Cyrus Poonawalla
$20 billion
Keke Palmer’s net worth is estimated at $7.5 million as of 2026. Palmer is an actress, singer, television host, and producer who began performing at age 9 and became a millionaire before turning 13, making her one of the entertainment industry’s most durable multi-hyphenate talents across a career spanning more than two decades.
Updated March 2026: According to Variety, Palmer premiered her new film I Love Boosters at SXSW 2026, continuing a streak of critical and commercial momentum that began with One of Them Days grossing $51 million at the domestic box office in early 2025.
Lauren Keyana Palmer was born on August 26, 1993, in Harvey, Illinois, and raised in the nearby suburb of Robbins, Illinois. Her parents, Sharon and Larry Palmer, were actors before transitioning to professional careers outside entertainment. Palmer showed a natural aptitude for performance at a young age and began pursuing acting and singing at age 9 after her parents recognized her talent.
Due to the demands of her early career, Palmer received much of her education through on-set tutoring and home instruction rather than traditional schooling. She did not pursue a college degree, instead channeling her focus entirely into building her career throughout her teen years. Palmer has been recognized by Paul Quinn College in an honorary context for her community work and advocacy.
Keke Palmer’s career launched in 2004 when she appeared in the film Barbershop 2: Back in Business alongside Ice Cube, securing her an agent and a rapid series of film and television roles. Her breakthrough came with the Nickelodeon series True Jackson, VP, which ran from 2008 to 2011 and paid her a reported $20,000 per episode. The show ran for 58 episodes, establishing her as one of Nickelodeon’s top talents and generating substantial early income.
Palmer’s transition to adult roles proved unusually smooth. She hosted Just Jared’s Throwback Thursday and then stepped into Strahan, Sara and Keke, a major network morning show co-hosting role, before landing hosting duties on the NBC game show Password in 2022. At the 2021 Primetime Emmy Awards, she won a Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Performer in a Children’s Program for her work on Big Brother-adjacent youth content.
Her film career saw a major resurgence with Jordan Peele’s Nope (2022), in which she played a lead role opposite Daniel Kaluuya in a film that grossed $170 million worldwide on a $68 million budget, according to Box Office Mojo. She followed that with One of Them Days (2025), a romantic comedy that grossed $51 million domestically and was produced under her production company KeyTV. In 2024, she published Master of Me: The Secret to Controlling Your Narrative, which became a bestseller. Her 2026 SXSW premiere of I Love Boosters, highlighted by Variety, signals continued growth as a producer-actress.
Keke Palmer is the mother of one son, Leodis “Leo” Andrellton Jackson, born on February 25, 2023. His father is Darius Jackson, with whom Palmer was in a relationship from 2021 to 2023. The separation, which became public in late 2023, was contentious, with both parties making public statements. Palmer and Jackson continue to co-parent Leo.
Palmer has been open about living with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), anxiety, and amblyopia (a condition affecting vision in one eye). In 2026, she spoke publicly about her sexual identity in a candid interview, describing herself as sexually fluid and potentially asexual. She is a longtime advocate for LGBTQ+ rights. Palmer has also disclosed past experiences of sexual abuse and abortion, contributing to conversations about reproductive rights and sexual violence awareness.
She lives in the Los Angeles area and is known for her close relationship with her son and her family network in Chicago. Fellow Reality TV and entertainment personalities profiled on CelebrityFlex include Kathy Hilton, Nene Leakes, and Nick Cannon.
Keke Palmer’s net worth is estimated at $7.5 million in 2026. Her wealth reflects more than 20 years of earnings from television acting (including True Jackson, VP at $20,000 per episode), major film roles in Nope and One of Them Days, NBC hosting work on Password, producing income through KeyTV, and a 2024 bestselling book.
Nope (2022), directed by Jordan Peele, is Palmer’s highest-grossing film, taking in approximately $170 million worldwide on a $68 million production budget, according to Box Office Mojo. Her 2025 comedy One of Them Days, which she also produced through KeyTV, grossed $51 million domestically and was praised for Palmer’s comedic performance.
Yes. Keke Palmer has one son, Leodis “Leo” Andrellton Jackson, born on February 25, 2023. Leo’s father is Darius Jackson, Palmer’s former partner. Palmer has spoken openly about being a single mother and has made Leo’s upbringing a central part of her public narrative, including on her social media platforms which reach tens of millions of followers.