24 Most Expensive Paintings Ever Sold (Updated for 2026)
Some of the most expensive paintings in the world sell for hundreds of millions of dollars. For some of us, those numbers can seem too big to fathom, especially when you consider how many of these works are privately owned by collectors rather than displayed in public museums.
Imagine having a classic, instantly recognizable painting on display in your home — a Mona Lisa or Starry Night hanging in your living room as a display of taste, culture and extreme wealth.
Art has always had its place in human life, from cave walls to oil on canvas, often serving as a marker of culture, power and status. But art isn't just for the art lovers. In fact, many of the most expensive paintings of all time are instantly recognizable, even to people with little interest in art history.
What makes art truly valuable, then? The artist? A good backstory? The work itself? Rare and expensive art is often surrounded by drama, from high-profile art heists to debates over the authenticity of long-lost works. CNN has documented the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum heist of 1990, when thirteen famous Rembrandt paintings and Vermeer paintings were stolen overnight while security guards were restrained.
But that's not enough to determine value alone. If you’ve visited famous works in person, you may have found yourself wondering how much the Mona Lisa is worth or which painting holds the highest value in the world.
Below, you’ll find some of the most expensive paintings ever sold, including some big names and multiple Gustav Klimt paintings. Along the way, you may also notice how certain styles, subjects and techniques continue to influence painters today.
Who knows, at these prices, you might want to start refining your landscape painting ideas and create your own high-value masterpiece.
Jump to Section
- The Most Expensive Paintings Sold at Auction
- The Most Expensive Paintings in Museums
- The Most Expensive Painting of All Time
- List of the Most Expensive Paintings Ever Sold
- Most Expensive Paintings FAQs
The Most Expensive Paintings Sold at Auction
It can be astonishing to see a painted canvas sell for a sum greater than the GDP of some small countries, but that’s the reality of the most expensive paintings sold at auction. Works by artists like Leonardo da Vinci, Jackson Pollock, Rembrandt and Mark Rothko consistently command the highest prices, driven by rarity, provenance and long-standing market demand.
Unlike private sales, auction results are public, which is why they’re often used as benchmarks for the art market, even though many top-end transactions now happen quietly behind the scenes.
Many of these record-setting sales take place through major auction houses like Christie’s and Sotheby’s, where paintings often resurface after decades in private collections or as part of significant estate sales. Warhol’s Shot Sage Blue Marilyn, Picasso’s Les Femmes d’Alger (Version O) and Modigliani’s Nu Couché are among the modern and postwar works that have set auction records in recent years, with prices climbing well into the nine-figure range.
So, what is the most expensive painting in the world? At the very top of the auction hierarchy sits Salvator Mundi by Leonardo da Vinci. The painting sold at auction for just over $450 million in 2017 after being lost and rediscovered tucked away in a small apartment in Naples, Italy, centuries after its creation. Even with ongoing debate around attribution and authenticity, no other painting sold publicly has come close to matching that figure.
For a full breakdown of the most expensive paintings ever sold — including how auction prices compare with private sales — see the list below.
The Most Expensive Paintings in Museums
Just because an artwork his held privately, that doesn't mean the public will miss out. It can still end up on public display through long-term loans or institutional partnerships, and in many cases, collectors work with museums to share historically significant works while retaining private ownership.
One of the clearest examples is Interchange by Willem de Kooning, a stunning abstract painting, which was purchased by the CEO of Citadel hedge funds, Kenneth Griffin, in 2015 for around $300 million. Rather than keeping the painting to himself, Griffin loaned it to the Art Institute of Chicago, allowing visitors to experience one of the most valuable modern works ever sold.
Institutional cooperation plays a similar role in the paired wedding portraits by Rembrandt, depicting Marten Soolmans and Oopjen Coppit. The pieces were jointly acquired by the Louvre and the Rijksmuseum, and the works rotate between Paris and Amsterdam so they can remain together while being shared across institutions.
