U.S. distribution of billionaires 2021 to 2026, by gender

Distribution of billionaires in the United States in 2021 to 2026, by gender

Just 13 percent of billionaires in the United States are women in 2026, up from about 12.4 percent in 2021. Men make up the other 87 percent, a large imbalance that has narrowed only slightly over the six years from 2021 to 2026. The gender distribution of billionaires in the United States is one of the clearest measures of how unevenly great wealth is shared between men and women in the world largest economy, a gap that has narrowed only slightly over the six years to 2026. On the 2026 Forbes list, about 129 of the roughly 989 billionaires in the United States are women, a record number, yet they still make up only about one in eight of the total, a ratio that has barely improved over the six years. Few measures capture the persistence of the gender gap in American life as starkly as the billionaire count, where men have outnumbered women by roughly seven to one throughout the period, a ratio that has barely improved.

The share of women among US billionaires has risen slowly, even as the total number of billionaires has grown sharply. The picture builds on our richest self-made women in America and global billionaires by gender coverage.

Overwhelmingly male: men made up about 87 percent of US billionaires throughout 2021 to 2026, with women rising slowly from about 12.4 percent to 13 percent.

The United States has more billionaires than any other country, about 989 in 2026, of whom around 129 are women, themes our richest people in America and most affluent women coverage explores.

A note on the data. The figures show the distribution of billionaires in the United States from 2021 to 2026, by gender, based on the Forbes World Billionaires list. The counts and shares are estimates based on the annual list for each year. Because the counts are point-in-time snapshots from the annual Forbes list, the exact numbers change from year to year, but the broad picture, of a heavily male US billionaire population with a slowly rising female share, is stable and clear. The gender figures are drawn from the annual Forbes World Billionaires list, which identifies the sex of each billionaire, and the year-by-year counts and shares for the United States are estimates based on that list.

US Billionaires by Gender, 2021 to 2026

The table shows the number and share of male and female billionaires in the United States each year from 2021 to 2026. It shows men making up the great majority throughout, at about 87 percent, with women rising slowly toward 13 percent. Reading the figures shows the scale of the imbalance, with about 860 men against 129 women in 2026, a ratio of roughly seven to one, even after years in which the number of women grew slightly faster than the number of men. Because the figures are a snapshot tied to the annual list, the exact numbers shift from year to year, but the fundamental pattern, of a heavily male US billionaire population slowly admitting more women, is stable and well documented. The roughly seven-to-one ratio of men to women among US billionaires stands in sharp contrast to the near-equal split of the adult population, a gap that captures the scale of the imbalance in access to extreme wealth in America.

What Share of US Billionaires Are Women?

Women make up about 13 percent of billionaires in the United States in 2026, or around 129 of the roughly 989 on the Forbes list. Men make up the other 87 percent, about 860 people, a large imbalance that reflects the historical concentration of wealth and business among men. The overwhelming male majority among US billionaires reflects generations of unequal access to business, capital, education and inheritance, imbalances that are only slowly beginning to narrow at the very top of American wealth. The 129 women on the 2026 list, against about 860 men, mean that for every woman billionaire in the United States there are roughly seven men, a ratio that has narrowed only slightly from about seven to one in 2021. Even as American women have made enormous strides in education, business leadership and the workforce over recent decades, their representation among the very wealthiest people in the country has lagged far behind, changing only at a glacial pace.

The imbalance is one of the most striking features of the US billionaire population, reflecting long-standing differences in access to business, capital and inheritance, a pattern our richest women in the world coverage frames.

About 87 to 13: in 2026 men make up about 87 percent of the roughly 989 US billionaires, about 860 people, and women about 13 percent, or 129.

Although women remain a small minority of US billionaires, their share has risen slightly, from about 12.4 percent in 2021 to about 13 percent in 2026, as more women build or inherit great fortunes in America. The rise from about 12.4 to 13 percent over six years, while real, underlines how slowly the gender balance at the top of American wealth is shifting, even in a period of rapid overall growth in the number of billionaires. Taken together, the split confirms that great wealth in the United States remains overwhelmingly concentrated among men, even as the slow rise in the share of women points to a gradual, generational shift in the composition of the billionaire class.

