Apple, Microsoft and Google, most valuable brands in the world

Interbrand, a marketing consultancy specializing in brand management and branding, has published the 27th edition of its Best Global Brands report, which highlights the 100 most valuable brands in the world, as well as the key drivers behind their growth. 

This year, the total value of the 100 brands in the ranking reached $3.9 trillion, a 8.1% increase compared with last year, when the list was valued at $3.6 trillion. In this way, the combined value of the world’s most valuable brands has nearly quadrupled since Interbrand first published its ranking ($990 billion in 2000).

“We are seeing a resurgence in brand value, with 68 brands posting gains. Technology brands now account for half of the top 10 positions, and the nine brands in this category represent 48% of the ranking’s total value. NVIDIA’s brand value increased by more than 71%, making it the fastest-growing brand this year and one of the top 10, just two years after its first appearance in the ranking,” Interbrand explained.

These are the 50 most valuable brands in the world

1. Apple, $514.6 billion (+9%)
2. Microsoft, $443.7 billion (+14%)
3. Google, $389.3 billion (+23%)
4. Amazon, $351.8 billion (+10%)
5. Samsung, $105.2 billion (+16%)
6. NVIDIA, $74.0 billion (+71%)
7. Instagram, $65.5 billion (+14%)
8. Coca-Cola, $60.3 billion (+0%)
9. Toyota, $59.5 billion (-20%)
10. YouTube, $58.9 billion (+22%)
11. Cisco, $57.0 billion (+17%)
12. McDonald’s, $55.5 billion (+5%)
13. Oracle, $45.5 billion (+8%)
14. Facebook, $45.3 billion (+10%)
15. Hermès, $45.2 billion (+11%)
16. Louis Vuitton, $45.1 billion (-7%)
17. SAP, $44.6 billion (+8%)
18. IBM, $43.8 billion (+11%)
19. Adobe, $41.7 billion (+2%)
20. Mercedes-Benz, $40.8 billion (-19%)
21. Disney, $40.4 billion (-2%)
22. BMW, $38.4 billion (-18%)
23. Netflix, $34.1 billion (+22%)
24. Chanel, $32.9 billion (+8%)
25. J.P. Morgan, $31.1 billion (+7%)
26. Allianz, $30.7 billion (+9%)
27. Booking.com, $26.5 billion (+13%)
28. BlackRock, $25.8 billion (+9%)
29. Hyundai, $25.0 billion (+2%)
30. Visa, $24.1 billion (+5%)
31. MasterCard, $22.2 billion (+5%)
32. Nike, $21.7 billion (-35%)
33. Zara, $21.6 billion (+11%)
34. Accenture, $21.5 billion (+3%)
35. Sony, $21.2 billion (-5%)
36. Qualcomm, $21.2 billion (+5%)
37. Salesforce, $20.5 billion (+7%)
38. Uniqlo, $20.5 billion (+16%)
39. Spotify, $20.5 billion (+38%)
40. GE Aerospace, $20.5 billion (+12%)
41. AXA, $20.1 billion (+10%)
42. Pepsi, $20.1 billion (-1%)
43. Dell, $19.9 billion (+22%)
44. Airbnb, $19.6 billion (+9%)
45. Honda, $19.4 billion (-22%)
46. IKEA, $19.2 billion (-13%)
47. Siemens, $19.1 billion (+8%)
48. LEGO, $18.8 billion (+14%)
49. PayPal, $18.6 billion (-6%)
50. Tesla, $18.3 billion (-38%)

As you can see, Apple remains the world’s most valuable brand. In addition, in this edition the company breaks a two-year streak of declining brand value, posting a 9% increase.

Overall, the brands in the top 10 performed very well this year, and only Toyota lost value (-20%), another way in which this year’s ranking differs from that of 2025, when only Microsoft, Amazon, Google, Instagram, and Toyota itself posted growth.

As mentioned above, NVIDIA is the standout name in this edition, with 71% growth, clearly fueled by the rise of AI, an area in which it operates both as a chip supplier and as a developer of AI-based solutions. Last year it was already the fastest-growing brand, with an impressive +113%. Other brands posting some of the strongest growth this year include Spotify (No. 39, +38%), Uber (No. 52, +35%), Shopify (No. 86, +28%), and Google (No. 3, +23%).

Beyond those already mentioned, if we focus on brands tied to eCommerce and social media in Best Global Brands 2026, the following stand out:

• Amazon, No. 4, +10%
• Instagram, No. 7, +14%
• YouTube, No. 10, +22%
• Facebook, No. 14, +10%
• Booking.com, No. 27, +13%
• Airbnb, No. 44, +9%
• PayPal, No. 49, −6%
• eBay, No. 59, +10%
• LinkedIn, No. 73  +6%
• Shopify, No. 86, +28%

Meanwhile, on the downside, Toyota is joined by other automakers such as Mercedes-Benz (-19%), BMW (-18%), Honda (-22%), and even Elon Musk’s Tesla, which lost 38% of its value and is now on the verge of dropping out of the top 50.

New entries in the top 100

As for new entries into the ranking’s top 100, there are only four this year: insurance company Zurich (No. 58), a true technology classic in Hitachi (No. 90), General Electric’s healthcare products division GE Healthcare (No. 95), and another long-established name, HP Enterprise (No. 99).

Criteria used to compile the ranking

According to Interbrand, brands must meet six criteria to enter the ranking:

• Revenue: a significant portion of the brand’s total revenue must come from outside its home region.
• Presence: the brand must have a global presence and penetration in emerging markets.
• Public information: there must be sufficient publicly available data on the brand’s financial performance.
• Profit: the brand must be expected to generate positive long-term economic profits, with returns above its cost of capital.
• Recognition: the brand must have a public profile and sufficient recognition in the world’s major economies.
• Strength: its Brand Strength Score must be 50 points or higher.

Image: ChatGPT