Volodymyr Zelensky Net Worth: Ukraine President Earns Just $930 Monthly

Comedian-turned-Ukrainian-President Volodymyr Zelensky has won widespread praise across the globe after proving to be an inspiring leader amid Russia's invasion of his country. Here's a look at his life, career and net worth.

Zelensky was born in 1978 in Kryvyi Rih, then in the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, to Jewish parents Oleksandr and Rymma. He graduated from Kryvyi Rih Institute of Economics with a law degree.

Zelensky's career as an actor and comedian started after he joined the KVN comedy competition and was invited to become part of the united Ukrainian team "Zaporizhia-Kryvyi Rih-Transit" when he was just 17 years old.

In 2008, he starred in the film "Love in the Big City" and its sequel, "Love in the Big City 2." Zelensky continued his movie career with "Office Romance" and "Our Time" in 2011, "Rzhevsky Versus Napoleon" in 2012 and "Love in the Big City 3" in 2014. Zelensky also starred in the 2012 film "8 First Dates" and its sequels released in 2015 and 2016.

The trilingual president, who is fluent in Russian, Ukrainian and English, also dubbed the Ukrainian voiceovers for "Paddington" and "Paddington 2."

He launched his own production company Kvartal 95, which produced films, cartoons and TV shows, including his hit comedy series "Servant of the People," in which he played the role of the president of Ukraine.

From 2015 to 2019, Zelensky starred in the series as a high school history teacher in his 30s who won the presidential election after a viral video showed him ranting against government corruption in Ukraine.

The series ended after 51 episodes the same year Zelensky ran for office and was elected as president. He unseated incumbent President Petro Poroshenko.

As Ukraine's president, Zelensky earns a salary of 28,000 Hryvnias, or roughly $930, a month, according to Celebrity Net Worth. This means he has a salary of roughly $11,200 per year.

Zelensky has an estimated net worth of $1.5 million, Celebrity Net Worth reported. The website cited his official financial disclosure in 2018 that revealed he controlled assets worth 37 million hryvnias, roughly the equivalent of $1.5 million, at the time.

In 2021, Zelensky and his administration faced escalating geopolitical tensions with Russia, which culminated in the Russian invasion of Ukraine in late February.

During his first public appearance in his Kyiv office since the start of Russia's invasion, the wartime leader pledged to beat back Russian forces and rebuild his country.

In the video message released earlier this month, Zelensky told his people that he will not hide and instead will stay in Kyiv, Ukraine's capital city, amid Russia's alleged attempts to assassinate him.

Zelensky also turned down an offer from the U.S. of evacuation from Kyiv, CNN reported, citing the Ukraine embassy in the U.K.

"The fight is here; I need ammunition, not a ride," Zelensky told the U.S., according to the embassy.