Mounting affluence in West Palm Beach and Palm Beach landed the cities in the Top 5 fastest growing “wealth hubs” worldwide, beating out leading contenders that included Dubai and San Francisco’s Silicon Valley, according to a wealth tracking report released this week.
The two Palm Beach County cities experienced a 112% increase in millionaires between 2014 and 2024, ranking them in fourth place internationally in the Henley & Partners World’s Wealthiest Cities Report 2025.
That’s a jump from 11th place last year and an indication that the cities are maintaining a growth spurt that began during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ranking ahead of West Palm Beach and Palm Beach are the first-place finisher Shenzhen, China, runner up Scottsdale, Arizona, and third place Bengaluru, India. Dubai ranked sixth on the list with the Bay Area, including San Francisco and Silicon Valley, coming in seventh. Miami ranked in eighth.
“I’m not surprised by the move up, and it’s a pretty substantial move,” said Florida Atlantic University economics Professor Bryan Cutsinger about the Top 5 placement. “It’s a very attractive place for a lot of reasons: No income tax, very friendly business environment, educated workforce.”
In sheer numbers, the wealth report found that West Palm Beach and Palm Beach combined have 11,500 millionaires, 78 centimillionaires (people with $100 million-plus) and 10 billionaires.
The Business Development Board of Palm Beach County estimates there are 60 billionaires countywide, while an analysis of Forbes data by the Palm Beach Daily News found there are 68 billionaires with strong residential ties to the Town of Palm Beach.
While West Palm Beach was growing previous to 2020, the pandemic served as a catalyst for a hefty migration of people moving to Florida lured by fewer COVID-19 restrictions, lower taxes and sunshine.
“When the pandemic hit, (West Palm Beach) was this really unique place that was essentially a blank canvas,” said Frisbie Group managing partner Rob Frisbie during a Palm Beach Chamber of Commerce forum in March. “It was this sponge that was so ready to absorb this growth and that’s one of the driving factors that sets it apart from these other growth centers around the country.”
