Rich Barton Biography
Rich Barton is a well-known American tech entrepreneur, celebrated for co-founding Zillow Group, where he has taken on the roles of co-executive chairman and chief executive officer not just once, but twice. He kicked off the company in 2006 and has been instrumental in driving its impressive growth.
But that’s not all—Barton is also the mastermind behind several other significant digital platforms, like Expedia, which spun off from Microsoft, as well as Glassdoor and the travel photography app Trover, which Expedia acquired in 2016. Beyond his entrepreneurial achievements, he has served as a venture partner at Benchmark.
His influence extends to board positions at notable companies such as Netflix, Avvo, Nextdoor, and Artsy, and he’s also a member of the Board of Trustees at Stanford University.
In recognition of his groundbreaking work, Barton was honored as one of the top 10 innovators under 35 by MIT Technology Review back in 2002. Additionally, in April 2012, he was appointed to the Presidential Ambassadors for Global Entrepreneurship by Barack Obama.
Rich Barton Age
How old is Rich? He is 59 years old as of 2026. He was born born in June 2, 1967 New Canaan, Connecticut, in the United States of America.
Rich Barton Education
He graduated from Stanford University in 1989 with a degree in engineering.
Rich Barton Nationality
Rich is an American national and citizen by birth, he was born in New Canaan, Connecticut, United State of America. He is of mixed ethnicity/heritage/ancestry.
Rich Barton Family | Parents
He was born in New Canaan, Connecticut, to Mr. and Mrs. James N. Barton, a teacher and mechanical engineer. His father is the director of general services at Union Carbide Corporation in Danbury, Connecticut.
Rich Barton Wife | Married | Sarah
He is a happily married man. He is married to his amazing wife Sarah Marcus. His wife studied at Northwestern University.
Rich Barton’s Net Worth
How rich is Barton? He has an estimated net worth of $2.2 billion. After posting impressive earnings at Zillow in February 2020, Barton, according to Forbes, reached billionaire status. He holds 15.8 million shares as of this writing. At a share price of $40 in November 2018, he purchased 700,000 fresh shares on the open market. In February 2020, he first attained billionaire status.
Rich Barton Companies | Career
Rich Barton kicked off Expedia’s journey while he was still at Microsoft back in 1994. At that time, Microsoft was toying with the idea of a travel guide on CD-ROM, but Barton had a bigger vision—an online travel booking platform that drew inspiration from early internet services like Prodigy. He pitched this innovative idea to Bill Gates, Steve Ballmer, and Nathan Myhrvold, who gave it the green light. Expedia made its debut on the web in 1996. Barton took the helm as CEO during the company’s initial public offering in 1999 and held that position until 2003, around the time it was acquired for a whopping $3.6 billion.
After a year-long sabbatical in Italy, Barton made his way back to Seattle in 2004 and started working on a new project, Zillow, with his former Microsoft and Expedia colleague, Lloyd Frink. They kept the details of their new venture mostly under wraps until it was ready to launch.
In February 2020, Forbes recognized Barton as a billionaire, thanks to Zillow’s impressive financial performance. He was the CEO from the company’s inception until 2010, made a comeback to the role in 2019, and later transitioned to co-executive chairman in August 2024.
