5 things to know about America's richest self-made women
Forbes has released its list of America's richest self-made women, spanning a wide range of industries, ages and backgrounds.
The list, which is broken down by net worth, age, industry, and state, includes names like Taylor Swift, Sheryl Sandberg and more.
Forbes shared its methodology in compiling the list, writing that it "valued assets including stakes in public companies using stock prices from June 1, 2026."
"We valued private companies by consulting with outside experts and conservatively comparing them with their public counterparts," the outlet added.
Forbes said it attempted to verify numbers with all list entrants, noting that "some cooperated, others didn't."
"To be eligible for the list, women also had to have substantially made their own fortunes in the U.S. and/or be permanent residents," the outlet wrote. "While none inherited their wealth, some have climbed farther and overcame more obstacles."
Here are five things to know about the wealthiest self-made women in America, according to Forbes.
1. The wealthiest women on the list
The richest self-made woman in America, according to Forbes, is Diane Hendricks, the owner of ABC Supply, "North America's largest wholesale distributor of roofing supplies," according to the company's website. Forbes listed Hendricks' net worth as $21.7 billion.
Daniela Amodei, co-founder and president of the artificial intelligence company Anthropic, is No. 2 on the list with $15.5 billion, while No. 3 is Judy Faulkner, founder of Epic Systems, a health care software company, with $9.6 billion.
Rounding out the top five are Thai Lee, CEO of IT provider SHI International ($8 billion) and Marian Ilitch & family, co-founder of Little Caesars Pizza ($7.6 billion).
2. The youngest and oldest on the list
The oldest women on the list are 94-year-old Johnelle Hunt, co-founder of transportation and logistics company J. B. Hunt ($6.7 billion); Ilitch, who is 93; and Lynda Resnick, founder of Wonderful Company, who is 83 ($5.4 billion).
The youngest self-made women on the list are Kalshi co-founder Luana Lopes Lara, who is 30 ($2.6 billion); Lucy Guo, 31, who co-founded Scale AI ($1.5 billion); and music superstar Taylor Swift, 36 ($2 billion).
3. The category with the most list-makers
Forbes also categorized each of the women on the list by the industry in which they found success.
The category with the most entrants on the list, by a large margin, was technology, with 20 list entrants.
Media and entertainment, finance and investment, and food and beverage had four entrants apiece.
4. States with the most list-makers
California led all states with 16 list-makers, while Florida hosted six.
Wisconsin is home to two of the top three list-makers, No. 1 Hendricks and No. 3 Faulkner.
5. Celebrities on the list
Oprah Winfrey leads the celebrities on the list with the No. 16 spot, No 1. in the media and entertainment section. Swift (No. 23), BET co-founder Sheila Johnson (No. 32), and Beyoncé (No. 39) all made the list as well in the media and entertainment category, while Kim Kardashian (No. 25) and Rihanna (also at No. 39 with the same net worth as Beyoncé, $1 billion) each made the list in the fashion and retail category.