Is the Share of Women Rising?

The share of women among US billionaires has risen slowly. It stood at about 12.4 percent in 2021, reached about 13 percent by 2022, and has hovered around 13 percent since, a gradual rise that has lagged the growth in the total number of billionaires. The slow but steady rise in the share of women among US billionaires, though modest, is one of the more hopeful trends in the data, even if, at the current pace, true parity between men and women at the top remains generations away. The share of women rose from about 12.4 percent in 2021 to about 13 percent in 2026, a rise of well under a percentage point in six years, or roughly a tenth of a point a year on average. The trajectory of the female share among US billionaires, rising a fraction of a percentage point most years, tells a story of slow but genuine change, driven by a mix of generational wealth transfer and a new wave of self-made women.

The slow rise reflects both the growing number of women inheriting family fortunes and a smaller but faster-growing group of self-made women entrepreneurs, especially in technology, a shift our youngest billionaires coverage frames.

Rising slowly: the share of women among US billionaires rose from about 12.4 percent in 2021 to about 13 percent in 2026, staying within a narrow band.

The share of women has moved within a narrow band, between about 12.4 and 13 percent, over the six years, a reminder that the gender balance at the top of American wealth is shifting only very gradually. The narrow band within which the female share has moved, between about 12 and 13 percent, suggests that the gender balance among US billionaires is unlikely to shift dramatically for many years, even if the number of self-made women keeps rising. Looking ahead, the share of women among US billionaires seems likely to keep rising slowly as more women inherit and build great fortunes, though at the current pace the population will remain majority male for decades to come. Seen over the full span from 2021 to 2026, the rise of women from about 12.4 to 13 percent of US billionaires represents real if modest progress, even as it leaves the top of American wealth far from anything resembling gender balance.

How Many Male and Female Billionaires?

The number of both male and female billionaires in the United States has grown sharply. The number of men rose from about 634 in 2021 to about 860 in 2026, while the number of women rose from about 90 to about 129 over the same period. The parallel growth in the number of both male and female billionaires reflects the long bull market in American assets, which has lifted many fortunes over the billion-dollar threshold regardless of the gender of their owners. The number of male billionaires rose from about 634 in 2021 to about 860 in 2026, while the number of women rose from about 90 to about 129, so both grew by roughly a third to two-fifths over the period. The simultaneous rise in the number of male and female billionaires, both by roughly a third or more, is a direct product of the long bull market in American stocks, property and private companies over the six years to 2026.

The growth in both reflects the strong performance of American markets, which have lifted many fortunes over the billion-dollar mark, a rise our top billionaire countries coverage frames.

Both grew: the number of male US billionaires rose from about 634 in 2021 to 860 in 2026, and the number of women from about 90 to 129.

Although the number of women grew faster in percentage terms, the far larger base of men means the gender gap in absolute numbers has actually widened, from about 544 to about 731 more men than women. The widening of the gender gap in absolute numbers, even as the female share edged up, is a striking illustration of how a rising tide can lift the larger group more in absolute terms even when the smaller group grows faster in percentage terms. The widening absolute gap, even amid faster percentage growth for women, is a reminder that closing the gender gap at the very top will require the number of women billionaires to grow far faster than it has over the past six years.

The Growing Number of Women

The number of women billionaires in the United States has grown steadily, from about 90 in 2021 to about 129 in 2026, an increase of more than 40 percent, driven by rising markets and a growing number of self-made women.

The rise in the number of women billionaires reflects the growth of self-made women founders and executives, especially in technology, as well as the passing down of family fortunes, a shift our Nasdaq stock market coverage frames.

From 90 to 129: the number of women billionaires in the United States rose by more than 40 percent from 2021 to 2026, driven by rising markets.

The steady growth in the number of women billionaires, even as their share of the total rose only slightly, reflects how the overall billionaire population grew almost as fast, keeping the gender balance broadly stable.

How Does the US Compare to the World?

