Bette Midler's Net Worth (Updated September 2022) | Wealthy Gorilla

Net Worth:	$250 Million
Age:	80
Born:	December 1, 1945
Gender:	Female
Height:	1.55 m (5 ft 1 in)
Country of Origin:	United States of America
Source of Wealth:	Professional Singer/Actress
Last Updated:	Feb 8, 2026

Table of Contents

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• Introduction
• Career Overview
• Recent Work
• Midler Vs. Ford Motor Company Lawsuit
• Philanthropy
• Real Estate

Introduction

Bette Midler is an American professional actress, producer, singer, and songwriter with an estimated net worth of $250 Million.

Career Overview

After working on the film Hawaii, Bette Midler moved to New York City in 1965 and studied theatre at HB Studio. She then landed a role in the off-Broadway plays Miss Nefertiti Regrets and Cinderella Revisited before being cast in Fiddler on the Roof. Once that performance was over, Midler joined the original cast of the rock musical Salvation in 1969.

In 1970, she began singing at the Continental Baths and became close with Barry Manilow, another regular performer. Two years later, she released her debut album, The Divine Miss M, earning her the 1973 Grammy Award for Best New Artist. Her self-titled album followed in 1973 and sold nearly a million copies in the United States alone. Since then, she has inspired some of the wealthiest singers in the world and some of the most well-known actors.

A Music Superstar

Bette Midler made her motion picture debut in 1979 in The Rose before releasing her fifth studio album, Thighs and Whispers.

In 1981, she appeared in the comedy Jinxed, which was a major box-office flop. After that, she didn’t appear on the big screen again until 1986, when she chose to focus on her music instead. During that time, she put out many hits, including “All I Need to Know,” “You’re My Favorite Waste of Time,” and “Beast of Burden.” After performing on the fund-raising single “We Are the World,” she signed a multi-picture deal with Walt Disney Studios.

In 1988, she appeared in Beaches, featuring her biggest hit, “Wind Beneath My Wings.” This song became No. 1 on the Hot 100 chart, earning Midler a Grammy Award for Record of the Year. Midler co-starred with Woody Allen in Scenes from a Mall and, in 1991, starred in the musical comedy For the Boys.

The New Millennium

After releasing her ninth album, Bathhouse Betty, in 1998, Bette Midler starred in her sitcom, Bette, in 2000. The same year, she made a cameo in Mel Gibson’s What Women Want, Isn’t She Great, and Drowning Mona.

In 2001, Midler was dropped by Warner Music Group, and from 2003 to 2004 she toured America on her Kiss My Brass tour. She joined Barry Manilow in 2005 for the tribute album Bette Midler Sings the Peggy Lee Songbook. Midler debuted her Vegas show in 2008 at Caesars Palace and was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Variety, Music, or Comedy Special.

In 2013, she returned to the stage in I’ll Eat You Last: A Chat with Sue Mengers, her first appearance on Broadway in three decades. The following year, she appeared as a coach for Blake Shelton’s team on the 11th season of The Voice.

Recent Work

Bette Midler appeared in the 2017 film Freak Show while playing the title role in the stage play Hello, Dolly. After performing at the Academy Awards in 2019, she voiced Grandmama in the animated film version of The Addams Family. She would reprise her role as Grandmama in 2021 for the film’s sequel, The Addams Family 2. Midler then starred in The Glorias in 2020 and appeared in the second season of The Politician, having guest-starred in the first season.

In 2021, she received the Kennedy Center Honor for Lifetime Achievement in Performing Arts for her long and successful career. After receiving the award from President Joe Biden, she attended the Kennedy Center gala performance the following day. She reprised her role as Winifred in Hocus Pocus 2 on Disney+ in 2022 and appeared in Sitting in Bars with Cake in 2023.

Midler Vs. Ford Motor Company Lawsuit

In 1985, Midler filed a lawsuit against the Ford Motor Company and its advertising agency, Young & Rubicam, Inc. She claimed that they imitated her voice and used it for commercial gain to advertise their Lincoln-Mercury cars. Ford Motor Company and Young & Rubicam, Inc. released a series of nineteen short television commercials targeting “Yuppies”. They used different songs for each commercial and tried to get the original artists who made the songs popular to feature. However, this wasn’t possible for all songs, so they had to use “sound-alike” singers.

Midler’s commercial fell into that category as the advertising agency wanted to use Midler’s 1970s cover of Do You Want to Dance?. Instead, the company used one of Midler’s prior backup singers, Ula Hedwig, to imitate her voice without Midler’s consent. This confused listeners and prompted Midler to file the lawsuit. She argued that her voice was a distinctive part of her identity, and deceiving the public with a “sound-alike” into thinking she had endorsed the product was dishonest and misappropriated.

However, the court dismissed the lawsuit, holding that Midler didn’t own the copyright in her voice and therefore no infringement occurred. Midler then appealed the dismissal, and in 1988, the Ninth Court of Appeals reversed the decision and ruled in her favour.

Although the financial information for the suit hasn’t been released to the public, some reports suggest that the lawsuit sought $10 million in damages. Given Midler’s high profile and celebrity status, the settlement could likely have been in the six- to seven-figure range, but this remains speculative.

Philanthropy

Known for her generous and caring nature, Midler has been actively involved in various philanthropic ventures throughout her career. In 1991, she began sponsoring Adopt-A-Highway to help clean up roads in various U.S. states and Canadian provinces and territories. In 1995, she founded The New York Restoration Project, a nonprofit organization dedicated to nature conservation and the preservation of community gardens, parks, and green spaces throughout New York City.

In 2001, she launched various programs through her foundation to provide resources and support to wounded service members, including custom-built homes. Since the first Gulf War in 1990, she has also begun visiting USO and military bases across America, serving meals to soldiers before they deployed as a token of her appreciation. Midler is believed to have helped and supported other global health and human rights organizations; however, these claims remain unconfirmed.

Real Estate

Midler has bought and sold high-end luxury real estate worldwide. For many years, her primary residence was a 7,000-square-foot, three-story penthouse on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan. In 1996, she and her husband purchased the property for a reported $3.5 million.

It has fourteen rooms in total, spread across three floors, six bedrooms, a library, a private elevator, landscaped terraces, and views of Central Park, The Reservoir, and Manhattan’s Skyline. It was previously two apartments, but was remodeled and now has 3,000 square feet of outdoor living space. Wanting to downsize, Midler and her husband listed the property for sale in 2019 for $50 million and sold it two years later, in 2021, for $45 million.

Midler reportedly owns a 38-acre estate on Kauai, Hawaii, which she purchased for $1.5 million in 1988. She also sold a 1.34-acre plot of conservation-zoned land on the same island in 2020 for $1.85 million, which she purchased in 1986 for $150,000, approximately twelve times the purchase price.