Latest Update: Lena Horne in Net Worth 2026: Career Earnings & Assets

Many fans are curious about Lena Horne's financial success in April 2026. Our team analyzed the latest data to provide a clear picture of their income.

What was Lena Horne's Net Worth?

Horne made her feature film debut in the 1938 musical "The Duke is Tops." Following her nightclub success, the film was rereleased in 1943 as "The Bronze Venus" with Horne's name above the title. Meanwhile, she appeared in MGM's adaptation of the Broadway musical "Panama Hattie" in 1942. Horne followed that with a number of further musical films, mostly for MGM, including "Stormy Weather," "Cabin in the Sky," "Thousands Cheer," "Swing Fever," and "Broadway Rhythm." In the latter half of the 1940s, she appeared in the musicals "Till the Clouds Roll By," "Ziegfeld Follies," and "Words and Music."

Lena Horne was born on June 30, 1917 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City into a well-heeled African-American family. Her father, Edwin, was a former hotel and restaurant owner who ran a numbers racket, while her mother, Edna, was an actress with a theater troupe. When Horne was three years old, her father left the family, and when she was five, she was sent to live in Georgia with her grandparents. From 1927 to 1929, she lived with her uncle Frank. After that, Horne moved in with her mother in Atlanta, and at the age of 12 returned to New York. In Brooklyn, Horne attended St. Peter Claver School and Girls' High School. When she was 18, she moved in with her father in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Lena Horne's career spanned over 70 years. She appeared in numerous films, television programs, and stage shows during that time, and released a plethora of albums. As a civil rights activist, Horne participated in the March on Washington in the summer of 1963.

In the 1950s and 60s, Horne was a regular on television variety shows, including "Kraft Music Hall," "TheEd SullivanShow," "TheDean MartinShow," and "TheAndy WilliamsShow." She also starred in her own 1969 television special, "Monsanto Night Presents Lena Horne." The year after that, Horne co-starred withHarry Belafontein a special for ABC called "Harry & Lena." She later co-starred withTony Bennettin another special. Among her other television credits in the 1970s, Horne made guest appearances on such shows as "Sesame Street" and "Sanford and Son." Later on, she had cameos on "The Cosby Show" and "A Different World."

Disillusioned with Hollywood, Horne made just two films for MGM in the 1950s: the musicals "Duchess of Idaho" and "Meet Me in Las Vegas." She was eventually blacklisted for her affiliations with communist-backed groups the previous decade. Horne returned to the big screen in 1969 as a brothel madam in the Western "Death of a Gunfighter." She had two more film credits after that, the 1978 musical "The Wiz," in which she played the witch Glinda, and the 1994 compilation film "That's Entertainment! III," which she co-hosted with a roster of other former MGM stars.

Lena Horne was an American singer, actress, dancer, and civil rights activist who had a net worth of $10 million at the time of her death in 2010. That's the same as around $14 million in today's dollars.

In late 1933, Horne joined the chorus line of New York City's famed Cotton Club. A couple years later, she made her screen debut in the musical short film "Cab Calloway's Jitterbug Party," appearing as a dancer. Later in the decade, Horne joined Noble Sissle's Orchestra, with which she recorded her first albums. In the early 1940s, she toured with bandleader Charlie Barnet before working at the Café Society in New York. Horne went on to replaceDinah Shoreas the featured vocalist on the popular musical variety radio show "The Chamber Music Society of Lower Basin Street." She left the show after six months to perform in a nightclub revue on the Sunset Strip in Los Angeles.

Ultimately, Lena Horne's financial journey is a testament to their success.

Disclaimer: All net worth figures are estimates based on public data.