Taylor Swift and Selena Gomez didn’t make the cut for the definitive ranking of America’s richest people 2025, the Forbes 400 list.
On Monday, September 15, the magazine unveiled the wealthiest 400 American citizens who own assets in the U.S., ranked by net worth.
While Elon Musk ($428 B), Mark Zuckerberg ($253 B), and Jeff Bezos ($241 B) easily made it to the top five, fans expecting to see 14-time Grammy winner and the Rare Beauty mogul scanned through the names of the 389 people on the list but were left disappointed.
This year, 14 newcomers made it to the ultra‑elite club. However blockbuster Eras Tour performer and Selena, 33, were nowhere to be found.
The last person to make the 2025 list was Herbert Wertheim ($3.8 B), an optometrist and inventor who built his fortune over five decades, largely through investments.
Why do Taylor Swift and Selena Gomez miss out on the Forbes 400 list?
A decade ago, it took about $1.7 billion in net worth just to make the Forbes 400, now that threshold has dramatically climbed to $3.8 billion.
With Taylor’s net worth of $1.6 billion, she still has a long way to go before breaking into the super-exclusive Forbes 400 list.
Notably, the Cruel Summer hitmaker is a billionaire purely from her singing-songwriting passion, with no business ventures like the Kardashian family or her bestie Selena.
While not on the America’s Richest People, Taylor, 35, did secure a spot on Forbes’ 2025 list of America’s Richest Self-Made Women, ranking at No. 21.
According to Forbes estimates, her Eras Tour grossed a record-breaking $2 billion, generating earnings in a variety of ways, including ticket sales, a blockbuster movie and a book about the tour.
The pop star, who is now enagaged to NFL star Travis Kelce, became the first musician to reach billionaire status primarily based on her music without heavy dependence on external business brands.
As for Selena, who is set to marry Benny Blanco, her net worth is also not high enough yet meet the minimum cutoff of $3.8 billion in 2025.
Her wealth is considered billionaire‑level largely because of her cosmetics company.
According to Forbes and Bloomberg, the Only Murders in the Building star’s beauty brand’s valuation, along with her stake in it (around 51%), plus her earnings from TV, music, endorsements, and other investments contribute to the $1.3 billion estimate.
Selena earned the rank 48 out of 100 in the Forbes’ list of America’s Richest Self-Made Women this year.
