same contracts as professional wrestlers, but both WWE and AEW work hard to try and bring in names from outside the wrestling bubble for as long as possible.

6 Difference: Appearing On Other TV Shows

When it comes to WWE's roster it is very clear, those under contract are not able to go and wrestle for other televised promotions such as Impact Wrestling or New Japan Pro-Wrestling. While WWE has recently relaxed this slightly with Shinsuke Nakamura and The Great Muta being able to work elsewhere, they were strictly one-off matches.

When it comes to AEW, the company often allows its wrestlers to leave and compete in long-term storylines on other promotions. The likes of Christian Cage and Kenny Omega were examples of that through their Impact Wrestling runs, which WWE would never allow.

5 Similarity: Non-Compete

Not every wrestler sticks around forever with just one company, and considering that there is genuine competition between the two of them it makes sense that both of them use non-compete clauses. The last thing either wants is to fire a wrestler and then have them show up on the competition show at the next available opportunity.

RELATED: 5 Released WWE Wrestlers Who Had A 90-Day Non-Compete Clause (& 5 Who Didn't)

While there are times when deals completely run out and they're free to appear, as happened with Cody Rhodes, most of the time a non-compete clause would likely be in play, which is something WWE has always pushed.

4 Difference: AEW's Tiered Deals

WWE offers different amounts of money to all its talent based on their value to the company, years of service, and where they sit on the card, and that is the same thing that every single wrestling promotion does to make sure they don't go over budget.

However, what AEW does differently is via the tiered contracts that are offered to people. Some simply agreed to appear and they get a bonus, others are signed to a deal where AEW gets first dibs, then there are another four tiers with different values and benefits.

3 Similarity: Big Money Available

One of the big similarities between AEW and WWE is the fact that big money is available from both. When it comes to professional wrestling if talent want to make the most money possible then they need to sign for either of these promotions to earn the top contracts.

Whether it is Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns or Chris Jericho and MJF, wrestlers on both sides of the coin are earning major cash if they're operating at the top level of the card.

2 Difference: Independent Dates

AEW provides a lot more flexibility with its contracts than what WWE does, which is a big reason why a lot of wrestlers want to sign for Tony Khan's company. While WWE is rigid and doesn't allow its talent to take on outside projects without their blessing, the same cannot be said for AEW.

RELATED: The Biggest Independent Wrestling Show Ever: Every Match From All In, Ranked Worst To Best

The roster can often be found competing at various independent shows around the world if they so choose, or they can host Twitch streams or have their own podcast such as Dax Harwood, which is a big difference.

1 Similarity: Ability To Add Time

Wrestlers can presume that they have a certain amount of time when they sign contracts, the fact is that the deals can end up being much longer than says on the paper. The reason for that is injuries, after all, both WWE and AEW are paying for a set number of years where they can use the talent if they wish.

If someone gets injured and is on the shelf for multiple months, that is time wasted and missed from the perspective of the business. Because of that, both WWE and AEW can tag more time onto a contract if they want when a wrestler is out injured for an extended run.