The 30 Richest People In The World 2020

Who are the richest people in the world? Let's take a closer look at the top 30 richest people in the world as of 2020. These tycoons, royals and heirs control a stunning amount of wealth.

The bare minimum amount of money needed today to rank as one of the 30 wealthiest people in the world is $30 billion. For comparison, 30 years ago, the richest man in the world was Japanese business executive named Yoshiaki Tsutsumi. Yoshiaki's 1990 net worth of $16 billion wouldn't come close to being in today's top 30. Even if you adjust for inflation, he'd rank around #28. Unfortunately, Yoshiaki's empire ended up imploding and today he is no longer even a billionaire. But we digress!

Today we are exploring the world's 30 richest people.

Some quick additional facts:

• The richest man in the world is Jeff Bezos.
• The richest woman in the world is Alice Walton.
• At 35 years old, Mark Zuckerberg is the youngest richest person by more than a decade.
• At 89 years old, Warren Buffett is the oldest richest person by 5 years.
• In total, these 30 people control $1.6 trillion in private wealth

The 30 Richest People in the World:

30. Francois Pinault Net Worth $30 Billion

Francois Pinault is a French luxury goods mogul and businessman, best known as the founder and majority shareholder (41% stake) of fashion conglomerate Kering (formerly PPR). Brands under Kering include prestigious fashion houses Gucci, Stella McCartney, Alexander McQueen, and Yves Saint Laurent. Pinault also owns Artemis S.A., a company which holds brands such as Converse and Samsonite, and the Vail Ski Resort in Colorado. Additionally, he holds 66% of Pro Global Insurance Solutions, 25% of Groupe Fnac, and owns an extensive art collection with over 2,000 pieces.

As of 2020, Francois Pinault's net worth is $30 billion.

29. Maha Vajiralongkorn Net Worth $30.5 Billion

Maha Vajiralongkorn is the King of Thailand, serving as monarch since 2016. He is the only son of King Bhumibol Adulyadej and Queen Sirikit. As the tenth monarch of the Chakri dynasty, his name is also styled as Rama X, and is the oldest Thai monarch to ascent to the throne at age 64. According to the constitution, as the King he is the only person who can make final decisions regarding the funds in the Crown Property Bureau (CPB). The CPB's assets include 3,320 acres of land in Bangkok; stock in Siam Cement; 23% of Thailand's largest bank, Siam Commercial Bank; and interest in conglomerate the Shin Corporation, among others.

As of 2020, Maha Vajiralongkorn has a net worth of $30.5 billion.

Photo by – / THAI TV POOL / AFP

28. Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan Net Worth $31 Billion

Sheikh Mansour bin Zayrd Al Nahyan is a politician and businessman from the United Arab Emirates (UAE). A member of the ruling family of Abu Dhabi, he is the deputy prime minister of the UAE. He serves on the Supreme Petroleum Council Board and as chairman of the Emirates Investment Authority. He owns stakes in companies such as Virgin Galactic and Sky News Arabia, and part of the Major League soccer team New York City FC. He also owns the investment company Abu Dhabi United Group, which acquired the Manchester City Football Club.

As of 2020, Sheikh Mansour bin Zayrd Al Nahyan's net worth is $31 billion.

27. David Thomson Net Worth $32 Billion

David Thomson, the 3^rd Baron Thomson of Fleet, is a Canadian businessman and hereditary peer. His family is considered the richest in Canada. He took over as Chairman of the family business, the Thomson Corporation, following his father's death in 2006, inheriting his title as well. The company then merged with Reuters in 2008 to form Thomson Reuters, which continues today and specializes in financial services, law, healthcare sectors, and tax and accounting services. Thomson is also the owner of the Winnipeg Jets NHL team.

As of 2020 David Thomson's net worth is $32 billion. He is the richest person in Canada.

