SOURCING DISCLOSURE — READ BEFORE PROCEEDING
No Tier 1 outlet (Forbes, Bloomberg, Reuters, AP, WSJ) has published a financial figure for Kim Murstein.
She is a private content creator and media entrepreneur. This article builds structural financial inferences from verified public data only. Aggregator sites have circulated wildly contradictory and fabricated figures about this subject. Those figures were not used here.
Kim Murstein net worth searches return a flood of AI-generated garbage. No Forbes figure exists for this creator. Still, her podcast Excuse My Grandma has 1.3 million lifetime downloads and 675,000 Instagram followers.
Early Life and Background
Kim Murstein grew up in New York City. She graduated from Cornell University in 2018. Her double major in English and performing and media arts is confirmed by the Cornell alumni publication.
Her senior thesis examined the rise of Keeping Up with the Kardashians and the Real Housewives franchises. That choice reveals something about the media empire she later built. It was not accidental.
After Cornell, she interned at NBC. She then spent roughly four years as a production assistant, producer, and reporter at Cheddar, the streaming news network. That professional television background proved essential — it let Excuse My Grandma launch with broadcast-quality production from day one.
Publicly available records do not confirm her birthdate or family financial background. No government filings, court records, or Tier 1 press reports detail her early personal finances.
Full Career Overview
In early 2020, Murstein moved from New York City to Palm Beach, Florida. She went to live with her grandparents during the COVID-19 pandemic. That decision changed her career trajectory permanently.
Her grandmother, Gail Rudnick, had direct opinions about Murstein’s dating life. Their unfiltered generational debates became a weekly podcast. Murstein launched Excuse My Grandma in January 2021, confirmed by the show’s official website.
The premise was simple. Two women separated by roughly 50 years discuss modern dating, relationships, and pop culture. Neither woman holds back. That authentic friction proved commercially viable.
Career Timeline
- 2018: Graduated Cornell University; interned at NBC
- 2018–2022: Production assistant, producer, and reporter at Cheddar streaming network
- January 2021: Launched Excuse My Grandma podcast with Grandmother Gail Rudnick
- 2021–2022: Built audience simultaneously on Instagram and TikTok
- 2022–2023: Secured confirmed brand deals with L’Oréal, Dove, and CoverGirl (Cornell alumni publication)
- 2023–2025: Reached 675,000 Instagram followers and approximately 500,000 TikTok followers
- 2025: Rebranded with new logo, video intro, and interactive listener segments
- Early 2026: Podcast confirmed at 1.3 million lifetime downloads; guests include Broadway producers
| THE UNCOMFORTABLE TRUTH: Every major aggregator site has invented a different Kim Murstein. One calls her a Grammy-winning musicianwith a $50–$60 million net worth. Another calls her a 24-year-old Netflix actress. A third claims she isconnected to Starwood Capital billionaire Barry Sternlicht. None of these claims are verifiable from anyprimary source. The real Kim Murstein has no Forbes profile, no published income figures, and no confirmedconnection to any of those descriptions. She is a content creator and podcast entrepreneur with a publiclydocumented career — and the aggregator ecosystem has fabricated an entirely different person in her name.Those fabrications should be treated as evidence of the aggregator industry’s failure, not as facts. |
Kim Murstein Net Worth: A Structural Inference
No Tier 1 outlet has ever reported a financial figure for Kim Murstein. She is a private professional. The estimates below are structural inferences only — not reported figures.
The Excuse My Grandma brand generates documented income across three channels: podcast advertising, Instagram sponsorships, and TikTok sponsorships. Each channel has published industry benchmarks. Those benchmarks form the basis of this estimate.
Channel 1: Podcast Advertising
Industry data from Acast and Ad Results Media places host-read mid-roll CPMs at $25–$40 per 1,000 downloads. The Cornell alumni publication confirms 1.3 million lifetime downloads over roughly 260 episodes. That averages approximately 5,000 downloads per episode over the show’s full run.
Recent episodes likely outperform the lifetime average. Major consumer brands like L’Oréal do not typically negotiate on pure CPM for shows at this stage. They purchase flat-rate integrated packages. Those packages for shows with this profile typically run $2,000–$5,000 per episode.
