Not all billionaires are big on giving to charity. While some donate a lot, others hold back. This ranking looks at billionaires who give the least to charity, showing the gap between their wealth and their donations.
Howard Schultz – $320 million
You’ve likely heard of Starbucks, the coffee chain with the mermaid logo. It’s been led by Howard Schultz since the 1980s, who transformed it from a little-known company into a global powerhouse. Over four decades, Starbucks has earned Schultz $3.2 billion, and while he has made some charitable contributions—donating between 5% and 10% of his wealth—there’s room for him to give more considering his vast fortune.
Steven Spielberg – $400 million
Spielberg isn’t just a prolific filmmaker—he’s an exceptional one. With blockbuster hits like *Jaws*, *E.T.*, and *Schindler’s List*, it’s no surprise that his work has made him one of America’s wealthiest individuals, with a net worth of $4 billion. While he’s not the worst when it comes to philanthropy, having donated less than 10% of his wealth to charity, there’s still room for him to give more.
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georges biard via wikipedia
Jack Dorsey – $225 million
Jack Dorsey, cofounder of Twitter and Square, has built a net worth of around $4.5 billion through these widely used platforms. While his work has had a positive impact, it would be even more meaningful if he donated more than the less than 5% of his wealth he’s given so far. It’s not the best look for him!
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jd lasica via wiki commons
Mark Cuban – $46 million
Mark Cuban built his fortune through online media and has continued to grow his wealth, now reaching $4.6 billion. He’s one of the billionaires who proudly claims to be self-made. However, despite his vast wealth and understanding of life’s challenges, Cuban has donated less than 1% of his fortune to charity.
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gage skidmore via wiki commons
Rick Caruso – $265 million
Rick Caruso made his fortune in real estate, developing some of the most popular and successful shopping centers in the United States. With a net worth of $5.3 billion, Caruso has donated over $53 million to charity, but this still amounts to less than 5% of his total wealth.
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eric garcetti via wiki commons
Oprah Winfrey – $125 million
Not all celebrities are wealthy enough to make it onto the Forbes 400 list, but Oprah certainly is, with a net worth of over $2.5 billion. While she’s known for her generosity, especially with her audience, Oprah has donated less than 5% of her net worth to charities. Hopefully, she realizes that giving away cars on TV isn’t quite the same as helping those in need.
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INTX: The Internet & Television Expo via wiki commons
Dagmar Dolby and family – $460 million
Dagmar Dolby inherited her wealth when her late husband Ray, founder of Dolby Laboratories, passed away in 2013. Thanks to the global use of Dolby technology, the Dolby family now has a net worth of $4.6 billion. Inherited wealth comes with a heightened responsibility to give back, but despite donating over 5% of her fortune, Dagmar’s charitable contributions have yet to reach 10%.
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Alzheimer's Association via facebook
George Lucas – $540 million
Top filmmakers can earn enormous amounts of money, and George Lucas is no exception. Even though he hasn’t directed much since selling Lucasfilm to Disney in 2012, the *Star Wars* creator has a net worth of $5.4 billion. Despite his wealth, Lucas has chosen to donate significantly less than 10% of it, amounting to less than $540 million from his substantial fortune.
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nicolas genin via wiki commons
David Geffen – $770 million
David Geffen built his fortune by founding several successful businesses, including record labels and the well-known film studio DreamWorks. With a net worth of $7.7 billion, he has donated over 5% of his wealth to charity. However, Geffen has yet to reach the 10% mark in his philanthropic efforts, suggesting he hasn’t fully embraced the opportunity to give back.
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birdburnett via reddit
Robert Kraft – $1.06 Billion
Robert Kraft, CEO of the Kraft Group, is known for producing everyone’s favorite boxed mac ‘n’ cheese. With a fortune of $10.6 billion, thanks to his role in the Kraft manufacturing company and ownership of the New England Patriots, Kraft has still kept his charitable donations under 10% of his earnings.
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New England Patriots via wiki commons
Leonard Lauder – $2.19 Billion
Estée Lauder is a powerhouse in the beauty and cosmetics industry, and Leonard Lauder spent decades leading the family business. His management of Estée Lauder has resulted in a net worth of $21.9 billion. While he has donated over $1.1 billion—around 5% of his wealth—he has yet to reach the 10% mark of $2.2 billion in charitable contributions. With such vast riches, there’s always more he could do to give back!
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Leonard Lauder via facebook
Phil Knight – $4 Billion
Phil Knight founded Nike in 1964, turning it into a global powerhouse in the shoe industry. Even after retiring in 2016, his work and shares have led to a net worth of $41.5 billion. While he has made some philanthropic contributions, the total amount donated remains under $4 billion, well below the 10% threshold of his earnings.
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Phil Knight via facebook
Bobby Murphy – $27 million
Bobby Murphy, one of the cofounders of Snapchat, has a net worth of $2.7 billion, thanks to the app’s popularity, particularly among teens. Given the amount of friend drama that Snapchat has sparked over the years, Murphy could do well to contribute more to charity. However, he has yet to donate even 1% of his net worth.
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shukhrat s. via youtube
Evan Spiegel – $140 million
Evan Spiegel became one of the youngest billionaires at just 25 years old as the CEO of Snapchat. Seven years later, his net worth is now $2.8 billion. He has donated between 1% and 5% of his wealth, which is an improvement compared to other prominent figures at Snapchat. However, as a billionaire, he could certainly afford to give more.
