Demographics
The Richest Women in America in One Graphic
The Richest Women in America in One Graphic
The majority of the world’s billionaires hail from the United States.
But of the 724 American billionaires whose net worths are tracked daily by Forbes, only 86 are women. That’s just 12% of the country’s billionaires.
This visualization examines the select few who have made the cut into this prestigious list, using data compiled from Forbes’ real-time billionaires list.
Note: All data is as of November 1, 2021 unless otherwise stated.
Top 10 Richest Women in America
Since 2020, MacKenzie Scott has donated over $8.5 billion and counting of her wealth. Yet, she still remains one of the richest women in the world. This is largely due to the Amazon shares that she received in her divorce settlement.
Amazon’s stock performance soared amid the pandemic, which resulted in the initial value of her shares ($38.3 billion) nearly doubling.
Top 10 overall | Name | Net Worth | Age | Source of wealth |
---|---|---|---|---|
#1 | Alice Walton | $68.1 B | 72 | Walmart |
#2 | MacKenzie Scott | $56.1 B | 51 | Amazon |
#3 | Julia Koch & family | $52.2 B | 59 | Koch Industries |
#4 | Jacqueline Mars | $31.5 B | 82 | Candy, pet food |
#5 | Miriam Adelson | $29.2 B | 76 | Casinos |
#6 | Abigail Johnson | $26.2 B | 59 | Money management |
#7 | Laurene Powell Jobs & family | $16.7 B | 57 | Apple, Disney |
#8 | Diane Hendricks | $11.7 B | 74 | Roofing |
#9 | Ann Walton Kroenke | $9.3 B | 72 | Walmart |
#10 | Blair Parry-Okeden | $8.8 B | 71 | Media, automotive |
Miriam Adelson inherited her late husband’s 57% stake (worth ~$19 billion) in Las Vegas Sands, making her one of the richest newcomers to the Forbes list. The casinos have locations across Las Vegas, Singapore, and Macao.
Several of the women in this top 10 list also share membership with some of the richest families in America—from the Walmart Waltons, to the Johnsons at the helm of Fidelity Investments and Fidelity International.
The Oldest Richest Women in America
The oldest female billionaire in the world, Alice Schwartz, is 95 years old. She co-founded Bio-Rad Laboratories with her husband, which operates in the life sciences research and clinical diagnostics markets. They started the company in 1952 with only $720 in the bank.
Oldest | Name | Net Worth | Age | Source of wealth |
---|---|---|---|---|
#1 | Alice Schwartz | $3.0 B | 95 | Biotech |
#2 | Wilma Tisch | $1.4 B | 94 | Diversified |
#3 | Doris Fisher | $2.8 B | 90 | Gap |
#4 | Johnelle Hunt | $4.7 B | 89 | Trucking |
#5 | Marian Ilitch | $4.4 B | 88 | Little Caesars |
#6 | Pauline MacMillan Keinath | $8.5 B | 87 | Cargill |
#7 | Margot Birmingham Perot | $4.2 B | 87 | Computer services, real estate |
#8 | Martha Ingram & family | $3.9 B | 86 | Book distribution, transportation |
#9 | Janice McNair | $4.2 B | 85 | Energy, sports |
#10 | Norma Lerner | $1.1 B | 85 | Banking |
After her husband’s passing in 2018, Janice McNair (aged 85) took over his 80% stake in the NFL team Houston Texans, which ranks highly as one of the world’s most valuable sports teams. This also subsequently catapulted her position as being among the wealthiest sports owners in the country.
The Youngest Richest Women in America
In the online dating era, Whitney Wolfe Herd has made a name for herself. The female-first dating app she co-founded, Bumble, grew into a formidable competitor for her former employer, Match Group (which owns Tinder and OkCupid, among others).
At age 31, Wolfe Herd became the youngest self-made female CEO in the country after Bumble’s $2.2 billion IPO in February 2021.