The United States has a slightly lower share of women billionaires than the world as a whole. In 2026, women make up about 13 percent of US billionaires, against about 14 percent worldwide, a gap that has emerged as the global share rose faster in recent years. The comparison between the United States and the world as a whole is revealing, showing that the American gender gap at the top of the wealth distribution is, if anything, slightly wider than the global average despite the country entrepreneurial reputation. Women make up about 13 percent of US billionaires against about 14 percent worldwide, a gap of roughly a percentage point that has opened up as the global share rose a little faster than the American one in recent years.

The slightly higher global share reflects the large number of women heirs in Europe and Asia, where great family fortunes have often passed to daughters and widows, a pattern our global stock markets by country coverage frames.

The US trails slightly: women make up about 13 percent of US billionaires in 2026 against about 14 percent worldwide, a small but persistent gap.

The gap between the US and global shares is small, and both have risen slowly over the years, reflecting the same gradual narrowing of the gender gap in great wealth around the world. The small gap between the US and global shares, both rising slowly, reflects the fact that the forces narrowing the gender gap in great wealth, from inheritance to entrepreneurship, are broadly similar across the developed world. The persistence of a small US shortfall against the global share, year after year, suggests that the American gender gap in great wealth is, if anything, slightly more entrenched than in the developed world as a whole.

Who Are the Richest US Women?

The richest women billionaires in the United States are led by the Walmart heiress Alice Walton, worth about 134 billion dollars, followed by Julia Koch on about 81 billion and the candy heir Jacqueline Mars on about 49 billion. The list of the richest women in the United States is dominated by heirs to great retail and industrial fortunes, a reflection of the fact that inheritance remains the most common route to the very largest fortunes for American women. Alice Walton about 134 billion dollars, Julia Koch about 81 billion and Jacqueline Mars about 49 billion lead a list of the richest US women dominated by heirs to great retail and industrial fortunes. The women at the very top of American wealth are, with a few notable exceptions, the heirs and widows of men who built great family businesses, a pattern that sets the female billionaire elite apart from its more self-made male counterpart.

The dominance of heirs among the richest US women reflects the way great family fortunes have passed to daughters and widows, though self-made women such as Diane Hendricks and Daniela Amodei also rank high, a mix our financial markets in the US coverage frames.

Led by Alice Walton: the richest US woman is the Walmart heiress Alice Walton on about 134 billion dollars, ahead of Julia Koch on 81 billion.

Behind the leaders come a mix of heirs and self-made women, from the Fidelity chief Abigail Johnson to the Anthropic cofounder Daniela Amodei, showing how American women have reached the top through both inheritance and their own businesses. The mix of heirs and self-made women near the top of the US ranking, from the Walmart and Koch heirs to the self-made Diane Hendricks and Daniela Amodei, captures the two very different routes American women have taken to great wealth.

Self-Made or Inherited?

The women billionaires of the United States are split between heirs and the self-made. About 48 percent inherited their fortunes, around 32 percent are self-made, and about 20 percent have a mix, a higher self-made share than among women billionaires worldwide. The split between inherited and self-made wealth among US women billionaires is one of the most revealing features of the data, showing that while heirs dominate the largest fortunes, a substantial and growing share of women built their own. About 48 percent of US women billionaires inherited their fortunes, around 32 percent are self-made and about 20 percent have a combination, a higher self-made share than the roughly 25 percent seen among women billionaires worldwide. The mix of inherited and self-made wealth among US women billionaires is one of the most revealing features of the data, showing that while heirs still hold the largest fortunes, nearly a third of American women billionaires built their own.

The relatively high share of self-made women in the United States reflects the entrepreneurial nature of its economy, especially in technology, a pattern our sources of billionaire wealth coverage frames.

Heirs still lead: about 48 percent of US women billionaires inherited their fortunes, 32 percent are self-made and 20 percent have a mix.

Even so, the largest US women fortunes remain dominated by heirs, above all the Walmart and Koch fortunes, while the self-made women, though growing in number, hold smaller fortunes on average. The relatively high share of self-made women among US billionaires, compared with the world as a whole, reflects the entrepreneurial character of the American economy, even as the very largest female fortunes remain inherited. The steady rise in the number of self-made women, even as they remain a minority of US women billionaires, points to a slow but real shift toward more American women building their own fortunes rather than inheriting them.

