Selena Gomez has entered a rarefied circle for young celebrities. The 32-year-old actor, singer, and entrepreneur is now a billionaire, according to Bloomberg, which estimates her net worth is $1.3 billion.
Though Gomez's career is multifaceted, the lion's share of her wealth — roughly $1.1 billion worth — comes from her Rare Beauty cosmetics brand, Bloomberg said. Launched in 2020, Rare was a smash hit — its popular blush product alone is said to have brought in $70 million in revenue in 2022.
Rare is a huge source of wealth because it doesn't have a parent company or corporate partner. The brand is owned by Gomez, and it counts New Theory Ventures' Nikki Eslami and its CEO, the beauty vet Scott Friedman, as investors, according to Bloomberg. Earlier this year, reports swirled that Gomez was seeking to sell Rare at a $2 billion valuation. But Gomez denied that a sale was imminent. “I don’t think I’m going anywhere. I am enjoying this a little too much,” Gomez said in April. “I just want to continue building what we’re doing.”
Rare Beauty did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider. In addition to her flourishing acting career, which includes the Hulu hit “Only Murders in the Building,” Gomez is the founder of the mental-health platform Wondermind. Gomez has signed eight-figure endorsement deals with Puma, Coach, and Louis Vuitton, according to Bloomberg. And while she has had success in music, it's not the centerpiece of her portfolio — unlike her friend Taylor Swift, who hit billionaire status almost exclusively thanks to her music.
Gomez's Path to Billionaire Status
Selena Gomez rose to fame as a child star on Barney and the Disney Channel. Her latest role? Billionaire. The 32-year-old actress and singer has amassed a fortune worth $1.3bn, according to Bloomberg, which added the celebrity to its billionaire index on Friday. It said her wealth came mainly from her Rare Beauty make-up company, which she founded five years ago and retains a stake in worth more than $1bn, the publication estimated. The brand's success has made her one of the “youngest female self-made” wealthy on the list, alongside the likes of Taylor Swift and Rihanna.
Rare Beauty, known for liquid blush and lip tint that have had viral success on social media, reportedly did net sales of $400m in the 12 months to February. Gomez has also brought in tens of millions of dollars from endorsement deals with the likes of Louis Vuitton, Coach and Puma, according to Bloomberg. It said she also took home “at least” $6m per season for her Emmy-nominated turn in the Hulu hit “Only Murders in the Building”, which was recently renewed for a fifth season.
Despite her on-screen and musical success - including multiple nominations for Emmy and Grammy Awards - those achievements count for a relatively a small fraction of her wealth, Bloomberg said. Gomez, born in Texas and half Mexican-American, has spent nearly three decades in the public eye, where her success has brought scrutiny of her fashion, boyfriends and health travails - including diagnoses of bipolar disorder and the autoimmune disease lupus.
Social Media's Role in Gomez's Success
She became the most followed woman in the world on Instagram last year. She counts more than 424 million fans on the platform, ahead of Swift and Kylie Jenner - a dubious distinction for a star who has discussed the platform's negative impact on her mental health and at times deleted it. On Friday, the account was quiet as word of her latest distinction hit headlines. In an interview with BBC1 nearly a decade ago, Ms Gomez reflected on the longevity of her career, despite her youth. “It’s weird it’s almost two decades…am I too old?” she joked, adding that there was more she wanted to achieve. “You know what’s crazy, is that a lot of times I don’t even feel I’ve started,” she said.
A Growing Beauty Empire
Selena Gomez is one of the world’s youngest billionaires as the 32-year-old former Disney Channel pop star and actress has cashed in her highly successful beauty and cosmetics brand. Gomez recently cracked the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, which values her net worth at $1.3 billion, according to Bloomberg News. The bulk of Gomez’s wealth is derived from her stake in Rare Beauty, the cosmetics company that she founded in 2020.
The “Only Murders in the Building” star successfully leveraged her massive social media following, which numbers hundreds of millions of users on Instagram and TikTok, to sell beauty products like mascara, liquid blush and eye brightener. Earlier this year, it was reported that Gomez was exploring a possible sale of her company — which is thought of as an attractive target for mergers and acquisitions — at a $2 billion valuation.
