Author Danielle Steel is Known for Crafting Stories Tailored For the Screen; Here's Her Net Worth

Novelist Danielle Steel has published more than 180 novels with a Guinness World Book Record

PUBLISHED NOV 20, 2023

SACRAMENTO, CA - DECEMBER 1: Author Danielle Steel attends the 2009 California Hall of Fame Inductee Ceremony at the California Musuem on December 1, 2009 in Sacramento, California.|Getty Images|Photo by Tim Mosenfelder

Name	Danielle Steel
Net Worth	$600 Million
Sources of Income	Novels, adaptations, royalties
DOB	14th August 1947
Age	76 years
Gender	Female
Nationality	American
Profession	Author

What is Danielle Steel's net worth?

In the news for her latest romance novel "Happiness" Danielle Steel, an American author also known for books behind films such as "Now and Forever" and "Fine Things," has a net worth of $600 million as per the Celebrity Net Worth. She has written more than 180 novels which have sold upwards of 800 million copies, and her novels have been transcribed into several other languages for a wider readership. Steel has also made a Guinness World Record for one of her books enjoying the top position in the New York Times bestseller list for 381 weeks in a row. Around 20 of her romance novels have been adapted for the screen, and some of her best work includes "The Wedding Planner", "Without A Trace", "The Promise", "The Whittiers", "Zoya", "Jewels", "Safe Harbour" and "The Gift".

PARIS, FRANCE - JANUARY 22: Daniele Steel attends the Chanel Spring/Summer 2013 Haute-Couture show as part of Paris Fashion Week at Grand Palais on January 22, 2013 in Paris, France.|Getty Images| Photo by Michel Dufour

What are Danielle Steel’s sources of income?

Before making a large part of her fortune from literature, Steel started her career as a poet, and wrote her first manuscript as part of her first job at Supergirls. She later entered the copywriting profession and published her first novel "Going Home" in 1973. Steel got her breakthrough in 1979 when "The Promise" was her first novel to be adapted as a film starring Stephen Collins and Kathleen Quinlan. In addition to royalties from book sales, these movie adaptations generated more revenue for Steel.

PARIS, FRANCE - OCTOBER 15: Writer Danielle Steel (C) with her companion (L) and Leonello Brandolini d'Adda (R) attend AROP Gala at Opera Bastille with a representation of 'Aida' on October 15, 2013 in Paris, France.|Getty Images|Photo by Bertrand Rindoff Petroff

Real estate and other assets

When it comes to property investments, Steel auctioned her Stinson Beach, California home for almost $10 million in 2014. Besides this, Steel has an opulent home in Paris and owns a 55-room Spreckles mansion in San Francisco which costs around $50+ million.

Exterior view of palatial, 3-story mansion built in 1913 by sugar baron Adolph Spreckels which features 2 large bay window sections; it is now owned & newly renovated by author Danielle Steel.|Getty Images|Photo by John Storey

Personal life

Steel is known to have a shy personality and is not seen giving interviews or making appearances with her kids often. She has had five marriages, and all of them ended in separation. Steel has given birth to seven children named, Nick, Beatrix, Vanessa, Samantha, Zara, Maximilian, and Victoria. Her first marriage was at the age of 18 to Claude-Eric Lazard who was a banker in 1965, before a divorce in 1974. She then met robber Danny Zugelder while interviewing a friend and they got married in the prison canteen in 1975. Steel had to suffer several miscarriages during her marriage with Zugelder and divorced him in 1978. Just after the divorce, she met and married heroin addict William Toth. In 1981, Steel married John Traina and had five children. After her marriage with Traina ended, she got married to financier Thomas J. Perkins, whom she divorced in 2003.