26. Elon Musk Net Worth $33 Billion

Elon Musk is a Canadian-American businessman, inventor, and investor who was originally born in South Africa. He is a very busy man, involved in many projects in a variety of roles: he is the founder, CEO, and chief engineer/designer for space exploration company SpaceX, and the co-founder, CEO, and product architect for Tesla Motors, just to name a few. He owns 54% of SpaceX and 22% of Tesla (including 33 million shares), although a 2019 legal deposition revealed that Musk has about $500 million worth of debt, most of which is owed to Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs. As such, nearly 50% of his Tesla shares are pledged as collateral to Goldman and Morgan Stanley.

As of March 2020, Elon Musk's net worth is $33 billion. His net worth peaked in February 2020 at $50 billion. After the market turmoil due to the Coronavirus pandemic, his net worth dropped by nearly $20 billion. But even after that drop, Elon is the ONLY billionaire out of the top 50 richest people in the world who has seen a net worth INCREASE since January 1st.

25. Jacqueline Mars Net Worth $37 Billion

Jacqueline Mars is an American businesswoman, from the famous Mars family of the Mars, Incorporated candy company. Mars, Inc. produces well-known and popular candy brands such as Snickers, Twix, Milky Way, M&Ms, and Skittles, and acquired gum giant Wrigley in 2008 for $23 billion. She owns one-third of the company, and holds no official position within the corporation. The rest of the company is owned by her brother John, and her four nieces. She holds a degree in anthropology from Bryn Mawr College, and has been married twice.

As of 2020 Jacqueline Mars has a net worth of $37 billion. That makes her the fifth-richest woman in the world.

24. John Mars Net Worth $37 Billion

John Mars is an American businessman based in Wyoming. Mars was born into the famous Mars family, who own the well-known candy company Mars, Incorporated. The company produces several popular candy bars including Snickers, Twix, and Milky Way. Mars serves as the Chairman of Mars, Inc., and owns one-third of the company. The rest of the company is owned by his sister Jacqueline and his four nieces. He is notorious for being reclusive and private—his feature in Forbes magazine's annual profile of the richest people in the world doesn't even include a photo of him!

As of 2020, John Mars has a net worth of $37 billion.

23. MacKenzie Bezos Net Worth $37 Billion

MacKenzie Bezos is an American novelist, best known for being the former wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. The two were married from 1993 to 2019. MacKenzie was awarded a 4% stake in Amazon as part of their divorce settlement in April 2019. At the time of the agreement, her shares were worth roughly $35 billion. Jeff retains voting rights over her shares, and got to keep 75% of their former holdings. She is the author of "The Testing of Luther Albright" (2005) and "Traps" (2013), and won an American Book Award in 2006.

As of 2020 MacKenzie Bezos' net worth is $37 billion. She instantly became the richest woman in the world in April 2019.

Jeff and MacKenzie Bezos in 2018 (Photo by Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images)

22. Ma Huateng Net Worth $38 Billion

"Pony" Ma Huateng is a Chinese internet entrepreneur and the founder, CEO, and executive board member of Tencent Holdings, Ltd. Tencent is one of the most important telecommunications companies in China, with popular products such as instant messing service Tencent QQ and the multi-purpose messaging, social media and mobile payment app Wechat. Tencent products also include web portals, e-commerce, and online multi-player games such as "League of Legends," which Tencent gained ownership of when the original game developer Riot Games was fully acquired by them in December 2015.

As of 2020, Pony Ma's net worth is $38 billion.

21. Mukesh Ambani Net Worth $42 Billion

Mukesh Ambani is an Indian businessman who has earned his net worth through his career at Reliance Industries, a Fortune 500 company, where is his the chairman, managing director, and largest shareholder. His father had developed a successful business empire, which was split between Ambani and his brother Anil Ambani after his death in 2002. Ambani received control of Reliance Industries Limited and Indian Petrochemicals Corporation Limited. He has since expanded his empire into several other industries, including the telecommunications and sports—he is the owner of Indian Premier League cricket team the Mumbai Indians. His family home in Mumbai is a private 27-storey building that is worth over $1 billion and requires a full-time staff of 600 people.

As of 2020, Mukesh Ambani's net worth is $42 billion. He is the richest person in India.

