The Star Wars franchise is a cultural phenomenon, with millions of fans across the world.
As such, it’s no surprise that people have become rich from the franchise over the years. While it is no surprise that Star Wars created wealth for the actors, these riches apply to the characters within the galaxy themselves.
In the galaxy, there are some characters that have more wealth than they could have spent in their lifetimes. Whether they were on the light side, dark side, or were neutral in the Force, there were a select few who were exceptionally wealthy.
Let’s take a look.
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The rich and the poor are a constant theme in Star Wars. The galaxy is rife with wealth and there are lots of ways to get rich.
But how does that work? Who has the most wealth? And what about Jedi? Do they just not care about money?
The currency in Star Wars is called Galactic Credit Standard (simply called credits), and they’re used throughout most of the galaxy.
That’s right—even Jedi Knights and Sith Lords need cold, hard cash. They just don’t care about it as much as those outside their orders do.
The income disparity between Sith Lords and Jedi Knights is staggering.
Jedi Masters might be able to scrape together a few coins.
On the other hand, Sith Lords are not bound by any moral code.
Ergo they can technically take all the riches they desire.
Jedi are not paid directly, rather all their needs are taken care of by the Galactic Republic.
As for Sith, well, if you’re on the dark side, chances are good that your wealth comes from crime.
This means that no one really knows the true extent of the Sith’s riches.
It depends on who you ask: some people think the Empire was richer than the Republic because it had more resources at its disposal; others think the Republic was richer because its economy was more diversified (meaning people could make money in more creative ways, apart from crime).
That said, there are some individuals in the galaxy who are richer than others. Without further ado, let’s get into the top five richest creatures in Star Wars.
Jabba the Hutt
Jabba the Hutt resides on Tatooine, and he’s known for his love of gambling, his cruelty, and his large size. He’s one of the richest people in all of Star Wars, with an estimated net worth of $8.5 billion (USD).
But how did Jabba acquire this wealth? Well, we don’t actually know! We can only speculate where he got it from. However, the estimated $8.5 billion is based solely on the assets he acquired on Tatooine.
Therefore, Jabba the Hutt’s wealth could be significantly higher than the aforementioned value.
Valkorion
One of the richest and most powerful people in Star Wars history is Valkorion, the father of Arcann and Senya.
![The ONLY Sith More Powerful Than Sidious - Valkorion [The Immortal Emperor]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/TPOhGApDz7w/0.jpg)
He was known as a Sith Lord during his time on Ziost, which was later destroyed by Emperor Arcann.
Valkorion’s son followed in his footsteps as Emperor and also went on to destroy Ilum, another planet located within The Old Republic’s space. The usurping of these two planets led to the destruction of their natural resources, causing much hardship for those who lived there.
Nevertheless, before his demise Valkorion was the Eternal Emperor of Zakuul. Therefore it is safe to assume he had a world of wealth at his disposal, although there is no exact figure given.
Count Dooku
Dooku was a human male who started his illustrious career as Count of Serenno and a Jedi Master. A revered warrior and politician, Dooku was also secretly a Sith Lord who served as the apprentice of Darth Sidious, the Dark Lord of the Sith.
His political schemes led to him becoming a leader in the Separatist Alliance, which prompted the outbreak of the Clone Wars between their faction and that of Chancellor Palpatine’s Galactic Republic.
After his death at the hands of Anakin Skywalker during the battle of Coruscant, many fans wondered how much money Count Dooku had earned over his lifetime—especially considering he was known as quite wealthy within The Clone Wars series itself!
While there is no exact figure for how much Count Dooku was worth, his ability to fund a significant portion of the Confederacy of Independent System’s (CIS) operations out of pocket was a testament to his wealth. These operations were by no means small and often required a lot of manpower. Therefore it is safe to assume that Count Dooku was among the wealthiest in the galaxy.
Darth Sidious/Emperor Palpatine
Darth Sidious, better known as Emperor Palpatine, was a Sith Lord who lived during the time of the Galactic Republic.
