Net Worth Comparison

Charles Simonyi vs Elon Musk

Real-time net worth, career, and company comparison — updated May 2026.

Charles Simonyi

Charles Simonyi

Net Worth
$7.512B
+0.36% today
Elon Musk
Wealthier

Elon Musk

Net Worth
$807.656B
+$800.1B more than Charles
+1.18% today

Wealth at a Glance

Charles Simonyi$7.512B
Elon Musk$807.656B

Net worth gap: $800.1B — equivalent to 99% of Elon's total wealth.

Tale of the Tape

Charles Simonyi
Elon Musk
$7.512B
Net Worth
$807.656B
#504
Global Rank
#1
77
Age
54
UNITED STATES
Country
UNITED STATES
Microsoft
Source of Wealth
Tesla, SpaceX
Technology
Industry
Technology
University of California, Berkeley (BS), Stanford University (PhD)
Education
University of Pennsylvania (BA, BS)

Net Worth History

YearCharlesElonLeader
2020$3.3B
2022$146B
2023$235.5B
2024$7.3B$839.6BElon
2025$7.2B$839BElon
2026$7.512B$807.656BElon

Career Highlights

Charles Simonyi

  1. 1972
    Joined Xerox PARC
    Created the first WYSIWYG text editor, Bravo.
  2. 1981
    Joined Microsoft
    Developed Microsoft Word and Excel.
  3. 2002
    Founded Intentional Software
    Focused on creating programming tools.
  4. 2007 & 2009
    Space Tourist
    Traveled to the International Space Station twice.
  5. 2017
    Microsoft acquired Intentional Software
    Returned to Microsoft.

Elon Musk

  1. 1995
    Co-founded Zip2
    Co-founded Zip2, an online city guide for newspapers.
  2. 1999
    Co-founded X.com
    Co-founded X.com, which later became PayPal.
  3. 2002
    Founded SpaceX
    Founded Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX).
  4. 2004
    Became Chairman of Tesla
    Led the first funding round for Tesla and became its Chairman.
  5. 2008
    Became CEO of Tesla
    Became CEO of Tesla Motors.

The Verdict: Elon Musk vs Charles Simonyi

As of May 2026, Elon Musk leads this comparison with a net worth of $807.656B, placing at #1 in the global rankings. Charles Simonyi follows at $7.512B — a gap of $800.1B.

Both executives operate in the Technology sector, making this a direct peer comparison. Their wealth trajectories reflect the broader performance of that industry over time, though individual company strategy, equity ownership structure, and capital allocation decisions have driven meaningfully different outcomes.

Charles Simonyi is 77 years old versus 54 for Elon Musk, a difference of 23 years. Age context matters in wealth comparisons: a younger billionaire at the same net worth has had less time to accumulate — and in many cases represents a higher compound annual growth rate on their wealth.

Net worth figures are estimates calculated from public shareholding disclosures, stock price data, and reported asset values. See our full methodology.