From private jets to a £38,000 Birkin, how rich really was everyone in Gilmore Girls?

As you’re tucked under the blanket, watching Richard and Emily host yet another lavish party, you might be wondering how much they’re actually worth. Or after Logan casually gifts Rory a £38,000 Birkin, wonder whether that’s just pocket change for him. Which spoiler, it is. Either way, here’s a rundown of how rich everyone in Gilmore Girls actually was.

Lorelai Gilmore

Despite having unbelievably wealthy parents, Lorelai is not insanely wealthy. When she left home she had to live in the shed at the Independence Inn, and worked her way from being a maid to running the whole inn. It’s estimated she made around £40,850 ($50,000) per year working as the manager of the inn. But when Lorelai needs big money, such as for Chilton or Yale, her parents have to step in and help.

Having said that, the amount of takeout and coffee Lorelai consumes must add up pretty quickly!

Sookie St James

Sookie is the head chef at the Independence Inn, and based on chef salaries in Connecticut, could have been making anywhere from £32,133 – 64,703 ($45,000 – 80,000) per year. And whilst we never see Sookie living an extravagant life, she never seems to be in financial difficulty, and even offers Lorelai her car to help pay for Rory’s Chilton fees.

Kirk Gleason

I bet you weren’t expecting to see Kirk here. But is it that surprising, given that he seems to do every job known to man? He claims he’s had “over 15,000 jobs” in 11 years and we see him as a wedding photographer, driver, flower delivery man, termite inspector and so on!

Kirk still lives with his mother, so we can assume he doesn’t pay rent. In season five Kirk puts in a competing offer against Luke for the Twickam house, which costs around £202,158 ($247,000). And based on Kirk’s vibe he seems very frugal, and it’s estimated Kirk could have a net worth of around £204,613 ($250,000).

Kirk is only proving the argument, that the only way you can ever dream of getting onto the property ladder is to live with your parents.

Luke Danes

Luke is a man of simple tastes. He wears the same hat and plaid shirt every day, and seems to never buy anything for himself ever. So it’s not a massive surprise that Luke is secretly loaded.

Luke inherited his dad’s business and lives above Luke’s, meaning he doesn’t have to pay rent on his accommodation or diner. He didn’t go to college, so doesn’t have any loans to pay off, and even owns the apartment building next to Luke’s Diner! That means Luke was a secret landlord, and collected money from the tenants and Taylor Doose. It’s estimated that Luke has around £409,227 ($500,000) in his savings. Not bad at all!

Christoper Hayden

My least favourite character sadly became one of the wealthiest. Christoper starts off in some financial difficulty, after not being able to buy Rory the book she wanted. But by the end of Gilmore Girls, Christoper inherited millions after a death in his family.

He ultimately ends up paying for Rory’s college tuition, buys lunch for all of Rory’s friends at Yale, and even takes Lorelai on an expensive trip to Paris. Based on his spending and inheritance, Christoper has around £40 million ($50 million) by the end of the series.

Hopefully, he can finally buy Rory that book.

Richard and Emily Gilmore

We already know that Emily and Richard are absolutely loaded. They lived in a huge gated mansion with personal chefs, and maids, and would throw huge parties. They went to Europe every two years, were able to easily pay for Chilton and Yale and wrote Lorelai countless cheques. They offered to buy Rory an apartment on the Upper East Side in New York, bought and named a university building after Rory, and were even financially able to buy their own plane.

Richard was the Vice President at Gurmon & Driscoll Insurance Corp. and it’s estimated he could have earned around £491,000 ($600,000) per year. After the money from Trix’s inheritance, it’s estimated the Gimores had a total worth of around £40 million ($50 million).

The Huntzbergers

There’s rich and then there’s Huntzberger rich. Out of everyone in Gilmore Girls, the Huntzberger’s were easily the most rich. Logan came from a very prominent media family, and it’s said that the Gilmore Girls creator based the Huntzberger’s on the Sulzberger family, who own the New York Times.

Given that Logan casually gifted Rory a £38,000 ($46,000) Birkin bag, Mitchum owned 13 newspapers, and the family laughs after Logan sinks their yacht in Indonesia, it’s safe to say they’re mega-wealthy. It’s estimated that because of all their businesses and old money ties, the Huntzberger’s bring in around £160 million ($200 million) per year.

And to think Rory turned down that marriage proposal.

So now we know how rich everyone in Gilmore Girls really was, and now you know to go to Yale to find someone who casually gifts you a Birkin.

Gilmore Girls is available on Netflix. For all the latest Netflix news, drops and memes like The Holy Church of Netflix on Facebook. 

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