Tim Sweeney’s net worth over time
Only dates with a published estimate are shown. Nothing is filled in between. Tap or hover a bar to see the source.
See the numbers as a table
| Date | Estimate | Source |
| 2019 | $2 billion | Forbes World's Billionaires List 2019 |
| 2020 | $4.5 billion | Forbes World's Billionaires List 2020 |
| 2021 | $4.7 billion | Forbes World's Billionaires List 2021 |
| 2022 | $7.4 billion | Forbes World's Billionaires List 2022 |
| 2023 | $4.7 billion | Forbes World's Billionaires List 2023 |
| 2024 | $5.7 billion | Forbes World's Billionaires List 2024 |
| 2025 | $5.7 billion | Forbes World's Billionaires List 2025 |
| 2026 | $5.1 billion | Forbes World's Billionaires List 2026 |
| Oct 2026 | $4.2 billion | Forbes Real-Time Billionaires · Forbes real-time estimate |
Where the money comes from
These are the main sources of wealth named in the reporting we cite. No published source breaks the total into exact amounts, so we do not show percentages.
Tim Sweeney’s fortune in real-life terms
Based on the Forbes Real-Time Billionaires estimate above. Median full-time U.S. pay is $65,416 a year ($1,258 a week, BLS, Q2 2026), before taxes. Typical (median) U.S. family net worth is $216,100 (Federal Reserve, 2025 Survey of Consumer Finances).
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Tim Sweeney has an estimated net worth of $4.2 billion, according to Forbes Real-Time Billionaires, Tim Sweeney profile (figures as of October 20, 2026). That is up from $2 billion in 2019.
Tim Sweeney is the founder and CEO of Epic Games, a video game company best known for Fortnite and Unreal Engine. He started building games while studying mechanical engineering at the University of Maryland around 1989. His early shareware game ZZT sold well enough for him to turn game development into a full-time career. He later renamed his company Epic MegaGames, then Epic Games, and kept leading it as it grew.
A big part of Sweeney's wealth comes from owning and running Epic Games. Unreal Engine became a widely used game development platform, and Fortnite turned Epic into one of the biggest names in games. Epic also built the Epic Games Store in 2018 and expanded it to mobile devices in 2024. Forbes put his net worth at $4.2 billion on its real-time billionaires tracker in October 2026. He is also known for land conservation work in North Carolina.
How Tim Sweeney built his fortune
Sweeney made his name by creating games and then turning that work into a larger software business. After ZZT, he worked on Jill of the Jungle and built Epic into a growing game company. He later began Unreal Engine for the 1998 game Unreal. That technology became one of the most used game development tool kits for other studios, giving Epic Games a business beyond selling its own titles.
Epic's biggest hit is Fortnite, which helped push the company into the top tier of the games business. Sweeney stayed on as chief executive as Epic expanded into digital distribution with the Epic Games Store in 2018. Investors also backed that growth. Epic raised $2 billion in 2022 from Sony and the family office of the clan behind Lego at a $31.5 billion valuation. In 2024, Disney invested $1.5 billion in a round that valued Epic at $22.5 billion.
Forbes net worth and other money moves
Forbes has tracked large swings in Sweeney's fortune over time. It estimated his net worth at $2 billion in 2019, then $4.5 billion in 2020 and $4.7 billion in 2021. The estimate climbed to $7.4 billion in 2022 before dropping back to $4.7 billion in 2023. Forbes later put him at $5.7 billion in 2024 and again in 2025, then $5.1 billion in 2026.
Outside games, Sweeney has put part of his fortune into land conservation in North Carolina. Forbes says he has purchased about 60,000 acres of forest land to keep it from being developed. In 2021, he pledged 7,500 acres in the Roan Highlands to the Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy. As of October 2026, Forbes showed him at $4.2 billion on its real-time billionaires tracker.
Career and money timeline
- 1989
He began studying mechanical engineering at the University of Maryland and kept building games.
- 1998
He developed Unreal Engine for the game Unreal.
- 1999
After Unreal's success, the company moved to North Carolina and became Epic Games.
- 2018
Epic launched the Epic Games Store.
- 2022
Epic raised $2 billion at a $31.5 billion valuation.
- 2024
Disney invested $1.5 billion in Epic at a $22.5 billion valuation.
Tim Sweeney net worth FAQ
What is Tim Sweeney's net worth?
Tim Sweeney's net worth is an estimated $4.2 billion, according to Forbes Real-Time Billionaires, Tim Sweeney profile (October 20, 2026). It is an estimate, not an official figure.
How did Tim Sweeney get so rich?
The main sources named in the reporting we cite are: Video games.
Is Tim Sweeney a billionaire?
Yes. Forbes Real-Time Billionaires estimates Tim Sweeney is worth $4.2 billion.
How has Tim Sweeney's net worth changed?
The earliest published estimate we track is $2 billion (2019, Forbes World's Billionaires List 2019). The latest is $4.2 billion (October 20, 2026).
What is Tim Sweeney best known for?
He is best known as the founder and CEO of Epic Games. He also created Unreal Engine, and Epic is the developer behind Fortnite.
What businesses drive Tim Sweeney's wealth?
His wealth is tied to Epic Games. Key pieces include Fortnite, Unreal Engine, and the Epic Games Store.
Sources
- Forbes Real-Time Billionaires, Tim Sweeney profile (October 20, 2026)
- Forbes World's Billionaires List 2019, Tim Sweeney profile (March 5, 2019)
- Forbes World's Billionaires List 2020, Tim Sweeney profile (April 8, 2020)
- Forbes World's Billionaires List 2021, Tim Sweeney profile (April 6, 2021)
- Forbes World's Billionaires List 2022, Tim Sweeney profile (April 5, 2022)
- Forbes World's Billionaires List 2023, Tim Sweeney profile (April 4, 2023)
- Forbes World's Billionaires List 2024, Tim Sweeney profile (April 2, 2024)
- Forbes World's Billionaires List 2025, Tim Sweeney profile (April 2025)
- Forbes World's Billionaires List 2026, Tim Sweeney profile (March 10, 2026)
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Usual Weekly Earnings (Q2 2026) (July 2026)
- Federal Reserve, 2025 Survey of Consumer Finances (median family net worth, Table 4) (October 2026)
- Background facts: Wikipedia, Tim Sweeney (accessed October 20, 2026). Used for career facts only, never for figures.
Photo: Official GDC, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Every number on this page is an estimate published by the source named next to it. We never fill in years with our own guesses. How we handle estimates.