Most Expensive Divorces, From Gates to Kardashian

Bill Gates and Melinda Gates’ separation resulted in the most expensive divorce in history with $76B in settlements.

A study was recently conducted by EvenBet Gaming to rank the most expensive divorces. The study takes into account the divorce settlements as well as net worth of each person provided by Forbes. The final list takes into account the inflation and ranks divorced couples according to money value as of 2024.

The most expensive divorce is the divorce between Bill Gates and Melinda Gates that resulted in $87.6B in settlements. The pair of billionaires separated after 27 years of marriage. Currently Bill Gates resides in the top-10 richest people on the planet with over $128B in net worth.

Jeff Bezos and MacKenzie Scott’s divorce takes the second place in the ranking of the most expensive divorces. As most couples in the list, they split after more than two decades of marriage. $45.3B were paid in settlements. MacKenzie Scott has $40.6B in net worth which makes her the richest woman in this ranking.

Alec and Jocelyn Wildenstein’s separation is third with $3.8B paid in 1999 which accounts for $7 billion in 2024. The pair divorced after 21 years of marriage.

The divorce of Rupert Murdock and Anna Murdock Mann in 1999 holds the fourth place with $3.1B with inflation. The couple split after 32 years of marriage but the journalist and novelist Anna Murdock Mann is still on Forbes billionaire list with $1.5B in net worth.

Kanye West and Kim Kardashian follow closely with the fifth place in the ranking of the most expensive divorces. The most recent addition to the list, the couple officially split in 2022 with $2.8B paid in divorce settlements. Kim Kardashian is the only woman in this ranking who is richer than the divorced husband with Kanye West’s net worth summing up only to $410M.

Adnan Khashoggi and Soraya Khashoggi divorce is sixth with $2.8B paid in settlements. The oldest divorce in this ranking, it happened in 1980 and originally amounted to $847M. Second shortest marriage on the list, it still lasted twice as long as Kanye West and Kim Kardashian’s.

Bernie and Slavica Ecclestone’s divorce holds the seventh place resulting in $1.7B, adjusted for inflation. Former Formula 1 CEO is now worth $2.4Band his ex-wife has a half of his net worth with $1.2B.

The divorce between Bill and Sue Gross follows closely with the eighth place and $1.6B. The couple separated in 2017 after over 30 years of marriage and currently both of them have similar net worth of $1.6B. 

Steve and Elaine Wynn’s two divorces put them in ninth place with $1.4B in settlements. The pair spent 46 years together but eventually split. Both are still billionaires after the divorce and spend their money by investing or doing philanthropy.

Harold Hamm and Sue Ann Arnall close the ranking of the most expensive divorces with tenth place and $1.3B. Their divorce was finalized in 2012 and settlements amounted to over $974M but with inflation are now well over a billion dollars.

Anabel Cooper

Anabel is a graduate of King’s College London and upon graduating, she set out on a journey to inspire and empower women through her words. Besides working as a digital marketing expert, Anabel is a freelance copywriter.