Gomez later told TIME magazine that she has no plans to sell the company. Rare Beauty has just two known investors — New Theory Ventures and CEO Scott Friedman, who led Nyx Cosmetics before it was sold to L’Oréal for $500 million in 2014. Bloomberg’s assessment of Gomez’s wealth assumes that she owns at least a 51% stake in Rare Beauty. The rest of Gomez’s wealth is derived from endorsements, concert touring, album sales, acting gigs, streaming royalties and real estate holdings, according to Bloomberg News.
From Child Star to Global Mogul
Gomez entered the public consciousness as a young child who got her start as part of the cast of “Barney & Friends.” She then got a starring role on the Disney Channel’s “Wizards of Waverly Place,” where she was a cast member from 2007 to 2012. But it was through her music career that Gomez gained fame — churning out hit songs first as the lead singer of the pop-rock band Selena Gomez & the Scene and then as a solo artist. Gomez has also continued her acting career with roles in films such as “A Rainy Day in New York” and “Spring Breakers.”
In the process, Gomez has become a social media star — amassing 424 million followers on Instagram, third most behind soccer stars Cristiano Ronald and Lionel Messi. Gomez’s immense popularity has also yielded eight-figure endorsement deals with brands such as Puma, Louis Vuitton and Coach.
Gomez's Continued Success
Selena Gomez can now add becoming a billionaire to her long list of achievements. The 32-year-old actress, singer, investor and entrepreneur just achieved the financial milestone thus making her one of the youngest self-made billionaires in the United States, according to Bloomberg, which values her net worth at $1.3 billion. Some of the wealth for the “Only Murders in the Building” star comes from singing, brand partnerships and acting, but the “vast bulk” of her wealth is tied to Rare Beauty, her 5-year-old makeup line that is a success with influencers and teens, the publication revealed Friday.
Gomez’s wealth is based on Bloomberg’s “estimated value” of her stake in the beauty brand, plus her interest in mental health platform Wondermind and various other earnings from her music, acting, properties and money she makes from partnerships that she posts about on social media, which includes her 424 million followers on Instagram. Her popularity on Instagram makes her the third most followed person, behind soccer icons Cristiano Ronaldo (638 million) and Lionel Messi (504 million), helping her rake in massive endorsements with Puma, worth a reported $30 million, and Coach, a $10 million deal.
But her following has also helped her Rare Beauty line, putting her in the celebrity-led category of makeup brands dominated by Rihanna and the Kardashians. Gomez also has reportedly reached out to investors for Rare Beauty, seeking a $2 billion valuation. In 2020, Gomez revealed that she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and later said in an interview with Entrepreneur that any deal struck with her “has to have an element that’s charitable or in the mental health space.” She started the Rare Impact Fund to help raise $100 million to help people gain access to mental health services.
Other revenue streams for the former child star include income from her Hulu show “Only Murders in the Building,” which was just renewed for a fifth season where she makes $6 million a season, according to Bloomberg, and a smaller slice from her music royalties. Gomez’s representative didn’t immediately respond to CNN’s request for comment.
Comparing Gomez to Taylor Swift
Selena Gomez is officially a billionaire thanks to the success of her beauty brand, Rare Beauty. The actor and musician, 32, started the company in 2019 and officially launched the brand in February 2020, taking the name from her album of that year, Rare. Gomez is now worth $1.3bn according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, which has added her to its ranks for the first time. Born in Grand Prairie, Texas, in 1992, Gomez started her career as a child actor and became a Disney Channel star on sitcom Wizards of Waverly Place. She has since built a career as a singer and actor, but the vast majority of her wealth comes from Rare Beauty. Stacy Jones, founder of LA branding agency Hollywood Branded, told Bloomberg: “Selena is not just a pop star. She’s a multifaceted businesswoman with diverse income streams contributing to her impressive net worth.”
When she launched the brand, Gomez outlined in a promotional video what “being rare” means to her. “Being rare is about being comfortable with yourself. I’ve stopped trying to be perfect. I just want to be me,” she said. “I think Rare Beauty can be more than a beauty brand. I want us all to stop comparing ourselves to each other and just start embracing our own uniqueness.” Gomez went on to say that people are “not defined by a photo, a like or a comment”, adding: “Rare Beauty isn’t about how other people see you, it’s about how you see yourself.” In a review of the beauty range, The Independent’s Lucy Partington said it “really is worth the hype.”
