The world 's billionaires - Wikipedia The world 's billionaires The World 's Billionaires List of the world 's billionaires, ranked in order of net worth The net worth of the world 's billionaires increased from less than $1 trillion in 2000 to over $7 trillion in 2015 Publication details Publisher Whale Media Investments Forbes family Publication Forbes First published March 1987 Latest publication 000000002017 - 03 - 23 - 0000 March 23, 2017 Current list details ( 2017 ) Wealthiest Bill Gates Net worth ( 1st ) US $ 86 billion Number of billionaires 2,043 Total list net worth value US $7.67 trillion Average net worth US $3.75 billion Number of women 227 Number of people aged 40 years or less 56 New members to the list 195 Forbes : The World 's Billionaires website The World 's Billionaires is an annual ranking by documented net worth of the world 's wealthiest billionaires compiled and published in March annually by the American business magazine Forbes. The list was first published in March 1987. The total net worth of each individual on the list is estimated and is cited in United States dollars, based on their documented assets and accounting for debt. Royalty and dictators whose wealth comes from their positions are excluded from these lists. This ranking is an index of the wealthiest documented individuals, excluding and ranking against those with wealth that is not able to be completely ascertained. In 2017, there was a record of 2,043 people on the list, which is the first time over 2,000 people were listed, that included 195 newcomers that included 76 from China and 25 from the U.S. ; there were 56 people under 40 and it had a record of 227 women. The average net worth of the list came in at US $ 3.75 billion, down US $110 million from 2015. Added together, the total net worth for 2017 's billionaires was US $7.67 trillion, up from US $7.1 trillion in 2015. In 2017, 500 of the richest people in the world became richer by $1 trillion, according to a report by Bloomberg News. As of 2017, Microsoft founder Bill Gates has topped the list 18 of the past 23 years. According to a 2017 Oxfam report, the top eight billionaires own as much combined wealth as `` half the human race ''. Contents 1 Methodology 2 Annual rankings 2.1 2017 2.2 2016 2.3 2015 2.4 2014 2.5 2013 2.6 2012 2.7 2011 2.8 2010 2.9 2009 2.10 2008 2.11 2007 2.12 2006 2.13 2005 2.14 2004 2.15 2003 2.16 2002 2.17 2001 2.18 2000 2.19 Legend 3 Statistics 4 See also 5 References 6 External links Methodology Each year, Forbes employs a team of more than 50 reporters from a variety of countries to track the activity of the world 's wealthiest individuals. Preliminary surveys are sent to those who may qualify for the list. According to Forbes, they received three types of responses -- some people try to inflate their wealth, others cooperate but leave out details, and some refuse to answer any questions. Business deals are then scrutinized and estimates of valuable assets -- land, homes, vehicles, artwork, etc. -- are made. Interviews are conducted to vet the figures and improve the estimate of an individual 's holdings. Finally, positions in a publicly traded stock are priced to market on a date roughly a month before publication. Privately held companies are priced by the prevailing price - to - sales or price - to - earnings ratios. Known debt is subtracted from assets to get a final estimate of an individual 's estimated worth in United States dollars. Since stock prices fluctuate rapidly, an individual 's true wealth and ranking at the time of publication may vary from their situation when the list was compiled. Family fortunes dispersed over a large number of relatives are included only if those individuals ' holdings are worth more than a billion dollars. However, when a living individual has dispersed his or her wealth to immediate family members, it is included under a single listing provided that individual is still living. Royal familys and dictators that have their wealth contingent on a position are always excluded from these lists. Annual rankings The rankings are published annually in March, so the net worth listed are snapshots taken at that time. These lists only show the top 10 wealthiest billionaires. 2017 Main article : The Worlds Billionaires 2017 On the 30th anniversary of the Forbes ' list of the world 's billionaires, for the fourth year in a row, Bill Gates was named the richest man in the world. The number of billionaires increased 13 % to 2,043 from 1,810 in 2016 ; this is the biggest change in over 30 years of tracking billionaires globally. This is the first time after 12 years that Carlos Slim was not within the top five. The U.S. continues to have the most billionaires in the world, with a record of 565. China has 319 ( not including Hong Kong or Macau ), Germany has 114, and India has the fourth most with 101 ; India has reached over 100 billionaires for its first time. No. Name Net worth ( USD ) Age Nationality Source ( s ) of wealth 7000100000000000000 ♠ 1 Gates, Bill Bill Gates $86.0 billion 61 United States Microsoft 7000200000000000000 ♠ 2 Buffett, Warren Warren Buffett $75.6 billion 86 United States Berkshire Hathaway 7000300000000000000 ♠ 3 Bezos, Jeff Jeff Bezos $72.8 billion 53 United States Amazon.com 7000400000000000000 ♠ 4 Ortega, Amancio Amancio Ortega $71.3 billion 80 Spain Inditex, Zara 7000500000000000000 ♠ 5 Zuckerberg, Mark Mark Zuckerberg $56.0 billion 32 United States Facebook 7000600000000000000 ♠ 6 Slim, Carlos Carlos Slim $54.5 billion 77 Mexico América Móvil, Grupo Carso 7000700000000000000 ♠ 7 Ellison, Larry Larry Ellison $52.2 billion 72 United States Oracle Corporation 7000800000000000000 ♠ 8 Koch, Charles Charles Koch $48.3 billion 81 United States Koch Industries 7000800000000000000 ♠ 8 Koch, David David Koch $48.3 billion 76 United States Koch Industries 7001100000000000000 ♠ 10 Bloomberg, Michael Michael Bloomberg $47.5 billion 75 United States Bloomberg L.P. 2016 Main article : The Worlds Billionaires 2016 For the third year in a row, Bill Gates was named the richest man in the world by Forbes 's 2016 list of the world 's billionaires. This is the 17th time that the founder of Microsoft has claimed the top spot. Amancio Ortega rose from last year 's position of number four to second. Warren Buffett of Berkshire Hathaway came in third for the second consecutive time, while Mexican telecommunication mogul Carlos Slim slipped down from last year 's second position to fourth. Jeff Bezos of Amazon, Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook and Michael Bloomberg of Bloomberg L.P., appear for the first time on the Forbes top 10 billionaires list, coming at fifth, sixth and eighth position, respectively. Zuckerberg became the youngest top 10 billionaire this year at the age of 31. Larry Ellison, Charles Koch and David Koch also slipped down from their last year 's positions, with Ellison dropping to seventh from fifth and the Kochs falling to ninth position from sixth, respectively. No. Name Net worth ( USD ) Age Nationality Source ( s ) of wealth 7000100000000000000 ♠ 1 Gates, Bill Bill Gates $75.0 billion 60 United States Microsoft 7000200000000000000 ♠ 2 Ortega, Amancio Amancio Ortega $67.0 billion 79 Spain Inditex 7000300000000000000 ♠ 3 Buffett, Warren Warren Buffett $60.8 billion 85 United States Berkshire Hathaway 7000400000000000000 ♠ 4 Slim, Carlos Carlos Slim $50.0 billion 76 Mexico América Móvil, Grupo Carso 7000500000000000000 ♠ 5 Bezos, Jeff Jeff Bezos $45.2 billion 52 United States Amazon.com 7000600000000000000 ♠ 6 Zuckerberg, Mark Mark Zuckerberg $44.6 billion 31 United States Facebook 7000700000000000000 ♠ 7 Ellison, Larry Larry Ellison $43.6 billion 71 United States Oracle Corporation 7000800000000000000 ♠ 8 Bloomberg, Michael Michael Bloomberg $40.0 billion 74 United States Bloomberg L.P. 7000900000000000000 ♠ 9 Koch, Charles Charles Koch $39.6 billion 80 United States Koch Industries 7000900000000000000 ♠ 9 Koch, David David Koch $39.6 billion 75 United States Koch Industries 2015 Main article : The World 's Billionaires 2015 In the 29th annual Forbes list of global billionaires, a record 1,826 billionaires were named with an aggregated net worth of $7.1 trillion compared to $6.4 trillion last year. 46 of the billionaires in this list are under the age of 40. A record number of 290 people joined the list for the first time, of whom 25 percent hail from China, which produced a world - leading 71 newcomers. The United States came in second, with 57, followed by India, with 28, and Germany, with 23. The United States has the largest number of billionaires with 526. Russia went down to 88 from 111 in 2014. Russia was placed behind China, Germany and India by the number of billionaires. Self - made billionaires made up the largest number of people on the list with 1,191 positions ( over 65 percent ) while just 230 ( under 13 percent ) have wealth through inheritance. The number of billionaires who inherited a portion but are still working to increase their fortunes is 405. Bill Gates was named the richest man in the world by Forbes 's annual list of the world 's billionaires. This was the 16th time that the founder of Microsoft claimed the top spot. Carlos Slim came in second for the second consecutive time. Warren Buffett of Berkshire Hathaway was placed third, while Amancio Ortega of Spain, slipped down a position from last year to number four. Larry Ellison, the founder of Oracle rounded off the top five. Christy Walton was the highest - ranking female at number eight. America 's Evan Spiegel, co-founder of photo messaging app Snapchat became the youngest billionaire this year at the age of 24. At age 99, David Rockefeller maintained his position as the oldest billionaire to be included in the list. Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook, rose to number 16 with $33.4 billion. Iceland had a billionaire, Thor Bjorgolfsson, in the list after a gap of five years. Guatemala had a billionaire, Mario Lopez Estrada, for the first time in its history. No. Name Net worth ( USD ) Age Nationality Source ( s ) of wealth 7000100000000000000 ♠ 1 Gates, Bill Bill Gates $79.2 billion 59 United States Microsoft 7000200000000000000 ♠ 2 Slim, Carlos Carlos Slim $77.1 billion 75 Mexico América Móvil, Telmex, Grupo Carso 7000300000000000000 ♠ 3 Buffett, Warren Warren Buffett $72.7 billion 84 United States Berkshire Hathaway 7000400000000000000 ♠ 4 Ortega, Amancio Amancio Ortega $64.5 billion 78 Spain Inditex 7000500000000000000 ♠ 5 Ellison, Larry Larry Ellison $54.3 billion 70 United States Oracle Corporation 7000600000000000000 ♠ 6 Koch, Charles Charles Koch $42.9 billion 79 United States Koch Industries 7000600000000000000 ♠ 6 Koch, David David Koch $42.9 billion 74 United States Koch Industries 7000800000000000000 ♠ 8 Walton, Christy Christy Walton $41.7 billion 60 United States Walmart 7000900000000000000 ♠ 9 Walton, Jim Jim Walton $40.6 billion 66 United States Walmart 7001100000000000000 ♠ 10 Bettencourt, Liliane Liliane Bettencourt $40.1 billion 92 France L'Oreal 2014 Main article : The World 's Billionaires 2014 Bill Gates added $9 billion to his fortune since 2013 and topped the Forbes 2014 billionaire list. He has topped the list 15 of the previous 20 years, but his previous number one ranking was in 2009. Mexican telecommunication mogul Carlos Slim came in second place after being number one the previous four years. Zara founder Amancio Ortega placed third for the second consecutive year. American investor Warren Buffett was in the top five for the 20th consecutive year, placing fourth. America 's Christy Walton was the highest ranking woman, placing ninth overall. Aliko Dangote of Nigeria became the first African ever to enter the top 25, with an estimated net worth of $25 billion. A total of 1,645 people made the 2014 billionaire list, representing combined wealth of $6.4 trillion. Of those, a record 268 were newcomers, surpassing 2008 's 226 newcomers. One hundred people listed in 2013 failed to make the list. The number of women on the list rose to a record 172 in 2014. Approximately 66 percent of the list was self - made, 13 percent achieved their wealth through inheritance alone, and 21 percent through a mixture of the two. The United States had 492 billionaires on the list, the most of any country. The country also had the most newcomers with 50, and women with 54. China had the second most billionaires with 152, while Russia was third with 111. Algeria, Lithuania, Tanzania, and Uganda were all represented on the list for the first time. Turkey saw the most people drop off the list, 19, due to a period of high inflation in the country. No. Name Net worth ( USD ) Age Nationality Source ( s ) of wealth 7000100000000000000 ♠ 1 Gates, Bill Bill Gates $76.0 billion 58 United States Microsoft 7000200000000000000 ♠ 2 Slim, Carlos Carlos Slim & family $72.0 billion 74 Mexico Telmex, América Móvil, Grupo Carso 7000300000000000000 ♠ 3 Ortega, Amancio Amancio Ortega $64.0 billion 77 Spain Inditex 7000400000000000000 ♠ 4 Buffett, Warren Warren Buffett $58.2 billion 83 United States Berkshire Hathaway 7000500000000000000 ♠ 5 Ellison, Larry Larry Ellison $48.0 billion 70 United States Oracle Corporation 7000600000000000000 ♠ 6 Koch, Charles Charles Koch $40.0 billion 78 United States Koch Industries 7000600000000000000 ♠ 6 Koch, David David Koch $40.0 billion 73 United States Koch Industries 7000800000000000000 ♠ 8 Adelson, Sheldon Sheldon Adelson $38.0 billion 80 United States Las Vegas Sands 7000900000000000000 ♠ 9 Walton, Christy Christy Walton & family $36.7 billion 58 -- 59 United States Walmart 7001100000000000000 ♠ 10 Walton, Jim Jim Walton $34.7 billion 65 United States Walmart 2013 Main article : The World 's Billionaires 2013 Carlos Slim topped the 2013 billionaire list, marking his fourth consecutive year at the top. Bill Gates remained in second, while Amancio Ortega moved up to third. Ortega 's gain of $19.5 billion was the largest of anyone on the list. Warren Buffett failed to make the top three for the first time since 2000, placing fourth. Diesel founder Renzo Rosso was among the top newcomers, debuting with an estimate net worth of $3 billion. A global rise in asset prices, led Forbes editor Randall Lane to declare `` It ( was ) a very good year to be a billionaire ''. However, it was not a good year to be Eike Batista who fell from seventh to 100th, suffering the largest net loss of anyone on the list. Overall, net gainers outnumbered net losers by 4 : 1. A record total of 1,426 people made the 2013 list, representing $5.4 trillion of assets. Of those, 442 billionaires hailed from the United States. The Asian - Pacific region had 386 billionaires and Europe 366. The list also featured a record number of newcomers, 210, representing 42 different countries. Sixty people from the 2012 list fell below a billion dollar of assets in 2013 and eight others from the 2012 list died. The Asia - Pacific region had the most drop - offs, with 29, followed