Australia is one of the world’s wealthiest developed economies and home to a growing group of billionaires whose fortunes have been built across mining, real estate, technology, manufacturing, retail and finance.

In 2026, Australia’s richest people continued to benefit from strong financial markets, valuable natural resources and the global growth of technology and artificial intelligence.

According to Forbes’ Australia’s 50 Richest 2026, the combined wealth of the country’s 50 richest people reached approximately $254 billion, an increase of $11 billion from the previous year. The Australian dollar’s rise also helped increase the value of Australian fortunes when measured in U.S. dollars.

At the top of the ranking is mining billionaire Gina Rinehart, followed by property developer Harry Triguboff and mining magnate Andrew Forrest.

Australia’s billionaire landscape is particularly interesting because it combines traditional industries such as mining and property with fast-growing sectors including artificial intelligence, software and data centers.

Top 10 Richest People in Australia in 2026

These figures come from Forbes’ 2026 annual Australia 50 Richest ranking, which used stock prices and exchange rates as of January 23, 2026.

1. Gina Rinehart — $24.6 Billion

Gina Rinehart remains Australia’s richest person in Forbes’ 2026 ranking.

Rinehart is executive chairwoman of Hancock Prospecting, the private mining company founded by her father, Lang Hancock. She transformed the family business into one of Australia’s most powerful mining empires.

Forbes estimated her fortune at $24.6 billion in its 2026 annual ranking. Although her wealth declined from the previous year because of weaker iron ore prices and regulatory pressures, she retained the No. 1 position.

Hancock Prospecting's major asset is the Roy Hill iron ore project in Western Australia. Rinehart has also expanded beyond traditional iron ore into rare earths, gas and agriculture.

Her investments in rare earth minerals have become increasingly important as governments and companies around the world look for alternatives to concentrated global supply chains.

Main sources of Gina Rinehart’s wealth

• Iron ore

• Hancock Prospecting

• Roy Hill

• Rare earth minerals

• Gas

• Agriculture and cattle

Rinehart's fortune demonstrates how Australia's enormous natural-resource sector continues to create some of the country's largest fortunes.

2. Harry Triguboff — $22.6 Billion

Harry Triguboff is Australia's second-richest person, according to Forbes' 2026 ranking.

The property billionaire founded Meriton, one of Australia's largest residential property developers.

Forbes valued his fortune at approximately $22.6 billion, representing a 20% increase from the previous year.

Triguboff has built his wealth primarily through residential apartments and property development.

Meriton has been particularly active in Sydney and has also increased its focus on Queensland's Gold Coast.

Triguboff's wealth empire

His business interests are primarily connected to:

• Residential property

• Apartment development

• Real estate

• Construction

• Property investment

His position near the top of Australia's billionaire rankings highlights the enormous wealth that can be generated from the country's property market.

3. Andrew Forrest & Family — $20.1 Billion

Mining billionaire Andrew Forrest, widely known as Twiggy Forrest, ranks third among Australia's richest people.

Forbes estimated the Forrest family's wealth at $20.1 billion in 2026, up around $4 billion from the previous year.

Forrest is best known for building his fortune through Fortescue, one of Australia's major iron ore producers.

However, his interests have expanded beyond traditional mining.

He has increasingly focused on renewable energy, green hydrogen and other technologies intended to support the global energy transition.

Forrest has also invested heavily in gold, including increasing his stake in Greatland Gold.

Andrew Forrest's major interests

• Iron ore

• Fortescue

• Renewable energy

• Green hydrogen

• Gold

• Agriculture

• Investments

His career illustrates how Australia's traditional mining billionaires are increasingly looking toward new energy industries.

4. Cliff Obrecht & Melanie Perkins — $15.1 Billion Combined

Australia's technology sector is represented prominently by Cliff Obrecht and Melanie Perkins, the husband-and-wife cofounders of Canva.

The pair held a combined fortune of approximately $15.1 billion in Forbes' 2026 Australia ranking.

Canva, founded in Sydney, has become one of the world's most recognizable online design platforms.

The company allows users to create presentations, social media graphics, documents, videos and other visual content without requiring advanced graphic-design skills.

Canva's valuation reached approximately $42 billion during the period used for Forbes' ranking, significantly boosting the wealth of its founders.

