Warren Buffett Net Worth
Oracle of Omaha, still chairman and the largest Berkshire shareholder.
By Net Worth Watch Editorial · Reviewed by Net Worth Watch Research
Last updated Nov 3, 2026 · 2 min read
Estimated net worth
$158 Billion
USD · As of November 3, 2026
- Source of wealth
- Berkshire Hathaway, Cash and funds
- Nationality
- United States
- Estimate by
- Forbes Real-Time Billionaires, 3 November 2026
What is Warren Buffett’s net worth?
Forbes estimates Warren Buffett’s net worth at $158 billion on 3 November 2026. The figure is notable for what it excludes: he has given away Berkshire shares worth tens of billions since 2006, and in 2025 converted a large block of Class A stock to fund further donations.
Almost the entire remaining fortune is Berkshire stock. His salary has been $100,000 a year for decades, and he has said he spends very little of it.
Sources of wealth
| Source | Details | Approximate share |
|---|---|---|
| Berkshire Hathaway | Roughly 13 to 14 percent of the company, mostly Class A shares converted in part to Class B for giving. | Nearly all |
| Personal portfolio | A small set of holdings outside Berkshire, including a handful of long-held stocks. | Very small |
| Already donated | Shares transferred to the Gates Foundation and family foundations since 2006. | Excluded |
How the fortune was built
Buffett bought his first shares at 11, filed his first tax return at 13 and studied under Benjamin Graham at Columbia. He ran a series of investment partnerships in Omaha during the 1950s that consistently beat the market, then used the proceeds to buy control of Berkshire Hathaway, a struggling textile manufacturer, in 1965.
He kept the textile business running for two decades before closing it and redirected the company’s cash into insurance, beginning with National Indemnity in 1967. Insurance float became the engine of the model: premiums paid today, claims settled years later, and the difference invested in businesses that produce steady cash.
Berkshire now owns Geico, BNSF Railway, Berkshire Hathaway Energy and a portfolio of public stocks including Apple, American Express and Coca-Cola, along with large stakes in five Japanese trading houses. He announced in May 2025 that Greg Abel would become chief executive at the start of 2026, and stayed on as chairman.
Holdings and assets
Buffett still lives in the Omaha house he bought in 1958 for $31,500, and he has never owned a yacht or a private jet collection comparable to his peers, though Berkshire owns a share of NetJets, which he uses.
In 2006 he pledged about 85 percent of his Berkshire stock to five foundations, and in 2010 he co-founded the Giving Pledge with Bill and Melinda Gates. His 2025 shareholder letter confirmed that his remaining shares will go to a family foundation structure after his death. Because those shares have not moved, they still count in the estimate.
How we estimate it
The Berkshire holding is valued from the share count in the annual report and the Class A price on our valuation date, with Class B shares converted at the stated ratio. Donated shares are removed from the count.
Our methodology page explains how we treat pledges and charitable vehicles.