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cellanr via wiki commons
David Filo – $160 million
David Filo gained his wealth as a cofounder of Yahoo, which he sold to Verizon in 2016 for $5 billion. His current net worth is $3.2 billion, but he has not donated more than 5% of his earnings so far. While he has contributed over $32 million—about 1% of his wealth—there’s definitely room for improvement in his philanthropic efforts.
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Mitchell Aidelbaum via wiki commons
Marian Ilitch – $215 million
Marian Ilitch co-founded Little Caesars Pizza in 1959 with her late husband, who passed away in 2017. Today, her net worth stands at $4.3 billion, primarily from the success of the pizza chain. While she has donated over 1% but less than 5% of her wealth to philanthropic causes, there’s definitely potential for her to give more.
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Marian Bayoff Llitch via facebook
Joe Mansueto – $250 million
In 1984, Joe Mansueto launched an investment research firm with $80,000 in savings, which became Morningstar and earned him a net worth of $5 billion. Throughout his time as a billionaire, he has donated between $50 million and $250 million, earning a Forbes philanthropy score of 2. While he has contributed, there’s definitely room for improvement in his charitable giving.
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Joe_Mansueto via facebook
Janice McNair – $250 million
Janice McNair became one of America’s wealthiest individuals after her husband passed away in 2018, inheriting his assets, including the NFL team Houston Texans. While she has made some charitable donations from her net worth of $5 billion since inheriting it, the amount remains firmly between 1% and 5% of her total wealth.
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abc13 houston via youtube
Charles Simonyi – $265 million
Charles Simonyi, one of Microsoft’s earliest employees, has a net worth of $5.3 billion thanks to his contributions to the company, including the development of widely used applications like Excel and Word. Despite the global impact of these programs, Simonyi has kept his charitable donations between 1% and 5% of his total wealth.
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nasa via wiki commons
David Steward – $300 million
David Steward founded World Wide Technology and remains the company’s chairman, boasting a net worth of $6 billion. He currently holds a Forbes philanthropy score of 2, having donated over 1% but still less than 5% of his wealth to charitable causes.
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wheatoncollege via youtube
Jack Dangermond – $350 million
Jack Dangermond, founder of Esri, a leading digital mapping technology company, has a net worth of $7 billion. Despite his wealth and expertise in technology, he has not yet donated 5% or more of his fortune to charitable causes.
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geospatial world via wiki commons
Donald Newhouse – $570 million
Newhouse inherited his wealth alongside his late brother from Advance Publications, which has contributed to his current net worth of $11.4 billion. Given that his wealth is inherited, one might expect him to donate a significant portion, but he has kept his charitable contributions firmly between 1% and 5% of his total wealth.
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stonebyte via reddit
Jan Koum – $680 million
Since its founding in 2009, WhatsApp has proven to be incredibly useful, thanks in part to cofounder Jan Koum. With a fortune of $13.6 billion from the messaging app, Koum has donated over 1% of his wealth, though his contributions remain below 5%. Given his substantial wealth, there’s significant potential for him to give more, especially considering how vast even $1 billion truly is!
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forbes via reddit
David Green – $700 million
David Green, who grew up in a low-income household, founded Hobby Lobby in 1970, which has since grown into a large company. His net worth now stands at $14 billion, but he has donated well under $700 million, or 5% of his wealth, with contributions exceeding $140 million, about 1%. Given that many people can only dream of having even 1% of his wealth, he has the opportunity to be more generous.
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kirk cameron on tbn via youtube
Eric Schmidt – $920 million
Eric Schmidt served on the board of Alphabet, Google’s parent company, for 18 years and continued to advise the company for another year before stepping down completely in 2020. With a net worth of $18.4 billion today, he has kept his charitable donations under 5% of his wealth during his time as a billionaire.
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chatham house via wiki commons
Michael Dell – $2.5 Billion
Michael Dell is the chairman and CEO of Dell Technologies, the company behind many popular laptops. With a net worth of $50 billion, he has donated some of his wealth, but his contributions remain well under $2.5 billion, meaning he has given less than 5% of his fortune to charity.
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joi via wiki commons
Charles Koch – $2.8 Billion
Charles Koch is the chairman and CEO of Koch Industries, the second-largest private company in the United States since 1967, which has contributed to his wealth of $56 billion. Despite his significant position and wealth, Koch has kept his charitable donations low, having given less than 5% of his total fortune to charity.
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gavin peters via wiki commons
Steve Ballmer – $4.15 Billion
Steve Ballmer amassed his wealth during his tenure as CEO of Microsoft from 2000 to 2014. Now ranked as America’s 8th richest person with a net worth of $83 billion, he has nonetheless kept his philanthropic contributions under 5% of his overall wealth.
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Aanjhan Ranganathan via wiki commons
Sergey Brin – $4.45 Billion
Sergey Brin, the seventh richest person in the United States with a net worth of $89 billion, served as president of Google’s parent company, Alphabet, before stepping down in 2019 while remaining a shareholder. He has donated between 1% and 5% of his earnings, which is a significant amount, but considering his wealth, a larger percentage could be feasible without much impact on his lifestyle.
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James Duncan Davidson/O'Reilly Media, Inc. via wiki commons
Jeff Bezos – $7.55 Billion
The founder of Amazon, with a net worth of around $151 billion, is among the wealthiest people in the world. Despite his immense fortune and recent pledges to help combat climate change, he has still donated less than 5% of his lifetime wealth to charitable causes. While his contributions to convenience through Amazon’s next-day delivery are significant, they don’t equate to charitable giving.
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van ha via wiki commons
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