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Outlaw motorcycle gangs first came about in the U.S. in the late 1940s, a product of soldiers returning from World War II. These soldiers had few job opportunities, so they formed MCs to regain those bonds of brotherhood they left behind on the war’s many fronts.
These 1%’ers are the “baddest of the bad,” and they aren’t anyone you’d want to mess with. Read through this list to learn about all of the different biker gangs throughout the world, as well as the net worths of their organizations and prominent members.
1. The Pagans
Date Founded: 1959
Financial Info: Up to $1 billion in revenue each year (Fortune)*
The Pagans are one of the most widespread, well-known outlaw motorcycle gangs in America. The gang was founded in the late ‘50s, around a decade before the idea of outlaw bikers really began to take off.
The Pagans @theguardian/Instagram
The Pagans are well-established, particularly on the American East Coast, and their feud with the Hells Angels (also on this list) is well-known. The Pagans are very protective of their turf, and they are one of the “Big Four” biker gangs in the world.
2. The Outlaws
Date Founded: 1935
Financial Info: $500,000* (Member Sam Childers Net Worth)
Founded in the Midwest in the mid-1930s, the Outlaws Motorcycle Club (MC) is an incorporated motorcycle gang that calls itself the oldest in the world. It is widespread, with two-hundred-seventy-five chapters across almost two dozen countries.
The Outlaws @fruitaway/Instagram
The Outlaws are all about secrecy and brotherhood. To join the Outlaws, according to their website, you have to do things “face to face,” not “online.” Just find a Brother and ask him, if you’re a tough-enough biker.
3. Los Bandidos
Date Founded: 1966
Financial Info: $600 per month membership dues cost in Sydney, Australia*
Los Bandidos is an outlaw MC with a worldwide membership, though it started in San Antonio, Texas. Its headquarters are now in San Leon, and it has expanded to include 2,500 members and 330 chapters across twenty-two countries.
Los Bandidos r/photography/Reddit
Los Bandidos’ rivals are many, including Black Cobra, the Cossacks, Comanchero, Kinfolk, Gypsy Jokers, and more (almost all of whom are on this list). Founded by Donald Eugene Chambers, it’s wise to ask before you step onto Bandidos turf.
4. The Gladiators
Date Founded: 2009
Financial Info: Unconfirmed
Though it may seem as though biker gangs are only in big American cities, they are popular across the country. The Gladiators MC, for example, was founded in rural Ohio, and it is very specific. Only men who have served in the U.S. Armed Forces who have cruiser bikes can join.
The Gladiators @dailymailuk/Instagram
Gladiators is relatively new, having been founded in 2009, and it has had issues getting a territory, thanks to more-established 1%’er organizations. The Gladiators have had to stay outside the city limits of Columbus, Ohio to avoid issues with other biker gangs.
5. The Red Devils
Date Founded: 2001
Financial Info: Unconfirmed
Not to be confused with the Red Devils Motorcycle Club that was founded in Canada in the 1940s, the RDMC we’re talking about here was started in 2001 as a support group to the Hells Angels.
The Red Devils @sixthtone/imgur.com
Though the club was founded less than three decades ago, the Red Devils have managed to make a huge impact on Australia, particularly in Melbourne. They provide much-needed support to the Hells Angels, both Down Under and in Canada.
6. Black Pistons
Date Founded: 2001
Financial Info: Unconfirmed
The Black Pistons is a worldwide motorcycle gang that acts as a support club for the Outlaws, an MC also on this list. The Black Pistons was founded in Germany in 2001, and it spread rapidly throughout Europe, Canada, Asia, and America.
Black Pistons @blackpistonsmc/Instagram
The Black Pistons have quite a few requirements to join. You have to be at least twenty-one, own an American-made motorcycle, and have been a friend of a Black Piston for a year. Members have to attend mandatory weekly meetings and functions, or else they won’t be a Black Piston for much longer.
7. The Gypsy Joker MC
Date Founded: 1956
Financial Info: Unconfirmed
An unusually named group, the Gypsy Jokers are a one-percenter club that was formed in SoCal on April 1st, 1956. The April Fools Day founding is no coincidence, and the GJs have spread throughout Australia and Norway, too.
