Top 5 Richest Women by Net Worth
The latest Forbes real-time billionaire rankings place Francoise Bettencourt Meyers as the richest woman in the world, with a net worth driven almost entirely by her family's controlling stake in L'Oréal. Alice Walton ranks second, followed by Julia Koch, MacKenzie Scott, and Yang Huiyan, whose wealth is tied to Country Garden Holdings and other real estate assets. These five women represent a mix of inherited luxury, retail empires, and property development fortunes across Europe, the United States, and Asia.
Net worth figures are based on publicly traded share prices reported by Forbes and Bloomberg, combined with known holdings in private companies and real estate. Rankings can shift daily with market moves, especially for women whose wealth is concentrated in single stocks or family trusts. The list below uses the most recent public data available from Forbes and other verified sources, with links to company and filing pages where helpful.
Francoise Bettencourt Meyers and Alice Walton
Francoise Bettencourt Meyers
Francoise Bettencourt Meyers is the richest woman in the world, with a net worth anchored in her family's roughly 33% stake in L'Oréal, the global cosmetics and beauty company founded by her grandfather Eugène Schueller. The Bettencourt family controls L'Oréal through holding structures and a foundation, and the company's market capitalization makes the stake one of the largest single-company positions held by any woman. Forbes tracks her wealth alongside L'Oréal share price movements, and she is also known for philanthropy through the Bettencourt Schueller Foundation, which funds research in life sciences, biodiversity, and the arts.
Alice Walton is the second richest woman in the world, with a net worth built on her inheritance from Walmart, the retail giant co-founded by her father Sam Walton. She remains a major Walmart shareholder and is the founder of Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Arkansas. Her wealth fluctuates with Walmart's stock price, and she has also invested in financial services and art, with public filings and Forbes coverage providing the latest figures on her holdings and art acquisitions.
Julia Koch, MacKenzie Scott, and Yang Huiyan
Julia Koch and MacKenzie Scott
Julia Koch ranks among the richest women in the world thanks to her family's stake in Koch Industries, one of the largest privately held companies in the United States. Her wealth derives from the Koch family trust established after the death of her father-in-law Fred C. Koch, with the company active in refining, chemicals, and commodities. Forbes estimates her net worth based on private valuations and known ownership structures, while SEC filings related to Koch Industries subsidiaries provide additional transparency on the family's business interests.
MacKenzie Scott is one of the world's richest women after receiving a large stake in Amazon following her divorce from Jeff Bezos. She became a major Amazon shareholder and has since pledged to give away billions through her philanthropic organization, with public filings and Amazon investor relations pages documenting her shareholding changes. Her net worth is closely tied to Amazon's stock price, and she is known for unrestricted donations to a wide range of nonprofits and community organizations.
Yang Huiyan
Yang Huiyan is one of Asia's richest women, with a net worth primarily linked to Country Garden Holdings, the Chinese real estate developer founded by her father Yang Guoqiang. She holds a major stake in the company through family trusts, and its market valuation in Hong Kong drives much of her wealth. Forbes and other financial data providers track her ranking among the world's richest women, while Country Garden's filings with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange offer details on its projects, debt levels, and share structure.