The Richest Cats in the World: Meet the Felines With Million-Dollar Fortunes

Most cats have simple financial goals.

Food.

Treats.

A comfortable bed.

Maybe a cardboard box.

And absolutely no intention of getting a job.

But some cats have taken the whole “being financially successful” thing to a completely different level.

We're talking millions of dollars.

Some became rich through social media, brand deals, merchandise, and their own businesses. Others inherited fortunes from extremely wealthy humans. And one legendary cat was left millions of pounds in a will.

Meanwhile, your cat is probably staring at you because dinner is 11 minutes late.

So, who are the richest cats in the world?

Before we start counting the millions, there's an important disclaimer: cats don't literally own bank accounts or manage investment portfolios. In most cases, these “net worth” figures are estimates based on businesses, endorsements, inheritance arrangements, merchandise, and media value. Some estimates are much more speculative than others.

With that in mind, let's meet the feline millionaires.

🥇 1. Nala Cat — Estimated Net Worth: $100 Million

If cats had Forbes lists, Nala Cat would probably be sitting at the top wearing sunglasses.

Nala is a Siamese-Tabby mix who was adopted from a shelter as a kitten in 2010.

She went from being a rescue cat to becoming one of the biggest feline celebrities on the internet.

Nala has more than 4.5 million Instagram followers and holds a Guinness World Record for the most Instagram followers for a cat. She has also appeared in brand campaigns, generated income through merchandise, and became the face of her own pet-food business, Love, Nala.

Several published estimates have put Nala's net worth at around $100 million. Cats.com, for example, lists her at $100 million and estimates her potential Instagram earnings at around $14,419 per sponsored post based on influencer-marketing calculations.

That's an absolutely ridiculous amount of money for someone whose main professional skill is looking adorable.

And Nala isn't even the type to brag about it.

She probably just sits there.

Quietly.

Richly.

Judging everyone.

Where did the money come from?

• Brand partnerships
• Merchandise
• Social media
• Pet products
• Love, Nala pet-food business
• Media appearances

Not bad for a former shelter kitten.

Estimated fortune: $100 million

Human equivalent: Extremely rich.

Cat equivalent: “Can I have another treat?”

🥈 2. Olivia Benson — Estimated Net Worth: $97 Million

Taylor Swift's cat Olivia Benson apparently decided that simply being a celebrity's pet wasn't enough.

She wanted her own fortune.

Olivia is a Scottish Fold named after the character played by Mariska Hargitay on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.

She has appeared alongside Taylor Swift in music videos and advertisements and has been featured in merchandise.

A widely cited 2022–2023 estimate from All About Cats put Olivia's net worth at $97 million, making her one of the richest pets in the world.

The figure was based partly on the commercial value of Olivia's appearances, merchandise, and her association with Swift—not on a public bank statement.

And that distinction matters.

Olivia doesn't actually have $97 million sitting in a checking account.

At least, we don't think she does.

But imagine if she did.

Taylor:

“Olivia, I bought you a new scratching post.”

Olivia:

“I can afford the house.”

Where did the money come from?

• Advertising appearances
• Music-video appearances
• Merchandise
• Celebrity status
• Commercial collaborations

Estimated fortune: $97 million

Human equivalent: You could retire several times.

Cat equivalent: Still expects Taylor to open the door.

🥉 3. Choupette — Estimated Fortune: Several Million Dollars

Now we're entering fashion territory.

Meet Choupette, the Birman cat who belonged to legendary fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld.

Choupette wasn't just a pet.

She was a fashion celebrity.

Lagerfeld adored her and famously surrounded her with an extremely luxurious lifestyle.

She had personal caregivers, traveled in style, appeared in fashion campaigns, and became a celebrity in her own right.

But her finances are much more complicated than the internet often suggests.

For years, reports claimed Choupette had inherited a huge portion of Lagerfeld's fortune.

