Jerry Seinfeld was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York City, and attended Queens College to study communications and drama. He selected this path because he aspired to be a comedian. He began imitating the characteristics of comedians when he was eight years old.

He worked his way up the New York City comedy scene in the late 1970s, eventually securing a spot on Johnny Carson's "The Tonight Show" in 1981 at the age of 27.

From there, it was an easy road to super-success. Seinfeld rose to fame as a stand-up comedian and had a stand-up special on NBC in 1987, which led to him being asked to co-create a sitcom with Larry David for the network. "Seinfeld" premiered in 1989, and the rest is history. "Seinfeld" became one of the most popular shows in television history, as well as one of the most influential. By the ninth and last season of the show, Seinfeld was earning $1 million every episode, or nearly $13,000 per line he delivered.

What did Shakespeare have to say about succinctness? Will it make you wealthy? That'll do it.

"Dogs are the leaders of the planet. If you see two life forms, one of them is making a poop, the other one's carrying it for him, who would you assume is in charge?" —Jerry Seinfeld

Net worth: $950 million
Age: 66
Country: United States

Ranking the second place on our list of the richest comedians is Matt Stone. Matt Stone, the co-creator of "South Park," is $100 million richer than his business partner, Trey Parker, for reasons unknown.

Both have tremendous real estate holdings and have benefited from their roles as co-creators on "South Park," "The Book of Mormon," and other films such as "Team America: World Police." It's plausible that Stone receives a few points more than Parker, but it's unclear where the difference comes from.

Regardless, while they sit in a jacuzzi with some other weird, silent person, he may badger Parker about having $100 million more.

"Once you get yourselves into things that are working on a deeper level, you just have to keep going. When you reach that deeper level, you can't go back." —Matt Stone

Net worth: $700 million

Age: 49

Country: United States

In 1954, Matt Groening was born in Portland, Oregon, to Margaret Ruth and Homer Phillip Groening. He drew cartoons throughout school and, at the age of 23, came to Los Angeles after graduating from Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington.

He penned the "Life in Hell" series of comics and got a slot in an alternative local newsletter while working menial jobs there. That proved successful, and Hollywood producer James L. Brooks contacted him to commission him to create three short live animation gags for "The Tracey Ullman Show."

Groening wrote down the prototype for what would become "The Simpsons" family in the lobby, fearful of losing the rights to the "Life in Hell" characters. "The Tracey Ullman Show" wasn't particularly popular, but it helped Groening get a deal with Fox to make "The Simpsons," which is now television's longest-running sitcom and animated series.

"You should listen to your heart, and not the voices in your head." —Matt Groening

Net worth: $600 million

Age: 67

Country: United States

Trey Parker grew up in a small Colorado town and met Matt Stone, the future co-creator of "South Park," at the University of Colorado in Boulder. While in college, they made several comedic movies, one of which being "The Spirit of Christmas," a predecessor to "South Park." While Matt Stone takes 2nd place in the list of richest comedians, Trey Parker is in 4th.

It was so funny that a Fox Broadcasting Company executive, who was also a mutual friend of theirs, commissioned the team to make another film as a Christmas card in 1995. "Jesus vs. Frosty" and "Jesus vs. Santa" are two of them. "Jesus vs. Santa" became one of the first viral videos on the internet and was later picked up by Comedy Central.

It's fascinating to learn how they become wealthy. Much of their fortune stems from a clause included in their first contract with Comedy Central in 1997 by their lawyer. Any earnings not coming from Comedy Central's direct broadcast would be divided between Comedy Central and the co-creators, according to the agreement. It didn't mean much in 1997, but as streaming became the new way to view television, the two made millions of dollars.

In 2019, HBO Max paid $500 million for the streaming rights to "South Park," giving Parker and Stone $125 million apiece.

"Love isn't a decision. It's a feeling. If we could decide who we loved, it would be much simpler, but much less magical." —Trey Parker

Net worth: $600 million

Age: 51

Country: United States

You've heard it said that the man with the big chin has a big pocketbook.

Leno's long career began in the 1970s when he appeared on Johnny Carson's "The Tonight Show" as a replacement host and then became a regular. In 1992, he succeeded Carson as the new king of late night. He hosted "The Tonight Show" until 2014, with the exception of a brief sabbatical when Conan O'Brien took over, only for Leno to return when ratings dropped.

Even though Leno resigned from late-night television at the age of nearly 65, he continues to tour the country with his comedic act.

"You can't stay mad at somebody who makes you laugh." —Jay Leno

Net worth: $450 million

Age: 70

Country: United States

Byron Allen began his career in comedy and received a huge break early on. He had his first television debut at the age of 18 on Johnny Carson's "The Tonight Show" in 1979. He's had a few TV shows over the years, including "Kickin' It with Byron Allen" in the 1990s and "Entertainers with Byron Allen," which is still on the air today.