In other situations, governments can intervene directly. One of Rembrandt’s most valuable paintings was purchased by the Dutch state for $198 million and placed in the Rijksmuseum. It just goes to show that certain works carry national and historical significance beyond their market price.
Together, these examples show how museums remain central to the story of the most expensive paintings, shaping how they are seen, studied and remembered long after a sale takes place.
The Most Expensive Painting of All Time
It's interesting to consider that, while all of the paintings mentioned above have an impressive pricetag attached, there remain some pieces that are not for sale. So we can only estimate their prices.
While Salvator Mundi holds the public auction record, the idea of a single ‘most expensive painting of all time’ becomes murkier once private sales enter the picture.
For example, one of the most famous Van Gogh paintings, Starry Night, or Pablo Picasso’s highly sought Les Demoiselles d’Avignon could easily sell for between $500 million and $1 billion each. That means that our list of the most expensive paintings is only speculative, and perhaps the most expensive paintings go well beyond this list.
In fact, many of the most expensive paintings never appear at auction or even in public exhibitions. Instead, they move quietly through private sales, where prices are rarely disclosed and values are shaped by scarcity, prestige and behind-the-scenes negotiation rather than public bidding.
A well-known example is Les Femmes D’Alger, Pablo Picasso's colorful creation, which displays Algerian concubines with hookahs. Besides being visually stunning, it’s extra special because it displayed largely brand-new painting techniques.
There are actually 15 versions of this painting, and some are available to view in museums around the world, while others are kept under wraps or displayed in private collections.
List of the Most Expensive Paintings Ever Sold
Some of the prices below come from public auctions, others from private sales that were widely reported at the time. At the very top end of the art world, many deals never happen in public.
1. Salvator Mundi (c. 1500) by Leonardo da Vinci — $450.3 million (2017)
Sold at Christie’s in 2017, as shown above, this piece remains the highest confirmed auction price ever recorded, even as questions around attribution continue to follow the work. Its sale reshaped expectations for Old Master valuations overnight.
2. Interchange (1955) by Willem de Kooning — ~$300 million (2015 private sale)
Also mentioned above, this price reflects a privately negotiated sale to hedge fund manager Kenneth Griffin in 2015. The price was widely reported by major outlets but never confirmed through public auction records.
3. The Card Players (1892–93) by Paul Cézanne — ~$250 million (2011 private sale)
Reportedly purchased by the royal family of Qatar in a landmark private deal, the figure is based on consistent reporting across multiple art-market sources rather than a single auction result.
4. Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer (1914–16) by Gustav Klimt — $236.4 million (2025)
Sold at Sotheby’s New York in 2025, this painting set a new record for the most expensive modern artwork ever sold at auction. The price places it just below Salvator Mundi in confirmed public sales and above every Picasso, Warhol and Rothko previously auctioned.
Unlike many figures at the top of this list, the valuation comes from an open, competitive sale rather than a privately negotiated estimate, making it one of the clearest price signals in the high-end art market to date.
5. Nafea Faa Ipoipo? (1892) by Paul Gauguin — ~$210 million (2015 private sale)
Often reported at a higher figure early on, the more widely accepted valuation reflects a later resale estimate rather than the initial headlines. Because the sale was private, reported prices range as high as $300 million, with no single figure ever confirmed.
6. Number 17A (1948) by Jackson Pollock — ~$200 million (2015 private sale)
This figure comes from a 2015 private transaction facilitated by Christie’s, highlighting how Pollock’s market often bypasses the auction room entirely.
Many Jackson Pollock paintings rank among the most expensive pieces of art and are famous for their visually appealing colors and a unique splatter style.
For the at-home artist, learning the art of pour painting can set you on your way to splatter-like creations, inspired by Jackson Pollock.
7. The Standard Bearer (1636) by Rembrandt — $198 million (2022)
Acquired jointly by the Dutch state and the Rijksmuseum, the price reflects a negotiated institutional purchase rather than competitive bidding.
