Social Media Stars Propel Record Number of Young Millionaires in Britain
Forget years of traditional hard graft—the fastest route to a seven-figure salary now increasingly involves selfies and millions of social media followers. A record 1,000 taxpayers aged 30 or under earned at least £1 million last year, marking an 11 per cent increase from the previous year, as young people turn to lucrative careers as influencers.
Booming Social Media Advertising Fuels Wealth
While this number includes footballers and pop stars, the uptick is largely attributed to a surge in social media creators capitalising on paid advertisements. According to accountancy firm Lubbock Fine, which analysed HMRC data, these top earners made an average of £3 million each. Research platform Statista reports that spending on social media adverts tripled between 2019 and 2024 and is predicted to exceed £1 billion this year, dwarfing expenditures on more traditional forms of advertising in the UK, such as cinema, radio, or magazine ads.
High-Earning Influencers Like Molly-Mae Hague and Tommy Fury
Molly-Mae Hague, a 26-year-old former contestant on the reality dating show Love Island who has since launched her own fashion brand, can reportedly earn up to £60,000 for every sponsored post on her social media platforms. With 8.8 million followers on Instagram, she has been paid by businesses including Starbucks and Beauty Works. Her partner, Tommy Fury, a 26-year-old professional boxer who also appeared on Love Island, earns around £10,000 for a single post shared to his 5 million Instagram followers.
It is not just large conglomerates paying influencers to promote their products. In December last year, it was revealed that the UK Government had spent just over half a million pounds paying social media influencers to promote their campaigns since 2024. Beyond paid adverts, influencers can also earn substantial amounts by launching their own businesses or securing longer-term sponsorship contracts with brands.
Broader Trends in Young Wealth Accumulation
Lubbock Fine noted that the leap in affluent young taxpayers is also driven by bigger deals for sports, music, and media stars, along with higher salaries in technology and financial services. Singer Dua Lipa, who turned 30 in August, was one of the youngest stars on last year's Sunday Times Rich List of the wealthiest Britons under 40, with an estimated worth of around £115 million. Other notable British millionaires include Ben Francis, 32, founder of sportswear retailer Gymshark, now valued at approximately £726 million.
Warnings and Overall Taxpayer Trends
However, Russell Rich of Lubbock Fine issued a cautionary note: 'Footballers, boxers, and sportspeople tend to live beyond their means when they retire, which means they build up problems very quickly.' Overall, there are now 31,000 UK taxpayers earning £1 million a year or more—400 more than the previous year—with combined earnings of this group totalling £89.1 billion.