by the United States with 16. The 2013 list featured 138 women, of which 50 came from the United States. A majority of the list ( 961 individuals, 67 percent ) was entirely self - made ; 184 ( 13 percent ) inherited their wealth, and 281 ( 20 percent ) achieved their fortune through a combination of inheritance and business acumen. No. Name Net worth ( USD ) Age Nationality Source ( s ) of wealth 7000100000000000000 ♠ 1 Slim, Carlos Carlos Slim & family $73.0 billion 73 Mexico Telmex, América Móvil, Grupo Carso 7000200000000000000 ♠ 2 Gates, Bill Bill Gates $67.0 billion 57 United States Microsoft 7000300000000000000 ♠ 3 Ortega, Amancio Amancio Ortega $57.0 billion 76 Spain Inditex Group 7000400000000000000 ♠ 4 Buffett, Warren Warren Buffett $53.5 billion 82 United States Berkshire Hathaway 7000500000000000000 ♠ 5 Ellison, Larry Larry Ellison $43.0 billion 68 United States Oracle Corporation 7000600000000000000 ♠ 6 Koch, Charles Charles Koch $34.0 billion 77 United States Koch Industries 7000600000000000000 ♠ 6 Koch, David David Koch $34.0 billion 72 United States Koch Industries 7000800000000000000 ♠ 8 Ka - shing, Li Li Ka - shing $31.0 billion 84 Hong Kong Canada Cheung Kong Holdings 7000900000000000000 ♠ 9 Bettencourt, Liliane Liliane Bettencourt & family $30.0 billion 90 France L'Oréal 7001100000000000000 ♠ 10 Arnault, Bernard Bernard Arnault $29.0 billion 63 France LVMH 2012 Main article : The World 's Billionaires 2012 Carlos Slim topped the 2012 list, marking this third consecutive year at the top. Bill Gates placed second, but narrowed the gap from 2011 as Slim 's fortune fell $5 billion while Gates ' rose $5 billion. Warren Buffett remained in third place. Bernard Arnault of France was the top - ranking European on the list, placing fourth. Ricardo Salinas Pliego was the greatest gainer in terms of dollars, adding $9.2 billion to his fortune and moving up to number 37 overall. Making her debut on the list at age 27, Spanx founder Sara Blakely became the youngest self - made female billionaire ever. Colombia 's Alejandro Santo Domingo was the highest - ranked newcomer, inheriting a $9.5 billion stake in Santo Domingo Group from his father. India 's Lakshmi Mittal was the largest loser as his fortune dropped from $31.1 billion to $20.7 billion as the price of steel maker ArcelorMittal fell sharply. As a result, he failed to make the top 10 for the first time since 2004 and lost his title of richest Asian to Hong Kong 's Li Ka - shing. A record total of 1,226 people made the 2012 list, representing 58 different countries. Of those, 126 were newcomers to the list and 104 were women. The United States had the greatest number of billionaires with 425. Russia had 96 people on the list, while China had 95. Georgia, Morocco, and Peru were newly represented on the list. Falling stock prices in Asia contributed to 117 former billionaires falling from the list worldwide. Twelve others listed in 2011 died. Overall, net gainers ( 460 ) barely outnumbered net losers ( 441 ). To coincide with the release of the 2012 list, Forbes announced a new `` Billionaire Real - Time Ticker '' updating the wealth of the world 's top fifty billionaires in real time. No. Name Net worth ( USD ) Age Nationality Source ( s ) of wealth 7000100000000000000 ♠ 1 Slim, Carlos Carlos Slim & family $69.0 billion 72 Mexico Telmex, América Móvil, Grupo Carso 7000200000000000000 ♠ 2 Gates, Bill Bill Gates $61.0 billion 56 United States Microsoft 7000300000000000000 ♠ 3 Buffett, Warren Warren Buffett $44.0 billion 81 United States Berkshire Hathaway 7000400000000000000 ♠ 4 Arnault, Bernard Bernard Arnault $41.0 billion 63 France LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton 7000500000000000000 ♠ 5 Ortega, Amancio Amancio Ortega $37.5 billion 75 Spain Inditex Group 7000600000000000000 ♠ 6 Ellison, Larry Larry Ellison $36.0 billion 67 United States Oracle Corporation 7000700000000000000 ♠ 7 Batista, Eike Eike Batista $30.0 billion 55 Brazil EBX Group 7000800000000000000 ♠ 8 Stefan Persson $26.0 billion 64 Sweden H&M 7000900000000000000 ♠ 9 Ka - shing, Li Li Ka - shing $25.5 billion 83 Hong Kong Canada Cheung Kong Holdings 7001100000000000000 ♠ 10 Albrecht, Karl Karl Albrecht $25.4 billion 92 Germany Aldi 2011 Main article : The World 's Billionaires 2011 In the 25th annual Forbes list of global billionaires, Carlos Slim added $20.5 billion to his fortune, the most of anyone, and retained his number one ranking with a total fortune of $74 billion. Bill Gates remained in second place with $56 billion, while Warren Buffett was third with $50 billion. The top 10 had a combined wealth of $406 billion, up from $342 billion in 2010. According to Forbes editor Kerry Dolan, `` media and technology billionaires definitely benefited from a stronger stock market and a growing enthusiasm for all things social '' since the 2010 list. However, Nigerian commodity mogul Aliko Dangote was the greatest gainer on a percentage basis as his fortune increased 557 percent to $13.5 