Top 10 Richest People in the World

It’s aspirational to look at the richest people in the world and study the background, techniques and tendencies that characterize their journey. By analyzing their wealth-building traits and areas they have invested in, you can start applying their business acumen to your everyday life.

Top 10 Richest People in the World

These founders, leaders and visionaries are individuals with a unique story behind their success that allowed them to amass vast amounts of wealth. Here is a look at the top 10 richest people in the world.

1. Elon Musk: $210 billion

2. Jeff Bezos: $144 billion

3. Bernard Arnault: $143 billion

4. Gautam Adani: $122 billion

5. Bill Gates: $111 billion

6. Warren Buffett: $101 billion

7. Larry Page: $95.6 billion

8. Sergey Brin: $91.5 billion

9. Larry Ellison: $89.2 billion

10. Steve Ballmer: $89 billion

Here’s an even closer look at how the 10 richest people in the world got to where they are.

1. Elon Musk

• Age: 51

• Nationality: South Africa

• Companies: Tesla, SpaceX, The Boring Company, Neuralink, PayPal

• Net Worth: $210 billion

• Industry: Automotive Technology

• Quote: “I think it is possible for ordinary people to choose to be extraordinary.”

Elon Musk is the richest man in the world. He has a net worth of $210 billion. He founded Tesla and currently still holds a 25% stake in the company. However, Musk has long been occupied with several other well-known companies and had his roots within a group known as the “PayPal Mafia.” This consisted of serial entrepreneurs and angel investors that made up PayPal’s alumni, who have been extremely successful in their own right.

He also owns Neuralink and The Boring Company, and famously has a stake in the social media platform Twitter.

As aforementioned Musk is the richest man in the world, but he doesn’t want to stop there. He is the chief executive of SpaceX, a rocket manufacturer that supplies the space stations for NASA.

2. Jeff Bezos

• Age: 58

• Nationality: USA

• Company: Amazon

• Net Worth: $144 billion

• Industry: E-commerce and Technology

• Quote: “A brand for a company is like a reputation for a person. You earn reputation by trying to do hard things well.”

At 30 years old, Jeff Bezos left the finance industry to start a business that many saw as foolish — buying and selling books online. That little company that could is known today as Amazon, and it’s currently valued at more than $1 trillion. Bezos has a net worth of $144 billion and is credited for pioneering the e-commerce landscape, which has become one of the largest industries in the world.

Following his tremendous success, Bezos stepped away from the company but still is a top stakeholder in it. He has gone on to focus his efforts on Blue Origin, a sub-orbital space flight company with the goal of preserving Earth by colonizing space. The space race amongst the richest people in the world continues.

3. Bernard Arnault

• Age: 73

• Nationality: France

• Company: LVMH

• Net Worth: $143 billion

• Industry: Fashion and Hospitality

• Quote: “Money is just a consequence. I always say to my team, don’t worry too much about profitability. If you do your job well, the profitability will come.”

Bernard Arnault amassed his fortune in the luxury goods industry with the ownership of world-renowned brands such as Louis Vuitton and Christian Dior. He has a net worth of $143 billion. By targeting wealthy demographics and maintaining a 47% stake in his company, LVMH, he has climbed his way to the top 10 richest people in the world.

Arnault’s luxury fashion empire spans over 70 brands, which he manages with his siblings. As of January 2021, Tiffany & Co. was added to the panel for $15.8 billion, which was estimated to be the largest acquisition of all time in luxury fashion. Not limited to just fashion, Arnault also owns several luxury hotels and cruise lines that have only added to his wealth over the years.

4. Gautam Adani

• Age: 60

• Nationality: India

• Company: Adani Group

• Net Worth: $122 billion

• Industry: Energy and Transportation

• Quote: “Being an entrepreneur is my dream job, as it tests one’s tenacity.”

Gautam Adani is the richest person in India. He has a net worth of $122 billion. His entrepreneurial DNA comes directly from his father, who owned a textile business. Despite the opportunity to inherit, Adani had no interest in the business and decided to follow his own ambitions to achieve great wealth. Soon after leaving home, Adani entered the diamond industry, which saw him quickly rise to millionaire status.

Upon acquiring this wealth, he founded Adani Enterprises, a conglomerate that now oversees several businesses in sectors such as energy, transportation, mining, infrastructure, logistics, cement and fast-moving consumer goods. Thanks to India’s economic growth, Adani’s stock market success and recent investments in green energy have added more than $41.5 billion to his net worth over the past year, propelling him toward the top of the rich list.

5. Bill Gates

• Age: 66

• Nationality: USA

• Company: Microsoft

• Net Worth: $111 billion

• Industry: Technology and Software

• Quote: “Success is a lousy teacher. It seduces smart people into thinking they can’t lose.”

Bill Gates was a tech-whiz kid growing up, having designed his first software program at age 13. From this foundation, he would go on to become a co-founder of Microsoft, the largest computer software company in the world. Microsoft was first founded in 1975, but Gates decided to step down as CEO in 2000. Gates has a net worth of $111 billion.

