The latest annual Forbes Billionaires list, compiled in March, reveals the world is home to a record-breaking 3,428 billionaires. That's 400 more than in 2025, and a staggering increase from the 140 featured in the inaugural 1987 ranking. Together, these billionaires are worth $20.1 trillion (£15tn), more than the respective GDPs of most of the world's economies.
This year marks a historic explosion in centibillionaires and the first time the planet's wealthiest individual has smashed through the $800 billion (£595bn) barrier.
So, with the mega-rich raking it in like never before, read on to meet the top 23. We've also tracked their wealth via the Forbes Real-Time Billionaires list to see if their fortunes have risen or fallen since March.
All dollar amounts in US dollars. Current net worth data correct as of June 2026.
Asia's richest person, Mukesh Ambani holds a controlling 42% stake in Reliance Industries, a monster Indian conglomerate with interests in oil, retail, media and more.
Ambani made headlines in 2024 for bankrolling his son Anant's star-studded nuptials to heiress Radhika Merchant. With an estimated cost of $600 million (£446m), the wedding is the most expensive on record.
Ambani became a centibillionaire in 2024, but his fortune had dropped to $99.7 billion (£74.2bn) by March of this year. The tycoon has since seen his fortune drop again, with his net worth now pegged at $86.9 billion (£64.7bn), according to Forbes data.
Giancarlo Devasini is the co-founder and chief financial officer of Tether. According to Forbes, the crypto tycoon, who used to be a cosmetic surgeon, is likely the company's biggest shareholder.
Devasini is estimated to own a 47% stake. With Tether going from strength to strength, the holding has sent his net worth into the stratosphere, up from $9.2 billion (£6.7bn) in 2024 to $89.3 billion (£66.5bn) today, a fortune that remains static on the latest list.
Along with her family, Françoise Bettencourt Meyers owns more than a third of L'Oréal. The world's richest woman from 2017 to 2024, the French heiress has seen her fortune slip last in recent years as the cosmetics colossus struggled, mainly due to disappointing sales in China.
The company bounced back earlier this year, along with the Bettencourt Meyers' net worth. However, that figure now stands at $93.7 billion (£69.7bn) according to Forbes, with the family dropping a place in the ranking of the world's richest.
Thomas Peterffy arrived in America in 1965, the penniless descendant of Hungarian aristocrats who lost nearly everything to the Soviets. He founded Interactive Brokers in 1993 and turned it into a digital trading powerhouse before stepping down as CEO in 2019.
His wealth has soared in recent years, and he reportedly owns around 560,000 acres of land. He's added around $14 billion (£10.4bn) to his fortune since March and currently occupies 20th place on the latest list.
The world's first centibillionaire, Bill Gates first reached the milestone way back in 1999. The Microsoft co-founder was the world's richest person for 18 years between 1995 and 2017, and would easily be the wealthiest now had he not offloaded much of his Microsoft stock to fund his philanthropic efforts. In fact, Forbes reckons he would be a trillionaire.
To date, Gates and his ex-wife Melinda Gates French, both Living Pledge signatories, have donated over $100 billion (£74.4bn) to good causes. In fact, the tech pioneer, who is currently worth $104 billion (£77.4bn), has announced he'll be giving away 99% of his fortune over the next 20 years.
Changpeng Zhao, aka CZ, has the dubious distinction of being the only person in the top 25 who's served jail time. The Chinese-American founder of Binance, the world's largest crypto exchange, stepped down as CEO in 2023 following a sweeping US investigation. He then served four months in prison for violating money laundering laws and was hit with a $50 million (£37m) fine, though it barely dented his massive fortune. Zhao was pardoned by Donald Trump in 2025.
CZ is still estimated to own 90% of Binance and holds a huge amount of BNB tokens, the utility coin used to make trades on the Binance exchange. His net worth has declined by $2.5 billion (£1.9bn) since March, and he sits in 18th place right now.
Michael Bloomberg owns 88% of the eponymous media and financial information firm he co-founded in the early 1980s. Embodying the intersection of extreme wealth and political ambition, Bloomberg is perhaps best known for serving as New York mayor. He also launched an unsuccessful presidential bid in 2020.
A centibillionaire since 2024, Bloomberg is now worth $109.4 billion (£81.4bn) according to Forbes. A Living Pledge signatory, he's planning to give away the bulk of his wealth during his lifetime.
The world's richest person from 2010 to 2013, Carlos Slim Hélu is Mexico's wealthiest individual by a long shot. Together with his family, the business magnate owns 76% of sprawling conglomerate Grupo Carso, which counts mobile telecoms titan América Móvil among its extensive portfolio.
The Slim Helú fortune surpassed $100 billion (£74.4bn) for a time at the end of 2023 and start of 2024 as Grupo Carso stock soared. But the group's share price tanked during the rest of 2024 and early 2025. It's picked up significantly since, as has Slim Helú's net worth, which is currently $120 billion (£89.3bn).
Alice Walton is now the world's richest woman, having taken the crown from Françoise Bettencourt Meyers. The daughter of late Walmart founder Sam Walton, she owns a huge chunk of the retail behemoth, which has seen its share price surge in recent years amid stellar company performance.
Now boasting centibillionaire status, Alice Walton is worth $126 billion (£93.8bn) at the time of writing, with Steve Ballmer leapfrogging her in the latest ranking.
Microsoft CEO from 2000 to 2014, Steve Ballmer is thought to own 4.5% of the tech giant.
Ballmer acquired the Los Angeles Clippers NBA team the year he quit the Redmond-headquartered company. As well as his hands-on role overseeing the Clippers, the former computer exec takes an active approach when it comes to philanthropy, having given away more than $4 billion (£3bn) to worthy causes. With Microsoft stock having increased since March, Ballmer is now worth $132.4 billion (£98.2bn) and has climbed a place in the latest ranking.