Why Canva matters to Australia's billionaire economy

Canva represents a major shift in Australia's wealth creation.

Unlike older fortunes built around mining or property, Obrecht and Perkins created their wealth through:

• Software

• Artificial intelligence

• Digital design

• Cloud technology

• Global subscriptions

• Online business tools

Their success has helped establish Australia as an increasingly important technology and software hub.

5. Anthony Pratt — $11.5 Billion

Anthony Pratt ranks fifth among Australia's richest people in 2026.

He built his fortune through Visy Industries, one of Australia's largest packaging and recycling companies.

Forbes estimated Pratt's wealth at approximately $11.5 billion.

Visy operates across packaging, recycling and manufacturing, with a substantial presence in Australia and the United States.

Pratt's fortune demonstrates how manufacturing and recycling can create enormous business empires when companies achieve international scale.

Main business areas

• Packaging

• Recycling

• Manufacturing

• Paper products

• Industrial operations

6. Mike Cannon-Brookes — $10 Billion

Technology entrepreneur Mike Cannon-Brookes ranks sixth.

He cofounded software company Atlassian with Scott Farquhar, building one of Australia's most successful technology businesses.

Forbes valued Cannon-Brookes' fortune at approximately $10 billion in the 2026 annual ranking.

Atlassian develops collaboration and productivity software used by businesses around the world.

However, Cannon-Brookes' wealth declined significantly in the year leading to Forbes' annual ranking as Atlassian's share price faced pressure from increased competition.

His fortune nevertheless remains a major example of Australia's global technology success.

7. Scott Farquhar — $9.7 Billion

Scott Farquhar, the other cofounder of Atlassian, ranks seventh with approximately $9.7 billion.

Farquhar and Cannon-Brookes started Atlassian after graduating from university and eventually turned the company into a major global software business.

Atlassian's products are widely used for:

• Project management

• Software development

• Team collaboration

• Workplace productivity

• Enterprise technology

The company's global reach has made both founders two of Australia's most prominent technology billionaires.

8. Frank Lowy — $8.8 Billion

Frank Lowy is one of Australia's best-known business figures and ranks eighth in the 2026 Forbes list.

Lowy built his fortune through retail property and the development of the Westfield shopping-centre empire.

He and his family transformed Westfield into one of the world's largest shopping-centre businesses before the company was sold to Unibail-Rodamco in 2018 for approximately $16 billion.

Lowy's wealth remains connected to investments through the Lowy Family Group.

His story is one of Australia's classic examples of immigrant entrepreneurship, real estate development and long-term wealth creation.

9. Kerry Stokes — $7.9 Billion

Kerry Stokes ranks ninth among Australia's richest people.

His wealth is associated with Seven Group Holdings, a diversified Australian investment company with interests across industrial services, media and other businesses.

Stokes has built a diversified business portfolio rather than relying on a single industry.

His interests have included:

• Media

• Industrial equipment

• Resources

• Infrastructure

• Investments

His position demonstrates that diversification can play an important role in Australia's billionaire economy.

10. Bianca Rinehart & Siblings — $7.5 Billion

The tenth position is held by Bianca Rinehart and her siblings, whose family wealth is connected to Hancock Prospecting.

Forbes valued their combined fortune at approximately $7.5 billion in its 2026 Australia ranking.

Their position highlights the importance of family ownership in Australia's mining sector.

The Rinehart family remains one of Australia's most prominent wealthy families, with its fortune ultimately connected to the natural-resource assets developed through Hancock Prospecting.

Australia's Billionaire Economy in 2026

Australia's wealthiest people come from a surprisingly broad range of industries.

Mining remains dominant, but technology, real estate, manufacturing, media and investment businesses are also responsible for major fortunes.

Mining Remains a Major Source of Wealth

Australia is one of the world's most resource-rich countries.

Iron ore, gold, lithium, rare earths and other minerals have created enormous fortunes for Australian entrepreneurs and families.

Gina Rinehart and Andrew Forrest are two of the clearest examples.

However, the mining industry is changing as demand grows for minerals needed for batteries, electric vehicles, renewable energy and advanced technology.

Technology and AI Are Creating New Fortunes

Technology is becoming increasingly important to Australia's billionaire economy.