The Gypsy Joker MC @motor.maydaysur/Pinterest
Really, Gypsy Jokers are seen worldwide, and their links to other clubs might not be what you expect. For example, Gypsy Joker MC Norway has a support club in Brazil, established in 2016. This Brazil club is a foothold for the Gypsy Jokers to carve out more turf in Brazil (and in other areas, too).
8. The Highwaymen MC
Date Founded: 1954
Financial Info: $30,000* (Cost of Clubhouse in Detroit, 2011)
The Highwaymen MC has roots in Detroit, where it was founded in 1954. The Highwaymen are dominant in Michigan, thanks to them having been founded in one of the state’s most important cities. No doubt, a lot of men who struggled with losing their jobs in the auto industry in Detroit found solace in gangs such as the Highwaymen.
The Highwaymen MC @detroitnews/Instagram /@Kentucky Highwaymen M/C – Pikeville Chapter/Facebook
As for rivals, the Highwaymen are bitter enemies of the Outlaws. The groups have been at constant odds since the seventies, and these rivals have carefully carved out turf through the former auto industry hotspot.
9. The Rebels
Date Founded: 1969
Financial Info: $1.2 million* (Senior Member James Patrick Duff Net Worth)
At its peak in Australia, the Rebels MC had seventy chapters and over one thousand members, which made it the largest biker gang in the country at the time. The Rebels, which use the American Confederate flag as their logo, were founded in 1969.
The Rebels @thetattoohut/Pinterest
According to its website, the Rebels are in America, too. They describe themselves as a “true 1% motorcycle brotherhood.” Admittedly, the use of the Confederate Flag imagery is unusual, especially in Australia, a world away from where the United States Civil War occurred.
10. Cossacks MC
Date Founded: 1969
Financial Info: $16 for a “Run the Lake” shirt on eBay*
The Cossacks MC calls itself a “working man’s club,” with an emphasis on “charity,” “community outreach,” and “brotherhood.” The biker club is one of the largest OMCs in Texas, infamous for their conflicts with the Bandidos.
Cossacks MC @dailymailuk/Instagram
According to CNN reports, the conflict between the Cossacks and Bandidos comes down to, of course, money. Cossacks members won’t pay Bandidos dues in exchange for operating in Texas, and the Bandidos are angry that the Cossacks have claimed Texas as their turf by donning the “bottom rocker” on their leather vests.
11. Caloh Wagoh
Date Founded: 2016
Financial Info: N/A (Judicially Dissolved)
Caloh Wagoh is a biker gang that was founded in 2016 when the Trailer Trash MC and the Crips (in Hague) merged. Many members of the Caloh Wagoh are residents of caravans or, in some cases, of Surinamese descent.
Caloh Wagoh @nltimes/twitter.com
The Caloh Wagoh was officially, judicially dissolved in 2021. Interestingly, there is still a Caloh Wagoh Main Triad account on Instagram, though it’s not clear if there is any official connection between the owner of this account and the actual MC itself.
12. The Warlocks
Date Founded: 1967
Financial Info: Unconfirmed
Allies to the Pagans and Hells Angels, the Warlocks were formed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1967, and they still call the city their HQ. Another Florida branch of the Warlocks was started that same year by ex-Navy servicemen on duty on the carrier the U.S.S. Shangri-La.
The Warlocks @townnews/imgur.com
The logo, “Born to Lose,” is a mandatory must-have when one wears Warlock vests. The club has also trademarked its multicolored cartoon of a winged harpy (a Greek mythological character), making sure that this logo remains the legal property of the MC.
13. The Loners MC Nomads
Date Founded: 1979
Financial Info: Unconfirmed
The Loners MC, also known as the Nomads, was founded in 1979 in Woodbridge Ontario, Canada. Their allies include the Rock Machine Road Runners, Bandidos, Mongols, Dirty Dozen, Annihilators, and Vigilantes MCs.
The Loners MC Nomads @Loners M.C. Nomads/Facebook.com
According to CBC, the Loners are basically made up of people who “did not rate” being initiated in Hells Angels. This could mean a lot of things, from the Loners not having enough ties to the Hells Angels to join, or them failing at the initiation process for some reason.