billion. Mark Zuckerberg was one of seven Facebook - related billionaires on the list, as he $9.5 billion to his fortune to move up to 52nd. Facebook co-founder Dustin Moskovitz was the youngest person on the list. Aged 26, eight days younger than Zuckerberg, he debuted at number 420 with an estimated fortune of $2.7 billion. IKEA founder Ingvar Kamprad was the largest loser as he saw his fortune plummet from $23 billion to $6 billion, dropping him from 11th to 162nd overall. A record 1,210 billionaires made the 2011 list, representing a combined wealth of $4.5 trillion, up from $3.6 trillion the previous year. One third of the world 's billionaires, 413, came from the United States. China had the second most billionaires with 115, while Russia was third with 101. Asia moved up to 332 billionaires, passing Europe as a region for the first time since the 1990s. The 2011 list included 214 newcomers and the average net worth of those on it increased to $3.7 billion. No. Name Net worth ( USD ) Age Nationality Source ( s ) of wealth 7000100000000000000 ♠ 1 Slim, Carlos Carlos Slim & family $74.0 billion 71 Mexico Telmex, América Móvil, Grupo Carso 7000200000000000000 ♠ 2 Gates, Bill Bill Gates $56.0 billion 55 United States Microsoft 7000300000000000000 ♠ 3 Buffett, Warren Warren Buffett $50.0 billion 80 United States Berkshire Hathaway 7000400000000000000 ♠ 4 Arnault, Bernard Bernard Arnault $41.0 billion 62 France LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton 7000500000000000000 ♠ 5 Ellison, Larry Larry Ellison $39.5 billion 66 United States Oracle Corporation 7000600000000000000 ♠ 6 Mittal, Lakshmi Lakshmi Mittal $31.1 billion 60 India Arcelor Mittal 7000700000000000000 ♠ 7 Ortega, Amancio Amancio Ortega $31.0 billion 74 Spain Inditex Group 7000800000000000000 ♠ 8 Batista, Eike Eike Batista $30.0 billion 53 Brazil EBX Group 7000900000000000000 ♠ 9 Ambani, Mukesh Mukesh Ambani $27.0 billion 57 India Reliance Industries 7001100000000000000 ♠ 10 Walton, Christy Christy Walton & family $26.5 billion 55 United States Walmart Main article : The World 's Billionaires 2010 Carlos Slim narrowly eclipsed Bill Gates to top the billionaire list for the first time. Slim saw his estimated worth surge $18.5 billion to $53.5 billion as shares of America Movil rose 35 percent. Gates ' estimated wealth rose $13 billion to $53 billion, placing him second. Warren Buffett was third with $47 billion. Christy Walton was the highest - ranking woman, placing 12th overall, with an inherited fortune of $22.5 billion. At age 25, Mark Zuckerberg continued to be the world 's youngest self - made billionaire. American Isaac Perlmutter was among the newcomers with an estimated fortune of $4 billion largely acquired in his sale of Marvel Entertainment to Disney. A total of 1,011 people made the 2010 list. The United States accounted for 403 billionaires, followed by China with 89 and Russia with 62. It was the first time China, while including Hong Kong, placed second. A total of 55 countries were represented on the 2010 list, including Finland and Pakistan which claimed their first billionaires. Eighty - nine women made the list, but only 14 of them were self - made. The combined net worth of the list was $3.6 trillion, up 50 percent from 2009 's $2.4 trillion, while the average net worth was $3.5 billion. The 2010 list featured 164 re-entries and 97 true newcomers. Asia accounted for more than 100 of the new entrants. Overall, just 12 percent of the list lost wealth since 2009, and 30 people fell off the list. Thirteen others died. Of the 89 women, 12 were newcomers in 2010. Steve Forbes said the growing number of billionaires was clear sign that the world 's economy was recovering from 2009 's global financial crisis. In June 2010, Warren Buffett and Bill Gates announce The Giving Pledge that is a promise to give the majority of their wealth to philanthropy. As of 2017, the pledge has 158 signatories, but some of the signatories have since died. Most of the signers of the pledge are billionaires, and their pledges total to over $365 billion. No. Name Net worth ( USD ) Age Nationality Source ( s ) of wealth 7000100000000000000 ♠ 1 Slim, Carlos Carlos Slim & family $53.5 billion 70 Mexico Telmex, América Móvil, Grupo Carso 7000200000000000000 ♠ 2 Gates, Bill Bill Gates $53.0 billion 54 United States Microsoft 7000300000000000000 ♠ 3 Buffett, Warren Warren Buffett $47.0 billion 79 United States Berkshire Hathaway 7000400000000000000 ♠ 4 Ambani, Mukesh Mukesh Ambani $29.0 billion 53 India Reliance Industries 7000500000000000000 ♠ 5 Mittal, Lakshmi Lakshmi Mittal $28.7 billion 60 India Arcelor Mittal 7000600000000000000 ♠ 6 Ellison, Larry Larry Ellison $28.0 billion 66 United States Oracle Corporation 7000700000000000000 ♠ 7 Arnault, Bernard Bernard Arnault $27.5 billion 61 France LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton 7000800000000000000 ♠ 8 Batista, Eike Eike Batista $27.0 billion 53 Brazil EBX Group 7000900000000000000 ♠ 9 Ortega, Amancio