Brian Houston’s net worth is a mystery, but its likely between 10 million and 12 million by 2026 – although no one really knows for certain because he’s kept his financial records tightly under wraps.
Brian Houston is of course best known as the fella who founded and more recently had to step down from as the global senior pastor of Hillsong Church. This gives him a pretty strong claim to be one of the more well-known leaders of the Pentecostal movement.
So where does all that wealth come from? Simple stuff really – a whole load of years of church leadership, selling some books, public speaking and dabbling in the media of course. However, its worth keeping in mind that loads of older articles about his finances are now pretty out of date.
Quick Facts: Brian Houston
| Fact | Detail |
| Full name | Brian Charles Houston |
| Date of birth | February 17, 1954 |
| Age in 2026 | 72 |
| Birthplace | Auckland, New Zealand |
| Nationality | New Zealand-Australian |
| Wife | Bobbie Houston |
| Children | Joel, Ben, and Laura |
| Known for | Founder of Hillsong Church |
| Former role | Global Senior Pastor of Hillsong Church |
| Estimated net worth | Around $10 million to $12 million (estimated) |
Brian Houston was born in Auckland, New Zealand. In 1983, he and his wife Bobbie started Hills Christian Life Centre in Sydney, Australia – which would later become known as Hillsong Church. Its fair to say that this was a foundation stone for the church as we know it today.
Over the years, Hillsong went on to grow, expand and get pretty big – going on to be one of the worlds biggest and most well-known – Pentecostal church networks – hundreds of churches across more than 36 countries in total.
Brian’s Net Worth – 2026 Estimate
If we were to put a rough price on it, its believed hes got around $10 million to $12 million to his name.
Keep in mind this is just a rough guess – Brian Houston has chosen not to reveal a single thing about his personal finances, investments, property, earnings, or debts.
We should also bear in mind that the churchs finances and his personal finances arent quite the same thing – the church has loads of assets, donations, property, conference income, music revenue etc which arent his personally.
So to put it simply – Brian Houston has a net worth of around $10 million to $12 million – made up of lots of years of church work, some book sales, speaking gigs and media time.
Who Is The Man Behind Hillsong?
Brian Houston – Pastor, author, speaker and church founder – the big cheeses in short.
He and his wife Bobbie started Hills Christian Life Centre in 83 – and as the church grew, it became the massive Hillsong which has become a household name in modern Christian worship.
With massive church gatherings, leadership conferences and a global outreach programme it wasnt long before Hillsong became a well know name around the world.
Its groups like Hillsong United and Hillsong Worship that have really helped spread the churchs name far and wide.
As the church grew, so did Brian – he preached in many countries, wrote books, got in the media and even helped shape the global identity of the church.
How Brian Houston Built his Wealth Over Time
Brian Houston’s wealth wasn’t made from a single source – he’s a master of diversifying his income streams. He’s got a career’s worth of financial support coming from a variety of places, including his church work, books, speaking engagements, and media appearances all stacked up over a number of years.
Hillsong Church – where it all began
For most of his career, Brian Houston has been at the helm of Hillsong Church, raking it in and enjoying the perks that come with it – a decent salary, employee benefits, travel opportunities, and the chance to speak at conferences all around the world.
He’s also been national president of Australian Christian Churches from 1997 to 2009. That pretty much made him the face of Pentecostal leaders in Australia – not bad for a guy who keeps a low profile.
We don’t know how much he earned in salary, but one thing’s for sure – his leadership role at Hillsong gave him a massive platform and helped launch all the other parts of his career.
The Book World – where he got a chance to share his ideas to a wider audience
Brian has written a bunch of books – Live Love Lead, There Is More and You Need More Money are just a few of ’em. His books all focus on faith, leadership, personal growth and just living life the Christian way.
It’s pretty clear that book sales and publishing royalties have been adding to his bank balance for years, but it’s also given him a chance to get his message out to people who never set foot in Hillsong.
Writing all these books has also made him a bit of a household name in Christian leadership circles – which has helped him get more gigs as a public speaker.
Speaking, Conferences, TV, and all that other stuff
Brian Houston became a regular fixture on the Christian conference circuit – and as Hillsong grew bigger so did the demand for his teaching and public appearances.
He’s also popped up on TV and online, in interviews and ministry programs. We can’t say for sure how much he earned from speaking, but it’s probably worth a pretty penny.
Hillsong Music – how it helped his career along
Hillsong’s music ministry is where it’s at. Bands like Hillsong Worship and Hillsong United are selling millions of records around the world. And Houston was right there in the thick of it, watching the church grow as the music ministry took off.
Now – we’re not saying that Hillsong’s music revenue is where he’s getting his paychecks from – but the success of the music ministry has certainly helped him stay in the public eye – and that in turn has created more and more opportunities for books, conferences, interviews and all that jazz.
What’s Next for Brian Houston
Brian Houston is no longer the head of Hillsong Church – he resigned a couple of years ago. And that’s had a big impact on his career.
