A Record 500 American Billionaires Are Too Poor To Make The Forbes 400

Sep 10, 2025 at 06:30am EDT

Few things could make the average billionaire feel poor—The Forbes 400 list is one of them. There are now a record 900 billionaires in the U.S., meaning a record 500 people have amassed a ten-figure fortune but are still simply not rich enough to make the top 400 in 2025.

It’s a tough list to crack, and getting tougher. Back in 1982, there were fewer than two dozen billionaires on the original Forbes 400, which required a minimum net worth of just $100 million to make the cut. Four decades later, it now takes $3.8 billion to make the ranking, up $500 million from just a year ago. More than 90% of last year’s list held onto their spot this year.

Still, 19 billionaires worth $3.7 billion came up just short of stealing a place on the ranking. That includes design software firm Figma’s cofounder Dylan Field and athleisure brand Alo Yoga’s cofounders Danny Harris and Marco DeGeorge, as well as Dario Amodei and five other cofounders of AI juggernaut Anthropic (a seventh cofounder of the company, Christopher Olah, is also worth $3.7 billion but is Canadian).

Another 11 billionaires missed the cut by just $200 million, with a $3.6 billion fortune. Those rich enough to make Forbes’ billionaires list but not rich enough to make The Forbes 400 also include some of the world’s most famous people. Embattled WWE boss Vince McMahon is $400 million too poor. Oprah Winfrey would need another $700 million to make the grade. Taylor Swift, who has added an additional $500 million to her fortune since Forbes first named her a billionaire in 2023 on the back of her global Eras Tour, is still $2.2 billion short.

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https://www.forbes.com/sites/martinadilicosa/2025/09/10/a-record-500-american-billionaires-are-too-poor-to-make-the-forbes-400/