• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
TechFortune 500

Bill Gates’ Net Worth Has Hit a Record High

By
Don Reisinger
Don Reisinger
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Don Reisinger
Don Reisinger
Down Arrow Button Icon
August 22, 2016, 1:56 PM ET

Bill Gates is getting richer and richer.

The Microsoft (MSFT) co-founder’s estimated net worth hit a record high of $90 billion on Friday after his holdings in Canadian National Railway Company and Ecolab rose in value, Bloomberg reports based on its Billionaires Index. This is the first time Gates’ wealth has reached $90 billion, though he came close to reaching that threshold earlier this year.

Gates is by far the world’s wealthiest person. His net worth includes both cash and stock in several companies including, of course, Microsoft. Although occasionally surpassed as the world’s wealthiest individual in recent years by the likes of Mexican tycoon Carlos Slim, Gates has held strong this year.

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter

In fact, Gates’ wealth has grown substantially in 2016, according to Bloomberg. At the beginning of the year, his net worth was around $75 billion. Since then, he has added about $15 billion. The world’s second-wealthiest individual, Spanish retail executive Amancio Ortega, is worth more than $76 billion, which means that Gates holds a comfortable lead.

Still, it’s not all about the money for Gates, who is one of the most philanthropic billionaires by donating huge sums of money over the years through the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. He has also championed several causes, including clean water and eradicating malaria in areas like Africa.

Gates, along with fellow billionaire Warren Buffett, has also established The Giving Pledge, which involves wealthy individuals promising to give away at least half of their net worth either while living or at their death. Gates, along with his wife Melinda, says he will donate “the vast majority” of their wealth to causes both during their lifetimes and after. Ultimately, they hope, along with other billionaires, to eradicate diseases and help humanity.

For more about Bill Gates, watch:


Regardless, Gates’ wealth is steadily rising. In 2012, for example, he was worth less than $60 billion.

About the Author
By Don Reisinger
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
Fortune Secondary Logo
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Tech

LawMedia
DOJ probes Netflix’s power over filmmakers in Warner deal review
By Josh Sisco and BloombergFebruary 21, 2026
20 minutes ago
Big TechTech
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella says Bill Gates told him his big bet on OpenAI would be a flop: ‘Yeah, you’re going to burn this billion dollars’
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezFebruary 21, 2026
8 hours ago
InnovationNuclear Energy
U.S. military airlifts small nuclear reactor for the first time, flying a minivan-sized microreactor nearly 700 miles on a C-17
By Matthew Daly and The Associated PressFebruary 21, 2026
9 hours ago
taylor
CommentaryMarketing
How fandom became culture’s power center — and a blueprint for Gen Z’s economic influence
By Reid LitmanFebruary 21, 2026
11 hours ago
Startups & VentureEntrepreneurs
‘I have a chip on my shoulder.’ Phoebe Gates wants her $185 million AI startup Phia to succeed with ‘no ties to my privilege or my last name’
By Sydney LakeFebruary 21, 2026
12 hours ago
tanmai
AIdisruption
You have 18 months to figure out your office job, $1 billion CEO says. But it’s not going away
By Nick LichtenbergFebruary 21, 2026
12 hours ago

Most Popular

placeholder alt text
Innovation
The U.S. spent $30 billion to ditch textbooks for laptops and tablets: The result is the first generation less cognitively capable than their parents
By Sasha RogelbergFebruary 21, 2026
13 hours ago
placeholder alt text
Economy
Fed confirms it obeyed U.S. Treasury request for an unusual ‘rate check,’ weakening the dollar against foreign currencies
By Jim EdwardsFebruary 19, 2026
3 days ago
placeholder alt text
Big Tech
Peter Thiel and other tech billionaires are publicly shielding their children from the products that made them rich
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezFebruary 21, 2026
13 hours ago
placeholder alt text
AI
‘I’m deeply uncomfortable’: Anthropic CEO warns that a cadre of AI leaders, including himself, should not be in charge of the technology’s future
By Sasha RogelbergFebruary 19, 2026
2 days ago
placeholder alt text
Arts & Entertainment
Gen Zers and millennials flock to so-called analog islands 'because so little of their life feels tangible'
By Michael Liedtke and The Associated PressFebruary 20, 2026
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Law
Mark Zuckerberg’s entourage threatened with contempt for wearing Meta AI glasses into a no-recording courtroom
By Jacqueline MunisFebruary 20, 2026
1 day ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.