The top 10 includes seven technology companies, including Apple, Amazon and Tesla 10.
Tech companies dominate a ranking of the ten biggest companies in 2023 by market cap.
Apple tops the ranking, which was commissioned by City Index, with a market cap of $3.03 trillion, followed by Microsoft ($2.51 trillion), Saudi Aramco ($2.08 trillion), Alphabet/Google ($1.52 trillion) and Amazon ($1.34 trillion).
Rounding out the top 10: Nvidia ($1.05 trillion), Tesla ($886.8 billion), Berkshire Hathaway ($753.1 billion), Meta/Facebook ($733.1 billion) and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing ($534.9 billion).
City Index noted that Apple, with its market cap of $3.03 trillion, is the most valuable company in history. It was the biggest company in the world for most of the 2010s, and in 2018 became the first U.S .company to surpass $1 trillion in value. It then surpassed $2 trillion two years later.
City Index also studied the biggest companies in 1980 and 2000 by market cap to establish how the stock markets have changed in the last 40 years.
Highlights from the research are below.
• Microsoft was the world’s biggest company in 2000, worth$586 billion (equating to $1.03 trillion in 2023);
•IBM was the biggest company in 1980, with a market cap of $34.6 billion (equating to $128.12 billion in 2023); and
•The oil and gas sector sector dominated the market throughout the 1980s, but from 2000 onwards, the technology industry produced the most valuable companies.
The methodology used by City Index to establish the most valuable companies from 1980, 2000 and 2023 is below.
1. They gathered historical data, compiling information on the top 10 companies for each year.
2. Market cap/Revenue per company for each year was obtained or inferred in accordance with historical data either from their own archives or from readily available archives.
3. Market cap values were cross-referenced and changed when needed in accordance with multiple readily available sources.
4. Analysis was conducted on the top companies of each year to assess their performance and determine the factors contributing to their sustained dominance. Sources and reasons can be found in individual sheets in the data.
The data is correct as August 21, 2023, and is subject to change.
FAQs
The surge took its market capitalisation to $2.01 trillion (€1.95 trillion), making the US e-commerce giant the fifth largest company in the trillion-dollar club, behind Microsoft, Apple, Nvidia, and Alphabet. Meta Platforms is in sixth place, with a market cap of $1.3 trillion (€1.2 trillion).
What is the largest market cap company in the world? ›
Largest Companies by Market Cap
| # | Name | C. |
|---|
| 1 | Microsoft 1MSFT | 🇺🇸 |
| 2 | Apple 2AAPL | 🇺🇸 |
| 3 | NVIDIA 3NVDA | 🇺🇸 |
| 4 | Alphabet (Google) 4GOOG | 🇺🇸 |
57 more rowsBiggest companies in the world by market value 2023. With a market capitalization of 3.12 trillion U.S. dollars as of May 2024, Microsoft was the world's largest company that year. Rounding out the top five were some of the world's most recognizable brands: Apple, NVIDIA, Google's parent company Alphabet, and Amazon.
Is Amazon the largest company in the world? ›
Key Takeaways. The biggest company by revenue is Walmart, followed by Amazon and China Petroleum & Chemical Corp. Revenues from the top 10 companies ranged from $331 billion to $657 billion.
What rank is Amazon in the world? ›
The top 10 includes seven technology companies, including Apple, Amazon and Tesla 10. Tech companies dominate a ranking of the ten biggest companies in 2023 by market cap.
What is the bigger the market cap? ›
Large-cap companies generally have a market cap of $10 billion or more. These are often well-established companies. Some large-cap companies might be mature businesses that pay dividends. Large-cap companies, as a group, may pose less risk and volatility to investors than smaller companies.
Who is bigger than Amazon? ›
Who are Amazon's biggest competitors? Amazon's biggest direct competitors include Walmart, eBay, the Alibaba Group, Target, as well as more localized eCommerce marketplaces (such as Otto or Rakuten). In the video streaming segment, Amazon's biggest competitors are Netflix, Rakuten, HBO, Disney, and Apple TV+.
What is Amazon's corporate rank? ›
No. 2 Brand Finance Global 500: World's Most Valuable Brand, 2022—Ranked in the top 10, eleven years running. No. 3 Fortune World's Most Admired Companies, 2024—Ranked in the top 3, eight years running.
Which company is bigger Google or Amazon? ›
As of August 2023, Alphabet was the biggest internet company worldwide with a market cap of over 1.6 trillion U.S. dollars Second-ranked Amazon had a market capitalization of 1,373 billion U.S. dollars.
Who owns most of Amazon now? ›
What percentage of Amazon (AMZN) stock is held by retail investors? According to the latest TipRanks data, approximately 41.01% of Amazon (AMZN) stock is held by retail investors. Jeffrey Bezos owns the most shares of Amazon (AMZN).
It dominates the retail space and has grown significantly since its founding as the Internet boomed and people began shopping online. While Amazon started by selling books, it has branched out into selling almost every type of consumer product, as well as offering media services, cloud services, and more.
Is Amazon the most valued company? ›
As of June 2024 Amazon has a market cap of $1.967 Trillion. This makes Amazon the world's 5th most valuable company by market cap according to our data.
Which country is most using Amazon? ›
Countries With the Most Amazon Users
The country with the most Amazon users is the United States. Amazon is the most popular e-commerce site in the U.S., totaling 2.2 billion monthly visits in April 2023.
Which company has the highest market cap in the world? ›
Microsoft is the largest company in the world, with a market cap of $3.09 trillion. It's followed by Apple ($2.95 trillion), Nvidia ($2.70 trillion), Alphabet ($2.15 trillion), and Saudi Arabian Oil ($1.87 trillion).
What is the world's largest revenue company? ›
Walmart has been the world's largest company by revenue since 2014. The list is limited to the largest 50 companies, all of which have annual revenues exceeding US$130 billion. This list is incomplete, as not all companies disclose their information to the media and/or general public.
Who owns the most stocks in the world? ›
It's Vanguard. Thanks to the surging popularity of its index funds, Vanguard is now the No. 1 owner of 330 stocks in the S&P 500, or two-thirds of the world's most important collection of stocks, says an Investor's Business Daily analysis of data from S&P Global Market Intelligence and MarketSmith.
What is the most profitable company in the world? ›
1) Saudi Aramco – $247.43 Billion
In 2023, Saudi Aramco, the Saudi Arabian oil giant, raked in the highest net revenue globally, scoring profits of over 247 billion U.S. dollars. Led by its current CEO Amin H. Nasser, this company, which started in 1933, thrives in the oil and gas industry.
)