8. Shot Sage Blue Marilyn (1964) by Andy Warhol — $195 million (2022)
Sold publicly at Christie’s in 2022, this is one of the clearest, least disputed prices on the list and a benchmark for postwar American art.
It's become an iconic and frequently re-created Andy Warhol painting. This colorful and ultra-recognizable portrait got its name from a performance artist, Dorothy Podber, who visited Warhol’s studio and fired shots using a pistol at four of his pieces.
All four were damaged but eventually restored, and the name stuck as a result. This style of retro and colorful design is fun to put your own spin on and make cute painting ideas of your pet or a loved one.
9. No. 6 (Violet, Green and Red) (1951) by Mark Rothko — ~$186 million (2014 private sale)
The valuation comes from a discreet sale that reinforced Rothko’s position among the most financially dominant abstract painters of the 20th century.
10. Wasserschlangen II (1904–07) by Gustav Klimt — ~$183 million (2014 private sale)
Reported following a restitution-related sale, the price reflects both rarity and the premium placed on Klimt’s late, decorative period.
11. Portraits of Maerten Soolmans and Oopjen Coppit (1634) by Rembrandt — €160M (~$180M) (paired acquisition)
Purchased jointly by the Louvre and the Rijksmuseum, the figure represents the combined value of both portraits, which were intentionally kept together.
The paintings, which are wedding portraits, feature Marten Soolmans and Oopjen Coppit and were crafted in 1634. Since the sale, the set has always remained together, which isn’t exactly the norm for other 17th-century portrait pairs.
Even though two museums share the rights to two of the top 20 most expensive paintings, they have agreed to take turns displaying them so the set can remain together.
12. Les Femmes d’Alger (Version O) (1955) by Pablo Picasso — $179.4 million (2015)
Achieved at a Christie’s auction in 2015, this sale remains one of the strongest examples of Picasso’s late-career market power.
13. Nu Couché (1917) by Amedeo Modigliani — $170.4 million (2015)
This price was set at public auction, cementing Modigliani’s place among the most commercially valuable modern portraitists.
14. Masterpiece (1962) by Roy Lichtenstein — $165 million (2017)
A private sale figure tied to a work that openly references its own market value, making price part of the artwork’s legacy.
15. Nu Couché (Sur le côté gauche) (1917) by Amedeo Modigliani — ~$157 million (2018)
Often confused with its counterpart above, this valuation reflects a separate private transaction with slightly lower confirmed estimates.
16. Le Rêve (1932) by Pablo Picasso — $155M (2013)
Sold privately after being famously damaged by its owner, the price shows how provenance stories can amplify value rather than diminish it.
17. Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer II (1912) by Gustav Klimt — $150M (2016)
This sale followed a high-profile restitution case, with the final price shaped as much by history as by aesthetics.
18. Les Poseuses, Ensemble (Petite version) (1888) by Georges Seurat — $149.2M (2022)
This price was achieved at auction; the figure reflects rare demand for pointillist works at this scale and completeness.
19. Three Studies of Lucian Freud (1969) by Francis Bacon — $142.4M (2013)
Sold publicly at Christie’s, this triptych remains one of the clearest price signals for postwar British painting.
20. Twelve Landscape Screens (1925) by Qi Baishi — $140.8M (2017)
Chinese ink painting has quietly produced some of the highest prices outside Western markets. This is just one example of some of the competitive pricing.
21. No. 5 (1948) by Jackson Pollock — ~$140 million (2006 private sale)
Frequently misreported, this figure reflects a later resale estimate rather than an original auction hammer price.
22. Femme à la montre (1932) by Pablo Picasso — $139.4M (2023)
A 2023 auction result that reaffirmed sustained demand for Picasso’s portrait work over the decades.
23. La Montagne Sainte-Victoire (1888–90) by Paul Cézanne — ~$137.8M (2022)
The valuation is based on reported private transactions involving one of Cézanne’s most studied motifs.
24. Woman III (1953) by Willem de Kooning — ~$137.5M (2006)
Sold privately after a restitution settlement, this price reflects both market demand and legal history intersecting.
