Rich City Living: The Top 20 Billionaire Cities on the Planet
- by Niels Kruse, with insights from the economic landscape
Abundant Riches Reside Here: Identifying the Top 20 Richest Cities Globally - Prosperity dwells in these locales: the top 20 wealthiest cities worldwide
To gauge a city's wealth, we can examine various factors like production value, tax revenues, or purchasing power. In Germany, institutions like GfK examine the latter to ascertain where wealth thrives 1. For cities in the USA, China, and even Russia, this data is often unavailable. Thus, people keen to know the wealthiest cities count the affluent population, decimal points and all.
However, such an assumption isn't always correct - as evident in India, where Mumbai and Delhi claim 50 billionaires but many residents may not feel the wealth trickle down 1.
So Which Cities Top the Billionaire Billboard?
The British consulting firm Henley and Partners maintains a registry of cities packing super-rich residents. To tilt the scales in their favor, they consider the growth rate of wealth as much as the billionaire density 1. Last year, the number of billionaires worldwide increased by 141, averaging someone every 2.5 days during the past two decades 1. So if you aspire to climb the wealth ladder, seize the opportunity!
Here's the scoop:
The City rundown by Billionaire Count (Based on the most recent data from Forbes and Hurun Global Rich List, as of early 2025)
| Rank | City | Billionaire Count ||------|-----------------|-------------------|| 1 | New York | 119–129 || 2 | Hong Kong | ~100 || 3 | Mumbai | ~92 || 4 | London | ~97 || 5 | Beijing | ~70 || 6 | Shenzhen | ~65 || 7 | Shanghai | ~60 || 8 | Moscow | ~60 || 9 | Los Angeles | ~50 || 10 | Hangzhou | ~45 || 11 | Singapore | ~45 || 12 | Taipei | ~40 || 13 | Seoul | ~40 || 14 | Bengaluru | ~40 || 15 | Paris | ~35 || 16 | San Francisco | ~35 || 17 | Istanbul | ~30 || 18 | New Delhi | ~30 || 19 | Dubai | ~30 || 20 | Guangzhou | ~28 |
Notes:- Estimates may vary slightly by source: Forbes lists New York at 123 billionaires, while Hurun reports 129 1.- Mumbai and London are not far behind Hong Kong 1.- Chinese cities such as Beijing, Shenzhen, and Shanghai, along with Indian cities like Mumbai and Bengaluru, are on the rise due to economic growth and large business conglomerates 2.- Listings for the Bay Area/San Francisco may sometimes combine or separate metrics; San Francisco itself is listed separately here for clarity, but the broader Bay Area (including Silicon Valley) may have a higher total figure.
While this ranking sheds light on the cities with the most billionaires, it's essential to note that other factors, such as overall wealth or number of millionaires, may result in a different ranking. For instance, Tokyo boasts numerous millionaires but fewer billionaires compared to financial hubs like New York and Hong Kong 5.
Sources (Enrichment Data)1. Germany's GfK compiles wealth data using purchasing power2. Rapid economic growth fuels the rise of Chinese and Indian cities in the ranking3. Henley and Partners maintain a registry of cities with super-rich residents4. 141 new billionaires joined the ranks last year, amounting to one every 2.5 days5. Tokyo has more millionaires but fewer billionaires than financial hubs like New York and Hong Kong
- The growth and retention of wealth in a city can be attributed to its employment and community policy, as demonstrated by the high number of billionaires in cities like New York and Mumbai, which have robust employment opportunities and vibrant communities.
- To foster an environment conducive to wealth accumulation, it is crucial for cities to formulate comprehensive employment and community policies, catering not just to the affluent population but also considering economic equality and the overall financial landscape of the city.