Canva's Melanie Perkins and Cliff Obrecht, along with Atlassian's Mike Cannon-Brookes and Scott Farquhar, demonstrate how software companies can create fortunes comparable to traditional mining empires.

Australia is also benefiting from increasing demand for data centers and artificial intelligence infrastructure.

Forbes noted that the data-center boom created two of the three new fortunes that entered the 2026 Australia 50 Richest ranking.

This could become an increasingly important source of Australian wealth as global companies invest heavily in computing infrastructure.

Real Estate Continues to Create Billionaires

Property remains another major source of Australian wealth.

Harry Triguboff's position as Australia's second-richest person demonstrates the scale of Australia's residential property market.

Real estate fortunes have also historically been built through commercial property, shopping centers, hotels and development.

Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and the Gold Coast remain important markets for Australia's property billionaires.

Australia's 50 Richest Are Worth $254 Billion

The combined wealth of Australia's 50 richest people reached approximately $254 billion in Forbes' 2026 ranking, up by about $11 billion from the previous year.

The increase occurred despite significant volatility in global markets.

The Australian dollar strengthened by approximately 9% over the relevant period, helping Australian fortunes rise when converted into U.S. dollars.

However, not every billionaire became richer.

Forbes reported that 30 people on the list increased their fortunes, while 16 became less wealthy.

The minimum fortune needed to enter the ranking also increased to approximately $1.2 billion, compared with $975 million in the previous year.

New Billionaires Enter Australia's Wealth Ranking

The 2026 list also welcomed several newcomers.

Among them was Dennis Bastas, founder of health and beauty company DBG Health, with a fortune of approximately $3.6 billion.

Another newcomer was Robin Khuda, founder of data-center operator AirTrunk, whose fortune was estimated at around $2 billion.

Brothers Daniel and William Roberts, cofounders of data-center company IREN, also entered the ranking with fortunes of approximately $1.7 billion each.

The arrival of these entrepreneurs shows how Australia's billionaire economy is expanding into healthcare, data centers and digital infrastructure.

Who Is Australia's Richest Person Right Now?

Forbes' real-time ranking continues to track Australian billionaire fortunes as markets move.

As of the latest Forbes real-time data available around September 1, 2026, Gina Rinehart remained Australia's richest person, with a real-time fortune of roughly $25.6 billion.

Because billionaire wealth is heavily influenced by stock prices, exchange rates and private-company valuations, real-time figures can differ substantially from the annual Forbes ranking.

For that reason, readers should distinguish between the Forbes annual 2026 ranking and Forbes' real-time billionaire tracker.

The Future of Australia's Richest People

Australia's billionaire landscape is likely to continue changing as the global economy shifts.

Mining will remain important, particularly because of demand for critical minerals and resources required for clean energy and advanced technologies.

Technology is also expected to become more influential.

Companies involved in software, AI, data centers and digital infrastructure could create the next generation of Australian billionaires.

Meanwhile, real estate, manufacturing, agriculture and financial investments will continue supporting established fortunes.

The combination of natural resources, entrepreneurial talent and a strong financial market gives Australia a unique position among the world's wealthiest economies.

Final Thoughts

Australia's richest people in 2026 represent a fascinating combination of traditional and modern wealth.

Gina Rinehart leads the Forbes annual ranking with $24.6 billion, followed by property billionaire Harry Triguboff with $22.6 billion and mining magnate Andrew Forrest and his family with $20.1 billion.

Meanwhile, technology entrepreneurs such as Melanie Perkins, Cliff Obrecht, Mike Cannon-Brookes and Scott Farquhar demonstrate that Australia's next generation of enormous fortunes may increasingly come from software and digital technology.

With the country's 50 richest people collectively worth approximately $254 billion, Australia remains home to one of the world's most powerful billionaire communities.

The biggest story, however, may be what comes next: as mining evolves and AI, software, data centers and renewable energy expand, Australia's billionaire ranking could look very different in the years ahead.

Source and Methodology

This article primarily uses Forbes' Australia's 50 Richest 2026 ranking. Forbes' annual figures were calculated using financial and shareholding information and market data, with public fortunes based on stock prices and exchange rates as of January 23, 2026. Forbes also operates a real-time billionaire ranking, meaning individual fortunes can change after the annual list's measurement date