ECONOMY & WORK
MONEY 101
NEWS
PERSONAL FINANCE
NET WORTH
About Us Contact Us Privacy Policy Terms of Use DMCA Opt-out of personalized ads
© Copyright 2023 Market Realist. Market Realist is a registered trademark. All Rights Reserved. People may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.
MARKETREALIST.COM / NEWS

3D simulation shows what $1 quadrillion dollars looks like in cash and it's mindblowing

In a YouTube video, a 3D simulation did a size comparison of the mammoth amount in $100 bills.
UPDATED JUL 25, 2024
Cover image source: Getty Images | Photo by Alfred Gescheidt
Cover image source: Getty Images | Photo by Alfred Gescheidt

When expanded, a quadrillion dollar looks like $1,000,000,000,000,000. While that's a lot of zeroes, one can only imagine how that much money would look like in real life. However, this question has been answered by a state-of-the-art simulation by YouTube content creator Red Side. 

Representative image | Getty Images | Photo by Chung Sung-Jun
Representative image | Getty Images | Photo by Chung Sung-Jun

The video starts with the normal $100 bill and goes on to scale up. It goes to $100 million, $1 billion, and then to $100 billion while comparing the size of the money pile to a normal human being and a semi-truck. To put things in perspective, the richest family in the world, the Al Nahyan has a fortune of $305 billion, as per the Financial Express.

Screenshots from the video | YouTube | @RED SIDE
Screenshots from the video | YouTube | @RED SIDE

The simulation then jumps to $1 trillion comparing the size of the pile to a space shuttle. Next, it jumps to show the U.S. national debt which was $28+ trillion at the time. The amount was stacked up against the Statue of Liberty. 

Next, the video shows how a stack of the world debt, $281 trillion would look like against a skyscraper. In the end, the video shows how big a stack of $1 quadrillion would be. The stack easily surpasses the skyscraper reaching up to a height of 960 meters, taller than Burj Khalifa which stands at 828 meters. 

Screenshots from the video | YouTube | @RED SIDE
Screenshots from the video | YouTube | @RED SIDE

Viewers were stunned to see the results."Holy shit skis. That is a cool example. Oh, to be rich eh?? I don't think anyone is that rich but I think there are countries that have huge debt like your compared example... Cool vid, I liked it," wrote user, @kevinrhodes79. 

Screenshot from the comments | YouTube | @imranalam1401
Screenshot from the comments | YouTube | @imranalam1401

Meanwhile, another user suggested that there may be a chance to realize the sum. "Hypothetically, the world's total money reserves could rise to 1 quadrillion," wrote @hi-fy2wb. 



 

Meanwhile, one of the viewers, @mankind8807 asked an interesting question, "Something about 'World Debt' is so funny to me, like I get the actual concept, but if you take it literally it’s so funny Like who tf we owe this money too?"

This question was answered by the World Economic Forum in a 2023 report. As per the Institute of International Finance, global debt hit a record $307 trillion in 2023. WEF explained that this was the total amount of borrowings undertaken by governments, businesses, and households across the globe. 

The report also explained why global debt mattered. As per World Bank research, debt puts the most devastating pressure on emerging and developing economies.

Such countries often need to reduce spending on health, education, and social protection, to pay off their outstanding debt to other countries of financial institutions. This may hinder their growth and lower their quality of life. This also has a counter effect on the country's internal interest rates. 

Furthermore, if countries default on their debts, it can lead to massive panic in the financial markets and lead to significant economic slowdowns. Debt stress can also cause protracted recessions and high inflation which has a disproportionate impact on the poor in low-income countries, according to the World Bank.

MORE ON MARKET REALIST
Senator Cory Booker is set to introduce the new tax with the aim to curb the cost-of-living crisis
8 hours ago
Illinois is looking to setup Newborn Equity Support Transfer program to help mothers with childcare
8 hours ago
Harvey was disappointed with the players who couldn't come up with the most obvious answers.
12 hours ago
Some of the answers were too bizarre even for the seasoned host, Steve Harvey.
12 hours ago
While the host fumbled the card, it had just enough for Brenda to win a brand new car
3 days ago
The nonpartisan fiscal watchdog revised its estimates to add $2 trillion to its earlier projection.
3 days ago
Chevron president Andy Walz urged the state's regulators to review their climate policy.
3 days ago
Harvey looked like he had enough as yet another question popped up, targeting him on the show.
3 days ago
Frito-Lay has recalled certain bags of its popular Miss Vickie's Dill Pickle Potato Chips
3 days ago
Americans are paying 26 cents more for gas than a week ago.
4 days ago
Harvey was left holding his stomach after almost every answer the Hunter family gave.
4 days ago
The firm's chief global equities strategist, Peter Oppenheimer, has warned that a correction is imminent.
5 days ago
The suit alleged Tinder charged older users more for its Gold and Platinum subscriptions
5 days ago
The Yoyo Gummy candies are part of an ongoing recall across 14 states over unallowed food dye.
5 days ago
The two progressives estimate the tax would bring in $4.4 trillion over the next decade.
7 days ago
Hearing the answer, Harvey knew the contestant would need god by his side to save his marriage.
7 days ago
After painfully losing out by 5 points the previous night, the Baccus family made a comeback
Mar 2, 2026
Harvey's anecdotes made it clear that he had been through some steamy situations.
Mar 2, 2026
Michael Green isn't worried about AI stocks, as a passive investment bubble is a "more salient" risk
Mar 2, 2026
The AI assistant app seems to have benefitted from the headlines that emerged after Trump's rant.
Mar 2, 2026