Climate activist Greta Thunberg is once again making international headlines—this time after being detained while aboard a humanitarian aid ship attempting to reach Gaza. The mission, organized by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, was aimed at challenging Israel’s long-standing blockade of the region. Among the group of activists on board were Thunberg and European Parliament member Rima Hassan. The Israeli military intercepted the ship, detained those on board briefly, and is expected to deport them. Video footage of the incident, combined with aggressive commentary from Israeli officials, has triggered a wave of global media attention.
Whenever Greta becomes a trending topic, a familiar cycle of misinformation follows—primarily spreading across platforms like Facebook and X (formerly Twitter). One persistent rumor claims that Greta has grown immensely wealthy from her activism, supposedly owning luxury cars, flying in private jets, and preparing to inherit a massive fortune from her family. None of these allegations are true, and they are easy to debunk.
So, if you spot a meme circulating in your family group chat claiming Greta’s riding around in a Range Rover and cashing millions from “green grifting,” here’s what you can share to set the record straight.
Where the Rumors Came From
The first major source of this misinformation was a low-credibility article posted on a site called caclubindia.com on July 1, 2023. That post, titled “Greta Thunberg net worth 2023 (Forbes) Private Jet House Car,” falsely claimed that Greta possessed $18 million in assets, making her one of the richest climate activists in the world.
The article also falsely claimed that Greta took 90 private jet flights a year to attend events, and that her father gave her a BMW X5 for her 18th birthday. It further listed a collection of luxury vehicles supposedly owned by her family—including a Tesla Model-X, a Range Rover Autobiography, and an Audi A6, among others.
Even more outrageously, the article stated that Greta’s great-grandfathers were wealthy businessmen who aided the Nazis in transporting stolen art to Switzerland. It claimed she would inherit $10 million held in a trust fund when she turns 25, along with properties in Stockholm, a luxury yacht, millions in cash, and valuable artwork.
All of this is completely made up—nonsensical, AI-generated junk content. At one point, the site was packed with hundreds (if not thousands) of similar “celebrity net worth” articles, most of which have now been removed.
The Fake Magazine Cover
The second key source of these false claims is a bogus magazine cover from a spam site named en.mediamass, which pretended to be from a publication called People With Money.
One screenshot from the site claimed Greta earned $46 million in a single year. Later in the piece, it claimed her total net worth was $145 million, supposedly earned through stock investments, real estate, and product endorsements. It bizarrely claimed she owns a restaurant chain called Fat Thunberg Burger, a soccer team named Stockholm Angels, a vodka brand called Pure Wonderthunberg – Sweden, a bestselling perfume line (With Love from Greta), and a fashion label named Greta Thunberg Seduction.
But Mediamass is a parody site that recycles the exact same fake storyline for many public figures. For example, it also published a near-identical fake net worth article about Malala Yousafzai, claiming she owned a burger chain, a football team, and had launched her own vodka and fashion line.
It’s a pattern—copy, paste, and reframe for the next famous person.
Her Family Isn’t Rich
Another version of the rumor suggests Greta is secretly wealthy because of her family’s status. It’s true her mother, Malena Ernman, is a known Swedish opera singer who performed at Eurovision in 2009, and her father, Svante Thunberg, is an actor and producer. However, by Swedish standards, their lifestyle is modest and comfortably middle class—not rich by any means.
Sweden makes tax records publicly available, and those records have been scrutinized by Swedish journalists and fact-checkers. In one publicly reviewed year, Malena’s income was about 478,100 SEK (roughly $50,000–$60,000 USD). No signs of large inheritances, multiple properties, or hidden wealth have ever been found.
Prize Money and Book Earnings
In 2020, Greta received the first Gulbenkian Prize for Humanity, worth €1 million. She immediately announced she would donate the full amount to charitable initiatives focused on environmental and humanitarian causes. Her foundation has been open about where and how that money was spent.
She’s also authored books, including The Climate Book, but she’s made it clear that she doesn’t keep the profits. As with the prize money, book earnings go to nonprofit efforts through her foundation.
Speaking Engagements and Daily Life
Another false claim is that Greta demands $250,000 to give a speech. That’s flatly untrue. In a 2019 tweet, she clarified that she never charges for public speaking and has never accepted payment for her activism.
Her lifestyle is simple—she cooks her own meals, doesn’t drive, relies on public transport, and has openly criticized materialism and influencer culture.
The Truth
There’s no credible evidence that Greta Thunberg is a millionaire, let alone the ultra-wealthy figure her critics portray. Her family lives modestly, she doesn’t profit from her activism, and she donates the money she does receive from awards or publishing to causes she believes in.
The rumors about her wealth are based on fabrications, exaggerations, and often deliberate misinformation meant to discredit her. Regardless of where one stands on her climate advocacy, the facts are clear: Greta is not doing this for money, and the claims about her being a multi-millionaire are nothing more than made-up nonsense.
