Two-Thirds of America’s Billionaires Are Self-Made — But What Does That Really Mean?

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According to Forbes, the total number of known billionaires worldwide is 2,838.

And while some of those attained their wealth through inheritance, 73% of the billionaires in the United States achieved this status through their own hard work. In other words, they have become self-made billionaires.

So what does it mean to be a self-made billionaire? Keep reading as we explore this question and the path that most take to get there.

What Self-Made Actually Means

According to Forbes, a self-made individual is someone who has founded or co-founded a company that has ultimately led them to billionaire status. However, it’s important to understand one thing. 

Some of these billionaires might be a true rags-to-riches story. They started with nothing and grew that business into something highly successful. However, others had a little help along the way. Perhaps they grew up with family wealth, even if it wasn’t substantial; they leveraged it as a way to launch their business and grow it into what it is today. More on this later.

Common Paths to Becoming a Self-Made Billionaire

Becoming a self-made billionaire isn’t an easy task, even if there is some help along the way. If it were easy, the world would have many more billionaires. So let’s look at how most billionaires get there.

Entrepreneurship and Owning Equity

Most billionaires have amassed their wealth through entrepreneurship. They started their own business, and it has become a success. It could be a technology company or a consumer brand. 

For example, Mark Zuckerberg would be considered a self-made billionaire after co-founding Facebook. However, the wealth of most entrepreneurs, including his, isn’t due to the salaries they receive. Instead, it’s the ownership of equity in the companies they founded. Today, Zuckerberg owns a 13% stake in Meta Platforms, which is valued at roughly $1.5 trillion. That’s almost $200 billion in net worth, largely due to the company he helped launch from his dorm room.

Innovation, Timing and Market Demand

Let’s be honest. Most billionaires achieved their success due to a great deal of hard work, but also because some luck was involved. They started their company at the right moment.

Think about all the tech founders in the 1990s. While some of them amassed and lost their fortune due to the dot-com bubble, many built sustainable businesses that set them up for life. We’re seeing the same thing today with the AI boom. 

Although innovative ideas are important, so too is being in the right place at the right time, with access to fast-growing markets.

Why the Term ‘Self-Made’ Can Be Misleading

There are many great rags to riches stories among billionaires. Oprah Winfrey was born into a poor family in Mississippi and today has a net worth of approximately $3.2 billion. Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison worked odd jobs after dropping out of college. That’s when he started the software company that has helped him to a net worth of $268 billion.

However, not all billionaires came from nothing. Many had financial assistance. And let’s face it, someone who grows up with financial stability can take entrepreneurial risks that people living paycheck to paycheck cannot. 

Beyond the financial aspect of starting a business, many also had the chance to attend top-tier universities. This could have helped them secure positions at high-growth companies or places that allowed them to build connections for funding opportunities. 

Whether you started from scratch or had an advantage, being able to grow a successful business and call yourself a self-made billionaire is an incredible achievement.

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