In March 2022 it was announced that he had quit after an investigation into some pretty damning allegations. He was accused of breaking Hillsong’s moral code of conduct with two women.
Now, his focus is on independent ministry, books and speaking. He’s a bit more off the radar now, but still making a name for himself.
And recently in February 2023, Hillsong appointed a new global senior pastor, Phil Dooley along with his wife Lucinda.
The 2023 Court Case
In the late summer of 2023 an Australian court found Brian Houston not guilty of deliberately covering up his dad Frank Houston’s child sex abuse crimes.
The court’s verdict was that Houston had a good reason not to report it because he genuinely didn’t think the victim wanted the cops involved.
Separate from the stuff that led to his resignation from Hillsong, this court case was a standalone issue & its findings shouldn’t be tangled up with the earlier Hillsong probe.
The two are often mentioned in the same breath but they each concerned different stuff. While they certainly took a toll on Houston’s reputation, they shouldn’t be confused with one another.
What Brian Houston’s Up To Now
Hillsong’s gone and so has Houston’s role in it, but he & wife Bobbie are still doing their thing as a ministry outside of Hillsong.
They now run JesusFollowers.TV, an online church/ministry thing that does Christian teaching and faith-based content.
Things are much quieter now as far as Houston’s public profile is concerned – his current platform’s a lot smaller than Hillsong ever was. & therefore there’s bugger all out there about how much dosh he’s making these days.
Bobbies & The Houston Crew
Brian Houston and his wife Bobbie have been married since ’77 and founded Hillsong together back in 1983. Bobbie was also super involved with the church – she played a major role in the women’s ministry, conferences and generally helped run the shop.
They’ve got three kids
- Joel Houston
- Ben Houston
- Laura Housto
Over the years the Houston family were pretty central to Hillsong’s whole growth, music scene, leadership & community vibe.
Brian Houston’s Main Income Sources
| Income Source | How It Contributed |
| Hillsong leadership | Built his career and public profile |
| Books | Added publishing income and expanded his audience |
| Speaking events | Increased his influence around the world |
| Conferences | Created more ministry and leadership opportunities |
| Media work | Kept him visible through interviews and broadcasts |
| Hillsong’s global reputation | Increased his public profile, though not personal ownership of church assets |
| Online ministry | Supports his current work after Hillsong |
| Personal investments | Not publicly known |
Houston’s wealth was built over many years. Hillsong gave him a global platform, while books, speaking, conferences, and media work created additional sources of income.
Brian Houston Career Timeline
| Year | Event |
| 1954 | Born in Auckland, New Zealand |
| 1977 | Married Bobbie Houston |
| 1983 | Founded Hills Christian Life Centre with Bobbie Houston |
| 1997–2009 | Served as National President of Australian Christian Churches |
| 2000s–2010s | Helped grow Hillsong into a global church and worship brand |
| 2022 | Resigned from Hillsong Church |
| 2023 | Found not guilty in an Australian court case |
| 2023 | Phil and Lucinda Dooley became Hillsong’s global senior pastors |
| 2024–2026 | Continued independent ministry through online platforms |
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Brian Houston’s net worth supposed to be in a couple of years from now?
Somebody reckons Brian Houston’s net worth could be anywhere between $10 million to 12 million but to be honest, these estimates arent anything towrite home about & were not officially confirmed.
How in the world did Brian Houston make his fortune?
Well, he put himself about through a long stint of leading churches, selling loads of his books, giving public talks, organising conferences and doing media work and all sorts of other ministry stuff.
Is Brian Houston still at Hillsong?
No way. He left the place in 2022. And then in 2023, Phil and Lucinda Dooley took on the role of senior pastors for the whole church.
Was Brian Houston ever found guilty of anything?
No. Its no secret he had his fair share of controversy, but in 2023 an Australian court actually found him not guilty of not speaking out about his dad’s child sex abuse.
Who is Brian Houston married to?
Bobbies his wife. They’ve been married since 1977 and founded Hillsong together back in 1983.
How many kids has Brian got?
Brian & Bobbie have got three kids: Joel, Ben & Laura.
What is Brian Houston up to these days?
He keeps on working in his ministry. He & Bobbie Houston run an online church & ministry platform called JesusFollowers.TV
The Bottom Line
If were being totally honest, Brian Houston’s net worth in 2026 is not exactly set in stone. All we have to go on are estimates, and most people reckon its somewhere between 10 million and 12 million.
He put in the work over many years doing church leadership, writing books, public speaking, conferences, media work and all sorts of other stuff – all while being a part of Hillsong church for a very long time.
A lot has changed since he left Hillsong in 2022, he got found not guilty in court in 2023, and now is running an independent ministry with Bobbie Houston.
He is still a pretty powerful figure in modern Pentecostal history. However because he left Hillsong & also keeps his finances private, the only way we can get an idea of his net worth is to look at the publicly available information.
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