20. Jack Ma Net Worth $44 Billion

Jack Ma is a Chinese internet entrepreneur and businessman, best known as the founder and former CEO of Alibaba Group. Alibaba Group has six active subsidiaries: Alibaba.com, Tmall.com, eTao, Alibaba Cloud Computing, Taobao Marketplace, and Yahoo! China. Today, the e-commerce site Alibaba.com is the largest commerce site in the world, and is bigger than eBay and Amazon.com combined. Ma holds roughly 160 million shares and a 6.3% stake in Alibaba Group Holdings; 70% interest in Cayman Islands-based company APN; and 48.5% of the company Zhejiang Ant Small & Micro Financial, a holding company for the digital payment service Alipay.

As of 2020, Jack Ma's net worth is $44 billion.

19. Françoise Bettencourt-Meyers Net Worth $48 Billion

Françoise Bettencourt-Meyers is a French author and heiress, and one of the richest women on the planet. Her grandfather had founded the cosmetics company L'Oreal, and her mother Liliane Bettencourt was one of the largest shareholders of the company, passing her stake along to Bettencourt-Meyers after her passing in 2017. The Bettencourt-Meyers family now owns a 33% stake in L'Oreal. Bettencourt-Meyers currently serves on L'Oreal's Board of Directors, and as chairwoman of the family's holding company, Téthys. She is also the published author of two books, "The Greek Gods" and "A Look at the Bible."

As of 2020, Francoise Bettencourt-Meyers' net worth is $48 billion. She is the third richest woman in the world and the richest woman in Europe.

18. Carlos Slim Helu Net Worth $48 Billion

Carlos Slim Helu is a Mexican businessman and philanthropist, with a career largely focused on the telecommunications industry in Latin America. He controls companies such as Telefonos De Mexico and TelCel, and has a 57% stake in mobile phone giant America Movil. He also holds large stakes in holding company Grupo Carso, banking and insurance company Grupo Financiero Inbursa, and others such as Minera Frisco and the New York Times. He has transferred many of his stakes to his children, and no longer maintains an involvement in the day-to-day operations of his companies, but is still credited as the patriarch of the family fortune.

As of 2020, Carlos Slim Helu's net worth is $48 billion. He is the richest person in Mexico. Between 2010 and 2013, Carlos was the richest person in the world with a fortune that topped $70 billion. During this period, as Microsoft stock struggled, Bill Gates' fortune fluctuated between $50 billion and $60 billion.

17. Julia Flesher Koch Net Worth $51 Billion

Julia Flesher Koch is an American businesswoman and one of the richest women in the world, despite her low public profile. She was married to businessman and co-owner of Koch Industries, David Koch, from 1996 until his passing in August 2019. Together with the couples' three young children, she inherited David's 42% stake in Koch Industries. Koch Industries is the second-largest privately held company in the United States, and her husband David Koch served as an executive vice president before retiring in 2018 due to health issues.

As of 2020, Julia Flesher Koch's net worth is $51 billion. She instantly became the second richest woman in the world when her husband David died in August 2019.

16. Charles Koch Net Worth $51 Billion

Charles Koch is an American businessman and philanthropist, best known as the co-owner and CEO of Koch Industries. Koch Industries was founded by his parents Mary and Fred Koch, as an engineering company specializing in oil-refining and other oil processes. It now deals in a wide variety of other services and products, producing well-known brands such as Quilted Northern tissue, Dixie Cup, and Lycra fabric. He owns a 42% stake in Koch Industries, the second-largest privately held company in the United States, as well as a stake in his family's private equity fund Koch Equity Development.

As of 2020, Charles  Koch's net worth is $51 billion.

15. Alice Walton Net Worth $52 Billion

Alice Walton is an American businesswoman and heiress, the daughter of Walmart founder Sam Walton. Along with her brothers Rob and Jim, the Walton family is considered one of the wealthiest families in America. She owns a 13% stake in Walmart through the Walton Family Holdings Trust and Walton Enterprises, but unlike her siblings, owns no stake in Arvest Bank. She serves as a board member of the Amon Carter Museum, and is a well-known political contributor, having provided funding for conservative organizations such as Progress for America.