Amancio Ortega $25.0 billion 74 Spain Inditex Group 7001100000000000000 ♠ 10 Albrecht, Karl Karl Albrecht $23.5 billion 90 Germany Aldi Süd 2009 Main article : The World 's Billionaires 2009 In the wake of the Financial crisis of 2007 -- 2008, the world 's billionaires lose $2 trillion in net worth and the list becomes 30 % smaller than the previous year 's list. No. Name Net worth ( USD ) Age Nationality Source ( s ) of wealth 7000100000000000000 ♠ 1 Gates, Bill Bill Gates $40.0 billion 53 United States Microsoft 7000200000000000000 ♠ 2 Buffett, Warren Warren Buffett $37.0 billion 78 United States Berkshire Hathaway 7000300000000000000 ♠ 3 Slim, Carlos Carlos Slim $35.0 billion 69 Mexico Telmex, América Móvil 7000400000000000000 ♠ 4 Ellison, Larry Larry Ellison $22.5 billion 64 United States Oracle Corporation 7000500000000000000 ♠ 5 Kamprad, Ingvar Ingvar Kamprad $22.0 billion 83 Sweden IKEA 7000600000000000000 ♠ 6 Albrecht, Karl Karl Albrecht $21.5 billion 89 Germany Aldi Süd 7000700000000000000 ♠ 7 Ambani, Mukesh Mukesh Ambani $19.5 billion 57 India Reliance Industries 7000800000000000000 ♠ 8 Mittal, Lakshmi Lakshmi Mittal $19.3 billion 58 India Arcelor Mittal 7000900000000000000 ♠ 9 Albrecht, Theo Theo Albrecht $18.8 billion 87 Germany Aldi Nord, Trader Joe 's 7001100000000000000 ♠ 10 Ortega, Amancio Amancio Ortega $18.3 billion 73 Spain Inditex Group 2008 Main article : The World 's Billionaires 2008 Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, four years after starting the company, joins the list at 23 to become the youngest self - made billionaire. No. Name Net worth ( USD ) Age Nationality Source ( s ) of wealth 7000100000000000000 ♠ 1 Buffett, Warren Warren Buffett $62.0 billion 77 United States Berkshire Hathaway 7000200000000000000 ♠ 2 Slim, Carlos Carlos Slim $60.0 billion 68 Mexico Telmex, América Móvil 7000300000000000000 ♠ 3 Gates, Bill Bill Gates $58.0 billion 52 United States Microsoft 7000400000000000000 ♠ 4 Mittal, Lakshmi Lakshmi Mittal $45.0 billion 57 India Arcelor Mittal 7000500000000000000 ♠ 5 Ambani, Mukesh Mukesh Ambani $43.0 billion 50 India Reliance Industries 7000600000000000000 ♠ 6 Ambani, Anil Anil Ambani $42.0 billion 48 India Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group 7000700000000000000 ♠ 7 Kamprad, Ingvar Ingvar Kamprad $31.0 billion 81 Sweden IKEA 7000800000000000000 ♠ 8 Pal Singh, Kushal Kushal Pal Singh $30.0 billion 76 India DLF Group 7000900000000000000 ♠ 9 Deripaska, Oleg Oleg Deripaska $28.0 billion 40 Russia Rusal 7001100000000000000 ♠ 10 Albrecht, Karl Karl Albrecht $27.0 billion 88 Germany Aldi Süd 2007 Main article : The World 's Billionaires 2007 No. Name Net worth ( USD ) Age Nationality Source ( s ) of wealth 7000100000000000000 ♠ 1 Gates, Bill Bill Gates $56.0 billion 51 United States Microsoft 7000200000000000000 ♠ 2 Buffett, Warren Warren Buffett $52.0 billion 76 United States Berkshire Hathaway 7000300000000000000 ♠ 3 Slim, Carlos Carlos Slim $49.0 billion 67 Mexico Telmex, América Móvil, Grupo Carso 7000400000000000000 ♠ 4 Ingvar Kamprad $33.0 billion 80 Sweden IKEA 7000500000000000000 ♠ 5 Mittal, Lakshmi Lakshmi Mittal $32.0 billion 56 India Arcelor Mittal 7000600000000000000 ♠ 6 Adelson, Sheldon Sheldon Adelson $26.5 billion 73 United States Las Vegas Sands 7000700000000000000 ♠ 7 Arnault, Bernard Bernard Arnault $26.0 billion 58 France LVMH 7000800000000000000 ♠ 8 Ortega, Amancio Amancio Ortega $24.0 billion 71 Spain Inditex Group 7000900000000000000 ♠ 9 Ka - shing, Li Li Ka - shing $23.0 billion 78 Hong Kong Canada Cheung Kong Holdings, Hutchison Whampoa 7001100000000000000 ♠ 10 David Thomson $22.0 billion 49 Canada Thomson Corporation 2006 Main article : The World 's Billionaires 2006 No. Name Net worth ( USD ) Age Nationality Source ( s ) of wealth 7000100000000000000 ♠ 1 Gates, Bill Bill Gates $52.0 billion 50 United States Microsoft 7000200000000000000 ♠ 2 Buffett, Warren Warren Buffett $42.0 billion 75 United States Berkshire Hathaway 7000300000000000000 ♠ 3 Slim, Carlos Carlos Slim $30.0 billion 66 Mexico Telmex 7000400000000000000 ♠ 4 Kamprad, Ingvar Ingvar Kamprad $28.0 billion 79 Sweden IKEA 7000500000000000000 ♠ 5 Mittal, Lakshmi Lakshmi Mittal $23.5 billion 55 India Mittal Steel Company 7000600000000000000 ♠ 6 Allen, Paul Paul Allen $22.0 billion 53 United States Microsoft 7000700000000000000 ♠ 7 Arnault, Bernard Bernard Arnault $21.5 billion 57 France LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton 7000800000000000000 ♠ 8 Al - Waleed, Prince Prince Al - Waleed $20.0 billion 49 Saudi Arabia Kingdom Holding Company 7000900000000000000 ♠ 9 Thomson, Kenneth Kenneth Thomson $19.6 billion 82 Canada The Thomson Corporation 7001100000000000000 ♠ 10 Shing, Li Ka Li Ka Shing $18.8 billion 77 Hong Kong Canada Cheung Kong Group, Hutchison Whampoa 2005 Main article : The World 's Billionaires 2005 No. Name Net worth ( USD ) Age Nationality Source ( s ) of wealth 7000100000000000000 ♠ 1 Gates, Bill Bill Gates $46.5 billion 49 United States Microsoft 