Special Report

America's 12 Wealthiest Presidents

Michael B. Sauter

Published: February 25, 2020 5:37 pm

Last Updated: March 13, 2020 4:12 pm

In the early days of American democracy, being a wealthy, white, male landowner was a prerequisite to having a voice in how the country was run. So it should come as no surprise that many of America’s leaders have been quite wealthy.

Winning a bid for the presidency requires a significant amount of hard work and good luck, but it is also often helpful to have another key resource — wealth. Money and connections play a role in politics, and coming from a wealthy family can be the determining factor in whether someone’s presidential aspirations are realized. The U.S. has seen a number of wealthy political dynasties, including the Kennedys, the Bushes, and the Adamses. Click here to see the richest person in every state. 

The current occupant of the Oval Office, Donald Trump, became the richest ever U.S. president upon taking office in 2017. Like many other presidents on this list, Trump had significant advantages in becoming rich. In 1971, he took over his father’s real estate company, the Trump Organization.

24/7 Wall St. estimated the peak net worth of every president based on all relevant sources of wealth, including incomes, properties, spouses, and inheritance, and adjusted it to inflation. There are 12 U.S. presidents who at one point in their lives had an estimated net worth of at least $50 million, adjusted for inflation.

Click here to see America’s 12 richest presidents
Click here to read our methodology

Source: National Archives / Newsmakers / Getty Images

12. John Tyler
> Term: 1841-1845 (10th president)
> Source of fortune: Inherited
> Peak net worth (inflation adjusted): $58.7 million

John Tyler was one of many presidents whose inheritance of land and property became largely his source of wealth. From his parents, he inherited the thriving family tobacco plantation in Virginia. And when his first wife, Letitia, died while he was in office, he inherited her fortune as well.

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Source: Keystone / Hulton Archive / Getty Images

11. Franklin Delano Roosevelt
> Term: 1933-1945 (32nd president)
> Source of fortune: Inherited
> Peak net worth (inflation adjusted): $68.0 million

Coming from the wealthy and powerful Roosevelt family, Franklin Delano Roosevelt inherited much of his wealth. FDR spent almost his entire adult life in public service, beginning at age 28 when he ran to the New York state senate. FDR died in office after being elected president for a fourth time.

Source: Pool / JE / Getty Images

10. William Jefferson Clinton
> Term: 1993- 2001 (42nd president)
> Source of fortune: Books, speeches
> Peak net worth (inflation adjusted): $77.5 million

Since leaving office, former President Bill Clinton has made millions from his 2005 book “My Life.” Much of his wealth, however, actually comes from his wife, Hillary. The former secretary of state and Democratic presidential candidate reportedly received a $14 million advance for her 2014 memoir “Hard Choices” — one of the largest advances of all time. She also made millions from a number of paid speeches. Because the two are married, their net worths are combined.

Source: General Photographic Agency / Getty Images

9. Herbert Clark Hoover
> Term: 1929-1933 (31st president)
> Source of fortune: Mining
> Peak net worth (inflation adjusted): $84.5 million

Herbert Hoover was orphaned as a child, but he overcame his struggles to become a successful businessman and politician. After graduating from Stanford and before entering politics, Hoover worked as a mining engineer, becoming an expert in the field. He went on to own several Burmese silver mines and write a mining engineering textbook, all of which contributing to his considerable wealth.

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Source: Central Press / Getty Images

8. Lyndon Baines Johnson
> Term: 1963-1969 (36th president)
> Source of fortune: Broadcasting
> Peak net worth (inflation adjusted): $111.2 million

Lyndon Baines Johnson owned assets such as livestock and 1,500 acres of land in Texas. However, the main source of income for Johnson and his wife, Lady Bird, was their Texas TV and radio station business. Though the radio station KTBC was technically in Lady Bird’s name, LBJ reportedly used his considerable influence as a member of Congress to make the acquisition go smoothly and make the station a success. The Johnsons later expanded their portfolio to include other TV and radio stations in Texas.

Source: National Archives / Getty Images

7. James Madison
> Term: 1809-1817 (4th president)
> Source of fortune: Inherited
> Peak net worth (inflation adjusted): $115.4 million

James Madison was born to wealthy parents in Orange County, Virginia. His parents ran a successful plantation and eventually built the famed Montpelier estate on their land. They owned several thousand acres of land and dozens of slaves. Though wealthy at one point, Madison’s fortunes dwindled towards the end of his life. His plantation was not successful, and he was further strained by his stepson’s debts.