As of 2020, Alice Walton's net worth is $52 billion. She is the richest woman in the world. In other words, there richest 14 people in the world are all men.

14. Amancio Ortega Gaona Net Worth $52 Billion

Amancio Ortega Gaona is a Spanish fashion executive and entrepreneur, and the founder of the Inditex fashion group. Most notably, Inditex owns the popular global fashion retailer Zara, as well as other brands like Massimo Dutti, Pull and Bear, Bershka, Stradivarius, and Zara Home. He owns a 59.3% stake in Inditex, a 21.6% stake in real estate giant Grilse, and has a property portfolio valued at $1.4 billion. As of 2011, he has taken a step down from the day to day operations of Inditex.

As of 2020, Amancio Ortega Gaona's net worth is $52 billion. Amancio was one of the 10 richest people in the world for twenty years. For a decade he was consistently in the top 5. For a brief period in April 2017, Amancio's $77 billion fortune topped Jeff Bezos' $76 billion, making him the second richest person on the planet.

13. Rob Walton Net Worth $53 Billion

S. Robson "Rob" Walton is an American businessman, and the eldest son of Walmart founder Sam Walton. His siblings Alice and Jim Walton are billionaires as well. After graduating from law school, he worked for Conner & Winners, the law firm that represented Walmart. Eventually, he joined Walmart as senior vice president, before taking over as Chairman of the Board of Directors after his father's death, a role he held from 1992 to 2015. He owns a 13% stake in Walmart through Walton Family Holdings Trust and Walton Enterprises, as well as a 25.5% stake in another Walton family venture, Arvest Bank.

As of 2020, Rob Walton's net worth is $53 billion.

12. Jim Walton Net Worth $53 Billion

Jim Walton is an American businessman, and the youngest son of Walmart founder Sam Walton. He has served on Walmart's Board of Directors since September 2005, and is also CEO of Arvest Bank, which is owned by his family and is the largest bank in Arkansas. Through the Walton Family Holdings Trust and Walton Enterprises, he owns a 13% stake in Walmart, and also has a 44% percent stake in Arvest Bank. His siblings Alice and Rob Walton are also beneficiaries of Walton Enterprises, and billionaires as well.

As of 2020, Jim Walton's net worth is $53 billion.

11. Larry Ellison Net Worth $54 Billion

Larry Ellison is an American entrepreneur, and the co-founder and former CEO of software giant Oracle. He took Oracle public on March 12, 1986, one day before rival Bill Gates took Microsoft public. Today, he owns 22% of Oracle, and has pledged 315 million personal shares as collateral against credit lines and personal debt. Additionally, he has an extensive real estate portfolio, including 98% ownership of the Hawaiian island of Lanai, which he purchased for $300 million in June 2012. He also owns the Indian Wells Tennis Garden in Coachella, California, and the Indian Wells Masters Tournament. He is one of the largest individual shareholders in Tesla and serves on the company's Board of Directors. Larry's Tesla stake is worth over $1 billion.

As of 2020 Larry Ellison's net worth is $54 billion.

(Photo by Chris Kleponis-Pool/Getty Images)

10. Sergey Brin Net Worth $57 Billion

Sergey Brin is a Russian-American computer scientist and technology entrepreneur, best known as the co-founder of Google alongside Larry Page. Born in Russia, he eventually progressed on to studying computer science at Stanford, where he met Page. Together, they started Google in 1998, a company which is now known by umbrella parent company Alphabet. He served as the head of technology for ten years before transitioning to the role of President of Alphabet. Along with Page, he controls 51% of the Alphabet's voting rights, and he also owns roughly 6% of Alphabet, as well as equity stakes in companies such as Tesla and 23andMe.

As of this writing, Sergey Brin's net worth is $57 billion.