Youngest | Name | Net Worth | Age | Source of wealth |
---|---|---|---|---|
#1 | Whitney Wolfe Herd | $1.2 B | 32 | Dating app |
#2 | Rihanna | $1.7 B | 33 | Cosmetics, music |
#3 | Neha Narkhede | $1.4 B | 37 | Software |
#4 | Lynsi Snyder | $4.2 B | 39 | In-N-Out Burger |
#5 | Kim Kardashian West | $1.2 B | 41 | Cosmetics, reality TV |
#6 | Jane Lauder | $6.7 B | 48 | Estée Lauder |
#7 | Amy Wyss | $2.0 B | 50 | Medical equipment |
#8 | Sara Blakely | $1.2 B | 50 | Spanx |
#9 | MacKenzie Scott | $56.1 B | 51 | Amazon |
#10 | Aerin Lauder | $4.2 B | 51 | Cosmetics |
Wearing many hats from influencer to entrepreneur, socialite Kim Kardashian West’s cosmetics and fashion companies (KKW Beauty and shapewear line Skims) have catapulted her to a newfound billionaire status. She has a set of diverse revenue streams, from reality TV royalties to blue-chip and real estate investments.
Top 20 Self-Made Richest Women in America
The self-made label is an additional fascinating avenue to explore. Forbes defines this category as people who establish a fortune independently, rather than partly or wholly through inheritance.
One of the newest entrants into this mix is Rihanna. She already enjoyed significant success as an entertainer, with her claim to fame being one of the best-selling artists of the 2010s. However, it was her entrepreneurial spirit that put her on the Forbes list in August 2021. Rihanna owns 50% of her cosmetics company, Fenty Beauty. The other half is run by Bernard Arnault, who is among the world’s top billionaires.
Here is the rest of the top 20 self-made richest women in America:
Self-Made | Name | Net Worth | Age | Source of wealth |
---|---|---|---|---|
#1 | Diane Hendricks | $11.7 B | 74 | Roofing |
#2 | Judy Faulkner | $6.5 B | 77 | Health IT |
#3 | Meg Whitman | $6.3 B | 65 | eBay |
#4 | Judy Love | $5.2 B | 84 | Retail and gas stations |
#5 | Marian Ilitch | $4.4 B | 88 | Little Caesars |
#6 | Johnelle Hunt | $4.1 B | 89 | Trucking |
#7 | Thai Lee | $4.1 B | 62 | IT Provider |
#8 | Lynda Resnick | $4.0 B | 78 | Agriculture |
#9 | Gail Miller | $3.2 B | 77 | Car dealerships |
#10 | Doris Fisher | $2.8 B | 90 | Gap |
#11 | Alice Schwartz | $3.0 B | 95 | Biotech |
#12 | Oprah Winfrey | $2.7 B | 67 | Media |
#13 | Elaine Wynn | $2.2 B | 79 | Casinos, hotels |
#14 | Peggy Cherng | $2.0 B | 73 | Fast food (Panda Express) |
#15 | Sheryl Sandberg | $1.9 B | 51 | |
#16 | Rihanna | $1.7 B | 33 | Cosmetics, music |
#17 | Jayshree Ullal | $1.7 B | 60 | Computer networking |
#18 | Safra Catz | $1.6 B | 59 | Software |
#19 | Jenny Just | $1.5 B | 53 | Fintech |
#20 | Eren Ozmen | $1.4 B | 62 | Aerospace |
Source: Forbes, as of Aug 2021 (latest available)
For those paying attention to the rapid rise of the fintech industry, Jenny Just’s entry on this list will come as no surprise. Her firm, Apex Fintech Solutions powers the trading technology behind companies like SoFi and eToro. In fact, she has started or bought 15 businesses in the space in just 24 years.
As the richest women in America continue to make great strides, this list could look very different in coming years.
Politics
Mapped: The World’s Legal Government Systems
The political regimes of the world’s countries have changed over centuries. This map charts the nine government systems that rule the world today.

