How many billionaires are in the UK?

The Sunday Times counted 157 in May 2026; Katadata reported a Forbes UK count of 56 on 25 January 2026. The lists measure different groups, not just current UK residents.

Information only. Not tax, legal or financial advice.

Last checked 25 October 2026.

By Flight Risk Capital. Published: 25 October 2026. Last updated: 25 October 2026.

Which published counts can I cite?

The Sunday Times Rich List 2026 reported 157 billionaires, according to Sky News on 15 May 2026. That is the annual list’s headline count. It is not a census of everyone living in the UK on the day you read this.

Katadata Databoks reported 56 for the United Kingdom in its Forbes-based country snapshot dated 25 January 2026. This is a secondary report of a dated Forbes count. It should not be relabelled as a live October total.

Forbes’ real-time list updates valuations as markets move. On 25 October 2026 we could read its method, but could not verify the current UK-filter total directly. The dated January snapshot is the Forbes count used here.

Why do Forbes and the Sunday Times differ?

Start with currency. The Sunday Times reports wealth in pounds while Forbes uses US dollars. A dollar billionaire is not necessarily a sterling billionaire. Exchange rates can move a person across a threshold without any change in their underlying business.

Then check who is counted. Forbes’ country comparison of 11 March 2026 explicitly groups billionaire citizens. Citizenship does not establish where someone lives or pays tax.

The Sunday Times includes individuals and family groups. Its compiler explained, in Sky News’s 15 May report, that British nationals can remain on the list while living abroad. The same report says the list uses identifiable assets and excludes bank accounts it cannot inspect.

Dates and valuation methods also matter. Forbes describes frequent updates to quoted holdings and daily updates for people whose wealth is closely tied to private companies. An annual estimate and a changing market valuation answer different questions. Neither is an audited statement of every asset and debt.

Is the UK billionaire count rising or falling?

For a trend, compare editions of the same list. News UK’s May 2025 release records a Sunday Times peak of 177 in 2022, falling to 156 in 2025 after successive annual declines. The 2026 count was 157, as reported by Sky News on 15 May 2026.

That is a small rise in the latest edition after a longer fall. It does not measure net migration. People can enter or leave the billionaire category because asset prices, business values, debts or exchange rates change. Changes in coverage can also affect a published list.

Comparing the January Forbes figure with the May Sunday Times figure would mix methods and dates. Their difference cannot tell us how many people arrived or departed.

Does ONS provide an official billionaire register?

The ONS response on privately owned wealth, released 16 April 2025, describes a household survey covering Great Britain in April 2020 to March 2022. It explains that survey estimates have sampling and other errors.

That household evidence does not establish a current UK headcount of individual billionaires. Households differ from people and Great Britain differs from the whole UK. Read how many millionaires are in the UK for the same definition problem at a lower wealth threshold.

What does the leavers tracker establish?

The sourced leavers tracker records reported cases, with a status and reporting basis for each entry. The examples below come from its current visible person records and their sourced individual billionaire estimates. They are not a reproduction of either rich list.

The tracker is a collection of reports, not a complete count of UK billionaires or departures. Our method explains the inclusion rules. The Departures board keeps population estimates and official statistics separate from named reports.

Where can I explore this further?

David Reuben: tracker record. John Fredriksen: tracker record. Lakshmi Mittal: tracker record. Alan Howard: tracker record. Nassef Sawiris: tracker record. Guillaume Pousaz: tracker record. Thor Bjorgolfsson: tracker record. Full sourced leavers tracker. Articles and tracker roundups.

Sources

• Sky News, reporting The Sunday Times: Sunday Times Rich List 2026: headline count and method, 15 May 2026.
• Katadata Databoks, citing Forbes: Countries with the most billionaires: snapshot on 25 January 2026, 25 January 2026.
• Forbes: Real-Time Billionaires: methodology and snapshot updated 25 October 2026, 25 October 2026.
• Forbes: The countries with the most billionaires 2026, 11 March 2026.
• News UK / The Sunday Times: The Sunday Times Rich List 2025, May 2025.
• ONS: Privately owned wealth in the UK: survey scope, 16 April 2025.