Selena Gomez is officially a billionaire, according to Bloomberg’s index

Selena is the most followed woman in the world on Instagram. Picture: Instagram/Selena Gomez

Selena Gomez is officially a billionaire, according to Bloomberg’s latest index.

The US actress, 32, has quietly amassed an exorbitant fortune in recent years, after first shooting to stardom as a teen with her Disney Channel show Wizards of Waverly Place in 2007.

While Gomez carved out a flourishing TV and music career in the years afterwards, simultaneously becoming one of Hollywood’s most popular celebrities, the outlet reports 81% of her wealth stems from her cosmetics company Rare Beauty, which launched in 2020.

According to Bloomberg‘s recent estimations, which were published in September, Gomez’s net worth is US$1.3 billion.

Similar to pop star Rihanna, who became a billionaire in 2021 largely thanks to her cosmetics company Fenty Beauty, Gomez’s showbiz exploits accounted for only a fraction of her wealth, with music tours contributing to less than 5% of her fortune, while album and record sales made up less than 2%.

Rare Beauty, which sells makeup products from liquid blush to lipsticks, reportedly did net sales of US$400 million in the 12 months to February 2024.

Selena Gomez founded Rare Beauty, her line of vegan, cruelty-free makeup, in 2019.

While it’s unknown what stake Gomez has in the business, which she founded, Bloomberg speculates it’s around 51%, with the company estimated to be worth more than US$2b.

Further, Gomez is the most followed woman on Instagram, with 424 million followers.

The cosmetics space has proved highly lucrative for celebrities, including Kylie Jenner, who was named Forbes’ youngest self-made billionaire in 2019 thanks to the success of her company Kylie Cosmetics, which was founded in 2015.

However, she was a year later sensationally stripped of that status, with the business magazine accusing the reality star and her mother, Kris Jenner, of “inflating the size and success of her business”.

Forbes lists her current net wealth at US$710m.

Gomez joins her best friend, US pop star Taylor Swift, in the elite billionaire club, with the latter’s net worth estimated at US$1.1b in October last year.

Swift’s financial feat was particularly impressive, with the singer accumulating the bulk of her wealth from music and tours alone.

Per Bloomberg, Swift earned US$400m from music she had released since 2019, when she took control of her own masters, as well as US$370m from ticket sales and merchandise and US$120m from streaming on Spotify and YouTube.

She also netted US$110m from her five personal properties and US$80m in royalties from music sales.

By the time it wraps in December this year, it’s estimated Swift’s blockbuster Eras Tour will have have brought in more than US$2b.