9. Steve Ballmer Net Worth $59 Billion

Steve Ballmer is an American businessman and sports team owner. He was one of the earliest employees of Microsoft, and was hired on with a compensation packed of an annual salary of $50,000 plus an 8% ownership stake in the company. Eventually, he replaced founder Bill Gates as Microsoft CEO in 2000, before retiring in 2014. The majority of his net worth comes from his 333.3 million shares of Microsoft stock. He is now known as the enthusiastic owner of NBA sports team the Los Angeles Clippers.

As of 2020, Steve Ballmer's net worth is $59 billion.

8. Larry Page Net Worth $59 Billion

Larry Page is an American technology entrepreneur, best known as the co-founder of Google alongside Sergey Brin. He is also the former CEO of web giant Alphabet, which is Google's umbrella parent company and owns multiple subsidiary companies including the Google search engine. Page owns about 6% stake in Alphabet, and controls 51% of the company's voting rights together with Brin. Despite taking a step back from the day-to-day running of Google, Page stills serves on the board. He has donated over $1 billion worth of assets to his family foundation, the Carl Victor Page Memorial Fund.

As of this writing, Larry Page's net worth is $59 billion. His fortune typically outpaces his Google co-founder Sergey Brin by around $1 billion thanks to successful investments in companies and slightly more shares in Alphabet.

7. Michael Bloomberg Net Worth $60 Billion

Michael Bloomberg is an American politician and entrepreneur. He earned his fortune through his privately-held financial news and information services media company, Bloomberg LP, of which he owns an 88% stake in. The former CEO of Bloomberg LP, he left the position to pursue a political career as the Mayor of New York City, and was in office from 2002 – 2013. In November 2019 he announced his candidacy for the 2020 Democratic presidential primaries, ending his campaign in March 2020 after failing to win enough delegates. In total, he spent $676 million on his entirely self-funded campaign.

As of this writing, Michael Bloomberg's net worth is $60 billion. That takes into account the $676 million he spent on his failed Presidential campaign.

6. Mark Zuckerberg Net Worth $65 Billion

Mark Zuckerberg is an American technology entrepreneur and philanthropist, and is best known as one of the co-founders of social media giant Facebook. He launched the site in 2004 from his Harvard dorm room, eventually dropping out of school to work on it. As the CEO of Facebook, Zuckerberg earns an annual salary of $1; the majority of his net worth comes from his ownership of 400 million Facebook shares. Along with his wife Priscilla Chan, Zuckerberg is part of The Giving Pledge, and the couple plan to eventually donate 99% of their Facebook shares to their foundation, the Chan-Zuckerberg Initiative.

As of March 15, 2020, Mark Zuckerberg's net worth is $65 billion. He is 35 years old. He is the youngest billionaire on this list by more than a decade.

5. Bernard Arnault Net Worth $70 Billion

Bernard Arnault is a French businessman and current CEO of luxury goods conglomerate LVMH, which is made up of companies such as Louis Vuitton, Moet & Chandon, and Fendi. He got his start in business after college, when he joined his father's company, before eventually heading his own company selling luxury condominiums in Miami, Florida. After returning home to France, he became CEO of fashion brand Christian Dior, which his family holds a 73% stake in. Christian Dior in turn is a 41% owner in LVMH, and the Arnault family also have a 5.7% direct stake in LVMH as well.

As of this writing, Bernard Arnault's net worth is $70 billion. In 2019 his fortune increased by $36 billion, to an all-time peak of $106 billion. For a time he was the third richest person in the world. Unfortuantely, no billionaire has been hit harder by the ups and downs of 2020 than Bernard Arnault. Between January 1st and March 15, 2020, Bernard's fortune plummeted by more than $30 billion.

4. Vladimir Putin Net Worth $70 Billion

Vladimir Putin is a Russian politician, currently serving his second term as the President of Russia. His first Presidential term lasted from 2000 – 2008, and he has also served as Prime Minister of Russia from 1999 – 2000, and 2008 – 2012. His annual salary as the President is officially disclosed as $187,000 (5.8 million rubles), and he and his wife claim a total net worth of less than $500,000. However, many experts believe that Putin has levered his political power to acquire secret ownership in several large firms, such as a 4.5% ownership stake in natural gas producer Gazprom, a 37% stake in oil company Surgutneftegas, and 50% stake in Swiss oil-trader Gunvor.