Mapping The World’s Legal Government Systems
With over 200 countries existing across the world with unique cultures and traditions, one might assume that there are hundreds of types of government systems. But both historically and in modern times, that’s not the case.
Even while political regimes across these countries have changed over time, they’ve largely followed a few different types of governance. Today, every country can ultimately be classified into just nine broad forms of government systems.
This map by Truman Du uses information from Wikipedia to map the government systems that rule the world today.
Countries By Type of Government
It’s important to note that this map charts government systems according to each country’s legal framework.
Many countries have constitutions stating their de jure or legally recognized system of government, but their de facto or realized form of governance may be quite different.
Here is a list of the stated government system of UN member states and observers as of January 2023:
Country | Constitutional form | Head of state |
---|---|---|
Afghanistan | Provisional | n/a |
Albania | Republic | Ceremonial |
Algeria | Republic | Executive |
Andorra | Constitutional monarchy | Ceremonial |
Angola | Republic | Executive |
Antigua and Barbuda | Constitutional monarchy | Ceremonial |
Argentina | Republic | Executive |
Armenia | Republic | Ceremonial |
Australia | Constitutional monarchy | Ceremonial |
Austria | Republic | Ceremonial |
Azerbaijan | Republic | Executive |
Bahamas, The | Constitutional monarchy | Ceremonial |
Bahrain | Constitutional monarchy | Executive |
Bangladesh | Republic | Ceremonial |
Barbados | Republic | Ceremonial |
Belarus | Republic | Executive |
Belgium | Constitutional monarchy | Ceremonial |
Belize | Constitutional monarchy | Ceremonial |
Benin | Republic | Executive |
Bhutan | Constitutional monarchy | Executive |
Bolivia | Republic | Executive |
Bosnia and Herzegovina | Republic | Ceremonial |
Botswana | Republic | Executive |
Brazil | Republic | Executive |
Brunei | Absolute monarchy | Executive |
Bulgaria | Republic | Ceremonial |
Burkina Faso | Provisional | n/a |
Burundi | Republic | Executive |
Cambodia | Constitutional monarchy | Ceremonial |
Cameroon | Republic | Executive |
Canada | Constitutional monarchy | Ceremonial |
Cape Verde | Republic | Executive |
Central African Republic | Republic | Executive |
Chad | Provisional | n/a |
Chile | Republic | Executive |
China, People's Republic of | Republic | Ceremonial |
Colombia | Republic | Executive |
Comoros | Republic | Executive |
Congo, Democratic Republic of the | Republic | Executive |
Congo, Republic of the | Republic | Executive |
Costa Rica | Republic | Executive |
Côte d'Ivoire | Republic | Executive |
Croatia | Republic | Ceremonial |
Cuba | Republic | Executive |
Cyprus | Republic | Executive |
Czech Republic | Republic | Ceremonial |
Denmark | Constitutional monarchy | Ceremonial |
Djibouti | Republic | Executive |
Dominica | Republic | Ceremonial |
Dominican Republic | Republic | Executive |
East Timor | Republic | Executive |
Ecuador | Republic | Executive |
Egypt | Republic | Executive |
El Salvador | Republic | Executive |
Equatorial Guinea | Republic | Executive |
Eritrea | Republic | Executive |
Estonia | Republic | Ceremonial |
Eswatini | Absolute monarchy | Executive |
Ethiopia | Republic | Ceremonial |
Fiji | Republic | Ceremonial |
Finland | Republic | Ceremonial |
France | Republic | Executive |
Gabon | Republic | Executive |
Gambia, The | Republic | Executive |
Georgia | Republic | Ceremonial |
Germany | Republic | Ceremonial |
Ghana | Republic | Executive |
Greece | Republic | Ceremonial |
Grenada | Constitutional monarchy | Ceremonial |
Guatemala | Republic | Executive |
Guinea | Provisional | n/a |
Guinea-Bissau | Republic | Executive |
Guyana | Republic | Executive |
Haiti | Republic | Executive |
Honduras | Republic | Executive |
Hungary | Republic | Ceremonial |
Iceland | Republic | Ceremonial |
India | Republic | Ceremonial |
Indonesia | Republic | Executive |
Iran | Republic | Executive |
Iraq | Republic | Ceremonial |
Ireland | Republic | Ceremonial |
