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Net Worth Comparison

James Ratcliffe vs Elon Musk

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

James Ratcliffe

James Ratcliffe

CEO, Chemicals
Net Worth
$18.088B
+0.00% today
Elon Musk
Wealthier

Elon Musk

CEO, Tesla, Inc.
Net Worth
$807.656B
+$789.6B more than James
+1.18% today

Wealth at a Glance

James Ratcliffe$18.088B
Elon Musk$807.656B

Net worth gap: $789.6B — equivalent to 98% of Elon's total wealth.

Tale of the Tape

James Ratcliffe
Elon Musk
$18.088B
Net Worth
$807.656B
#149
Global Rank
#1
73
Age
54
UNITED KINGDOM
Country
UNITED STATES
Chemicals
Source of Wealth
Tesla, SpaceX
Manufacturing
Industry
Technology
University of Birmingham (BSc, MSc); London Business School (MBA)
Education
University of Pennsylvania (BA, BS)

Net Worth History

YearJamesElonLeader
2022—$146B—
2023—$235.5B—
2024$18.4B$839.6BElon
2025$18.4B$839BElon
2026$18.088B$807.656BElon

Career Highlights

James Ratcliffe

  1. 1998
    Founded INEOS
    Founded the INEOS chemicals group.
  2. 2005
    Acquired Innovene
    Acquired BP's Innovene division for $9 billion.
  3. 2018
    Knighted
    Appointed Knight Bachelor for services to business and investment.
  4. 2019
    Acquired OGC Nice
    Acquired French football club OGC Nice.
  5. 2024
    Acquired Stake in Manchester United
    Acquired a 27.7% stake in Manchester United.

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 James Ratcliffe

As of May 2026, Elon Musk leads this comparison with a net worth of $807.656B, placing at #1 in the global rankings. James Ratcliffe follows at $18.088B — a gap of $789.6B.

The two leaders come from distinct industries — Manufacturing for James Ratcliffe and Technology for Elon Musk. Comparing them is therefore a comparison of different underlying asset types, growth rates, and risk profiles rather than a simple head-to-head within the same market.

James Ratcliffe is 73 years old versus 54 for Elon Musk, a difference of 19 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.

Explore Full Profiles

James Ratcliffe
James Ratcliffe
Full profile → net worth, bio, career history
Elon Musk
Elon Musk
Full profile → net worth, bio, career history

Net worth estimates updated daily from public financial disclosures. Methodology · Report an error