Forbes has just released its highly anticipated breakdown of the richest billionaires in the US.

The 40th annual Forbes 400 list is the definitive ranking of the wealthiest Americans.

The list includes some of the most influential people on the planet with a collective fortune of $4.5 trillion which is up from $3.2 trillion last year.

The top 20 alone are worth a staggering $1.8 trillion.

Here is everything you need to know about this year's list from the richest man and woman to the youngest and oldest billionaires to make the cut.

You'll also find who made it on to the 400 list for the first time as well as some shocking names that have dropped off this year's rankings.

The richest people in the world

Who is the richest man in the world?

Herald Series: The billionaire Jeff Bezos reached the edge of space after taking off on Blue Origin’s first human flight. Credit: PAThe billionaire Jeff Bezos reached the edge of space after taking off on Blue Origin’s first human flight. Credit: PA

It comes as no surprise that Jeffrey Bezos, for the fourth year in a row, has been named the richest man in the US and the world.

The Amazon founder keeps the top spot despite standing down as CEO in July and handing the reigns to Andy Jassy.

Bezos' estimated worth is approximately $201.7 billion.

Who is the richest woman in the world?

The richest woman in the world is the French L'Oreal heir Françoise Bettencourt Meyers.

Her net worth is approximately $93 billion.

According to the Forbes Rich List, the richest woman in the US is unchanged for seven years in a row as is the number of women on the list which remains at 56.

The Walmart heir, Alice Walton, comes in second in Forbes' Top Richest Women In The World List 2021.

Walton's net worth is an estimated $67.9 billion.

Who is the youngest billionaire on the Forbes 400 List?

Sam Bankman-Fried has been named as the youngest billionaire on the Forbes 400 list 200.

The founder and CEO of FTX, a cryptocurrency exchange, is 29 years old and is already worth $22.5 billion.

Bankman-Fried made history by being featured on the list as its youngest member and the richest self-made newcomer in its history.

He joins 14 other members of the list who are under 40, including Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg.

Currently, the youngest billionaire in the world is 19-year-old Kevin David Lehmann according to Forbes Annual Billionaire ranking.

The German teenager inherited his $3.5 billion fortune from his father, who had stakes in dm-drogerie markt.

Who is the oldest billionaire on the Forbes 400?

In the 2021 list, Ted Lerner, is the oldest billionaire in the US.

Lerner will turn 96 later this month.

According to the list, he is closely followed by Alice Schwartz and David Gottesman who will both turn 96 next year.

Herald Series: Elon Musk

Top 10 richest people in the world

Every April, Forbes releases its highly anticipated World Billionaires List.

Between now and then, there are a lot of factors that can shake it up.

In the last year, we have seen everything from the high profile divorce between Bill and Melinda Gates to the crashing of major social media sites like Zuckerberg's Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp this week.

These were the billionaires named the richest people in the world in the 2021 run of the list.

But you can keep up to date with Forbes Real Time Billionaires.

  1. Jeff Bezos - $201.7 billion
  2. Elon Musk - $190.5 billion
  3. Bernard Arnault & Family - $187.1 billion
  4. Mark Zuckerberg - $135 billion
  5. Bill Gates - $132 billion
  6. Larry Page - $123.1 billion
  7. Sergey Brin - $118.6 billion
  8. Larry Ellison - $117.4 billion
  9. Warren Buffet -  $102 billion
  10. Steve Ballmar - $92.3 billion

With the Forbes 400 list which details the US' richest billionaires, there is unsurpringly a lot of crossover.

As similar as they are, there is some significant news that has come from the new list.

Amazon's Jeff Bezos is the first billionaire on the list to be valued over $200 billion dollars.

While Elon Musk's, who came in at second place, net worth has tripled in the last year.

Top 10 richest US billionaires on The Forbes 400 list

  1. Jeff Bezos - $201.7 billion
  2. Elon Musk - $190.5 billion
  3. Mark Zuckerberg - $135 billion
  4. Bill Gates - $132 billion
  5. Larry Page - $123.1 billion
  6. Sergey Brin - $118.6 billion
  7. Larry Ellison - $117.4 billion
  8. Warren Buffet - $102 billion
  9. Steve Balmer - $96 billion
  10. Michael Bloomberg - $70 billion

To see the full list of US billionaires, visit the Forbes website.

Herald Series: Bill Gates. Bill Gates.

Who is on the Forbes 400 Rich list for the first time?

There were a total 44 newcomers to the Forbes 400 this year.

Notable names include Melinda French Gates following her divorce with Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates.

She joins the list's youngest self-made billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried as well as the cofounders of cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase Global, Brian Armstrong and Fred Ehrsam.

The founder of the electric vehicle company ,Rivian R.J. Scaringe, also makes the list for the first time along with Miriam Adelson.

She is the heir to her late husband Sheldon Adelson’s stake in a casino empire Las Vegas Sands.

Herald Series: Donald TrumpDonald Trump

Who has fallen off the Forbes 400 Rich List?

There are also a few key names have fallen off the list this year.

Former US president Donald Trump has fallen off the top 400 for the first time in 25 years.

Trump falls $400 million short with his estimated worth being $2.5 billion.

Although he is as wealthy as he was a year year ago, Trump has lost $600 million since the beginning of the Covid pandemic.

The real estate tycoon joins media personality Oprah Winfrey and Gap cofounder Doris Fisher who also both fell of the list.

Other notable billionaires that dropped from the Forbes 400 this year are Twitter cofounder Evan Williams and Uber cofounder Travis Kalanick.