The youngest of the three major living Walmart heirs, Jim Walton takes a more active role than his sister Alice in the family's business affairs, serving as chairman of the clan's Arvest Bank Group.
Like his siblings, Jim is now a fully fledged member of the centibillionaire club – and his fortune, which is shared with his immediate family, keeps on rising in tandem with the Walmart share price. It now comes in at $135 billion (£100bn), a decrease of $8 billion (£6bn) since March.
Rob Walton is the wealthiest of the Walmart siblings. The eldest of Sam Walton's children, he served as chairman of the retailer from 1992 to 2015, and only recently retired from the company's board.
Like Jim, Rob shares his fortune with his immediate family. His net worth currently stands at $137.7 billion ($102bn).
Spain's richest person by a wide margin, Amancio Ortega is one of only two non-Americans near the top of the list. He owns 60% of Inditex, the fast-fashion group that counts Zara and Massimo Dutti among its portfolio of brands. Ortega founded the company together with his late wife Rosalía Mera in 1975, starting with a single store in A Coruña.
The Inditex share price is up since the Forbes list was compiled in March, but Ortega's net worth has slid by $8.5 billion (£6.3bn), and he's dropped out of the top 10.
One of the most successful investors in history, the legendary 'Oracle of Omaha' truly has the Midas touch. As the former CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, a role he relinquished earlier this year at the remarkable age of 95, Warren Buffett has built a colossal investment empire and remains the company's chief shareholder.
Buffett has vowed to give away the bulk of his fortune, which may account for his slightly lower current net worth of $144 billion (£107bn).
Along with his family, Bernard Arnault has a 48.6% stake in LVMH, the luxury goods juggernaut that owns scores of distinguished high-end brands, from Louis Vuitton and Christian Dior to Moët & Chandon and Tiffany & Co.
LVMH's share price has taken a battering recently as shoppers cut back on premium purchases. The stock has continued to slide. Consequently, Arnault's fortune has dropped and now stands at $148.5 billion (£110bn), with the French tycoon in ninth place in the latest ranking. This is a far cry from early 2024 when Arnault ranked as the world's richest person, with a net worth of $207.8 billion (£154bn).
Jensen Huang owns 3% of Nvidia, the blockbuster chipmaker he co-founded in 1993. The company chairman and CEO briefly enjoyed centibillionaire status in 2024, but his fortune dropped back as investors stepped away from AI stocks. With the downturn a blip rather than a long-term trend, Nvidia shares have soared.
Firmly back in centibillionaire territory, Huang's current net worth of $177 billion (£132bn) sees him retain the eighth spot in the latest ranking.
When 19-year-old Mark Zuckerberg came up with the idea of Facebook in his Harvard dorm back in 2004, he could never have imagined how successful it would be, nor how rich he'd become. The company boss now holds around a 13% stake in Facebook parent Meta, which also owns Instagram and WhatsApp.
Zuckerberg, who intends to donate 99% of his wealth, is currently worth $203 billion (£151bn), slipping to seventh place in the latest rankings.
Michael Dell founded his namesake computer company at college in 1983 and owns 50% of the business. He also has a sizeable stake in AI chipmaker Broadcom. Dell attained centibillionaire status in 2024, but his fortune faltered last year as concerns over AI spending and President Trump's tariffs impacted his portfolio.
Dell and Broadcom shares have since bounced back spectacularly, and Dell is a centibillionaire once again. His current net worth stands at $225 billion (£167bn), a staggering $84 billion (£62.5bn) increase since March.
A centibillionaire for the past seven years, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos ranked as the world's richest person from 2018 to 2021. On top of his almost 9% stake in the e-commerce and cloud-computing behemoth, Bezos owns space company Blue Origin and venerable newspaper The Washington Post. Philanthropy-wise, Bezos hasn't signed the Giving Pledge but has said he plans to give away the majority of his wealth.
Amazon stock was down in early March when Forbes compiled the 2026 list, but it's since perked up. According to recent Forbes data, Bezos' wealth has increased by $31 billion (£23.1bn), but he's moved down a spot in the ranking.
Larry Ellison co-founded the company that would eventually become software giant Oracle in 1977 and hasn't looked back. Ellison, who resides on his very own Hawaiian island, owns around 40% of the business and is still very much involved, serving as Oracle's chairman and chief technology officer.
The firm's share price skyrocketed last year due to much stronger-than-expected earnings and a more positive outlook for Oracle's AI forays. Ellison's net worth has also skyrocketed. It now tops $261 billion (£194bn), catapulting him into the position of the world's fourth-richest person.
Sergey Brin started Google with his Stanford University classmate Larry Page in 1998 and took the world's number one search engine firm public in 2004. It was later renamed Alphabet.
Brin relinquished his role as company chairman in 2019 but still owns 5.7% of the business. His fortune has remained steady, and he's now worth $277 billion (£206bn).
Brin's fellow Google co-founder Larry Page also stepped down from his active role at the company in 2019 but retains a considerable stake. At 8%, it's larger than Brin's, hence Page's bigger net worth figure.
According to recent Forbes data, Page's fortune has increased by $43 billion (£32bn) since March.
Elon Musk has been part of the dozen-digit club since 2021. That same year, he became the first person ever to boast a net worth of over $300 billion (£223bn). And while his fortune has fluctuated wildly since then, it currently stands at an astronomical $789 billion (£587bn), with the Tesla and SpaceX boss, who aims to colonise Mars, expected to be the first person to achieve trillionaire status.
Musk's recent foray into politics proved highly controversial, fuelling concerns that some of the ultra-rich are buying their way oligarch-style into political power and influence.
Updated by Matt Bradfield and Simon Ward
Now discover the richest person in the world in every decade since 1820