Other estimates of Putin's personal fortune top $100 – $200 billion. His exact personal wealth is extremely difficult to nail down.

3. Warren Buffett Net Worth $75 Billion

Warren Buffett is an American entrepreneur, widely considered to be the greatest investor of all time. He is also the CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, a multinational conglomerate holding company that owns GEICO, Dairy Queen, and Duracell, as well as holdings in companies such as American Express, Apple, and several major US airline carriers. Despite his immense success, Buffett is also known to be incredibly humble. He still lives in Omaha, Nebraska, in a modest house he bought in 1956. He also has pledged to give away 99% of his net worth to charity before he dies as part of The Giving Pledge, with 83% of the money to go to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

As of this writing, Warren Buffett's net worth is $75 billion. He is 89 years old. That makes him the oldest billionaire on this list.

(Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images)

2. Bill Gates Net Worth $102 Billion

Bill Gates is an American business magnate, philanthropist, author. He is also the co-founder and former CEO of software company Microsoft, which has become the largest PC software company in the world since its beginnings in 1975. Today, Gates actually owns less than 1.3% of Microsoft; he has sold most of his shares over the years to fund Cascade Investment LLC, a vehicle he uses to invest in hundreds of other companies. In 2010, he pledged with his wife Melinda Gates as part of The Giving Pledge, to donate at least half of their wealth over the course of time, to charity. The couple now operate the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the largest transparent charitable foundation in the world.

As of this writing, Bill Gates' net worth is $102 billion. On the day Microsoft went public in 1986, Bill's paper net worth was $350 million. A year later, in late 1987, his net worth was $1.25 billion. For much of the last 25 years, Bill was the uncontested richest person on the planet. For a brief period at the height of the dotcom bubble in 1999, Bill's net worth topped $100 billion. After adjusting for inflation that's the same as around $135 billion today. As we mentioned previously, Bill lost his #1 status to Mexican businessman Carlos Slim Helu between 2010 and 2013. Bill regained the crown in 2013, but lost it again in July 2017 when he was taken over for the first time by…

1. Jeff Bezos Net Worth $140 Billion

Jeff Bezos is an American philanthropist, businessman and investor who is best known for being the founder and CEO of Amazon. What originally started as a simple online bookstore, Amazon has since expanded into a massive global retailer and household name. After his divorce in 2019, his ex-wife MacKenzie Bezos received 19.7 million shares as part of their divorce settlement, valued at $36 billion at the time. Despite his success, Bezos is not the "Richest Person of All Time" when adjusting for inflation. He has yet to catch up to figures such as oil tycoon John D. Rockefeller, who was worth an inflation-adjusted $340 billion when he died.

As of this writing, Jeff Bezos' net worth is $140 billion which makes him the #1 richest person in the world, and therefore obviously also the richest man in the world.

Jeff first became a billionaire in June 1998. Exactly one year later his fortune surged to $10 billion. In the aftermath of the dotcom bubble explosion, Jeff's fortune sank to an all-time low of $1.5 billion. By 2015 his fortune had swelled to $50 billion. In January 2018 it stood at $100 billion. Stunningly, just seven months later his fortune swelled to $150 billion. And then three months later it topped $170 billion – his all time high.

After handing over $36 billion worth of Amazon to ex-wife MacKenzie, Jeff's net worth was $114 billion. In 2020 it has fluctuated between $110 billion and $120 billion.

Jeff is NOT the first human being to top $100 billion in non-inflation-adjusted net worth. As we mentioned previously, Bill Gates peaked $100 billion in 1999. Jeff is the first human to ever top $150 billion and then $170 billion in non-inflation adjusted net worth.

PAWAN SHARMA/AFP via Getty Images

Summary

Here is a quick recap of the 30 richest people in the world 2020:

Total = $1,581,000,000,000

How long do you think Jeff Bezos will maintain his position as the richest person in the world? Let us know below in the comments!