How We Calculate Wealth

Understanding our proprietary scoring methodology

Standard Net Worth

Forbes Real-Time Data

Traditional headline net worth as reported by Forbes, based on stock holdings, private company valuations, and known assets.

Net Worth = Reported Assets

Chronos Score

Age-Adjusted to 100

Projects current wealth to age 100 using the S&P 500 long-term average of 10% (including dividends). Younger billionaires have more compounding years ahead.

Chronos = NW × (1.10)(100 - age)
Based on S&P 500 historical average (1957-2024)

Liquid Score

Real Spendable Wealth

Advanced calculation of actual spendable wealth accounting for insider selling constraints, market impact, and asset liquidity.

Liquid = NW × Liquidity × Insider × Impact
Founders can't sell 80%+ of shares without cratering stock price

Advanced Liquid Score Methodology

Unlike simple industry multipliers, our Liquid Score accounts for the real-world constraints billionaires face when converting paper wealth to cash. A founder with $100B in a single stock can't actually spend $100B—SEC rules, market impact, and signaling effects dramatically limit what they can liquidate.

Base Liquidity

How liquid is the asset class? Public stocks are more liquid than real estate or private companies.

Finance & Investments95%
Technology85%
Real Estate50%
Sports40%

Insider Penalty

SEC Rule 144 and 10b5-1 plans restrict insider selling. Founders can only sell ~1% of shares per quarter without tanking the stock.

Active Founder (concentrated)20%
Founder (diversified)35%
Inherited (single company)45%
Finance/Diversified90%

Market Impact

Large positions cause price slippage when sold. A $100B+ holder moving shares will move markets just by announcing intent to sell.

$100B+ Net Worth70%
$50-100B Net Worth80%
$20-50B Net Worth85%
<$10B Net Worth95%

Example: Elon Musk's Liquid Score

Headline Net Worth$788B
× Base Liquidity (Technology)85%
× Insider Penalty (Founder, concentrated)20%
× Market Impact ($100B+)70%
= Liquid Score~$93B (11.9%)

Despite a $788B headline net worth, Musk could realistically liquidate only ~$93B without destroying Tesla's stock price and triggering SEC investigations.

Advanced Wealth Distribution Modeling

For precise rankings in the ultra-high net worth segment, we use Pareto (Power Law) Distribution modeling with region-specific parameters. This allows us to accurately estimate your position among the world's wealthiest individuals.

The Pareto Power Law Formula

Rank = Ncenti × (100,000,000 / Wuser)α

Where Ncenti is the count of centimillionaires ($100M+) in the region,Wuser is your net worth, and α (alpha) is the Pareto index. A lower α indicates a "fatter tail" with higher concentration of extreme wealth.

Regional Pareto Indices (α)

Different regions have different wealth concentration patterns. The United States has the "fattest tail" globally, meaning more outliers at extreme wealth levels.

United Statesα = 1.35

~10,800 centimillionaires

Chinaα = 1.45

~2,350 centimillionaires

Western Europeα = 1.60

~6,000 centimillionaires (aggregate)

Indiaα = 1.42

~1,200 centimillionaires

Globalα = 1.50

~29,350 centimillionaires

Russiaα = 1.30

~500 centimillionaires

Age-Conditional Wealth Thresholds (US Baseline)

We use age-specific wealth percentiles to calculate your Junior Dominance Score—how your wealth compares to the top 0.1% of all younger generations.

Age BracketMedian (P50)Top 1% (P99)Top 0.1% (P99.9)Top 0.01% (P99.99)
20-29$12K$600K$5.5M$18M
30-39$65K$4.7M$22M$85M
40-49$185K$10.5M$45M$250M
50-59$300K$16.8M$65M$400M
60-69$385K$22.1M$90M$600M

Source: Federal Reserve Survey of Consumer Finances 2022, Knight Frank Wealth Report 2024, Altrata World Ultra Wealth Report 2025

Advanced Metrics

Junior Dominance Score

Measures how your wealth compares to the top 0.1% of all younger generations. A score above 1.0 means you've accumulated more capital than the wealthiest 0.1% of everyone younger than you.

Score = Your Wealth / P99.9(age < yours)
Score ≥ 100xGenerational wealth outlier
Score ≥ 10xExceptional accumulation
Score ≥ 1xOutperforming top 0.1%

Accumulation Velocity

For self-made individuals, measures the rate of wealth accumulation per year since career start (assumed age 22). This reveals the true pace of wealth creation.

Velocity = Net Worth / (Age - 22)
$100M+/yearHypergrowth
$10M+/yearExceptional
$1M+/yearOutstanding

Why This Matters

Traditional billionaire rankings only show headline net worth—a number that doesn't account for the time value of money or the practical constraints of converting paper wealth to cash.

Chronos Score reveals the true power of youth and compounding. A 25-year-old with $1 billion has 75 years of potential growth ahead, making their wealth far more valuable than a 90-year-old with the same amount.

Liquid Score shows what billionaires can actually spend. Most founder wealth is locked in a single company's stock—selling it would crash the price and trigger regulatory scrutiny. Our methodology accounts for these real-world constraints.