7000200000000000000 ♠ 2 Buffett, Warren Warren Buffett $44.0 billion 74 United States Berkshire Hathaway 7000300000000000000 ♠ 3 Mittal, Lakshmi Lakshmi Mittal $25.0 billion 54 India Mittal Steel Company 7000400000000000000 ♠ 4 Slim, Carlos Carlos Slim $23.8 billion 65 Mexico Telmex 7000500000000000000 ♠ 5 Al - Waleed, Prince Prince Al - Waleed $23.7 billion 49 Saudi Arabia Kingdom Holding Company 7000600000000000000 ♠ 6 Kamprad, Ingvar Ingvar Kamprad $23.0 billion 79 Sweden IKEA 7000700000000000000 ♠ 7 Allen, Paul Paul Allen $21.0 billion 52 United States Microsoft 7000800000000000000 ♠ 8 Albrecht, Karl Karl Albrecht $18.5 billion 85 Germany Aldi Süd 7000900000000000000 ♠ 9 Ellison, Larry Larry Ellison $18.4 billion 60 United States Oracle Corporation 7001100000000000000 ♠ 10 Walton, S. Robson S. Robson Walton $18.3 billion 61 United States Walmart Main article : The World 's Billionaires 2004 The founders of Google, Sergey Brin and Larry Page, become billionaires at age 30. No. Name Net worth ( USD ) Age Nationality Source ( s ) of wealth 7000100000000000000 ♠ 1 Gates, Bill Bill Gates $46.6 billion 48 United States Microsoft 7000200000000000000 ♠ 2 Buffett, Warren Warren Buffett $42.9 billion 73 United States Berkshire Hathaway 7000300000000000000 ♠ 3 Albrecht, Karl Karl Albrecht $23.0 billion 84 Germany Aldi Süd 7000400000000000000 ♠ 4 Al - Waleed, Prince Prince Al - Waleed $21.5 billion 47 Saudi Arabia Kingdom Holding Company 7000500000000000000 ♠ 5 Allen, Paul Paul Allen $21.0 billion 51 United States Microsoft 7000600000000000000 ♠ 6 Walton, Alice Alice Walton * $20.0 billion 55 United States Wal - Mart 7000700000000000000 ♠ 7 Walton, Helen Helen Walton * $20.0 billion 84 United States Wal - Mart 7000800000000000000 ♠ 8 Walton, Jim Jim Walton * $20.0 billion 56 United States Wal - Mart 7000900000000000000 ♠ 9 Walton, John John Walton * $20.0 billion 58 United States Wal - Mart 7001100000000000000 ♠ 10 Walton, S. Robson S. Robson Walton * $20.0 billion 60 United States Wal - Mart Each hold an essentially equal share in Wal - Mart. 2003 Main article : The World 's Billionaires 2003 Oprah Winfrey becomes the first female African American billionaire. No. Name Net worth ( USD ) Age Nationality Source ( s ) of wealth 7000100000000000000 ♠ 1 Gates, Bill Bill Gates $40.7 billion 47 United States Microsoft 7000200000000000000 ♠ 2 Buffett, Warren Warren Buffett $30.5 billion 72 United States Berkshire Hathaway 7000300000000000000 ♠ 3 Karl and Theo Albrecht $25.6 billion 83 Germany Aldi Süd 7000400000000000000 ♠ 4 Allen, Paul Paul Allen $20.1 billion 50 United States Microsoft 7000500000000000000 ♠ 5 Al - Waleed, Prince Prince Al - Waleed $17.7 billion 46 Saudi Arabia Kingdom Holding Company 7000600000000000000 ♠ 6 Ellison, Larry Larry Ellison $16.6 billion 58 United States Oracle Corporation 7000700000000000000 ♠ 7 Walton, Alice Alice Walton * $16.5 billion 54 United States Wal - Mart 7000800000000000000 ♠ 8 Walton, Helen Helen Walton * $16.5 billion 83 United States Wal - Mart 7000900000000000000 ♠ 9 Walton, Jim Jim Walton * $16.5 billion 55 United States Wal - Mart 7001100000000000000 ♠ 10 Walton, John John Walton * $16.5 billion 57 United States Wal - Mart 7001100000000000000 ♠ 10 Walton, S. Robson S. Robson Walton * $16.5 billion 59 United States Wal - Mart Each hold an essentially equal share in Wal - Mart. 2002 Main article : The World 's Billionaires 2002 As a result of the market crash caused by the Dot - com bubble, 83 billionaires drop off the list from the previous year. No. Name Net worth ( USD ) Age Nationality Source ( s ) of wealth 7000100000000000000 ♠ 1 Gates, Bill Bill Gates $52.8 billion 46 United States Microsoft 7000200000000000000 ♠ 2 Buffett, Warren Warren Buffett $35.0 billion 71 United States Berkshire Hathaway 7000300000000000000 ♠ 3 Karl and Theo Albrecht $26.8 billion 82 Germany Aldi Süd 7000400000000000000 ♠ 4 Allen, Paul Paul Allen $25.2 billion 49 United States Microsoft 7000500000000000000 ♠ 5 Ellison, Larry Larry Ellison $23.5 billion 57 United States Oracle Corporation 7000600000000000000 ♠ 6 Walton, Jim Jim Walton * $20.8 billion 54 United States Wal - Mart 7000700000000000000 ♠ 7 Walton, John John Walton * $20.7 billion 56 United States Wal - Mart 7000800000000000000 ♠ 8 Walton, Alice Alice Walton * $20.5 billion 53 United States Wal - Mart 7000900000000000000 ♠ 9 Walton, S. Robson S. Robson Walton * $20.5 billion 58 United States Wal - Mart 7001100000000000000 ♠ 10 Walton, Helen Helen Walton * $20.4 billion 82 United States Wal - Mart Each hold an essentially equal share in Wal - Mart. 2001 Main article : The World 's Billionaires 2001 In 2001, BET founder Robert L. Johnson became the first ever African - American billionaire. No. Name Net worth ( USD ) Age Nationality Source ( s ) of wealth 7000100000000000000 ♠ 1 Gates, Bill Bill Gates $58.7 billion 45 United States Microsoft 7000200000000000000 ♠ 2 Buffett, Warren Warren Buffett $32.3 billion 70 United States Berkshire Hathaway 7000300000000000000 ♠ 3 