Israel | Republic | Ceremonial |
Italy | Republic | Ceremonial |
Jamaica | Constitutional monarchy | Ceremonial |
Japan | Constitutional monarchy | Ceremonial |
Jordan | Constitutional monarchy | Executive |
Kazakhstan | Republic | Executive |
Kenya | Republic | Executive |
Kiribati | Republic | Executive |
Kuwait | Constitutional monarchy | Executive |
Kyrgyzstan | Republic | Executive |
Laos | Republic | Executive |
Latvia | Republic | Ceremonial |
Lebanon | Republic | Ceremonial |
Lesotho | Constitutional monarchy | Ceremonial |
Liberia | Republic | Executive |
Libya | Provisional | n/a |
Liechtenstein | Constitutional monarchy | Executive |
Lithuania | Republic | Executive |
Luxembourg | Constitutional monarchy | Ceremonial |
Madagascar | Republic | Executive |
Malawi | Republic | Executive |
Malaysia | Constitutional monarchy | Ceremonial |
Maldives | Republic | Executive |
Mali | Provisional | n/a |
Malta | Republic | Ceremonial |
Marshall Islands | Republic | Executive |
Mauritania | Republic | Executive |
Mauritius | Republic | Ceremonial |
Mexico | Republic | Executive |
Micronesia | Republic | Executive |
Moldova | Republic | Ceremonial |
Monaco | Constitutional monarchy | Executive |
Mongolia | Republic | Executive |
Montenegro | Republic | Ceremonial |
Morocco | Constitutional monarchy | Executive |
Mozambique | Republic | Executive |
Myanmar | Provisional | n/a |
Namibia | Republic | Executive |
Nauru | Republic | Executive |
Nepal | Republic | Ceremonial |
Netherlands | Constitutional monarchy | Ceremonial |
New Zealand | Constitutional monarchy | Ceremonial |
Nicaragua | Republic | Executive |
Niger | Republic | Executive |
Nigeria | Republic | Executive |
North Korea | Republic | Executive |
North Macedonia | Republic | Ceremonial |
Norway | Constitutional monarchy | Ceremonial |
Oman | Absolute monarchy | Executive |
Pakistan | Republic | Ceremonial |
Palau | Republic | Executive |
Palestine | Republic | Executive |
Panama | Republic | Executive |
Papua New Guinea | Constitutional monarchy | Ceremonial |
Paraguay | Republic | Executive |
Peru | Republic | Executive |
Philippines | Republic | Executive |
Poland | Republic | Ceremonial |
Portugal | Republic | Executive |
Qatar | Constitutional monarchy | Executive |
Romania | Republic | Executive |
Russia | Republic | Executive |
Rwanda | Republic | Executive |
Saint Kitts and Nevis | Constitutional monarchy | Ceremonial |
Saint Lucia | Constitutional monarchy | Ceremonial |
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | Constitutional monarchy | Ceremonial |
Samoa | Republic | Ceremonial |
San Marino | Republic | Executive |
São Tomé and Príncipe | Republic | Executive |
Saudi Arabia | Absolute monarchy | Executive |
Senegal | Republic | Executive |
Serbia | Republic | Ceremonial |
Seychelles | Republic | Executive |
Sierra Leone | Republic | Executive |
Singapore | Republic | Ceremonial |
Slovakia | Republic | Ceremonial |
Slovenia | Republic | Ceremonial |
Solomon Islands | Constitutional monarchy | Ceremonial |
Somalia | Republic | Ceremonial |
South Africa | Republic | Executive |
South Korea | Republic | Executive |
South Sudan | Republic | Executive |
Spain | Constitutional monarchy | Ceremonial |
Sri Lanka | Republic | Executive |
Sudan | Provisional | n/a |
Suriname | Republic | Executive |
Sweden | Constitutional monarchy | Ceremonial |
Switzerland | Republic | Executive |
Syria | Republic | Executive |
Tajikistan | Republic | Executive |
Tanzania | Republic | Executive |
Thailand | Constitutional monarchy | Ceremonial |
Togo | Republic | Executive |
Tonga | Constitutional monarchy | Executive |
Trinidad and Tobago | Republic | Ceremonial |
Tunisia | Republic | Executive |
Turkey | Republic | Executive |
Turkmenistan | Republic | Executive |
Tuvalu | Constitutional monarchy | Ceremonial |
Uganda | Republic | Executive |
Ukraine | Republic | Executive |
United Arab Emirates | Constitutional monarchy | Executive |
United Kingdom | Constitutional monarchy | Ceremonial |
United States | Republic | Executive |
Uruguay | Republic | Executive |
Uzbekistan | Republic | Executive |
Vanuatu | Republic | Ceremonial |
