The richest people in the world 2020 got significantly richer in 2019. The 10 richest people are, as has always been the case, all men. 7 of the 10 richest men are American. The 3 richest men are also very close of entering the Top 10 of richest people in human history. Check out the updated Top 10 ranking of the richest people in the world. The ranking is based on the net worth of each individual.

Note: Nation leaders (presidents, prime ministers, kings, dictators, etc.) are not counted in this ranking since their wealth is not measurable in a reliable way, only private citizens are being listed here.

The 10 Richest People in the World 2020

(as of January 2020)

1. Jeff Bezos

Born: January 12, 1964 in Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA
Nationality: American
(Main) Source of Wealth: Founder & CEO of Amazon

Jeff Bezos is currently the richest man in the world. The founder and CEO of Amazon, among other the world’s largest online retailer, has a net worth of around $116.7 billion. This means the American entrepreneur is also quite close to enter the Top 10 ranking of the richest people in history altogether. Bezos likely would have likely already reached that mark had it not been for his divorce in 2019 in which he had to pay his ex-wife $38 billion (making her the 4th richest woman alive).

2. Bernard Arnault

Born: March 5, 1949 in Roubaix, Hauts-de-France, France
Nationality: French
(Main) Source of Wealth: CEO of LVMH & Chairman of Christian Dior

Bernard Arnault is the second richest man in the world. The Frenchman is the current CEO of not one, but two globally known Parisian companies: He is in charge of the largest producer of luxury goods in the world LVMH (Louis Vuitton-Moet-Hennessy) as well as the chairman of Christian Dior, the world’s largest clothing retailer by revenue. These two positions brings his cumulative net worth up to around $112.7 billion. Arnault is the only person on the Top 10 richest people in the world 2020 ranking who has not founded any company himself. He has been in charge of LVMH and Dior since the 1980s, however, and is the single biggest stockholder in both companies.

3. Bill Gates

Born: October 29, 1955 in Seattle, Washington, USA
Nationality: American
(Main) Source of Wealth: Co-Founder of Microsoft

Bill Gates is currently the third richest person on the planet. For many years, Gates dominated the Top 10 ranking of richest people in the world, so a third place may seem like Gates has been losing a chunk of his wealth. But nothing could be further from the truth. The co-founder of the world’s largest software company Microsoft is as rich as never before with a net worth of around $108.8 billion. This despite the fact that Gates has stepped down from his position as CEO of Microsoft in 2014. But he of course still owns a stake in his company and remains within the corporate structures as technical adviser. Gates additionally serves as board member in several companies such as Berkshire Hathaway, the company founded and led by his friend Warren Buffett.

4. Warren Buffett

Born: August 30, 1930 in Omaha, Nebraska, USA
Nationality: American
(Main) Source of Wealth: Founder & CEO of Berkshire Hathaway

Warren Buffett is currently the fourth richest person in the world. The American is widely considered as the most successful investor of all time. Buffett acquired Berkshire Hathaway in 1964, which was a failing textile company based in Rhode Island back then. Buffett re-branded and basically founded the company from scratch, transforming it into a conglomerate that partially or wholly owns companies from entirely different industries. Buffett’s legendary business foresight and successful investments now accumulated him a total private net worth of $89.9 billion. Berkshire Hathaway today belongs to the world’s largest companies by revenue.

5. Mark Zuckerberg

Born: May 14, 1984 in White Plains, New York, USA
Nationality: American
(Main) Source of Wealth: Founder & CEO of Facebook

Mark Zuckerberg completes the Top 5 ranking of the richest people in the world 2020 ranking. Zuckerberg is known as the founder of Facebook, the world’s most popular social media platform. The American founded Facebook when he was 20 years old and while attending Harvard University (from which he dropped out shorty after). Zuckerberg became a billionaire by the time he was 23, making him the youngest self-made billionaire in history (unless you want to count Kylie Jenner as “self-made”). Today, Zuckerberg is worth $80.7 billion and remains by far the youngest member of the Top 10 ranking of richest people in the world 2020.

6. Amancio Ortega

Born: March 28, 1936 in Busdongo de Arbas, Castile and Leon, Spain
Nationality: Spanish
(Main) Source of Wealth: Founder & CEO of Inditex

7. Larry Ellison

Born: August 17, 1944 in New York City, New York, USA
Nationality: American
(Main) Source of Wealth: Founder of Oracle

8. Larry Page

Born: March 26, 1973 in Lansing, Michigan, USA
Nationality: American
(Main) Source of Wealth: Co-Founder of Google

9. Carlos Slim

Born: January 28, 1940 in Mexico City, State of Mexico, Mexico
Nationality: Mexican
(Main) Source of Wealth: Founder of Grupo Carso / Founder & CEO of America Movil

10. Sergey Brin

Born: August 21, 1973 in Moscow, Russia, Soviet Union
Nationality: American
(Main) Source of Wealth: Co-Founder of Google