The Rare Beauty Phenomenon
Hi {{indy.fullName}} Look at her now! Selena Gomez has officially become a billionaire, with Bloomberg reporting Friday (Sept. 6) that the actress has a net worth of $1.3 billion. The outlet credited the “vast bulk” of Gomez’s money to her Rare Beauty brand, which she founded in February 2019, in addition to her acting and singing careers. According to the report, over 80% of the entrepreneur’s wealth comes from her majority stake in the makeup brand, which has become a smash success in the influencer marketplace. “Selena is not just a pop star,” marketing expert Stacy Jones told the outlet. “She’s a multifaceted businesswoman with diverse income streams contributing to her impressive net worth.”
Along with her beauty brand, Gomez’s net worth also stems from her investment in Wondermind, real estate portfolio, music and acting earnings and paid partnerships. The former Disney Channel star, 32, doesn’t seem to be slowing down anytime soon as her hit Hulu series, “Only Murders in the Building,” was recently picked back up for its fifth season. Gomez is also the third most followed person on Instagram, reportedly raking in upwards of $30 million for just one endorsement deal. The Emmy-nominated actress is now one of the country’s youngest self-made billionaires, joining BFF Taylor Swift. Swift reportedly reached billionaire status in October 2023 thanks to the success of her international Eras Tour. While Gomez’s wealth mainly came from her investments and makeup brand, Swift’s billion-dollar empire came largely from her music. As of 2019, her catalog was valued around $400 million. She also made over $370 from her record-breaking tour, more than $160 million through streaming and nearly $100 million from record sales. As of last year, the “Fortnight” singer’s worth sat around $1.1 billion. However, she has since released new music and added several stops to her international tour.
Gomez's Business Acumen
Call it the celebrity-beauty-brand paradox: Just when you think there are way too many for any of them to succeed, they somehow all make a ton of money. This week, Selena Gomez appeared for the first time on Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index, clocking in with a net worth of $1.3 billion that Bloomberg says comes mostly from Rare Beauty, the makeup and cosmetics line she launched in 2019. I guess a rising tide lifts all matte foundations?
According to Bloomberg, Gomez’s wealth comes from endorsements, touring, acting, and a mental-health app she co-founded — but where each of those endeavors accounts for less than 10 percent of her income, 81.4 percent of it comes from her stake in Rare Beauty. For what it’s worth, our beauty editors are fans, which is more than we can say for some other celebrity-founded lines. Congratulations are in order to Gomez for her new tier of wealth. That’s a lot of fried pickles.
Gomez's Success Story
Most of the mogul's wealth comes from her Rare Beauty brand, the publication reports. By Hannah Dailey Selena Gomez is in rare financial air. According to a report from Bloomberg published Friday (Sept. 6), the 32-year-old star has officially crossed over into billionaire status. More precisely, Gomez now has an estimated net worth of $1.3 billion, making her one of the world’s youngest self-made billionaires. The publication attributes the “vast bulk” of her wealth to the success of her popular Rare Beauty business, which she launched in 2019. Billboard has reached out to Gomez’s rep for comment. Other ventures making up her reported 10-figure bank account are the multi-hyphenate’s music catalog and acting roles — most recently Jacques Audiard’s Emilia Perez and Hulu’s ongoing Only Murders in the Building — as well as her real-estate portfolio and brand partnerships, bolstered by her 424 million followers on Instagram, the third-most on the app. Gomez also boasts earnings from her investments, including her stake in her mental health platform Wondermind, which she founded in 2022 with her mom, Mandy Teefey, and entrepreneur Daniella Pierson. The “Lose You to Love Me” singer is now one of a handful of musicians to become a billionaire, joining close friend Taylor Swift, Rihanna, Jay-Z, Ye and Bruce Springsteen. The Boss was the latest to join the elite club before Gomez, with Forbes estimating his net worth at $1.1 billion in July. The news comes about a week after the fourth-season premiere of Only Murders, the previous season of which earned Gomez Emmy nods for outstanding lead actress in a comedy series and best comedy series. Her next endeavor is a Disney+ reboot of the Disney Channel series where she got her start — Wizards of Waverly Place — for which she’ll executive produce and make an appearance alongside David Henrie, who played her older brother in the original series. “I truly feel like it was the place I started, and I will always be grateful for that time,” Gomez said of the Oct. 29-slated project in a recent interview with People. “I just hope that this new chapter can bring a whole new audience joy the same way that we did when we were younger.”
Looking Ahead
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