This comedian, however, did not become wealthy through comedy. Entertainment Studios was created by Allen in 1993. It became a major player in the television industry. The Weather Channel is owned by Entertainment Studios, which also owns Diamond Sports Group.

Sitcoms, court shows, game shows, and comedy specials have all been produced by Entertainment Studios.

"There has to be a place carved out for independents, films where the heroes don't fly around in capes, but there are journeys and struggles we need to learn from and be inspired by." —Byron Allen

Net worth: $450 million

Age: 59

Country: United States

The fact that Adam Sandler is so wealthy should come as no surprise. And definitely, he has his name on the list of the richest comedians.

Since 1995, the former "Saturday Night Live" cast member has begun making films. Sandler's days of making immensely famous films like "Happy Gilmore" are long gone, but he still maintains a large fan base.

He's had a four-film agreement with Netflix since 2014, which has been renewed every three years due to the success of his films.

"My name is Adam Sandler. I'm not particularly talented. I'm not particularly good-looking. And yet I'm a multi-millionaire." —Adam Sandler

Net worth: $420 million

Age: 54

Country: United States

Bill Cosby anticipated spending the rest of his life in prison. Then, in June 2021, he was released from prison after the Pennsylvania Supreme Court reversed his sex conviction.

Cosby, who served nearly three years of a ten-year sentence for drugging and sexually assaulting a woman, was once one of the world's funniest people.

However, the man formerly regarded as "America's Dad" is no longer a source of amusement.

"I don't know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody." —Bill Cosby

Net worth: $400 million

Age: 83

Country: United States

David Letterman was the most popular late-night host among comedians and younger viewers when he hosted "The Late Show." The show was nominated for 47 Emmys and won six of them.

Letterman hosted "The Late Show" for over 30 years, earning over $30 million each season in his later seasons. He also runs Worldwide Pants, a production firm that has produced a variety of series, including the hugely popular "Everybody Loves Raymond."

"My Next Guest Needs No Introduction," Letterman's Netflix show, pays him $2 million per episode.

"While I was gone, I had quintuple bypass surgery on my heart. Plus, I got a haircut." —David Letterman

Net worth: $400 million

Age: 73

Country: United States

Larry David made his fortune co-creating "Seinfeld," but he served in the National Guard during the 1970s. He worked as a chauffeur, taxi driver, and bra salesman during that time.

He obtained a job writing sketches for "Saturday Night Live" in 1984. However, only one of his sketches aired throughout the year. David went up to a producer, enraged and irritated, and screamed "I'm done! I quit! F—- you!"

He later told his employee, Kenny Kramer (the real-life Kramer from "Seinfeld"), what he had done. "I'm such a moron," David lamented. Kramer advised him to simply go back in time and pretend it never occurred. And it worked for David.

"Sometimes you have to wander a bit and do what you don't want to in order to figure out what it is you're supposed to do." —Larry David

Net worth: $400 million

Age: 73

Country: United States

The first female comedian to have her name on the list of the richest comedians in the world is Ellen DeGeneres. She grew raised in Metairie, Louisiana, a New Orleans suburb. She attended the University of New Orleans for one semester before dropping out.

Her first employment was working at J.C. Penny and TGI Fridays as a waitress. She rose to prominence in stand-up comedy, which led to a television career. DeGeneres' character on "Ellen" came out as homosexual not long after she came out in real life on "The Oprah Winfrey Show." For the time, it was a contentious episode, and "Ellen" was discontinued the next year due to low ratings.

Since 2003, DeGeneres has hosted "The Ellen DeGeneres Show," a talk show on which she has had the most success. She earns about $50 million per year from the show, which includes a 60 percent cut in advertising and product placement income. She also enjoys making money by flipping houses.

There's also the issue of harmful workplace culture.

"Never follow anyone else's path. Unless you're in the woods and you're lost and you see a path. Then, by all means, follow that path." —Ellen DeGeneres

Net worth: $370 million

Age: 63

Country: United States

In 1999, Seth McFarlane's "Family Guy" premiered on Fox. He inked a $100 million agreement with the network less than ten years later, in 2008. That was about 12 years ago, and the show had made $1 billion in total sales.

McFarlane struck a multi-year, $200 million contract with NBCUniversal in 2020 to create new TV projects for the network. At the same time, "Family Guy" will continue to air on Fox, which means he'll continue to be paid by the network.

Not to mention his other works, such as the "Ted" movies and "The Orwell," which have a cult following among science fiction lovers.

"When you can't formulate a substantive rebuttal to an argument, you can always depend on 'That's just ... wow.'" —Seth MacFarlane

Net worth: $300 million

Age: 47

Country: United States