Taylor Swift, 22, tops female-heavy Forbes list of highest earning stars under the age of 30, beating Rihanna and Lady Gaga with $57 million earnings

Top earner: Taylor Swift led the Forbes Magazine list of the highest celebrity earners under the age of 30

Taylor Swift has topped Forbes Magazine's list of the highest paid celebrities under the age of 30, earning a cool $57 million in the last year.
The 22-year-old star's riches are largely due to the success of her albums and tours, with CDs Taylor Swift, Fearless and Speak Now going platinum at least four times.

The award-winning singer's concerts grossed around $1 million per night for 65 dates last year and she also profits from endorsing goods like CoverGirl cosmetics, according to Forbes, who measured the stars' estimated earnings between May 2011 and May 2012. 
Swift even beat out Justin Bieber who is the only male celebrity in the top five.
The 18-year-old Canadian singer made $55 million from record sales, concerts, and endorsements.
Author of the Forbes list Dorothy Pomerantz, told the New York Daily News that Swift embodies 'Youth, innocence and the struggle of being a teen' while third-placed Rihanna is the 'edgy bad girl' and Adele is all about 'heartfelt' vocals.
She said: 'We’re seeing this confluence of talented young female stars. They have such distinct personalities and sounds, they can all co-exist without cannibalising each other.'

The rest of the top five are filled out by female singers with Rihanna, Lady Gaga and Katy Perry taking third, fourth and fifth places.
Rihanna, 24, earned her estimated $53 million from a 85 date tour, hit album Talk That Talk and  promoting Vita Coco coconut water and Nivea lotion.

Ranking fourth, 26-year-old Lady Gaga earned $52 million last year, a lower place than previously, due to her 'lack of touring' before the May 2011 deadline, according to the magazine.
However, she still rakes in cash from her latest album Born This Way as well as her old hits.

Second and third: Justin Bieber, 18, was the youngest person on the list, while 24-year-old Riihanna came in just $2 million dollars behind with $53 million

In fifth place, Katy Perry earned an estimated $45 million with her hugely profitable California Dreams tour, and her smash hit album Teenage Dream still raking in cash.
However, her documentary movie Katy Perry: Part of Me earned a disappointing $7 million in its opening weekend in the U.S.
The magazine compiled the list by considering album and concert sales, movie earnings and box office profit share along with endorsements and advertising.
British singer Adele, whose album 21 is still in the Billboard top ten comes in sixth place, earning a cool $35 million.

Girl power: Lady Gaga slipped down the list this year but still came in fourth, while Katy Perry's successful run continues following her sell-out tour and hit album

From music to movies: Adele's hit album 21 has been a smash hit on both sides of the Atlantic, while Kristen Stewart has made millions from the Twilight franchise

The 24-year-old star has sold more than 23 million copies of her smash album 21 and has hits with songs Rolling in the Deep and Someone Like You.
The star, who won six Grammy awards this year, recently announced she is pregnant with her first child by boyfriend Simon Konecki.
Female singers may dominate the chart, but Twilight stars Kristen Stewart, Taylor Lautner and Robert Pattinson also found their way into the top ten.
Stewart, 22, earned  $34.5 million, more than any other actress between May 2011 and 2012, according to Forbes. 

The men's turn: Lil Wayne, Taylor Lautner and Robert Pattinson made it into eight, ninth and tenth place respectively

Along with her role as Bella Swan in the Twilight Saga, she also had big payday for dramatic movie Snow White and the Huntsman.
At 29-years-old, rapper Lil Wayne is the oldest on the list, squeezing out Pattinson and Lautner with $27 million in earnings to come in eighth place, due in part to album Carter IV which sold almost one million copies during its opening week last year.
His 50 date tour also grossed him upwards of $600,000 per night, according to the magazine. 
Meanwhile 20-year-old Lautner matched his 26-year-old co-star Pattinson with $26.5 million, with both actors so far failing to make a splash in the film world away from the Twilight franchise.

Forbes Magazine's list of the highest earning celebrities under the age of 30

1. Taylor Swift, aged 22 -  $57 million
2. Justin Bieber, aged 18 - $55 million
3. Rihanna, aged 24 - $53 million
4. Lady Gaga, aged 26 - $52 million
5. Katy Perry, aged 27 - $45 million

6. Adele, aged 24 - $35 million
7. Kristen Stewart, aged 22 - $34.5 million
8. Lil Wayne, aged 29 - $27 million
9. Taylor Lautner, aged 20 - $26.5 million
10. Robert Pattinson, aged 26 - $26.5 million