However, the exact terms of Lagerfeld's estate have never been publicly established in the simple way many viral articles suggest. A 2026 investigation by The Atlantic reported that estimates of the trust intended for Choupette's care ranged from roughly $1.5 million to $4 million, while the legal and estate situation remained complicated.

So rather than confidently declaring Choupette a $200-million heiress, it's much safer to describe her as a multi-million-dollar feline celebrity with an uncertain exact fortune.

One thing is certain:

She lived better than most people.

Where did the money come from?

• Lagerfeld's estate arrangements
• Fashion campaigns
• Brand collaborations
• Merchandise
• Celebrity appearances

Estimated fortune: roughly $1.5–$4 million in reported trust arrangements, with the exact current value uncertain

Human equivalent: Very wealthy.

Cat equivalent: Already dressed better than you.

🏅 4. Blackie — £7 Million Inherited Fortune

Now we have a cat with something very special:

A Guinness World Record.

Blackie became the world's wealthiest cat after British antiques dealer Ben Rea died in 1988.

Rea left Blackie a fortune of £7 million.

At the time, that was worth around $12.5 million.

Guinness World Records still recognizes Blackie's inheritance as the record for the wealthiest cat. Guinness estimates that £7 million from 1988 would be worth roughly £18.5 million, or $32 million, in today's money.

There's an interesting twist, though.

The money wasn't simply handed to Blackie to spend on tuna and luxury scratching posts.

Rea left the money to three cat charities with instructions that they care for Blackie.

So technically, the fortune was tied to Blackie's care rather than sitting in a personal feline bank account.

Still, Blackie's lifestyle was officially millionaire-level.

And unlike some modern celebrity-cat estimates, this fortune has a documented historical basis.

Where did the money come from?

Inheritance.

No Instagram.

No sponsorships.

No merchandise.

Just a wealthy human who loved his cat.

Historical fortune: £7 million in 1988

Approximate modern value: £18.5 million / $32 million

Cat career: Professional heir.

🏅 5. Grumpy Cat — Estimated Earnings: Millions, Exact Fortune Unknown

Few cats have ever achieved the level of fame reached by Grumpy Cat.

Her real name was Tardar Sauce.

Her permanently grumpy expression turned her into one of the most recognizable internet personalities on the planet.

She appeared in advertising campaigns, books, merchandise, television appearances, and countless memes.

And yes, she made serious money.

But here's where things get interesting.

You've probably seen headlines claiming Grumpy Cat was worth $100 million.

That figure was widely repeated—but her owner publicly rejected it as inaccurate.

The Washington Post reported that the $100 million claim was not supported and noted that the real amount was never publicly disclosed.

We do know that Grumpy Cat's business was valuable. Her company won a $710,001 jury award in a 2018 trademark-related lawsuit.

So rather than giving her a fake $100 million net worth, the honest answer is:

Grumpy Cat made millions of dollars, but her exact fortune was never publicly confirmed.

Which somehow makes her even more mysterious.

Where did the money come from?

• Merchandise
• Licensing
• Advertising
• Books
• Media appearances
• Brand partnerships

Estimated fortune: undisclosed; certainly commercially valuable, but the famous $100 million figure was not verified

Cat expression: Permanently disappointed.

Bank balance: Also apparently none of our business.

6. Smoothie — A Social-Media Cat With Serious Earning Power

Not every rich cat has a giant inherited fortune.

Some have something almost as powerful:

An extremely photogenic face.

Meet Smoothie, the British Longhair often nicknamed one of the most photogenic cats on the internet.

Her enormous eyes and luxurious fur helped her build a huge online following.

Cats.com previously estimated that Smoothie could command around $7,423 per sponsored Instagram post based on influencer-marketing calculations.

That doesn't mean she has a confirmed multi-million-dollar bank balance.

It means her estimated advertising value is extremely high.

And honestly, Smoothie has one major advantage over human influencers:

She never has to write captions.

Her team does that.

She just looks fabulous.