Conservative annual podcast sponsorship estimate: $60,000–$120,000 gross. This assumes two sponsors per episode for six months of the year at a $3,500 average package rate.
Channel 2: Instagram Sponsorships
Murstein has 675,000 Instagram followers. Influencer Marketing Hub data places sponsored post rates for accounts in the 500,000–1,000,000 follower range at $5,000–$10,000 per post. One to two sponsored posts per month is a standard cadence for a creator of this profile.
Annual Instagram gross revenue estimate: $60,000–$240,000. The wide range reflects uncertainty about posting frequency and deal structure.
Channel 3: TikTok Sponsorships
Approximately 500,000 TikTok followers puts Murstein in the mid-tier creator category. Standard rates are $1,500–$3,000 per sponsored video. At one to two posts per month, annual TikTok gross revenue is roughly $18,000–$72,000.
Specific Calculation No Other Article Has Published
Assume four integrated brand packages per year at $5,000 each (L’Oréal, Dove, CoverGirl, and one additional brand): $20,000. Add six standalone Instagram posts at $6,500 average: $39,000. Add six TikTok sponsored posts at $2,000 average: $12,000. Gross from confirmed brand categories alone: $71,000 per year — before any additional podcast advertising or unlisted deals.
That $71,000 figure represents only the documented brand categories with named partners. It does not include the full podcast ad inventory, programmatic audio placements, YouTube ad share, or any live event income. The real gross is higher.
| HOW THE MONEY ACTUALLY WORKS: Podcast ad revenue sounds simple. It is not. Creators typically pay 15–20% to a manager or booking agent,then self-employment tax of approximately 30%, then production costs for audio editing, studio space, andguest coordination. A $5,000 brand deal yields roughly $2,500 net before personal living expenses.Instagram and TikTok carry similar friction: platform algorithm shifts can cut reach overnight.A creator with 675,000 Instagram followers does not automatically earn millions per year. That thresholdtypically requires 5–10 million followers with consistent sellout deal flow. The Excuse My Grandma brandis substantial for an independent operation. Substantial is not the same as wealthy. |
| METHODOLOGY TRANSPARENCY: This estimate is based on: Cornell University alumni publication (downloads, brand deals, follower counts),official Excuse My Grandma website (launch date, guests, format), Boca Raton Observer (weekly schedule),Daily Front Row (2025 rebrand, TV ambitions), plus published CPM benchmarks from Acast, Ad Results Media,Influencer Marketing Hub, and Podchaser. This estimate excludes: prior Cheddar employment salary (not publicly reported), live event income,speaking fees, investment or real estate income, and any television development deal payments. Aggregator site figures were not used because: multiple sites fabricated contradictory identities forthis subject — ranging from Grammy-winning musician to Netflix actress. None are sourced or consistent. |
Estimated annual gross revenue range: $138,000–$412,000 (structural inference — not a reported figure)
Estimated net annual income after taxes, fees, and costs (~45% of gross): $62,000–$185,000
Estimated cumulative net worth (5 years, ramping from lower early income): $100,000–$500,000 (structural inference — not a reported figure)
| THE UNANSWERED QUESTION: The critical unknown is per-episode download volume for recent episodes versus the five-year lifetime average.If Excuse My Grandma’s most recent episodes average 15,000–20,000 downloads per episode, the monetizationmath shifts significantly upward — potentially doubling the podcast revenue estimate. That data is notpublicly available. Podcast hosting platforms do not release per-episode metrics to the public.Until Murstein or a Tier 1 publication discloses that figure, no honest analyst can produce a preciseearnings estimate. This is the article’s honest boundary — not evasion, but the limit of public data. |
Endorsements and Sponsorships
Three confirmed brand partnerships exist in the primary source record. Cornell University’s alumni publication names L’Oréal, Dove, and CoverGirl as corporate partners. These are Fortune 500 consumer brands with documented creator marketing divisions.
No other specific brand deals are confirmed by primary sources as of April 2026. The show’s official website lists general inquiries at team@excusemygrandma.com. Additional deal details are not publicly disclosed.
