Bill Gates
Microsoft · Medina, Washington
Net worth
$121.7B
Today
−$298M−0.24%Past month
+$6.0B+5.20%As of Nov 11, 2026, 1:50 PM EST
Bill Gates helped usher in huge changes in personal technology with software firm Microsoft; now he's focused on giving away his massive fortune. Gates, a computer enthusiast from a young age, dropped out of Harvard to cofound Microsoft with Paul Allen (d. 2018) in 1975, hoping to capitalize on the spread of personal computers. After Gates donated Microsoft shares worth billions to the trust that funds the Gates Foundation in 2022, his Microsoft stake is now less than 1%, Forbes estimates. In 2021, Bill and Melinda Gates each announced they were ending their marriage after 27 years. He is now the sole chairman of the charitable Gates Foundation. Gates, who's donated more than $63.9 billion to the Gates Foundation, announced in 2025 that the foundation will shut down in 20 years.
Net worth over time
Principal holdings
16 positions| Company | Industry | Share | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
Private and other holdings | Technology | 33.3% | $40.5B |
Republic Services NYSE: RSG | Technology | 23.2% | $28.2B |
Microsoft NASDAQ: MSFT | Technology | 13.1% | $15.9B |
Deere & Co NYSE: DE | Technology | 11.2% | $13.6B |
Ecolab NYSE: ECL | Technology | 7.3% | $8.9B |
Givaudan S.A. SIX SWISS: GIVN-CH | Technology | 3.9% | $4.7B |
Fomento Economico Mex-SP ADR NYSE: FMX | Technology | 3.0% | $3.7B |
Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (Cl A) NYSE: BRK.A | Technology | 2.9% | $3.5B |
AutoNation Inc. NYSE: AN | Technology | 1.1% | $1.3B |
Heineken Holding EURONEXT AMSTERDAM: HEIO-NL | Technology | 0.5% | $581M |
Canadian National Railway Co. NYSE: CNI | Technology | 0.3% | $406M |
Otter Tail Corp. NASDAQ: OTTR | Technology | 0.2% | $234M |
Fomento de Construcciones y Contrata MADRID: FCC-ES | Technology | 0.1% | $101M |
Evolv Technologies Holdings NASDAQ: EVLV | Technology | 0.0% | $41M |
Ginkgo Bioworks Holdings NYSE: DNA | Technology | 0.0% | $41M |
Vicarious Surgical US OTC: RBOT | Technology | 0.0% | $60 |
Also known for
- Gates has spent nearly two decades and more than $1 billion supporting a nuclear power company,Terrapower, that is aiming to complete its first reactor by 2030.
- Gates took a break from classes his senior year in high school to do programming with his friend Paul Allen at a power plant in North Bonneville, Washington.
“Money has no utility to me beyond a certain point. Its utility is entirely in building an organization and getting the resources out to the poorest in the world.”