Inside Jeffree Star’s controversial US$200 million net worth: the YouTuber and vegan beauty mogul bought a yak farm, splurges on hot pink Lamborghinis, fuchsia Hermès Birkins, and owns mega mansions
It’s almost impossible not to have heard about YouTube superstar turned beauty mogul Jeffree Star. He is regarded as one of the highest-paid YouTubers in the world, as well as being the owner of highly successful brand Jeffree Star Cosmetics.
With his striking hot pink hair and tattoos, the outspoken 36-year-old is known for his eyebrow-raising moves – from making widely condemned remarks and appearing in photos with Nazi swastikas, to alleged sexual assaults (which he denies). Star recently suffered yet another backlash over his latest project – a yak farm. The YouTuber intends to sell yak meat products to the masses, but his cosmetic line was founded on vegan and cruelty-free principles – causing many to accuse him of hypocrisy.
He filed a trademark to sell yak-related products including “natural yak fibres, clothing and breeding services, as well as yak meat for both pet and human consumption”, reports Paper magazine. And all of this after previously telling fans he’d named all the yaks on the farm and had planned to simply keep them as pets.
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The beauty guru defended himself to Business Insider, saying, “I do sell a vegan cosmetic brand, but that has nothing to do with my yak ranch. That is a whole separate company.” He added that while he listed his company under those categories, “there was never a plan to raise yaks for meat in the beginning. I know some people can’t fathom that and want to say I’m a liar,” Star said.
While we wait for the next Jeffree Star drama to come along, let’s take a look at his humongous net worth – reported to be around US$200 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth, although the evidence we’ve gathered below suggests the reality could be far higher.
Jeffree Star Cosmetics grosses US$100-150 million annually
The Orange County native gained his beauty cult following from his early days on MySpace where he used to post make-up tips. In 2014, he founded his eponymous cosmetic line using up his life savings, and was one of the first personalities to use YouTube to self-brand.
After gaining millions of views from his MUA (make up artist) tutorials and music videos, Star leveraged the momentum to launch a string of beauty products, including liquid lipsticks, lip scrubs, highlighter palettes and eyeshadow pallets, among other items.
In 2018, Star launched his line in shopping malls, and today he can earn up to US$5.2 million per product launch. According to Cosmopolitan, the MUA makes up to US$150 million per year just from his beauty empire (he was asked by YouTuber David Dobrik in August 2020).
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He makes US$100,000 from YouTube alone
Star cashes-in handsome amounts from his YouTube page, too. At the time of writing, the MUA has over 16 million subscribers and his videos have been watched tens of millions of times. According to Cosmopolitan, he makes “hundreds of thousands of dollars a year thanks to YouTube alone”.
Star also made Forbes’ Highest Paid YouTubers list in 2020 where it was claimed he was earning US$15 million.
His other lucrative endeavours
In a 2018 interview with fellow YouTuber Shane Dawson, Star said that he owns or is invested in about 10 small businesses, from property to marijuana.
“I own an entire shipment and fulfilment centre, I own a merchandise company, I print and manufacture everything myself. So, I have about 10 businesses that I’m currently running besides my brand, which is my cosmetics company,” he also told Dawson.
While there are no exact details on how much he earns from his other business endeavours, it’s safe to assume that Star does pretty well out of them.
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He paid nearly US$$15 million for his California mansion
In December 2019, the make-up mogul spent US$14.6 million on a fancy estate in California’s Hidden Hills – aka Kardashian and Depp territory. The property sits on about three acres of land and boasts eight bedrooms and 13 bathrooms.
Star previously owned an enormous Calabasas mansion, which he moved into with his ex-boyfriend Nathan Schwandt, for US$3.1 million. According to reports, he poured millions into the property for renovations and upgrades.
He sold the property for US$3.3 million in November 2020, according to velvetropes.com.
That Wyoming ranch cost over US$1 million
Nestled on the outskirts of Casper, Wyoming, Star bought his controversial yak ranch back in 2020 for around US$1.1 million. The total land is 70 acres, but his spacious house covers 6,000 square feet of it and includes “six bedrooms, a sizeable eat-in chef’s kitchen that opens into a family room, and another cosy den connecting the open-plan living and dining area and the main suite,” according to Architectural Digest.
He also stated in a tweet that he has no interest in moving to the ranch full-time: “I’m never gonna leave Hidden Hills! I just bought a home in Wyoming with a lot of land for my family and I.”
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He has what has to be one of the world’s largest Hermès Birkin collections
Perhaps other than controversies and make-up tips, Star is also known for his eccentric Hermès bags collection. He has a penchant for candyfloss-coloured Hermès bags that he seems to own in every size, and which were previously housed in a pink wardrobe a his Calabasas house.
In his “pink vault closet tour” video on YouTube, the internet personality let fans into his insane Hermès Birkin vault and revealed his favourite (and most expensive) as well: the Hermès Niloticus Crocodile Himalaya Birkin, which reportedly come with a US$379,200 price tag.
It’s safe to say that Star’s Hermès collection is worth (at the very least) hundreds of thousands of dollars. He also once lost a US$60,000 Birkin bag at the airport.
And don’t forget his US$2.4 million fleet of supercars …
Star loves his supercars as much as he loves his Birkins, it seems. According to The Sun, the YouTube star owns a US$200,000 pink McLaren and a US$330,000 Lamborghini Huracan.
He also owns a pink 570S Lamborghini Urus, a pink Tesla Model X, a US$330,000 Rolls-Royce Wraith, a vintage 1965 Rolls-Royce, and an Aston Martin Vantage which is worth over US$139,000.
If that’s not enough, the make-up guru also has a BMW i8 Roadster and a Jeep Rubicon Wrangler, which cost US$163,300 and US$41,400, respectively.
However, his most expensive supercar would have to be his Tiffany Blue McLaren, which is thought to be worth US$1 million – making for a total US$2.4 million worth of supercars – that we know about.