Past podcast guests include Bobbi Brown (beauty founder), Nick Viall (reality TV personality), Harry Jowsey, Julia Haart, and Anna Kai. High-profile guests suggest the show operates at a commercially credible level for attracting brand interest.
Real Estate Holdings
No real estate holdings are confirmed by public property records or Tier 1 press reports for Kim Murstein. She is a New York City-based creator. Manhattan real estate ownership at her career stage and estimated income range is possible but cannot be confirmed from public data.
Murstein has referenced spending time in Palm Beach, Florida — where her grandparents reside — and in the Hamptons, per iHeart podcast episode descriptions. These references suggest a lifestyle consistent with NYC renting plus regular travel. No property ownership can be confirmed.
Current Activities and Net Worth Trajectory
As of April 2026, Murstein continues to produce Excuse My Grandma on a weekly schedule. The 2025 rebrand introduced a new logo, video intro, and interactive listener segments including Grandma Gail’s Voicemail and The Grandma Report.
Murstein has stated publicly that she wants to expand the brand into television and live events. The Daily Front Row confirmed this in its April 2025 feature. If those deals materialize, her income trajectory changes substantially.
However, TV development does not typically convert to income quickly. Most development deals take two to four years to produce revenue. The current net worth estimate does not include speculative future income.
Peer Comparison
The table below places Murstein’s estimated earnings beside comparable peers. Only Bobbi Brown has a Tier 1-reported figure. All other rows use anonymous industry benchmarks.
| Creator | Career Basis | Est. Annual Revenue | Source Basis |
| Bobbi Brown | Beauty founder, podcast guest | $50M+ net worth (total) | Forbes (reported) |
| Lindsey Metselaar (podcast guest) | Dating podcast creator, ~200K followers | $100K–$300K/yr est. | Creator economy benchmarks |
| Anon. lifestyle podcaster (1M downloads) | Podcast + social, 500K–1M lifetime downloads | $80K–$200K/yr est. | CPM industry benchmarks |
| Anon. creator-journalist (Cheddar background) | Broadcast-to-creator career path | $75K–$150K/yr est. | Salary + creator benchmarks |
Legacy and Cultural Impact
The Excuse My Grandma brand has run for five years with confirmed corporate sponsorship. That is a meaningful threshold in the creator economy. Most independent podcasts fail within the first year.
Murstein built this without a celebrity scandal, a viral controversy, or a major network deal. She built it by showing up weekly with her grandmother and producing professionally edited content. That model is unfashionable to write about. It works anyway.
| THE INDUSTRY CONTEXT MOMENT: Kim Murstein represents something specific in the creator economy: the Ivy League professional who turneda pandemic detour into a five-year media business. She did not go viral overnight. She built Excuse MyGrandma through consistent output, professional production values from a broadcast journalism background,and a concept that travels across generations. The show reached 1.3 million downloads without a majornetwork, a celebrity co-host, or a manufactured controversy. That is the unglamorous reality ofsustainable creator economics — and it is far more instructive than the overnight success stories theindustry normally celebrates. The $100,000–$500,000 net worth range this article estimates is notheadline-grabbing. But it represents something real: a business built deliberately over five years. |
Conclusion
Kim Murstein net worth is not a figure that any serious outlet has ever published. That matters. Every number you find on aggregator sites is invented. Some say Grammy-winning musician. Some say Netflix actress. None of it is real.
The real record shows a Cornell graduate who worked in television journalism, moved to Palm Beach during a pandemic, and built a genuine media brand with her grandmother. That brand has 1.3 million lifetime downloads, 675,000 Instagram followers, and confirmed deals with Fortune 500 companies.
Based on documented income streams and industry benchmarks, estimated annual gross revenue is $138,000–$412,000. Estimated cumulative net worth is $100,000–$500,000 after taxes and costs. These are structural inferences — not reported figures. The actual number may differ materially.
Browse our Net Worth category covering estimated wealth and financial milestones.
| DISCLAIMER: Net worth figures and financial estimates in this article are based on publicly available information, reported data, and industry-standard estimation methodology. They should be treated as approximations, not verified financial disclosures. Kim Murstein’s actual net worth may differ materially from any figure presented here. This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. |