Vatican City | Absolute monarchy | Executive |
Venezuela | Republic | Executive |
Vietnam | Republic | Executive |
Yemen | Provisional | n/a |
Zambia | Republic | Executive |
Zimbabwe | Republic | Executive |
Let’s take a closer look at some of these systems.
Monarchies
Brought back into the spotlight after the death of Queen Elizabeth II of England in September 2022, this form of government has a single ruler. They carry titles from king and queen to sultan or emperor, and their government systems can be further divided into three modern types: constitutional, semi-constitutional, and absolute.
A constitutional monarchy sees the monarch act as head of state within the parameters of a constitution, giving them little to no real power. For example, King Charles III is the head of 15 Commonwealth nations including Canada and Australia. However, each has their own head of government.
On the other hand, a semi-constitutional monarchy lets the monarch or ruling royal family retain substantial political powers, as is the case in Jordan and Morocco. However, their monarchs still rule the country according to a democratic constitution and in concert with other institutions.
Finally, an absolute monarchy is most like the monarchies of old, where the ruler has full power over governance, with modern examples including Saudi Arabia and Vatican City.
Republics
Unlike monarchies, the people hold the power in a republic government system, directly electing representatives to form government. Again, there are multiple types of modern republic governments: presidential, semi-presidential, and parliamentary.
The presidential republic could be considered a direct progression from monarchies. This system has a strong and independent chief executive with extensive powers when it comes to domestic affairs and foreign policy. An example of this is the United States, where the President is both the head of state and the head of government.
In a semi-presidential republic, the president is the head of state and has some executive powers that are independent of the legislature. However, the prime minister (or chancellor or equivalent title) is the head of government, responsible to the legislature along with the cabinet. Russia is a classic example of this type of government.
The last type of republic system is parliamentary. In this system, the president is a figurehead, while the head of government holds real power and is validated by and accountable to the parliament. This type of system can be seen in Germany, Italy, and India and is akin to constitutional monarchies.
It’s also important to point out that some parliamentary republic systems operate slightly differently. For example in South Africa, the president is both the head of state and government, but is elected directly by the legislature. This leaves them (and their ministries) potentially subject to parliamentary confidence.
One-Party State
Many of the systems above involve multiple political parties vying to rule and govern their respective countries.
In a one-party state, also called a single-party state or single-party system, only one political party has the right to form government. All other political parties are either outlawed or only allowed limited participation in elections.
In this system, a country’s head of state and head of government can be executive or ceremonial but political power is constitutionally linked to a single political movement. China is the most well-known example of this government system, with the General Secretary of the Communist Party of China ruling as the de facto leader since 1989.
Provisional
The final form of government is a provisional government formed as an interim or transitional government.
In this system, an emergency governmental body is created to manage political transitions after the collapse of a government, or when a new state is formed. Often these evolve into fully constitutionalized systems, but sometimes they hold power for longer than expected.
Some examples of countries that are considered provisional include Libya, Burkina Faso, and Chad.
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