By Pallavi Rao
Richie Rich’s town of residence Harveyville may not exist, but the world’s real-life millionaires are congregating in hotspots around the globe.
From the World’s Wealthiest Cities Report 2023 by Henley & Partners, we map out the top 20 metro areas around the world where the most millionaires live.
Which City Has the Most Millionaires?
Heading the list, New York City boasts of an astonishing 340,000 millionaire residents, accounting for approximately 4% of the city’s total population. New York’s status as a global financial hub attracts millions seeking high-paying jobs, while those with lucrative careers are naturally drawn to the city.
Here’s the full ranking of cities with the most millionaires.
| Rank | City/Area | Country | HNWIs ($1M+) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New York City |  USA |
340,000 |
| 2 | Tokyo |  Japan |
290,300 |
| 3 | The Bay Area | USA |
285,000 |
| 4 | London |  UK |
258,000 |
| 5 | Singapore |  Singapore |
240,100 |
| 6 | Los Angeles | USA |
205,400 |
| 7 | Hong Kong |  Hong Kong SAR |
129,500 |
| 8 | Beijing |  China |
128,200 |
| 9 | Shanghai | China |
127,200 |
| 10 | Sydney |  Australia |
126,900 |
| 11 | Chicago | USA |
124,000 |
| 12 | Toronto |  Canada |
105,200 |
| 13 | Frankfurt |  Germany |
102,200 |
| 14 | Zurich |  Switzerland |
99,300 |
| 15 | Houston | USA |
98,500 |
In the second spot, Tokyo is home to a substantial millionaire population of 290,000, closely followed by the Bay Area—San Francisco and Silicon Valley—with 285,000 high net worth individuals (HNWIs) possessing an investable wealth of $1 million or more.
Other major financial centers—London (4th), Singapore (5th), Hong Kong (7th)—take up the middle spots in the top 10, joined by China’s commerce juggernauts, Beijing (8th) and Shanghai (9th).
One notable entry to the list is Sydney, which surprisingly holds the 10th position, with more than 100,000 millionaires. Alongside Melbourne (17th), Australia has increasingly become a destination for millionaire migrations. This trend is driven by factors such as high livability ratings, access to Asian markets, and no inheritance tax in the country.
Where Have Millionaire Populations Boomed?
The world has gotten significantly richer in the last decade, both at a per capita level, as well as by the rising number of millionaires. Between 2010–2020 for example, the number of millionaires increased by nearly 65%.
Here’s a look at the cities which have seen the biggest change in their millionaire population between 2012–2022.
| Rank | City/Area | Country | HNWI growth % (2012 to 2022) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hangzhou | China |
+105% |
| 2 | Austin | USA |
+102% |
| 3 | Shenzhen | China |
+98% |
| 4 | West Palm Beach | USA |
+90% |
| 5 | Scottsdale | USA |
+88% |
| 6 | Bengaluru |  India |
+88% |
| 7 | Guangzhou | China |
+86% |
| 8 | Sharjah |  UAE |
+84% |
| 9 | Ho Chi Minh City |  Vietnam |
+82% |
| 10 | Hyderabad | India |
+78% |
| 11 | Miami | USA |
+75% |
| 12 | Shanghai | China |
+72% |
| 13 | Greenwich & Darien | USA |
+72% |
| 14 | Kigali |  Rwanda |
+72% |
| 15 | Beijing | China |
+70% |
In the past decade, Hangzhou, China and Austin, Texas, more than a doubled their wealthy residents. This trend places them at the top of the rankings for millionaire population growth, which is largely dominated by cities in China and the U.S., reflecting the economic strength of these two countries.
By way of comparison, at the beginning of the 21st century, the United States and Japan had a similar count of millionaires. However, the U.S. sustained its millionaire population growth, whereas China surpassed Japan in economic size in 2010 and, subsequently, in the number of millionaires in 2014.
Other emerging economic giants in the 2010s—India and Vietnam—have also seen millionaire growth in the cities of Bengaluru (88%), Hyderabad (78%), and Ho Chi Minh City (82%).
On the other hand, Moscow and St. Petersburg lost around 40% of their millionaire residents in the same timeframe, with the sanctions against the country playing a key role deteriorating their wealth as well as causing an exodus of residents.
NB: Tennis addict, writer, and general court jester, Pallavi loves discovering niche communities to tell stories of human ingenuity. And then use said stories to awe people at dinner conversations.
