Warren Buffett is the best investor of our generation, and has a net worth of nearly $150 billion, making him one of the richest persons in the world. Much of that wealth is tied to the success of his holding company, Berkshire Hathaway.
So, what if Buffett decided to give everyone in America a free gift, and distributed his Berkshire Hathaway shares evenly to all? We’ll break down how many shares of Berkshire Hathaway Buffett owns, about how much those shares are worth, and how much money you’d get if Buffett gave all his shares away to every American.
How Many Shares Does Buffett Have?
According to SEC filings, Buffett still holds around 198,117 shares of Berkshire Hathaway stock. These are Class A shares currently trading at around $747,400 per share.
At current Berkshire Hathaway stock prices, this means Buffett shares are still worth nearly $148 billion. This makes up a majority of his $150 billion net worth, and Buffett’s net worth is almost 100 percent tied to the performance of Berkshire Hathaway stock prices.
Explore More: If Jeff Bezos’ Wealth Was Evenly Distributed Across the US, How Much Would We Get?
Find Out: 6 Subtly Genius Moves All Wealthy People Make With Their Money
How Many Shares Would Americans Get?
If Buffett decided to spread his wealth and directly give each and every American an equal portion of all the Berkshire Hathaway shares he owns, how many shares would you get, and what would that be worth in today’s dollars?
According to the Population Clock at the U.S. Census Bureau, there are currently 342,788,829 Americans alive today (give or take a few thousand by the day). This means if Buffett’s 198,117 million shares of Berkshire Hathaway stock were evenly split, every American would only get a small slice of each stock — roughly 0.0006%. While this doesn’t sound like much, each stock is worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.
If we narrow the data further and only adults qualify to get free shares, that means only 305,939,029 would receive shares (around 10.75% of the population are under age 18). These bumps share ownership up to 0.00065% per person.
At current prices (around $747,400 per share), this means every American would receive around $485.81 worth of value in their Berkshire Hathaway shares.
What if You Held Shares for 10 Years?
While $485 is not life-changing money, it’s still free. And if you decided to hang on to those Berkshire Hathaway shares for the next 10 years instead of cashing out, your net worth would more than double.
Over the last 10 years, Berkshire Hathaway stock has averaged a 13.68% return per year. This isn’t quite keeping up with the S&P 500 (over 15% returns the last 10 years), but here’s what would happen to your Berkshire Hathaway stock if you continued to gain 13.6% interest for the next 10 years:
| Year | Starting Value | Growth Rate | Ending Value |
| 1 | $485.81 | 13.68% | $552.26 |
| 2 | $552.26 | 13.68% | $627.84 |
| 3 | $627.84 | 13.68% | $714.78 |
| 4 | $714.78 | 13.68% | $815.51 |
| 5 | $815.51 | 13.68% | $932.73 |
| 6 | $932.73 | 13.68% | $1,069.46 |
| 7 | $1,069.46 | 13.68% | $1,229.08 |
| 8 | $1,229.08 | 13.68% | $1,415.40 |
| 9 | $1,415.40 | 13.68% | $1,632.73 |
| 10 | $1,632.73 | 13.68% | $1,885.90 |
What would you do with a free $485 in Berkshire Hathaway stock? Would you spend it, or keep it invested?
Disclaimer: Numbers were pulled in November 2025 and are subject to change.
Need a little extra breathing room in your budget? MoneyLion, a sister company of GOBankingRates, is giving away $2,000 a day through Jan. 24, 2026. Sign up here and see if a cash boost is in your future.
More From GOBankingRates
- Trump's $2K Dividend: Who Qualifies and How You'll Get It
- Elon Musk Predicts 'Universal High Income' Will Pay For Everything -- How Much Would You Get?
- How Middle-Class Earners Are Quietly Becoming Millionaires -- and How You Can, Too
- 5 Things You Must Do When Your Savings Reach $50,000
This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: If Warren Buffett Shared His Berkshire Hathaway Fortune, Here’s How Much Every American Would Get