He was a master manipulator and used his influence to become Emperor. Palpatine was responsible for starting the Clone Wars and eventually establishing an empire that would last for decades.
Sidious died in Return of the Jedi, at the hands of his mentee and prized Sith Lord Darth Vader. Still, there is no doubt that he amassed a large fortune over his lifetime.
It is safe to say that Emperor Palpatine was fabulously wealthy. Not only was he the Emperor and ruler of the dark side, but he also became the Supreme Chancellor of Naboo.
What this means is that Palpatine not only had the wealth of Naboo at his disposal, but also that of the entire Galactic Empire.
Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader
Anakin Skywalker, also known as Darth Vader, was a powerful Jedi Knight who became one of the most iconic figures in Star Wars lore. He was born the son of a slave Shmi Skywalker and was later trained to be a Jedi by Obi-Wan Kenobi.
Anakin was an exceptional Jedi Knight and had all expectations to become an even better Jedi Master. That was until he turned to the dark side, becoming Darth Vader.
As Emperor Palpatine’s prized Sith Lord, Darth Vader potentially earned millions of galactic credits for every mission he carried out. Ergo, Darth Vader’s net worth is estimated at $360 million USD. This makes him one of the richest characters in the galaxy.
Now, you may be wondering how a former Jedi Knight turned into one of the richest people in all of Star Wars. Let’s take a look back at how Darth Vader got his riches.
As mentioned before, Vader was born into poverty on the planet Tatooine but managed to make a name for himself as one of the most talented Jedi Knights in the galaxy.
In time, Skywalker became seduced by Darth Sidious (a Sith Lord who had been manipulating him since childhood) and became the ruthless, feared Sith Lord Darth Vader.
He fought against his former allies in the Clone Wars, eventually becoming an Emperor’s Hand after Sidious declared himself Emperor Palpatine and took control of the Galactic Empire.
Though he would eventually turn against Sidious, the Emperor played a crucial role in creating Darth Vader and the riches he had accumulated throughout his lifetime.
Honorable Mentions
Boba Fett
Boba Fett is one of the most feared and notorious bounty hunters in the galaxy. He’s a clone of Jango Fett and since he was a genetic replica, Jango treated Boba as his son.
Even though Boba had some big shoes to fill given the reputation of his father, he still managed to make a name for himself beyond that. Not only was he one of the best bounty hunters the galaxy had seen, but he also amassed a fortune because of this.
Over his career as an intergalactic mercenary, Boba gained countless credits from his contracts with various galactic organizations like the Empire and the Mandalore’s Death Watch, as well as from many private individuals who’ve hired him for their personal vendettas against perceived enemies.
Fett understandably made most of his money from his bounties. Based on this, how much do you think he was paid to hunt down Han Solo? Or what about when Lando Calrissian paid him to retrieve Han Solo alive?
Although the exact figures are difficult to come by, it is safe to assume that Boba Fett was handsomely compensated for hunting this powerful character.
Watto
On Tatooine, Watto operated a junk business in Mos Espa. He was known to buy and sell slaves, including the mother of Anakin Skywalker.
How much money does Watto have?
It’s hard to say, but we know he owned at least one slave (Shmi Skywalker), and his shop is located in the heart of Mos Espa—a bustling city where people come from all over the galaxy to trade goods with one another.
So, what exactly is Watto’s net worth? Given his status as an owner of slaves, it seems likely that his net worth would be quite large given how valuable they are considered by some cultures.
At the end of the day, both sides of the galaxy provide various avenues for the attainment of wealth. So it’s no surprise that the galaxy has so many millionaires.
Even though most of these characters did not care for riches, the galactic universe gave them the opportunity to obtain wealth. It was up to them to take the opportunities or not.
It may seem like the Sith had an easier path to wealth as they could technically Force Choke their way to the top. However, there still had to be a considerable amount of work put into amassing all those credits!