Richest women in the world 2025: Walmart's Alice Walton, L'Oreal's Francoise Bettencourt Meyers and Jacqueline Mars included

Editor

3rd Feb 2025, 1:08pm

These are the richest women in the world - controlling multibillion-pound companies which shape our day-to-day life.

None of the feature in the list of the top 10 richest people in the world - those places are all taken by men.

And a comparison with the men’s list reveals one striking difference - there are no tech entrepreneurs here (although Amazon’s passed-on wealth does make an appearance). No, the companies run by these women are in retail, construction, and finance. We have not yet seen the emergence of what could be dubbed the “tech sis” to any huge financial degree, although that will surely only be a matter of time.

Instead we have a welter of famous brand names - L’Oreal, Walmart, MSC and Mars among them - who make up what nowadays can be seen as the old guard in the business world.

Starting with the wealthiest, here is the list:

Alice Walton, 75, is the only daughter of Walmart founder Sam Walton - and shares the family's riches with her brothers Rob and Jim. Forbes estimates her wealth at $107.1bn. She is the richest woman, and 14th richest person in the world today.
She has dedicated a lot of her time to curating art, opening the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in her hometown of Bentonville, Arkansas. She also founded a the holistic health institute in Bentonville which has since been renamed the Alice L. Walton School of Medicine

1. Alice Walton

Alice Walton, 75, is the only daughter of Walmart founder Sam Walton - and shares the family's riches with her brothers Rob and Jim. Forbes estimates her wealth at $107.1bn. She is the richest woman, and 14th richest person in the world today. She has dedicated a lot of her time to curating art, opening the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in her hometown of Bentonville, Arkansas. She also founded a the holistic health institute in Bentonville which has since been renamed the Alice L. Walton School of Medicine | Rick T. Wilking/Getty Images

Francoise Bettencourt Meyers is worth £75.6bn today, estimates Forbes, making her the second richest woman and 20th richest person in the world.
She is the granddaughter of the founder of L'Oreal. Her family own more than a third of the company, and she is on the board and also acts as chairwoman of the holding company.
L'Oreal and the Bettencourt Meyers family donated $226m to repair Notre Dame Cathedral following the fire in 2019.

2. Francoise Bettencourt Meyers & family

Francoise Bettencourt Meyers is worth £75.6bn today, estimates Forbes, making her the second richest woman and 20th richest person in the world. She is the granddaughter of the founder of L'Oreal. Her family own more than a third of the company, and she is on the board and also acts as chairwoman of the holding company. L'Oreal and the Bettencourt Meyers family donated $226m to repair Notre Dame Cathedral following the fire in 2019. | YouTube Screenshot via World Live FM

3. Julia Koch and family

Julia Koch, who is currently worth $74.2bn, and her three children inherited a 42% stake in Koch, Inc from her husband, David Koch, who died in 2019 at age 79. Born in Iowa, the 62-year-old moved to New York City in the 1980s and worked as an assistant to fashion designer Adolfo, working with high-profile clients including First Lady Nancy Reagan. In February last year the Julia Koch Family Foundation gave $75m to fund the Julia Koch Family Ambulatory Care Center in West Palm Beach, Florida. And last year the family bought 15 per cent of BSE Global, which owns the NBA's Brooklyn Nets and WNBA's New York Liberty, reported Forbes. | Getty

Jacqueline Mars, who is worth $42.7bn, owns about a third of confectionary and pet food empire Mars, which was founded by her grandfather Franklin Clarence Mars.
She worked for the company for nearly 20 years and served on the board until 2016.
Her brother John owns an estimated third of Mars, says Forbes; her late brother Forrest Jr.'s four daughters own the rest.

4. Jacqueline Mars

Jacqueline Mars, who is worth $42.7bn, owns about a third of confectionary and pet food empire Mars, which was founded by her grandfather Franklin Clarence Mars. She worked for the company for nearly 20 years and served on the board until 2016. Her brother John owns an estimated third of Mars, says Forbes; her late brother Forrest Jr.'s four daughters own the rest. | YouTube Screengrab via The Top 10 Luxury Lifestyle

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