Methodology

November 15, 2026 · Effective at site launch

Every ranking on this site follows the same rule: every figure is dated, sourced, and frozen. If a number cannot be dated and credited to a named source, it does not get published. This page explains how that works in practice.

Where the numbers come from

We take figures from the most original source available, in this order:

  1. Primary and official sources — the people who originate the data. Forbes Real-Time Billionaires for personal wealth; the IMF and World Bank for country and economy data; official company filings and exchange data for companies; official league and federation publications for sports; official statistics offices and governing bodies for places and records.
  2. Reputable trackers that republish a named primary source — used when the primary source is impractical to read directly, and only when the tracker names where its figures come from.
  3. Established journalism (Reuters, Associated Press, and similar) for one-off facts that have no tracker — cited by outlet and date.

We never build a list from unsourced listicles, social-media posts, other ranking channels or videos, or any site that does not say where its numbers came from.

Frozen snapshots

Before a video or page is produced, we save a dated copy of the underlying data — a snapshot. The published ranking is built only from that snapshot, and every page and video carries the stamp:

Source: [name] — figures as of [date].

That stamp matters, because values like net worth move constantly. A ranking here is a true record of what the source published on that date — not a claim about what the figure is today.

Cross-checking

Before anything is published, the rank order is checked against a second independent source carrying the same primary data. The order must match. Where two sources show slightly different figures, we use the primary source's figure.

Videos are frozen; pages are alive

  • A video is a record of its date and stays exactly as published, forever.
  • A page is a living document. When figures are refreshed, the page shows a visible "Last updated" line and a short note describing what changed, so you can always tell which version of the numbers you are looking at.

The flagship Richest People tracker is refreshed weekly from a new dated snapshot. Other lists are refreshed when their primary source updates, or sooner if a correction lands.

Corrections

If a figure turns out to have been wrong as of its stated date, we fix the page and add a dated correction note saying what changed and why. A figure that was right on its date but has changed since is not an error — it is updated at the next refresh. If you spot something you think is wrong, our Corrections & Contact page explains how to reach us.

A note on images

We do not publish real photographs of the people in our rankings, and we never use AI-generated faces of real people. Imagery comes from licensed libraries or our own graphics — the numbers are the story.

Figures are estimates compiled from the named sources as of the dates shown; rankings are informational and are not financial advice.

This document takes effect on the day thetop50ranked.com launches to the public.