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Source: Hulton Archive / Getty Images

6. Andrew Jackson
> Term: 1829-1837 (7th president)
> Source of fortune: Plantation
> Peak net worth (inflation adjusted): $135.0 million

Born poor in 1767, Andrew Jackson became wealthy through his law practice. He also inherited a fortune from his wife Rachel. By 1804, Jackson owned nine slaves and was wealthy enough to build a mansion, the Hermitage. As the estate grew more successful, he continued to expand his land and purchase more slaves. Jackson owned about 150 people at the time of his death.

Source: George C. Beresford / Hulton Archive / Getty Images

5. Theodore Roosevelt
> Term: 1901-1909 (26th president)
> Source of fortune: Inherited
> Peak net worth (inflation adjusted): $142.2 million

Theodore Roosevelt came from a wealthy and prominent family. His fifth cousin, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, appears earlier on this list. Teddy Roosevelt was significantly wealthier than his cousin, having inherited a large trust fund. Though he was born wealthy, Roosevelt does not appear to have increased his wealth much as he spent almost his entire adult life in public service from the time he was elected to the New York State Assembly at 23.

Source: Hulton Archive / Getty Images

4. Thomas Jefferson
> Term: 1801-1809 (3rd president)
> Source of fortune: Inherited
> Peak net worth (inflation adjusted): $241.1 million

When he was a teen, Thomas Jefferson inherited 3,000 acres of land from his father near present-day Charlottesville, Virginia. Jefferson expanded the land to 5,000 acres and built his architecturally advanced home Monticello. Though he was extremely wealthy for most of his life, he died in a great deal of debt, and his eldest daughter had to rely on charity for income.

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Source: Three Lions / Getty Images

3. George Washington
> Term: 1789-1797 (1st president)
> Source of fortune: Inherited
> Peak net worth (inflation adjusted): $597.6 million

George Washington was America’s first president and also its wealthiest for more than a century. He inherited his extremely successful plantation, Mount Vernon, from his half brother. Washington also made substantial money as a general and as president. His presidential salary in 1789 was 2% of the total U.S. budget.

Source: National Archive / Newsmakers / Getty Images

2. John Fitzgerald Kennedy
> Term: 1961-1963 (35th president)
> Source of fortune: Inherited
> Peak net worth (inflation adjusted): $1.1 billion

The Kennedys are one of the most powerful and influential families in American politics, and that was even more true in the 1960s. John F. Kennedy’s father, Joe, made much of his fortune through banking and investing. He was one of the richest men in the United States, and the family fortune endures to this day. Kennedy clearly benefited from his family’s wealth, but estimating his exact net worth at its highest point is especially difficult.

A number of other siblings shared a portion of the trust. In addition to the family’s wealth, Kennedy’s wife Jacqueline, was heiress to a vast oil fortune. The couple’s combined wealth amounted to more than a billion dollars when adjusted for inflation.

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Source: Win McNamee / Getty Images

1. Donald John Trump
> Term: 2017- (45th president)
> Source of fortune: Real estate
> Peak net worth (inflation adjusted): $3.2 billion

Before he entered politics, Donald Trump was a prominent figure in New York City’s real estate scene. Trump took over his father’s business and grew it into an empire. Though many of his other businesses have failed, Trump’s vast property holdings make him by far the wealthiest president of all time.

In addition to a number of New York City buildings, Trump owns over a dozen golf clubs and many resorts. Trump broke precedent when he declined to release his tax returns as a candidate and later as president, so it is difficult to know his exact worth. What is certain is that he is extremely wealthy.

Methodology

Calculating the wealth of presidents who served hundreds of years ago is a challenging task, especially given the way that wealth and finances documentation has changed since the U.S. was first founded. Historical sources often give a range for a president’s net worth, adjusted for today’s dollar value.

24/7 Wall St. analyzed the finances of U.S. presidents based on historical sources. The figures were adjusted for inflation to annual 2019 levels, the most recent available. We have accounted for hard assets such as real estate, estimated lifetime savings based on work history, and inheritance. We also considered annual salaries, incomes earned from royalties on books, ownership of companies, yields from family estates, and other forms of income.

The ranking is based on peak net worth, or how much a president’s combined assets were worth at the time in his life when he was the richest. Many presidents became impoverished or even went into debt after their time in office.