Jerry Jones turned the Dallas Cowboys into the NFL’s biggest money-making team — and built his own fortune along the way.

The Dallas Cowboys were a struggling team when Jones bought the franchise in 1989 for $150 million. Per Forbes, he tapped into his oil and gas earnings, but because they were paid out in installments, he had to take a big gamble when offloading other interests and borrowing money, including a big loan from the bank.

“I had danced with the devil to buy the Cowboys, and it was scary,” Jones told Forbes. “When I [got the loan], I celebrated because I had all the money back home.”

Now, the Dallas Cowboys have consistently ranked as the NFL’s most valuable team for nearly two decades, per the outlet. Meanwhile, Jones himself made Forbes’ list of the world’s richest sports team owners in April 2025, with his and his family’s net worth being estimated at $16.6 billion.

So, how did Jerry Jones build his fortune? Here’s everything to know about the Dallas Cowboys owner’s net worth.

What is Jerry Jones’ net worth?

As of Aug. 18, Jones and his family’s real-time net worth is estimated to be $16.6 billion, per Forbes.

His fortune has climbed steadily since 2016, when it was valued at $5 billion. A major leap came in 2023, with his net worth surging to $13.3 billion from $10.6 billion the year before, per Forbes. The biggest increase followed between 2024 and 2025, when his wealth rose by another $2.8 billion.

What is Jerry Jones’ biggest source of wealth?

Jones’ massive fortune comes from the Dallas Cowboys and his controls in the energy industry, per Forbes. However, in November 2022, he told the outlet that his biggest source of wealth was his assets in the gas business.

“The greatest wealth is in the gas,” he said. “It’s much bigger than the Cowboys.”

Per Forbes, Jones first found success as an oil wildcatter, making his first million in oil investments in the 1970s.

In 2018, he became majority shareholder of Comstock Resources, a public natural gas company, after trading $620 million in oil assets for control of the company. Per Forbes, he later invested another $475 million to acquire Covey Park Energy, turning Comstock into the largest natural-gas producer in the Haynesville region of East Texas and West Louisiana.

In November 2022, Forbes reported that Jones’ natural-gas holdings, including Comstock Resources and his private gas company Arkoma, were worth a combined $4.3 billion.

How much has Jerry Jones made from the Dallas Cowboys?

The Dallas Cowboys have been the most valuable team in the NFL for nearly two decades, per Forbes — and it’s largely thanks to Jones.

The team was struggling financially when he took over, and Jones was able to turn things around quickly under his direction, by pushing ticket sales, cutting expenses and changing leadership. He also went searching for new revenue streams, signing independent stadium sponsorship deals with several major companies, per Forbes. What’s more, he was responsible for building the AT&T stadium, the NFL’s first billion-dollar venue.

Per the outlet, the Cowboys were the first sports team to cross the $10 billion threshold. As of August 2024, the team was valued at $10.1 billion, with an estimated $1.2 billion of revenue and $564 million in operating income.

While the team’s financial successes don’t necessarily go straight into his pocket, the Cowboys’ revenue makes up a significant part of Jones’ net worth. Per Forbes, the Cowboys made up 85% of his net worth in 2017 — though that number has likely changed since then.

What are Jerry Jones other businesses and investments?

Beyond the Dallas Cowboys and the energy industry, Jones has built an empire through several other real-estate assets and businesses, both on a local and international level.

According to Forbes, his portfolio includes car dealerships in Brazil, a commercial shopping center in Missouri and pizza franchises spread across the country.

In 2008, he also teamed up with the late New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner to form an event management and concessions businesses, Legends Hospitality, which was later valued at $1.35 billion after private equity firm Sixth Street bought a majority stake.

What has Jerry Jones said about his wealth?

In February 2019, Jones spoke to Dallas Cowboys’ Star Magazine about his motive behind the 1989 money-making decision, explaining that buying the NFL team was for more than just a paycheck.

“You hear folks say, ‘Jerry is all about the money.’ Hell, I’ve spent money as fast as anyone who has ever lived,” he said. “The money, I don’t get a kick out of thinking about my bank accounts or like Scrooge looking at his stacks of money. I didn’t do this for that. That’s not what my career has been about.”

Jones continued, “I did it to have the stuff that money gets. So my dream was both. I wanted to be in football, but I wanted to collect the resources that I could.”

Looking back on his journey to financial success, the billionaire opened up to Forbes in November 2022 about the financial gambles he’s taken throughout his life — and how they’ve been worth it.

“I have spent a life under financial pressure, self-inflicted a bunch of it,” Jones said. “This is the best I felt financially, and so it makes these challenges and the future a lot of fun.”