Hamdi Ulukaya Net Worth

Hamdi Ulukaya has an estimated net worth of $10.9 billion, according to Forbes Real-Time Billionaires, Hamdi Ulukaya profile (figures as of October 20, 2026). That is up from $1.6 billion in 2019.

Hamdi Ulukaya is the founder, owner, chair, and CEO of Chobani, a Greek yogurt brand in the Food & Beverage business. He moved to the U.S. in 1994 to study English in New York. After starting a small feta cheese factory in 2002, he took a bigger step in 2005. With a Small Business Administration loan, he bought an old yogurt plant in upstate New York and built a recipe inspired by his heritage.

He started selling Chobani in 2007, and the brand grew fast. Chobani became a leading yogurt brand in the U.S. by 2011. After BJ's and Costco began carrying it in 2009, sales doubled every year through 2013. In 2012, the company passed $1 billion in annual sales and opened a major factory in Idaho. In 2023, Chobani brought in more than $2 billion in sales, which helps explain why Forbes tracks Ulukaya among the world's richest people.

How Hamdi Ulukaya built his fortune

Ulukaya's wealth comes mainly from Chobani, the Greek yogurt company he founded after buying a closed factory in 2005. He spent nearly 2 years developing the product, then began shipping yogurt in 2007. Chobani caught on quickly, helped by store deals, in-store samples, and direct contact with customers online. The brand became a leader in the U.S. yogurt market and later expanded to Australia, Mexico, China, Malaysia, and Thailand.

He also widened his business interests beyond yogurt. In 2015, he became the majority investor in La Colombe Coffee Roasters. In 2024, it was announced that he was purchasing Anchor Brewing and planned to reopen operations. Chobani remains the core of his fortune, though. Forbes ties his wealth to Greek yogurt, and the business kept growing even after its early breakout years. Refugees and immigrants also make up 30% of Chobani's workforce.

Forbes net worth timeline

Forbes has shown a long rise in Ulukaya's fortune, with some swings along the way. Its World's Billionaires List estimated him at $1.6 billion in 2019, $1.8 billion in 2020, $2 billion in 2021, and $2.4 billion in 2022. That run came after Chobani grew from a startup into a huge food company, with more than $1 billion in annual sales by 2012 and a large factory opening in Idaho the same year.

The estimate later moved down and then sharply higher. Forbes put him at $2.1 billion in 2023 and $2.3 billion in 2024 and 2025. In 2026, Forbes listed him at $13.5 billion on its World's Billionaires List. As of October 20, 2026, Forbes' real-time tracker showed $10.9 billion. Chobani's more than $2 billion in 2023 sales helps frame the scale of the business behind those later estimates.