He maintained an active role in the company over the years, as Microsoft continued its expansion in the computing, software and gaming sectors, with the company purchasing Activision Blizzard in a deal valued at $68.7 billion. Gates relinquished his duties at Microsoft to focus on philanthropy through the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

6. Warren Buffett

• Age: 92

• Nationality: USA

• Company: Berkshire Hathaway

• Net Worth: $101 billion

• Industry: Investing and Finance

• Quote: “Someone is sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago.”

Nicknamed the “Oracle of Omaha,” Warren Buffett is regarded as the greatest investor of all time. Buffett has a net worth of $101 billion. His holding company, Berkshire Hathaway, manages a portfolio of investments that include large positions in Apple stock and several bank stocks. Buffett has long spoken about the benefits of compound interest that have helped him accumulate his fortune.

Even as it continues to work in his favor, Buffett has pledged to give 99% of his wealth to charitable foundations and philanthropic causes during his final years, and he has already donated $45.5 billion. Despite his vast wealth, Buffett doesn’t live in a multi-million-dollar mansion. Instead, he still resides at the same Omaha house he bought in 1958 for just $31,500.

7. Larry Page

• Age: 49

• Nationality: USA

• Company: Google

• Net Worth: $95.6 billion

• Industry: Technology and Advertising

• Quote: “Good ideas are always crazy until they’re not.”

Larry Page co-founded Google in 1998 and was CEO until 2001. He returned as CEO from 2011 to 2015 and remains a board member and majority shareholder. Page has a net worth of $95.6 billion. Nowadays, Google has moved under the umbrella of Alphabet, the tech conglomerate holding company that owns YouTube, Google Play, Android, Fitbit, Mandiant, Looker and Nest.

Google first built its search engine but repeatedly redefined technology with developments in GPS mapping and translation. This, in turn, led to the creation of one of the largest platforms for advertising in the world — to the good fortune of Page. Last year alone, Google generated $209.49 billion in total ad revenue.

8. Sergey Brin

• Age: 49

• Nationality: Russia

• Company: Google

• Net Worth: $91.5 billion

• Industry: Technology and Advertising

• Quote: “Solving big problems is easier than solving little problems.”

Sergey Brin, along with Larry Page, co-founded Google. So it’s no surprise he also made it onto the list of the richest people in the world. Brin has a net worth of $91.5 billion. The pair met at Stanford University before starting their venture, and just like Page, Brin continues to hold an active role as a board member with a similar stake. More recently, Brin set up Bayshore Capital Management in Singapore, a region ripe for investment with favorable tax legislation, to manage his wealth.

9. Larry Ellison

• Age: 78

• Nationality: USA

• Company: Oracle

• Net Worth: $89.2 billion

• Industry: Technology and Software

• Quote: “Great achievers are driven, not so much by the pursuit of success, but by the fear of failure.”

Ellison has a net worth of $89.2 billion. Like many others on this list, Larry Ellison can attribute his great fortune to the rise of technology. Having founded Oracle in 1977 after dropping out of college, he grew the company from its start-up phase to one of the largest software and database companies in the world. Oracle now has a market capitalization of 187.7 billion, and Ellison has retained a stake of more than 40% to date.

Ellison made his own fortune, but thanks to substantial investments he made in Tesla before its meteoric rise, he generated a net gain of more than 1,000% on his capital. He joined Tesla’s board of directors in 2018; however, Tesla announced in June that Ellison would step down. He still holds about 1.5% of Tesla’s total outstanding shares.

10. Steve Ballmer

• Age: 66

• Nationality: USA

• Company: Owner of L.A. Clippers basketball team

• Net Worth: $89 billion

• Industry: Technology

• Quote: “Great companies in the way they work, start with great leaders.”

Steve Ballmer rounds out the top 10 richest people in the world. He has a net worth of $89 billion. As the former CEO of Microsoft, he oversaw the world’s largest software developer until he stepped down in 2014. As Ballmer still maintains 4% ownership of Microsoft, he is its largest individual shareholder.

Ballmer currently owns the L.A. Clippers basketball team.

The Richest Billionaires in the World

It can be difficult to grasp the concept of a billionaire, let alone a multi-billionaire. The richest people in the world come from diverse backgrounds and areas of expertise. It is always interesting to see what paths they walked and the habits they formed to amass their wealth. As this list is ever evolving, stay tuned to see what fortune has in store for the next generation of billionaires, or quite possibly, trillionaires to crack the top 10.

Richest People in the World FAQ

• Who are the top 10 richest people in the world?

  • The top 10 richest people in the world are:

    • 1. Elon Musk: $210 billion

    • 2. Jeff Bezos: $144 billion

    • 3. Bernard Arnault: $143 billion

    • 4. Gautam Adani: $122 billion

    • 5. Bill Gates: $111 billion

    • 6. Warren Buffett: $101 billion

    • 7. Larry Page: $95.6 billion

    • 8. Sergey Brin: $91.5 billion

    • 9. Larry Ellison: $89.2 billion

    • 10. Steve Ballmer: $89 billion

• Who is the No. 1 richest man in the world?

  • The current richest man in the world is Elon Musk with a net worth of $210 billion.

• Are there trillionaires?

  • There are currently no trillionaires in the world.

Daria Uhlig, Caitlyn Moorhead and Melanie Grafil contributed to the reporting for this article.

Information is accurate as of Oct. 26, 2022.

This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Top 10 Richest People in the World