The Industries of US Women Billionaires

The women billionaires of the United States are concentrated in retail, technology and food. Retail, led by the Walmart heirs, accounts for the most, followed by a fast-growing group in technology and a cluster in food and beverage. The concentration of US women billionaires in retail, technology and food reflects both the great family fortunes of American retailing and the newer, fast-growing fortunes being built by self-made women in the technology sector.

The concentration in retail reflects the great family fortunes of American retailing, while the rise of technology reflects the growing number of self-made women founders, a shift our biggest companies by market value coverage frames.

Retail leads: US women billionaires are concentrated in retail, led by the Walmart heirs, followed by technology and food and beverage.

Outside retail and technology, US women billionaires have built or inherited fortunes in finance, media, healthcare and manufacturing, reflecting the wide range of industries in which American women have reached the billionaire ranks. The breadth of industries in which US women have built or inherited great fortunes, from retail and technology to finance, media and healthcare, reflects the wide reach of American wealth across the whole of the economy.

How the Numbers Changed Since 2021

Both the number of men and the number of women billionaires in the United States have grown since 2021. The number of women rose from about 90 to 129 and the number of men from about 634 to 860, as American markets lifted more fortunes over the mark. The parallel growth of the male and female billionaire populations captures the way the long rise in American markets has lifted both groups, even as the gender balance between them has shifted only very gradually. From 2021 to 2026 the number of women billionaires in the United States rose from about 90 to 129 and the number of men from about 634 to 860, with both groups growing strongly as American markets climbed.

The faster percentage growth in the number of women reflects the rise of self-made women in technology and the passing down of family fortunes, even as men continued to dominate in absolute numbers, a shift our crypto market coverage frames.

Both grew, gap widened: from 2021 to 2026 the number of men rose from about 634 to 860 and women from about 90 to 129, widening the absolute gap.

The parallel growth of both groups, with men still far more numerous, shows how the gender balance among US billionaires has held broadly steady even as the total number of billionaires has surged. The steady widening of the male billionaire population, even as the female population grew faster in percentage terms, shows how far the United States remains from anything resembling gender balance at the very top of its wealth distribution. The parallel climb of both lines, men far above women throughout, offers a vivid visual summary of a wealth elite that has grown rapidly in size while barely shifting in its overwhelming male majority.

US Billionaires by Gender in Numbers

A few numbers capture the picture. Women make up about 13 percent of US billionaires in 2026, up from 12.4 percent in 2021, there are around 129 women among about 989 US billionaires, and men make up the other 87 percent. These figures together map the gender distribution of billionaires in the United States, showing a population still overwhelmingly male but with a slowly rising share of women, driven by both inheritance and a growing number of self-made women. The overall picture is of a US billionaire class in slow transition, still overwhelmingly male but admitting a rising number of women each year, most through inheritance but a growing share through businesses they built themselves.

The figures matter because the gender distribution of US billionaires reflects deep imbalances in access to wealth and business in America, a picture our euro to dollar exchange rate coverage sets in the global context.

Together these figures show a US billionaire population still dominated by men, at about 87 percent, but with a slowly rising share of women, driven by both inheritance and a growing number of self-made women. For now, the gender distribution of US billionaires stands as a vivid measure of how unevenly the opportunity to build and keep extreme wealth has been shared in America, and of how slowly, if steadily, that imbalance is beginning to change.

US Billionaires by Gender: The Big Picture

Taken together, the gender distribution of US billionaires from 2021 to 2026 maps a wealth elite still overwhelmingly male, though the share of women is slowly rising, a story our gold as an investment coverage sets against other assets.

Whether the share of women continues to rise will depend on how many build and keep great fortunes in the years ahead, but for now the US billionaire population remains largely male, alongside the markets in our hedge fund assets and federal funds rate overviews.

Frequently Asked Questions: US Billionaires by Gender