Taylor Swift's path to becoming billionaire: Inside singer's wealth-building strategies
What's the story
With 12 Grammy awards and multiple chart-topping singles, Taylor Swift reigns supreme in the music industry, and her remarkable skills extend to her financial acumen, too.
Her net worth—which is estimated to be a staggering $740M as of 2023—is expected to soar past $1 billion with the success of her ongoing The Eras Tour.
Here's how Swift's hard work panned out for her wallet.
Context
Why does this story matter?
It's noteworthy that Swift's tours truly stand as a testament to the singer's global popularity and profitability, proved by the fact that the 1989 World Tour in 2015 grossed over $250M, while the Reputation Stadium Tour in 2018 generated $315M.
Throughout her illustrious career, Swift's other key income streams have been her record album and ticket sales, merchandise sales, and high-profile brand endorsement deals.
#1
Swift's primary source of millions lies in music career
There's no point in exaggerating the fact that Swift has amassed a fortune primarily through her uber-successful music career—which she embarked upon at the tender age of 16.
Since then, her 10 studio albums have sold millions of copies.
In 2020, Swift's albums, Evermore and Folklore amassed an impressive $23.8M. Furthermore, Swift's ownership of the publishing rights for her previous albums is worth $200M.
#2
Swift's fight for royalties played significant role in earnings
It is widely known that Swift is on a re-recording of her previous catalog spree!
In 2019, her original masters were purchased by Scooter Braun, who later sold them to Shamrock Holdings in 2020.
As a result, Swift does not receive a portion of the revenue from streams or sales of her six original albums.
To reclaim control, Swift embarked on a re-recording project.
#3
Tours are another significant money-making business
Swift's stadium-only tours are proving to be a massive success with record-breaking earnings.
Per Grammy's website, during her 2018 Reputation Tour, the singer earned a staggering $191.1M, surpassing her own record as the highest-grossing US tour by a female artist.
The tour's overall earnings reached an impressive $345M, per Billboard.
However, Swift's current The Eras Tour is surpassing the success of the 2018 tour.
#4
Swift has grossed over $100M from 'The Eras Tour'
In just 22 performances since March, Swift has already grossed a whopping $110M—thanks to fans who are literally thronging stadiums to hear the artist.
Bloomberg, on July 7, revealed that the average ticket for her current tour costs around $254, resulting in an average ticket sale earnings of approximately $13M per night.
After covering her expenses, Forbes estimates Swift personally pocketed $30M so far.
#5
She owns impressive number of real estate properties
On the real estate front, Swift astutely invested in opulent properties spanning five states: Nashville, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New York, and California.
Forbes estimates the value of her real estate portfolio to be at least $80M.
This includes a uber-luxurious $30M mansion in Beverly Hills, a seaside estate in Rhode Island purchased for $17.75M, and an estimated $40M property in New York City.