Most Expensive Paintings FAQs
Who Has the Biggest Private Art Collection?
When it comes to the most expensive paintings and other rare, important works of art all in one place, the Royal Collection of the British Royal Family takes the cake for the largest private art collection in the world.
Other notable private art collectors include the Ganz family, who owned the most significant private holdings of Picasso paintings in the United States. The Broads, another U.S. family, were once known as the leading collectors of contemporary art, and their private collection included pieces from Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat paintings and Roy Lichtenstein artworks.
Who Owns the Most Expensive Painting in the World?
What is considered the most valuable painting in the world? There is little doubt or even competition when it comes to the most expensive painting in the world; that title belongs to Salvator Mundi by Leonardo da Vinci.
For just over $450 million, this painting was sold at auction in 2017 to a buyer who remains anonymous. It was reported that a buyer was acting on behalf of a Saudi prince, but today the painting is under the ownership of the Saudi Arabian Culture Ministry.
What is the Most Expensive Painting by a Living Artist?
Part of what makes some of the most expensive paintings so incredibly valuable is the fact that their creators are deceased. It’s less about acrylic vs. oil paint or even the subject matter, but the rarity and finality of these works of art that fetch such astounding price tags.
Across different paint mediums and subject matters, artists like Rembrandt, Picasso and da Vinci were geniuses of their time, talented beyond measure and in many ways pioneers of new art styles.
They created a handful of true masterpieces that are widely recognized and admired, so it makes sense that getting your hands on one of these special creations would be difficult and expensive.
But there are always new artists emerging, and you never know when you could purchase a piece for a few hundred or thousand dollars that could one day be worth many millions.
Today, Jasper Johns’s 1958 painting titled Flag is the most expensive painting by a living artist. It was sold for $110 million in 2010, so it’s safe to assume it’s worth even more now.
Jasper John has several other works that have sold for $40 million or so, but even with a price tag that high, they don’t land inside the top 20 most expensive paintings.
How Much is the Mona Lisa Worth?
It’s difficult to put a price on a work so iconic as the Mona Lisa, and even experts have deemed it “priceless.” Considering the cultural significance alone, it would be almost impossible to find a dollar amount that captures this piece’s value.
So, how much does the Mona Lisa cost? There are estimates that if the piece were to be sold, it could surpass $850 million or even $1.01 billion. That would easily make it one of the most expensive paintings ever, if not the most valuable painting in a museum, hence the heightened security measures and strict light and temperature controls that stand between you and this 30” x 21” painting.
This might lead you to wonder who owns the Mona Lisa? The French Republic has owned the painting since the 16th century and considers it a national treasure.
There are certainly other famous painters and paintings that you might expect to see on the list of the most expensive paintings, for example, Starry Night by Vincent Van Gogh or Water Lilies by Claude Monet.
While these works of art are debatably as famous or well-recognized as Mona Lisa, they don’t necessarily fetch the same value, nor are they necessarily for sale.
If you're inspired to get painting yourself, these aesthetic painting ideas are a fun starting point for your own painting journey, as they are abstract enough that you don’t need expert-level precision.
All this talk of art history might have you thinking of picking up a paintbrush yourself. If you’re wondering how to find your art style, start by observing and studying these famous and most expensive paintings to find inspiration. Re-create and find what subject matter or paint medium speaks to you.
Back in the day, when these iconic works were being created in the studio, oil painting was common, as they didn’t have access to the tools we have now. Natural dyes and oils were mixed together to form paint. Nowadays, you can buy acrylic paint just about anywhere, and it’s one of the most beginner-friendly mediums.
Wondering how to start oil painting? Local art classes are an incredible tool for painting for beginners to get you started on creating your own masterpieces. You can even check out sip and paint ideas near you to keep things lowkey with a friend or a date. And who knows, you may be the creator of one of the next most expensive paintings ever sold at auction.
For even more fun painting ideas, check out other experiences happening on Classpop.