Estimated earning potential

Around $7,423 per sponsored post

Not a confirmed net worth.

Still enough to make your cat's “pay” for sitting on the sofa look suspiciously attractive.

7. Maru — The Box-Loving Millionaire of the Internet

Maru became famous for doing something incredibly sophisticated:

Getting into boxes.

That's it.

The Japanese Scottish Fold became an internet sensation through videos showing his obsession with squeezing into containers of all shapes and sizes.

He became one of YouTube's most famous animals and earned a Guinness World Record for his extraordinary level of video views.

Unlike Nala and Olivia, there isn't a reliable public figure for Maru's personal net worth.

But his enormous online popularity created substantial commercial value through videos, books, merchandise, and media exposure.

His career teaches us an important lesson:

You don't need to invent a revolutionary product.

You can apparently just climb into a cardboard box.

Repeatedly.

Fortune

Exact net worth: not publicly confirmed

Business strategy: Boxes.

Annual expense: Probably more boxes.

8. Lil Bub — The Cat Who Turned Fame Into Charity

Lil Bub became famous because of her unusual appearance and adorable personality.

She had several genetic characteristics that gave her a distinctive look, including a shortened jaw and protruding tongue.

Her internet fame turned into books, merchandise, documentaries, appearances, and commercial partnerships.

But Lil Bub's story stands out for another reason.

Her platform was used to raise awareness and money for animal welfare.

So while we can't put a trustworthy exact net-worth number on her, she became an enormously valuable media personality whose fame was used to help other animals.

That's a pretty impressive legacy.

Fortune

Exact net worth: not publicly disclosed

Special achievement: Used celebrity status to support animal welfare.

So Who Is Actually the Richest Cat?

Here's where things get messy.

If you're looking at modern celebrity-cat net-worth estimates, Nala Cat is frequently listed at around $100 million, followed closely by Olivia Benson at around $97 million. A 2024 Heat ranking similarly placed Olivia at £62 million and Nala at £61 million, showing just how much these estimates can vary depending on the methodology and currency conversion.

If you're looking at verified historical inheritance, however, Blackie is the clear winner according to Guinness World Records, with a £7 million inheritance in 1988.

And if you're talking about Choupette, the story is more complicated than viral headlines suggest because the exact estate arrangements remain uncertain.

So there isn't one perfectly reliable leaderboard.

But here's the most useful way to think about it:

Rank	Cat	Reported / Estimated Wealth	How the Fortune Was Made
🥇	Nala Cat	~$100 million*	Social media, brands, merchandise, pet food
🥈	Olivia Benson	~$97 million*	Advertising, merchandise, celebrity appearances
🥉	Choupette	~$1.5–$4 million reported trust*	Estate arrangements, fashion, brand work
4	Blackie	£7 million in 1988	Inheritance
5	Grumpy Cat	Exact figure unknown	Licensing, merchandise, advertising
6	Smoothie	~$7,423 estimated per sponsored post	Social media
7	Maru	Exact figure unknown	YouTube, media, books
8	Lil Bub	Exact figure unknown	Media, merchandise, partnerships

*These are reported estimates, not verified bank balances or audited personal net worth figures. Nala and Olivia's figures come from older influencer-based estimates, while Choupette's reported trust figure is subject to ongoing uncertainty.

The Billion-Dollar Question: How Can a Cat Be Worth $100 Million?

Technically, it can't.

At least, not in the same way a human billionaire can.

Cats generally aren't legal persons who can independently own and manage wealth.

When a famous pet generates money, that money is usually handled by its owners, companies, trusts, or other legal structures.

So when an article says:

“Nala Cat is worth $100 million!”

it doesn't mean Nala has a bank card hidden under her collar.

It means the businesses, brands, intellectual property, merchandise, endorsements, and other assets associated with her celebrity identity have been estimated at that level.

Which is still pretty incredible.

The Real Winner? The Human Who Invented Cat Influencing!