Owning a pet cat can literally pay off. In today's influencer world, anyone can become famous or a celebrity from the comfort of his or her home thanks to social media. Interestingly, your pet can become an online influencer by just doing something funny or memorable. In fact, many pets have already established themselves as Instagram celebrities, thereby raking in dollars.
People all over the world especially in the United States love cute animals. As cat influencers continue to emerge, it is worth finding out which of them found themselves in the top spots and how much they could make for their loving parents. To achieve this, The Pet Zealot used Instagram data such as followers, likes, engagement rates, and data from All About Cats to estimate how much each of these cats could make per Instagram post and to discover the highest earners among them.
In addition to making money through sponsored ads by demonstrating a true talent in engaging the masses, many of these cats also have their own premium brands. So, who are the richest cats in the world in 2024 and how much are they worth?
1. Nala Cat - $100 Million
- Breed: Siamese and Tabby-mix
- Owners: Shannon Ellis and Pookie Methachittiphan
- Country: United States
Nala the cat from California, United States is the world's richest cat as of January 2023 with a whopping net worth of $100 million. With more than four million followers on Instagram, Nala holds the Guinness World Record for the most followed cat on the platform. By all accounts, Nala is just a regular cat.
She is famous for her activities around the house including sleeping and making funny gestures. Nala makes money through sponsored ads on her Instagram page and from her own cat food brand Love Nala. It is estimated that Nala makes around $14,419 per Instagram post. In addition, the feline could also be making some cool dollars from her other social media accounts including Facebook and TikTok. Read more about Nala.
2. Olivia Benson - $97 Million
- Breed: Scottish Fold
- Owner: Taylor Swift
- Country: United States
The second richest cat in the world is Olivia Benson, singer Taylor Swift's furry friend and companion. The fat feline is worth a whopping $97 million. A 2020 Instagram picture of Benson sprawled out on a couch attracted over two million likes on the singer's Instagram page. Outside of the world of social media influencing, Olivia Benson makes money starring alongside Taylor Swift in several music videos. In addition, she has her own brand and has made appearances in many big-budget ads, including one for Diet Coke in 2014. Olivia Benson lives with her owner in Nashville, Tennessee, US.
3. Choupette - $13 million
- Breed: Birman
- Owner: Late Karl Lagerfeld
- Country: France
Coming in behind Olivia Benson on the richest cats list is late German fashion designer Karl Otto Lagerfeld's Birman cat named Choupette.
With an inherited net worth of $13 million, Choupette is the third richest cat in the world. However, before being left with this vast inheritance in 2019, Choupette reportedly earned virtually US$4.5 million in her own right from collaborations and endorsements. As of January 2023, Choupette is still alive and lives in Paris, France with Françoise Caçote, the late Lagerfeld's housekeeper. In August 2022, Choupette celebrated her 11th birthday.
4. Smoothie The Cat - $7,423 Per Post
- Breed: British Longhair
- Owner: Arvid van Boekel
- Country: Netherlands
Deemed Queen of Fluff, Smoothie the world’s most photogenic cat is the fourth highest-earning cat in the world, earning around $7,423 per Instagram post. This fabulous feline is one of the most followed cats on Instagram with more than two million followers on the platform as of the time of this writing. In addition, Smoothie has an impressive 150k subscribers on YouTube where she's been gathering millions of views with her videos. She and her kitty brother, Milkshake, are living their best life with their owners in the Netherlands.
5. Coffee The Cat - $6,786 Per Post
- Breed: British shorthair
- Owner: Pookie
- Country: United States
Coffee the cat also known as Mr. White is the fifth richest cat on the ultimate pet rich list, raking in around $6,786 per post on Instagram. Mr. White comes in behind Smoothie with 2.2 million followers on Instagram. Coffee is one of the seven Instagram-Famous pets owned by California couple Varisiri “Pookie” Methachittiphan and Shannon Ellis.
6. Venus the Two Face Cat - $6,770 Per Post
- Breed: Tortoiseshell
- Owner: Christina and Chris
- Country: United States
Owned by North Carolina, US, couple Christina and Chris, Venus the Two-Faced Cat's Instagram sponsored posts are estimated to be pulling around $6,770 each. Venus earns her money through paid partnerships with brands such as Chewy and Fresh Step. She is on Instagram with 2.2 million followers and Facebook with 1.3 million followers. Venus is famous for her half-black and half-red tabby face in addition to her heterochromia (different-colored) eyes. Venus' left eye is blue while her right is green.
7. Suki the Cat - $6,552 Per Post
- Breed: Bengal Cat
- Owner: Martina Gutfreund
- Country: Canada
Suki the adventure cat from Alberta, Canada is the seventh richest cat in the world with around $6,552 as a potential payday per social media post. Suki is the only cat on this list that makes her money in a fascinating way, as I see it. While other cats on this list make their fortune from home, Suki is making hers while traveling the world and posing for stunning photos wherever she goes with her owners, Martina Gutfreund and Kenny Hildebrandt. Yeah! Suki is her name and traveling is her game. Suki gives her virtually two million Instagram followers a tour of different places around the world.
8. Coby the Cat - $6,500 Per Post
- Breed: British Shorthair
- Owner: Rebecca Schefkind
- Country: United States
Known for her piercing blue eyes, Coby the Cat comes in close behind Suki with an estimated $6,500 per Instagram post. Being the first male cat on the list, Coby's brilliant blue eyes and fluffy, snow-white fur have attracted almost two million fans across the globe to his Instagram account. Coby earns money through sponsored ads from various brands including Casper, a US e-commerce company that sells sleep products. Coby currently lives with his owner Rebecca Schefkind in California, United States.
9. Smudge the Cat - $5,353 Per Post
- Breed: Unknown
- Owner: Miranda Stillabower
- Country: Canada
Popularly known as "confused cat at dinner", Smudge the white cat from Ottawa, Canada, is the ninth richest cat in the world with an estimated $5,353 per Instagram post. Smudge's "woman yelling at a cat" meme has attracted 1.6 million fans to his Instagram account alone. In addition to earning money through sponsored ads, Smudge also has his own merchandise line.
10. Bujibu Chempel - $5,168 Per Post
- Breed: British Shorthair
- Owners: Hanis Zalikha and Hairul Azreen
- Country: Malaysia
Bujibu Chempel is a Malaysian British Shorthair with 1.5 million followers on Instagram. Based on Chempel's number of followers and post likes, it is estimated that the feline could be raking in an impressive $5,168 per sponsored post.