14. Hells Angels
Date Founded: 1948
Financial Info: Up to $1 billion per year in revenue (Fortune)*
Of course, we couldn’t have a list of the toughest biker gangs of all time without including one of the most famous MCs: the Hells Angels. The Hells Angels’ biggest rival is the Outlaws, with whom this large gang has had quite a few interactions.
Hell’s Angels @CTVMontreal/Instagram
Though some Hells Angels are feared, the gang has largely become commercialized, hanging out with A-list actors like Jason Momoa and selling merch. When famous Hells Angels leader Sonny Barger passed away, his net worth was reportedly around half a million dollars.
15. The Night Wolves
Date Founded: 1989
Financial Info: Unconfirmed
Grey Dynamics described the Night Wolves as Russia’s “biggest bike[r] group,” saying that the gang operates “in support of the Kremlin.” Founded in Moscow in 1989, the Night Wolves has forty-five chapters around the world.
The Night Wolves @theguardian/Instagram
Alexander Zaldostanov is the leader, founder, and president of the Night Wolves. He and his gang run a host of tattoo parlors and rock clubs, and they are very pro-Russia, so much so that opponents have likened them to a paramilitary group.
16. Rock Machine
Date Founded: 1989
Financial Info: $100 per month membership dues, reportedly*
The Rock Machine MC is an outlaw biker gang founded in 1989 in Montreal, Canada. From Montreal, the RMMC is spread across seven provinces, and it now has eighteen Canadian chapters.
Rock Machine @apinews/Pinterest
This eighties biker gang was a tad late on the scene, as many of the gangs on this list were founded in the ‘60s and ‘70s. Their patches, including the one in memory of the Quebec Biker War, are still worn worldwide by the gang’s 300-400 members.
30. Satudarah MC
Date Founded: 1990
Financial Info: $5 million* (Senior Member Patrick Nielsen Net Worth)
The subject of a documentary you can find on Amazon Prime, Satudarah MC was founded in Moordrecht, a Dutch town. It was banned in 2018, twenty-eight years after its founding, by the Netherlands government (but it still exists in affiliates and international chapters).
Satudarah MC @dutchnews/imgur.com
Though Satudarah isn’t allowed everywhere, the 1%’er group still has a membership of over 2,000 people worldwide. As for its meaning, the word’s general translation means “One Blood,” owing to its creation by a group of Dutch and Moluccans friends.
31. Wheels of Soul
Date Founded: 1967
Financial Info: Unconfirmed
Based out of Philly, the Wheels of Soul is all about breaking down stereotypes. It is an outlaw motorcycle club, but it’s famous for being multi-racial and racially tolerant, a rarity for predominantly-white, segregated American biker gangs.
Wheels of Soul @motorscostume/Pinterest
There was an interesting documentary about Wheels of Soul on Amazon, which discussed how the group deals with racial bias in the world of outlaw bikers, all while combating stereotypes in society about bikers in general.
32. Los Comancheros
Date Founded: 1968
Financial Info: $100 million* (Senior Member Duax Ngakuru Net Worth)
Not to be confused with the 20th Century old movie of the same name, Los Comancheros is one of Australia’s most well-known“bikie gangs.” The gang was started in the ‘60s by William Ross, a Scottish immigrant known for his militaristic tactics.
Los Comancheros @apinews/Pinterest
Ross had an unusual leadership style, giving himself the title of “Supreme Commander.” He formed a “Strike Force” with some of the more upper-ranking, tougher members of the Comancheros, often forcing them to run drills in his backyard (according to former Strike Force inductees).
33. The Devils Disciples
Date Founded: 1967
Financial Info: $6 million* (Member Duane Chapman Net Worth)
Founded in California, the Devils Disciples MC is not a club that is sanctioned by the American Motorcyclist Association, so it, like many of the clubs on this list, doesn’t have to adhere to any AMA rules or regulations.
The Devil’s Disciples @bikernet/imgur.com
You might know of Duane Chapman, the famous bounty hunter and star of the reality show Dog the Bounty Hunter. Chapman was once a member of the Devils Disciples, which he joined at fifteen (and left years later after changing his life).