How Many Billionaires Are in the U.S.? More Than Any Other Nation

The richest person in America is Elon Musk, with an estimated net worth near $195 billion, thanks to his roles at Tesla and SpaceX.

He has traded the No. 1 spot with Jeff Bezos, the Amazon founder, over the past few years. Close behind is Mark Zuckerberg, co-founder of Facebook, now Meta.

The Forbes list shows that America’s richest men often come from tech or hold large shares in public companies. But legacy industries like oil, retail and real estate still contribute to high net worth totals.

California, New York, Texas and Florida host the most billionaires, representing huge hubs of business and finance. Cities like San Francisco, New York City and Miami account for a large share of the total wealth in the country.

But not every U.S. state has billionaires. As of the latest report, West Virginia, Delaware and Alaska have zero billionaires. These states lack the business density and venture capital ecosystem that fuel massive fortunes.

Being a billionaire means having a net worth — assets minus debt — of at least $1 billion. Assets can include stocks, real estate, companies, art and more.

Most billionaires have significant equity in private or public companies, sometimes shared among family members or held through a family office.

Net worth fluctuates with market conditions. A drop in share price or increase in debt can knock someone off the list. Conversely, one big IPO can launch a founder into the billionaire club overnight.

Forbes ranks billionaires not just by wealth, but also by how they got there. Many are self-made, meaning they started their companies or investments from scratch. Think of Bill Gates, who co-founded Microsoft, or Oprah Winfrey, who built a media empire.

Others inherited money and expanded on family fortunes. This includes heirs to retail giants, oil empires or conglomerates. The Forbes list often marks these as "inherited" or "inherited and growing."

Men still dominate the global billionaire club, but women are gaining ground. There are now over 300 women on the world's billionaires list, many representing family businesses or their own ventures. Some of the youngest billionaires include tech founders and crypto entrepreneurs.

The first person to become a billionaire at a young age in recent years? That might be Kylie Jenner, depending on how you count assets (she was initially hailed as the youngest self-made billionaire at 21, but Forbes later determined her net worth was just under $1 billion).

Age and access continue to shape who appears on the list.

There are more than 2,700 billionaires globally, according to Forbes. After the U.S., China, India, Germany and Russia have the most. Countries like Mexico and Brazil are also home to billionaires, though fewer in number.

Billionaires around the world face unique economic pressures. Some, especially in Russia, have seen fortunes shrink due to sanctions. In contrast, Indian billionaires have seen rapid increases tied to tech and infrastructure.

The Forbes annual list has become the go-to report for tracking the richest people in the world. It ranks by estimated net worth, but also includes details on industry, company roles (like director or co-founder) and country of residence.

The team reviews public filings, private accounts and interviews to estimate wealth.

Though it’s an estimate, the list holds major sway. Billionaires continue to appear on it year after year, knowing how hard it is to climb onto the list — and how much harder it is to stay there.

We created this article in conjunction with AI technology, then made sure it was fact-checked and edited by a HowStuffWorks editor.