ONLY a few individuals in the world stand a chance at becoming the world’s first trillionaire – and Elon Musk is near the top of that list.

Since the start of his career, Musk has been able to amass an extensive fortune, and now many want to know how much he’s actually worth and if he is the richest man in the world.

Elon Musk is a billionaireCredit: AP:Associated Press

What is Elon Musk’s net worth?

Elon Musk has achieved what many dream of – making billions.

As of January 2024, his estimated net worth is $225 billion, up 0.80% from 2023, according to Forbes.

This number comes from multiple business ventures including founding giant companies like Tesla and SpaceX.

His career in the business world dates back to 1995, when he and his brother, Kimbal Musk, started the software firm, Zip2, which created internet city guides for the New York Times and Chicago Tribune.

Four years later, in February 1999, Compaq acquired the company for $307 million in cash, giving Musk $22 million for his seven percent share from the sale.

Later in 1999, he then co-founded X.com, one of the world’s first online banks, which merged with PayPal the following year.

A notorious workaholic, he doesn’t spend his money on lavish vacations or expensive hobbies.

Instead, the entrepreneur spends most of his free time at the office or in factories.

At the end of the day, he heads back to one of several Los Angeles mansions he owns.

Musk’s worth also comes from the stock market, which he has helped influence greatly over the years.

At the beginning of 2021, Musk made the price of Bitcoin break all-time records after he revealed Tesla invested $1.5billion in the cryptocurrency.

In 2022, Musk hit headlines once more when he made an audacious attempt to buy Twitter.

Although Musk previously backed out of the original Twitter deal over a bot dispute, the deal closed and he became the official CEO in October 2022.

Is Elon Musk the richest person in the world?

For most of 2022, Musk held the title of the richest person in the world. However, that quickly changed towards the end.

As of January 12, 2022, Musk sits second on Forbes’ Real-Time Billionaires List, behind Bernard Arnault and his family.

In October 2023, the LVMH co-founder had a net worth of $204.8billion, which is over $50billion more than Musk.

Rounding out the top five were Gautam Adani ($125.7billion), Jeff Bezos ($118.2billion), and Warren Buffett ($110.5billion).

According to Guinness World Records, Musk has broken a record for the largest amount of money lost by one person – reducing his fortune by between $180billion and $200billion since November 2021.

In January 2024, Musk is still the richest person in the world, bringing in $225 billion from his Tesla, SpaceX, X (formerly Twitter), and others.

Elon Musk is no longer the world’s richest personCredit: Reuters

How did Elon Musk make his money?

Musk began investing in space travel in 2001 when he tried to buy Russian ballistic missiles that he hoped could send payloads into space.

Instead, he set out to build his own rockets through his firm SpaceX.

The company has pioneered reusable rockets and has successfully landed its Falcon 9 craft, a first for an orbital rocket.

SpaceX has won contracts to launch payloads into orbit for NASA and is now valued at more than $100 billion, according to Business Insider.

Musk also has much grander plans, including a colony of a million people living under glass domes on Mars.

Other companies Musk owns include:

Tesla Motors (2004)
SolarCity (2006)
Hyperloop One
Neuralink
Boring Company

In 2018, Musk was forced to resign as Tesla chairman and pay a $20 million fine after settling a deal with US regulators over tweets about taking the company private.

At the time, the US Securities and Exchange Commission said his claims were “false and misleading”.

In October 2022, Musk successfully completed his purchase of Twitter for $44 billion. In July 2023, the billionaire made the decision to rebrand Twitter as “X,” causing an uproar among active users and others.