Here's How Much Martha Stewart Is Really Worth

Martha Stewart has lived a surreal life that's taken her to places most of us wouldn't even think to dream about. At various stages of her life, she's been a model, a television show host, a domestic goddess, a convicted felon, a business mogul, and, of course, Snoop Dogg's BFF. At this point, she could probably reveal that she's been a Batman-style costumed superhero all along, and no one would bat an eyelid. 

Whatever else Stewart has been over the years, few people can deny that she's highly successful. Her countless cookbooks, long-running magazine, assorted products, and media endeavors have made her an omnipresent public figure over the decades. As such, it's easy to assume that the stalwart entrepreneur has managed to turn her various business ventures into a pretty (and presumably well-polished) penny. But just how big is the money pile that Stewart's considerable business empire has earned her?

According to Celebrity Net Worth, Martha Stewart's earthly possessions are worth no less than $400 million. That's a frankly amazing amount of money. But incredibly, it's only a sliver of what she once had. Per Business Insider, in 1999, Stewart made massive dot-com boom profits with the initial public offering of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia. She rang the bell of the New York Stock Exchange when the trading day started, and by the end of it, she was a billionaire and a half. In fact, Fortune reported that Stewart was "America's first female self-made billionaire."

"That was a great day," Stewart said to Business Insider, describing the experience of gaining a 10-figure net worth. "I drove up Madison Avenue after the offering. I was an instant $1.6 billionaire. It was a fabulous day and I thought, huh ... I can buy anything on this street!" Unfortunately, she didn't really get around to go nuts with her newfound fortune, because she was "too busy working." The dot-com bubble eventually burst, and a bunch of her net worth evaporated. But hey, $400 million is still pretty decent.

Long before launching her food empire, Martha Stewart was a model, starting when she was still in high school. And during her studies at Barnard College, she appeared in ads for brands like Clairol.

"My neighbor, a beautiful ballerina, was modeling for Stuart Models, and she had a contract. Her parents said to me, 'Martha, you're so pretty. You should be modeling also.' So I did. I signed with Ford Models and was immediately signed up for TV commercials," Stewart told People in 2020. "I played married parts when I was 16 years old."

These days, Stewart is more known for her lifestyle brands, magazine, and cooking tips than she is for her modeling work. But back in the day, she made a lucrative earning through her modeling career. According to Business Insider, Stewart made as much as $50 an hour through her modeling gigs.

Martha Stewart's career path has been a circuitous one. She didn't go straight from modeling to cooking and TV hosting after college — instead, Stewart worked on Wall Street. And she was good at her job, too. As People explains, Stewart left Wall Street to stay home with her daughter, Alexis, not because she didn't want to work in finance. It was from there that she began to focus on food full-time.

"After I gave up stock-brokering, I started an at-home catering business, which was extremely time-consuming," Stewart said to People in 2020. Stewart started her catering business in 1973, and she's never looked back since. Per Celebrity Net Worth, it was this catering business that led to Stewart's first cookbook. She catered a book release party and successfully networked her way to a book deal of her own, for 1982's "Entertaining." Stewart went on to publish eight more books in the '80s alone, the outlet noted. From there, the magazine Martha Stewart Living launched in 1990, and the TV show of the same name launched in 1993, per Celebrity Net Worth.

"I had a very successful career in the stock market, and I sometimes regret not staying in that business, because becoming an investment banker would've been pretty fabulous," Stewart admitted to People in 2020. "But I was lured to the home." Still, it's safe to say her legions of fans are happy for her career transition.

Martha Stewart's time in prison didn't help increase her net worth. But the food personality has made a comeback, to say the least. Per Celebrity Net Worth, Stewart was released from prison in 2005, and she went on to host "The Martha Stewart Show" from 2005 to 2010. These days, though, Stewart may be most-known for her unlikely friendship with Snoop Dogg, with whom she co-hosts "Martha & Snoop's Potluck Dinner Party" and "Snoop and Martha's Very Tasty Halloween."

And in 2020, Stewart launched a line of CBD products called Canopy Growth, which includes oil drops, soft gels, topical treatments, and gummies. Fans may be surprised by Stewart's foray into Cannabidiol products — but considering her close friendship with Snoop, it's not exactly out of nowhere, either. "Boy, nobody has gummies that taste like that," Stewart said to Harper's Bazaar in February 2021. "You don't get high off the gummies; you get relaxed."

In addition to her CBD business, Stewart launched meal kit Marley Spoon in 2018, and she also has a wine company. It's no wonder she's built such a successful net worth; Stewart truly is an unstoppable force.