Allen, Paul Paul Allen $30.4 billion 48 United States Microsoft 7000400000000000000 ♠ 4 Ellison, Larry Larry Ellison $26.0 billion 56 United States Oracle Corporation 7000500000000000000 ♠ 5 Karl and Theo Albrecht $25.0 billion 81 Germany Aldi 7000600000000000000 ♠ 6 Al - Waleed, Prince Prince Al - Waleed $20.0 billion 44 Saudi Arabia Kingdom Holding Company 7000700000000000000 ♠ 7 Walton, Jim Jim Walton * $18.8 billion 53 United States Wal - Mart 7000800000000000000 ♠ 8 Walton, John John Walton * $18.7 billion 55 United States Wal - Mart 7000900000000000000 ♠ 9 Walton, S. Robson S. Robson Walton * $18.6 billion 57 United States Wal - Mart 7001100000000000000 ♠ 10 Walton, Alice Alice Walton * $18.5 billion 52 United States Wal - Mart 7001100000000000000 ♠ 10 Walton, Helen Helen Walton * $18.5 billion 81 United States Wal - Mart Each hold an essentially equal share in Wal - Mart. Had he been alive in 2001, Sam Walton would have been the world 's wealthiest person. 2000 Main article : The World 's Billionaires 2000 Bill Gates became the first American to take the top spot of the World 's Billionaires in 1995 with a net worth of $12.5 billion and he remained there during the Dot - com bubble 's height in 1999 when Gates ' fortune peaked at $90 billion. After the dot - com bubble started to collapse in 2000, his wealth dropped to $60 billion although he remained at the top of the list. No. Name Net worth ( USD ) Age Nationality Source ( s ) of wealth 7000100000000000000 ♠ 1 Gates, Bill Bill Gates $60.0 billion 44 United States Microsoft 7000200000000000000 ♠ 2 Ellison, Larry Larry Ellison $47.0 billion 55 United States Oracle Corporation 7000300000000000000 ♠ 3 Allen, Paul Paul Allen $28.0 billion 47 United States Microsoft 7000400000000000000 ♠ 4 Buffett, Warren Warren Buffett $25.6 billion 69 United States Berkshire Hathaway 7000500000000000000 ♠ 5 Karl and Theo Albrecht $20.0 billion 80 Germany Aldi Süd 7000600000000000000 ♠ 6 Al - Waleed, Prince Prince Al - Waleed $20.0 billion 43 Saudi Arabia Kingdom Holding Company 7000700000000000000 ♠ 7 Walton, S. Robson S. Robson Walton $20.0 billion 57 United States Wal - Mart 7000800000000000000 ♠ 8 Son, Masayoshi Masayoshi Son $19.4 billion 43 Japan Softbank Capital, SoftBank Mobile 7000900000000000000 ♠ 9 Dell, Michael Michael Dell $19.1 billion 35 United States Dell 7001100000000000000 ♠ 10 Thomson, Kenneth Kenneth Thomson $16.1 billion 77 Canada The Thomson Corporation Legend Icon Description Has not changed from the previous ranking. Has increased from the previous ranking. Has decreased from the previous ranking. Statistics The dot - com bubble created the most paper wealth for some billionaires. However, once the dotcom bubble burst the new rich saw their fortunes disappear. Billionaires ' fortunes were hit even harder by the global financial crisis ; 2009 was the first time in five years that the world had a net loss in the number of billionaires. The strong performance of the financial markets and global economic recovery have erased financial assets losses. Most of the richest people in the world have seen their fortunes soar in the early 2010s. Number and combined net worth of billionaires by year Year Number of billionaires Group 's combined net worth 2017 2,043 $7.67 trillion 2016 1,810 $6.5 trillion 2015 1,826 $7.1 trillion 2014 1,645 $6.4 trillion 2013 1,426 $5.4 trillion 2012 1,226 $4.6 trillion 2011 1,210 $4.5 trillion 1,011 $3.6 trillion 2009 793 $2.4 trillion 2008 1,125 $4.4 trillion 2007 946 $3.5 trillion 2006 793 $2.6 trillion 2005 691 $2.2 trillion 587 $1.9 trillion 2003 476 $1.4 trillion 2002 497 $1.5 trillion 2001 538 $1.8 trillion 2000 470 $0.9 trillion $898 billion Source : Forbes. See also Bloomberg Billionaires Index List of cities by the number of billionaires List of countries by the number of US dollar billionaires List of wealthiest animals List of wealthiest families List of wealthiest historical figures List of wealthiest organizations References Specific ^ Jump up to : Kollmeyer, Barbara ( 4 March 2014 ). `` Bill Gates back on top, WhatsApp founders and more women in Forbes ' billionaire rankings ''. Market Watch, The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 5 March 2014. ^ Jump up to : Kroll, Luisa. `` Forbes 2017 billionaires list : Meet the richest people on the planet ''. Forbes. Retrieved 21 March 2017. ^ Jump up to : Gore, Leada ( 4 March 2014 ). `` Youngest, oldest and one who can body slam you : More on Forbes list of the ultra-rich ''. AL.com. Alabama Media Group. Retrieved 5 March 2014. Jump up ^ `` Why Putin Is n't on ' Forbes ' Billionaires List ''. Forbes. Jump up ^ `` The World 's Billionaires List ''. Forbes. 23 March 2017. 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Retrieved 3 March 2014. 2015 Top 10 : `` Forbes ' 29th Annual World 's Billionaires Issue ''. Forbes. 2 March 2015. Retrieved 12 March 2015. 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Question: who's the highest paid person in the world
Answer: Bill Gates