Flourish/Map of Richest People in Each State
By Theo Burman
Live News Reporter
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The richest individuals in each state have been revealed after the first quarter of the year, showing that billionaires are present in nearly every corner of the country, apart from three states.
The 2025 Forbes ranking marks the third consecutive year the publication has tracked the wealthiest person in each state, and the combined net worth of these ultra-wealthy residents has soared to a record $2 trillion, a $400 billion increase from last year.
Why It Matters
Forbes' annual ranking offers insight into the shifting fortunes and residences of America's wealthiest individuals. The concentration of billionaire wealth continues to be heavily skewed, with nearly two-thirds living in just four states: California, New York, Florida and Texas.
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California, in particular, presents fierce competition, where even tech titans like Larry Ellison ($175 billion) and Google co-founders Larry Page ($135 billion) and Sergey Brin ($129 billion) were edged out by Meta's Mark Zuckerberg, whose net worth reached $189 billion.
What to Know
This year's list revealed five states where new names have taken the top spot, driven by shifts among resident billionaires rather than out-of-state moves.
Former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer claimed Washington's top spot with $118 billion, surpassing co-founder Bill Gates, whose fortune now sits at $108 billion.
In Missouri, David Steward, co-founder of World Wide Technology, became the richest resident with a net worth of $11.4 billion. He surpassed John Morris, founder of Bass Pro Shops, who now has an estimated $9.6 billion.
Arkansas also saw a change. Rob Walton, heir to the Walmart fortune and based in Bentonville, overtook his brother Jim Walton with an estimated $113 billion, narrowly beating Jim's $112 billion.
Their sister Alice Walton, the world's richest woman with $104 billion, holds second place in Texas behind Elon Musk, who remains the world's wealthiest person at $388 billion. Musk moved to Texas from California in 2020.
In Wisconsin, Diane Hendricks, cofounder of ABC Supply, became the state's richest resident, surpassing John Menard Jr, and Hendricks' fortune stands at $21.9 billion compared to Menard's $21.5 billion.
New Jersey also saw a shake-up, with hedge fund manager John Overdeck ($7.4 billion) reclaiming the title of the state's wealthiest from cable mogul Rocco Commisso ($5.8 billion).
Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon, leads Florida's list after relocating from Washington to Miami in 2023. Bezos has an estimated net worth of $206 billion.
Ten states still have only one billionaire resident: Alabama, Idaho, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, New Mexico, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Dakota and Vermont. Meanwhile, Alaska, Delaware and West Virginia remain the only states without a billionaire.
West Virginia's richest person is Brad Smith, retired CEO of Intuit and current president of Marshall University, whose net worth sits at $900 million. Smith took over the title from former billionaire governor Jim Justice, who, according to Forbes, is no longer among the ranks of the ultra-wealthy due to debts exceeding $1 billion.
What Happens Next
Future rankings will likely track not only fortunes but also geographic shifts as billionaires become more open to migrating between states, influenced by taxes, politics and personal choices.
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