Elon Musk Net Worth: Career, Wife, Personal Life, Biography

Elon Musk, the man of innovation, technology, and dreams, has made him one of the richest and most powerful persons in the world. One of the most admired and influential individuals on earth becoming a CEO at Tesla, SpaceX, Neuralink, and The Boring Company made his rise to massive wealth inspiring and mind-boggling. Let us delve into Elon Musk’s Net Worth in 2020 along with his Salary (Yearly & Monthly), Compensation Plan Update 2018 (New Plan Introduction), early life story & facts you need to know about each startup’s success story yet interesting unknown personal life details & more real estate.

What Is Elon Musk’s Net Worth?

As of 2024, Elon Musk’s net worth ebbs and flows with his projects, the markets, et cetera. In general terms, it is estimated that he is worth around $486 billion dollars, which makes him one of the richest men in the world bar none. His wealth is derived mostly from stock ownership positions in Tesla, SpaceX, and other innovative companies. Tesla’s stock price fluctuates, but regardless of this, each year Musk would be considered one of the richest individuals on the planet.

Salary & 2018 Compensation Plan

Elon Musk’s compensation plan has received a ton of media coverage. In 2018, Musk entered into a performance-based compensation agreement with Tesla that wasn’t your typical executive pay structure. Rather than receive a salary or cash bonus, Musk was granted stock options that would vest only if certain performance targets were met by the automaker, namely, revenue and market capitalization goals.

Ultimately, Musk’s 2018 compensation opportunity is potentially valued in the billions if Tesla sees strong results, and he certainly made waves after Tesla’s market cap topped $500 billion in 2020, leading to one massive tranche payout from this agreement. For that year, his entire award was completely tied to the company’s growth; talk about putting your money where your mouth is.

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Early Life of Elon Musk

Elon Musk was born on June 28, 1971, in Pretoria, South Africa. From a young age, Musk showed an early talent for computers. At age 12, he created his first software computer game called Blastar, which he sold for $500.

Musk was raised in Pretoria and attended high school there. After high school, Musk left Africa to avoid mandatory service in the South African military and attended Queen’s University in Canada. He transferred to the University of Pennsylvania two years later, where he received dual bachelor’s degrees in economics and physics.

Musk’s first business ventures were the founding of city guide software company Zip2, which he sold in 1999 for nearly $300 million, and X.com, which became PayPal and was sold in 2002 to eBay for $1.5 billion. These early successful enterprises would be harbingers of Musk’s future financial success and impact.

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Success and Business Ventures

Musk didn’t truly rise to pop culture fame until after he founded SpaceX and Tesla. In 2002, Musk started SpaceX with the goal of reducing space transportation costs and enabling the colonization of Mars. The private space company’s breakthroughs have included developing a line of reusable rockets able to return to Earth and land vertically, a massive cost-saving feature in rocketry, and successfully launching U.S. astronauts to the International Space Station.

In 2004, Musk also signed on as chairman of the struggling electric automaker Tesla Motors (now one word) (he later became CEO). His plans for revolutionizing nearly all forms of transportation gained more traction than ever before. After a meteoric stock rally, Tesla became one of the most valuable car companies in the world.

Musk has been involved in several other ventures, including:

• Neuralink: A neurotechnology company focused on developing brain-machine interfaces.
• The Boring Company: Tunnel Construction and Infrastructure Company.
• SolarCity: Solar Energy Company (now part of Tesla).

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Personal Life of Elon Musk

Elon Musk’s personal life has frequently been in the headlines, much like his professional life. Musk has been married three times, twice to Talulah Riley and once to Justine Musk, and he has been involved in high-profile relationships with people such as the singer Grimes (Claire Boucher), by whom he has a son.

Musk is also a workaholic and appears to have an aversion to partying or relaxing, which is probably why he has time for so many business ventures. The Tesla boss sometimes undertakes 100-hour working weeks and involves himself in every aspect of his companies. He says his personal philosophy is achieving the best possible life.

Elon Musk’s Real Estate

Despite his wealth, Musk has a rather unusual view on real estate. Last year he announced that he’d be selling most of his possessions (see what I mean?) including some mansions in California, to live more minimally (part joke/part serious). He notably sold his $70 million mansion in Bel Air and moved into a small prefab house made by Boxabl, one of his companies valued at around $50k.

All material possessions weigh you down, Musk once tweeted.

Elon Musk Net Worth History

The net worth of Elon Musk has gone through wild swings, primarily due to the stock price of Tesla and progress at SpaceX. His wealth rocketed in 2020 when the stock price of Tesla soared, and he actually became the richest person on earth in 2021, ahead of Jeff Bezos. Here are some key milestones in his net worth history:

• 2002: After selling PayPal, Musk’s net worth was almost $100 million. 2012: With Tesla and SpaceX taking off, Musk’s net worth became close to $2 billion.
• 2020: Thanks to Tesla’s market valuation and SpaceX, Musk’s net worth rose above $150 billion.
• 2021: He even temporarily became the world’s wealthiest person with a net worth north of $250 billion.

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