How old 14 of the world's richest people were when they first became billionaires

AP/Jae C. Hong

• Not all billionaires join the three comma club at the same age.
• Bill Gates may be richer than Mark Zuckerberg, but the Facebook CEO became a billionaire when he was nearly a decade younger.
• Oprah Winfrey became a billionaire at age 49.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

When Bill Gates became a billionaire in 1987 at 31, he was the youngest person to ever join the three comma club. In 2008, Mark Zuckerberg took that title when he reached billionaire status at 23. 

But not all of today's wealthiest entrepreneurs saw such success at a young age: Larry Ellison was 42 when he made his first million and 49 when his net worth reached the billions.

Using an analysis of the Forbes' 2020 Billionaires List by British sports betting firm OLBG, we've broken out the ages at which Gates, Zuckerberg, Ellison, and 11 more of the world's richest people became billionaires. Here they are, listed in order from oldest to youngest at the time they reached billionaire status.

Warren Buffett: 56

Today's estimated net worth: $79.7 billion

The investing legend and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway became a self-made billionaire in 1986 at age 56, Business Insider previously reported. His net worth passed $1 billion after Berkshire Hathaway sold class-A shares for the first time. 

George Lucas: 52

Today's estimated net worth: $5.7 billion

Lucas may be the brains behind two of the most well-known film franchises of our time, but he made most of his money by selling his production studio Lucasfilm to Disney for $4.05 billion in cash and stock in 2012, according to Bloomberg. He first became a self-made billionaire in 1996 at 52.

Carlos Slim: 51

Today's estimated net worth: $51.2 billion

The Telecom magnate became a self-made billionaire in 1991 at 51. Real-estate investments contributed to Slim's fortune. In 2015, he was the second-richest person in the world.

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