Two sisters, nearly sixty Grand Slam titles between them, and two very different financial profiles: that is the short version of Venus and Serena Williams networth. Serena’s fortune is usually estimated at a few times Venus’s, and the gap tells you something about how athletes make money after the final point.
Venus and Serena Williams networth: the estimates
Forbes has described Serena as one of the richest self-made women in sport, with a net worth in the range of 300 million dollars in recent years, while Venus is usually estimated at around 100 million. Neither sister has released her finances, so those figures should be read as informed estimates.
Prize money
According to the WTA, Serena earned about 94.8 million dollars in career prize money, the highest of any woman in tennis history, while Venus earned over 40 million. For comparison, those totals are far lower than what each earned off court in the same years, especially for Serena.
Endorsements
Serena
At her peak, Forbes ranked her as the highest-paid female athlete in the world for many years, with the large majority of her annual income coming from sponsors such as Nike, Gatorade, Wilson and others. Nike gave her a lifetime contract, and she launched her own fashion label, S by Serena.
Venus
She signed one of the first big deals for a female tennis player with Reebok as a teenager, later moved to other brands, and launched an activewear line called EleVen. She also runs an interior design firm, V Starr Interiors.
Serena Ventures
After her tennis career slowed, Serena began investing. In 2018 she started a venture firm that became Serena Ventures, and it raised a 111 million dollar fund in 2022, according to press reports. The firm invests in early-stage companies, with a stated focus on founders who are often overlooked by traditional investors. She has also been an early investor in some companies that went on to grow, though the exact returns are private. This shift from player to investor is the main reason her fortune is bigger than her sister’s.
Sports ownership
Both sisters became part-owners of the NFL’s Miami Dolphins in 2009, among the first Black women to hold a stake in an NFL team. Serena also invested in the women’s soccer club Angel City FC and in other teams. Team valuations have risen sharply, though the percentage owned by each person is small and private.
Family and giving
Serena married Alexis Ohanian, co-founder of Reddit, in 2017, and they have two daughters. Ohanian is a venture investor in his own right, which means the couple’s combined wealth is higher than each of their individual estimates, though net worth figures usually refer to the individual. Both sisters have also supported charitable work through the Yetunde Price Resource Center, named for their late sister.
Why Serena’s number is higher
Three reasons are commonly given. She had more years at the top of the sponsorship market. She built several businesses rather than relying on one. And she moved into venture investing at a time when startup valuations were rising. None of that reflects a difference in talent between the sisters, only in the business paths each took.
How to cite them
Say: “Forbes has estimated Serena Williams’s net worth at around 300 million dollars, and Venus Williams’s at around 100 million, as of the early 2020s.” Include the year.
Questions people ask
Who has won more titles?
Serena won 23 Grand Slam singles titles and Venus won seven.
Are they billionaires?
No major list has called either of them one.
Is the Miami Dolphins stake large?
It is small as a percentage, but the team is valuable.
What their paths show about athlete wealth
Many athletes earn most of their money during a short window and then struggle to turn it into lasting wealth. The sisters took a different approach by building businesses and investments that can last beyond their playing years. Venus, who is older, has spoken about the importance of ownership and about learning the business side of tennis early, and Serena has said that investing gave her a new purpose after retirement. Their story is often cited in business writing about women in sport, since for decades women earned far less than men in the same events and had to build income from sponsors. Equal prize money at the four Grand Slams was a hard-won change, and the sisters were among its most visible advocates.
Where to check for updates
Forbes publishes lists of the highest-paid female athletes and estimates for self-made women, and the WTA lists career prize money. Press coverage of Serena Ventures reports fundraising and investments.
*General information, not financial advice. Figures are estimates.*
More like this: browse our Celebrity Net Worth section. For background, see the Wikipedia entry.
