Forbes has released its annual list of the world’s billionaires, and in 2024, there are more people than ever on the list – and they’re richer than ever.
There are 141 more billionaires in the world than last year, making a total of 2,781. Their combined value is $14.2 trillion, an increase of $2 trillion in 2023.
The 2024 list also broke records set in 2021, with 26 additional billionaires on the list and their combined net worth up $1.1 trillion.
Billionaires themselves are also wealthier, with two-thirds of them increasing in value. The top 20 on the list have earned the most, adding $700 billion to their combined worth since 2023. And the United States has a record 813 billionaires – the most of any country.
China has 473 billionaires and India 200, which is a record for this country.
To count their wealth, Forbes used stock prices and exchange rates from March 8, 2024.
Bernard Arnault and his family take first place, with a net worth of $233 billion. Arnault is the head of LVMH, a French luxury fashion and cosmetics conglomerate. The family is generally among the three richest people in the world according to Forbes.
Elon Musk, once the richest person in the world, is No. 2 on the list, with a net worth of $195 billion. Musk, the founder of Tesla and SpaceX, also bought Twitter for $44 million in 2022, renaming it X.
Musk owns about 74% of the social media company, which is now worth nearly 70% less than what he paid for it, Forbes estimates. This and other factors like Tesla’s low revenue led to his a net worth below $200 billion several times over the past two years.
In third place is Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, who has a net worth of $195 billion. Next is Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, who is worth $177 billion.
Other famous names on the list include:
- 100. Fox News founder Rupert Murdoch and his family worth $19.5 billion
- 137. Jerry Jones, general manager and chairman of the $13.9 billion Dallas Cowboys
- 1,330. Jay-Z, worth $2.5 billion
- 1,851. Kim Kardashian, worth $1.7 billion
- 2,545. Taylor Swift, worth $1.1 billion
The richest woman on the list of billionaires comes in 15th place: Françoise Bettencourt Meyers, the granddaughter of the founder of L’Oréal. As the world’s richest woman, she is worth $99.5 billion.
The four richest women after Bettencourt:
- 21. Alice Walton, daughter of Walmart founder Sam Walton, worth $72.3 billion
- 23. Julia Koch and her three children, who inherited a stake in Koch Industries from her husband upon her death and are worth $64.3 billion.
- 35. Jacqueline Mars, who owns one-third of the $38.5 billion Mars candy and food company
- 43. MacKenzie ScottJeff Bezos’ ex-wife worth $35.6 billion
Caitlin O’Kane
Grub5
