Who Is the Richest Man in the World? Top Billionaires Ranked
Since Election Night, Elon Musk, who played an active role in President Donald Trump‘s efforts to secure a second term in 2025, only gained greater influence in Trump’s inner circle until their falling out. In November 2024, Trump announced that Musk, along with former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, would lead the newly established Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which was not an official government agency. Trump said the duo “will pave the way for my administration to dismantle government bureaucracy, cut excessive regulations, eliminate wasteful spending, and restructure federal agencies.”
In addition to this role, Trump’s continued endorsement of Musk initially helped boost his business ventures. For example, SpaceX’s valuation surged to around $350 billion, according to a Bloomberg report from December 2024.”
However, Musk’s top-ranking as the world’s richest man was dethroned by fellow billionaire Larry Ellison, who as of 2025, is now the wealthiest person on earth, according to Bloomberg.
Find out who else is currently among the richest people in the world.
What Is Elon Musk’s Net Worth?
Musk has an estimated value of around $385 billion as of 2025, according to multiple outlets. In December 2024, he reached his highest net worth, surpassing $400 billion, but that decreased the following year.
What Is Larry Ellison’s Net Worth?
Ellison has a net worth of about $390 billion thanks to a surge in his company Oracle’s stock pricing skyrocketed in September 2025. Just days prior, Ellison’s net worth was $100 billion lower.
Who Are the Richest People in the World?
As of today, the richest people in the world according to Bloomberg, Forbes and several other outlets are:
- Larry Ellison — $390 billion
- Elon Musk – $385 billion
- Mark Zuckerberg – $274 billion
- Jeff Bezos – $246 billion
How Did Musk Make His Money?
A significant portion of Musk’s net worth comes from his 12 percent stake in Tesla, which represents approximately 412 million shares. He has pledged 58 percent of his Tesla shares as collateral for personal loans totaling $3.5 billion. In 2022, Musk sold $40 billion worth of Tesla stock to help fund his $44 billion acquisition of Twitter, which he later rebranded as X. Although Musk still owns roughly 79 percent of the company at that original valuation, Twitter’s worth has dropped by nearly 70 percent as of August 2024.
Musk is also the co-founder of SpaceX and The Boring Company and serves as chairman of SolarCity. He owns 43 percent of SpaceX, which was valued at $180 billion in its most recent funding round and was estimated at $350 billion in December 2024. The Boring Company, in contrast, was valued at around $5 billion in its latest round.
Additionally, Musk owns about 54 percent of xAI, the artificial intelligence company he founded in 2023. The startup was valued at $50 billion as of November 2024, according to the Wall Street Journal.
