Apple Tops Ranking of 'World's Most Admired Companies' for Ninth Year

Apple has been awarded the top spot on Fortune's list of the "World's Most Admired Companies," marking the ninth consecutive win for the Cupertino-based company on the list. After Apple, Alphabet (Google's parent company), Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway, and Walt Disney round out the top five spots.

Fortune Admired Companies 2016

There's a new AAA standard in corporate America: the one-two three punch of Apple, Alphabet, and Amazon. For the fourth time, our list of the World’s Most Admired Companies Top 50 All-Stars is led by a trio of tech giants under 40 years old. They preside over a class of blue chips and even younger tech stalwarts, such as Facebook (No. 14), Salesforce (No. 34), and Netflix, which makes a return to the Top 50 at an impressive No. 19. They also are joined by newcomers Visa and Publix, which make debuts at Nos. 47 and 49.

The list was whittled down from a collection of the 1,000 largest U.S. companies ranked by revenue, along with 500 non-United States companies with revenue reaching, or exceeding, $10 billion. Fortune's survey partners at Korn Ferry Hay Group then interviewed executives, directors, and analysts to rate the companies within their own industry on nine criteria, including investment value and social responsibility.

Apple got a score of 8.6, beating out Alphabet's second place marking of 8.2. Notably, the iPhone maker also came in first in all of the nine key attributes of reputation, unlike in years past where a few other companies edged it out in topics like global competitiveness. Other prominent companies on the list include Facebook (14th), Microsoft (17th), Netflix (19th), and AT&T (48th).

To see the full ranking of the World's Most Admired Companies, visit Fortune's website.

Popular Stories

ios 19 messages app

Apple Sues Jon Prosser Over iOS 26 Leaks

Thursday July 17, 2025 8:40 pm PDT by
Earlier this year, YouTuber Jon Prosser shared multiple videos showing off what he claimed to be re-created renderings of what was then presumed to be called iOS 19 and which was eventually unveiled by Apple as iOS 26 at WWDC in June. In his first video back in January, Prosser showed off a Camera app redesign with a simpler set of buttons for moving between photo and video modes, and he...
iPhone 17 Colors

All 15 New iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Pro Colors Revealed in Latest Leak

Wednesday July 16, 2025 6:50 am PDT by
We may finally have a definitive list of all color options for the iPhone 17 series, ahead of the devices launching in September. MacRumors concept In a report for Macworld today, Filipe Espósito said he obtained an "internal document" that allegedly reveals all of the color options for the upcoming iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max models. The report includes ...
iOS 26 on Three iPhones

Here's When to Expect the iOS 26 Public Beta

Tuesday July 15, 2025 11:07 am PDT by
Apple previously announced that a public beta of iOS 26 would be available in July, and now a more specific timeframe has surfaced. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman today said that Apple's public betas should be released on or around Wednesday, July 23. In other words, expect the public betas of iOS 26, iPadOS 26, macOS 26, and more to be available at some point next week. Apple will be releasing...
iPhone 17 Pro Dark Blue and Orange

Ranked: The Best Features Rumored for the iPhone 17 Lineup

Wednesday July 16, 2025 4:17 pm PDT by
We have just under two months to go until the debut of Apple's iPhone 17 models, and rumors have been ramping up in recent weeks. We went through everything we know so far, pulling out the most exciting rumors and highlighting some other changes that aren't going to be so great. Top Tier Ultra Thin iPhone 17 Air - The iPhone 17 Air is 2025's most exciting iPhone rumor, because it's the...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature Homescreen

Foldable iPhone's Thickness and Price Range Detailed in New Reports

Wednesday July 16, 2025 11:31 am PDT by
Apple's long-rumored foldable iPhone will likely have a starting price between $1,800 and $2,000 in the U.S., analysts at investment banking firm UBS said this week. If so, the foldable iPhone would cost more than a MacBook Pro, which starts at $1,599. With a starting price of at least $1,800, the foldable iPhone would be the most expensive iPhone model ever released, topping the Pro Max at...
iPhone 17 Pro in Hand Feature Lowgo

iPhone 17 Pro Coming Soon With These 16 New Features

Friday July 11, 2025 12:40 pm PDT by
Apple's next-generation iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are only two months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models. Latest Rumors These rumors surfaced in June and July:A redesigned Dynamic Island: It has been rumored that all iPhone 17 models will have a redesigned Dynamic Island interface — it might ...
Apple Watch Ultra 2 Complications

Apple Watch Ultra 3: What to Expect

Sunday July 13, 2025 10:30 am PDT by
The long wait for an Apple Watch Ultra 3 is nearly over, and a handful of new features and changes have been rumored for the device. Below, we recap what to expect from the Apple Watch Ultra 3:Satellite connectivity for sending and receiving text messages when Wi-Fi and cellular coverage is unavailable 5G support, up from LTE on the Apple Watch Ultra 2 Likely a wide-angle OLED display that ...

Top Rated Comments

wilhelmer Avatar
123 months ago
Let's hope we can trust that AAA ranking more than AAA bond credit ratings ;)
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Popeye206 Avatar
123 months ago
Does Alphabet really use the Google logo? That just seems weird.
Is it just me or is the name "Alphabet" a stupid name? They should have left it Google.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Surf Donkey Avatar
123 months ago
Oh wow, all these corporations are just so admirable /s. Wtf, sitting on mountains of cash, tax evasion, manufacturing outside the US. What again is so admirable??

To create the 54 industry lists, Korn Ferry Hay Group asked executives, directors, and analysts to rate companies in their own industry on nine criteria, from investment value to social responsibility.
No breakdown of these criteria makes the dump ranking a bit stupid. Of course executives, directors and analysts care sooo much about social responsibility.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
AppleScruff1 Avatar
123 months ago
Admired by whom exactly? I can see Apple but Berkshire Hathaway?
You can't see the forest for the Apple trees.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
DUCKofD3ATH Avatar
123 months ago
Does Alphabet really use the Google logo? That just seems weird.
Naw. They have a logo for Alphabet that looks as forgettable as the name it represents.

Google's never had a strong grip on design. Funny that, given how they only hire the best and brightest (or so they say).
[doublepost=1455898913][/doublepost]
Disney is the last company anyone should admire:
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/04/us/last-task-after-layoff-at-disney-train-foreign-replacements.html
Yeah yeah. Have you used iTunes lately? That's a crime against humanity.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
0815 Avatar
123 months ago
And I admire them now even more since they fight for our privacy, where other companies would have just given in (and did in the past)
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)