After receiving substantial pay increases in 2021, CEOs saw their income drop in 2022, according to Gallagher's new report, "CEO and Executive Compensation Trends: 2023 Edition".

The study of more than 2,830 companies found that in 2022, CEO pay decreased 7.3% and 2.7% for the overall Russell 3000® and S&P 500® indices, respectively — starkly contrasting with increases of 35.5% and 18.7% for 2021. (CEO pay increased 0.1% and 3.4% in 2020.)

"Weaker annual and long-term incentive awards contributed to a reversal in total compensation trends, and poorer stock performances accounted for much of the decline in CEO pay in 2022, because CEO compensation is often tied partly to investor returns," James Reda, managing director of the Executive Compensation Consulting practice at Gallagher, a global insurance brokerage, risk management, and consulting services firm, said in a statement. "In particular, bonus payouts dropped noticeably for all sizes of companies. Long-term incentive (LTI) values bumped up slightly higher for companies with revenue below $1 billion. However, larger companies with revenue of $1 billion and higher showed reduced levels of LTI."