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How Rich is Harry Potter? The Scoop on Potter Family Finances


Harry Potter slightly smiling
Credit: Warner Bros.

There's a lot to be said about Harry Potter. He's the Chosen One. The Boy Who Lived. Master of Death. But it's all too easy to forget one little detail that isn't really revisited as much as it should be beyond Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, whether it's the book or the movie.

Yes - Harry Potter is filthy rich! His late parents left to him a great fortune! But just how rich is Harry Potter?

Grab a quill and some parchment, because we're going to tell you just how rich Harry Potter really is, and by the end of this article, you'll feel like a Goblin bank teller at Gringotts.

Don't know your Galleons from your Sickles? Or Sickles from your Knuts? And don't really want to have to flick through the pages of the first book to find out? Don't worry - we've got you covered!

But before we jump in, let it be said that Harry is a lot more wealthy than you might imagine.

Remember the scene in Sorcerer's Stone when the food trolley visits Harry, Ron, and Hermione's carriage on the Hogwarts Express? "We'll take the lot!" Harry exclaims.

While a modest fellow for the entire Harry Potter series, he didn't have to go and deprive all the other students of food!

How Much is a Galleon in Harry Potter?

Gringotts Head Goblin talking to Harry and Hagrid
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Credit: Warner Bros.

The word 'galleon' is often used in reference to a sailing ship, but in the Wizarding World, it's the name of Wizarding currency used by witches and wizards - well, one of three names.

In decreasing order, they are Galleons, Sickles, and Knuts, which are gold, silver, and bronze, respectively.

But what is a Galleon? A Galleon is a gold coin that is equal to 17 Sickles, or 493 Knuts.

As Hagrid explains to a young Harry in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, "The gold ones are Galleons. Seventeen silver Sickles to a Galleon and twenty-nine Knuts to a Sickle, it's easy enough."

Harry Potter in Gringotts
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Credit: Warner Bros.

To break this down, even more, let's start with the least valuable of the three - Knuts. Think of one Knut as a single British penny, or an American one-cent piece.

When you have 29 of these little coins, you have one Sickle. And with 17 Sickles, you have a single Galleon! But remember - this is wizarding currency in Britain only.

There are different names for the currency in other countries! And why wouldn't there be, when you have Muggles in Britain and Nomaj in America? Wizarding currency in the US is said to be made up of the Dragot and the Sprink.

How Did Harry's Parents Get So Rich?

Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter
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Credit: Warner Bros.

Before we find out what Harry Potter's net worth is, another huge question that needs answering is where all that money came from in the first place!

In Sorcerer's Stone, Harry is shocked to discover that his own vault at Gringotts is filled with heaps of Galleons, meaning he'll never have to worry about money for robes, quills, and wands during his time at Hogwarts.

And we quickly learn that this fortune was left to him by his parents, James and Lily Potter, both of whom had been murdered by Lord Voldemort 11 years prior.

But how did Harry's parents get so rich? Was it Wizarding insurance? Or, like J. K. Rowling, did they too strike it lucky with a series of fantasy novels?! Nope - none of the above! So, was it their well-paid professions?

Harry Potter
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Credit: Warner Bros.

It's not that, either - James and Lily Potter both worked as Aurors for the Ministry of Magic, which probably didn't pay well enough for them to have been so incredibly wealthy.

The answer actually lies in the pages of the official Harry Potter website Wizarding World (previously known as Pottermore), where Rowling herself explains how Harry's parents left him so much money.

One entry details the Potter's family history, referring to one eccentric Linfred of Stinchcombe, also known as "the Potterer". This man ended up creating the potion 'Skele-Gro' - which is actually used to regrow bones in the Harry Potter series.

Along with a few other potions, all of which are still in use in the Wizarding World, this is what led to the Potter family's incredible wealth over the years.

It is worth noting that while each member of the Potter family worked hard to maintain their fortune, it was Fleamont (Harry's grandfather) who "took the family gold and quadrupled it" by creating Sleekeazy’s Hair Potion.

And when Fleamont retired, he "sold the company at a vast profit," which helped fill Harry's vault.

How Rich is Harry Potter?

Harry Potter
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Credit: Warner Bros.

Finally, the moment of truth! But you might be surprised to learn that it really isn't as simple to answer as you might think, because it has never been explicitly confirmed anywhere (not even by Rowling in one of her many random tweets)!

In the first book, Rowling writes, "Harry gasped. Inside [the vault] were mounds of gold coins. Columns of silver. Heaps of little bronze Knuts." But that's all we get.

A popular Reddit theory, however, estimates the minimum amount of Wizarding money that's sitting in Harry's vault at Gringotts at the time of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone to be in the region of $1.2 million!

And remember - that's the minimum, but it's also just an estimate, so it could be a lot more. Now you're probably wondering, is Harry Potter as rich as J. K. Rowling?! Perhaps, perhaps not.

Either way, it's more than likely that Harry is at least in possession of what would equate to hundreds of thousands of pounds or dollars in our world!

Butterbeers on you then, Harry?

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