Bezos' fortune shot up to $112 billion, Forbes said, after a 59-percent rise in Amazon shares over the past 12 months that put him way ahead of the $90 billion listed for Gates.
US President Donald Trump's ranking on the list fell to 766th place from 544th in the last edition, his wealth now being estimated at $3.1 billion, $400 million less than a year ago.
After the announcement, Bezos' worth rocketed again to $127 billion in line with a spike in Amazon stock, widening the gap between him and Gates. 
Legendary investor Warren Buffett held on to his number-three ranking, followed by French industrialist Bernard Arnault, who jumped to fourth-richest person from his previous number 11 spot, mostly thanks to euro strength against the dollar, the magazine said.
(top row L-R) Bill Gates,Amancio Ortega,Warren Buffett, Carlos Slim, (bottom row L-R) Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, Larry Ellison, Michael Bloomberg. Source: EPA
Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg was fifth on the list.
Two Chinese billionaires rose to be among the 20 richest people in the world: Ma Huateng, CEO of Chinese internet giant Tencent who is the richest person in Asia and number 17 in the world, and Alibaba founder Jack Ma.
There are now a record 2,208 billionaires in the world, Forbes counted, and their combined worth is $9.1 trillion, up 18 percent from last year.
The US has the most billionaires (585), followed by mainland China (373).
Forbes' list contains 259 newcomers, including the first-ever cryptocurrency billionaires.
Falling fortunes or political headwinds, meanwhile, pushed 121 people out of the illustrious list, including all 10 Saudi Arabians, the magazine said.
