Most Valuable Global Brands 2026

The Kantar BrandZ Top 100 Most Valuable Global Brands are now worth a combined $13.1 trillion, up 22% year on year, as AI driven experiences transform how people discover, choose and remain loyal to brands.

The acceleration of AI has pushed the entry threshold for the Global Top 100 to its highest level ever, intensifying competition among brands at the top. Yet Kantar BrandZ analysis reinforces a consistent truth: in markets defined by speed and fragmentation, the brands that win are those that remain Meaningfully Different at every touchpoint.

Highlights from the ranking, which is based on the opinions of 4.6 million respondents about 22,392 brands across 545 categories, include:

  • Google is crowned as the world’s most valuable brand for the first time since 2018, rising 57% to $1.5tn, powered by the integration of Gemini across its ecosystem, agentic features in Search and continued investment in data centres
  • In a historic first, three brands have simultaneously broken the trillion-dollar threshold: Google ($1.5tn), Microsoft (No.3: $1.1tn) and Amazon (No.4: $1.0tn)
  • AI-native brands are breaking through faster than ever, with Claude debuting in the Global Top 100 at No.27 with a brand value of $96.6bn, while ChatGPT records the highest year-on-year increase in the ranking, up 285%
  • Chinese brands continue to build global influence, with strong growth from Agricultural Bank of China (+54%), Alibaba (+51%), ICBC (+49%), Xiaomi (+48%), Tencent (+45%) and Ping An (+41%)
  • Europe’s cohort grows more steadily, with the average European brand up 14%; SAP (+6%), Siemens (+68%) and Booking.com (+33%) show that European tech-led brands can outperform on momentum even in tougher market conditions.

 

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Discover how the most valuable brands win

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How the world’s most valuable brands win. Signals. Decisions. Strategies for growth.

Explore the Global Top 100

This year sees three new entrants, led by Claude, alongside four re entries, including HSBC and TD Bank. From YouTube and Siemens to Xiaomi and Walmart, many of the fastest rising brands are building on momentum established in previous years of brand value growth. There are also notable comeback stories, with brands such as Intel and Samsung demonstrating how renewed clarity, relevance and investment can reignite growth.

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Strengthening consumer connections

Kantar BrandZ’s Meaningful Model explains how brands drive growth by building deep connections with people. The strongest brands are not only functional; they are emotionally relevant, trusted, instinctively chosen, and talked about. By strengthening Meaning, alongside Difference and Salience, brands are more likely to grow brand value and outperform the market. Read more in the report.

Identifying your Chief Marketing Objective

The BrandZ Chief Marketing Objectives framework helps marketers focus on the single most important priority for growth. Using evidence from thousands of brands, it identifies where to act first, whether fixing fundamentals, accelerating momentum, or finding new space. The result: clearer focus, better decisions, and stronger growth outcomes. Explore the full framework in the report.

Insights from Brand Builders

Watch exclusive interviews with global brand leaders

Asmita Dubey

Chief Digital and Marketing Officer, L'Oréal

Brett Hannath

Chief Marketing Officer, Intel

Don McGuire

EVP and Chief Marketing Officer, Qualcomm Inc.

Drew Panayiotou

Chief Marketing Officer, Keurig Dr Pepper

Mark Weinstein

Chief Marketing Officer, Hilton

Michael Manske

Chief Brand, Marketing and Comms Officer, Polestar

Zhou Yunjie

Chairman and CEO, Haier Group

Esi Eggleston Bracey

Marketing Leader

Jonathan Adashek

SVP, Marketing and Comms, IBM

Methodology

To be eligible for entry into BrandZ’s rankings, brands must be owned by a company listed on a stock exchange, or by a private company with its financials available in the public domain. Unique among brand valuation methodologies, Kantar BrandZ combines financial analysis with extensive measures of brand equity. Learn more about the methodology behind Kantar BrandZ brand valuation rankings in this video.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What are the most valuable global brands?

The Kantar BrandZ Top 10 Most Valuable Global Brands for 2026 are: 
 
No.1 Google - $1.5tn 
No.2 Apple - $1.4tn 
No.3 Microsoft - $1.1tn 
No.4 Amazon - $1.0tn 
No.5 NVIDIA - $814.9bn 
No.6 Facebook - $366.6bn 
No.7 Instagram - $286.2bn 
No.8 Tencent - $251.6bn 
No.9 Oracle - $235.8bn 
No.10 McDonald's - $235.1bn 
 

How can I measure brand value?

Kantar BrandZ measures brand value using a unique, consumer-centric methodology that combines:  
 
Financial Value – Derived from corporate earnings and the proportion attributable to intangible brand assets.  
 
Brand Contribution – The proportion of financial value driven by brand equity alone, based on:  
 
Demand Power (current demand)  
Pricing Power (ability to command a premium)  
Future Power (potential for future growth)  
 
This approach is powered by over 4.6 million consumer interviews across 54 markets. Kantar’s Meaningful Different and Salient framework is endorsed by the Marketing Accountability Standards Board (MASB).  

What have been the biggest factors impacting brand performance in 2026? 

AI has driven one of the most profound shifts in brand value ever recorded, pushing the combined value of the Global Top 100 up 22% year on year. The brands outperforming the market are those using AI to deliver new value: quickly and confidently connecting how people engage with a brand to the choices that shape their business. The global rise of Asian brands is another defining theme. Chinese brands grew by an average of 32% year on year, distinguished by their speed and discipline in acting on consumer signals.

How have global conflict and geopolitical uncertainty affected brand value this year? 

Periods of uncertainty tend to increase volatility in financial markets, but Kantar BrandZ intelligence shows that brand value can be retained, even in unstable conditions. Brands that stay close to what people need, offer reassurance and deliver clear value are more likely to sustain long‑term brand value when short‑term pressures rise. 
Previous reports
The 20th anniversary edition of BrandZ’s global report journeys through marketing’s evolution over the past two decades covering economic booms and recessions, pandemics and insecurity.
After reviewing thousands of brand valuations tracked since 2006, we’ve distilled 10 insights to help marketers plan for and overcome volatility and build strong, resilient brands. Download the new report to find all 10 insights, visualised by David McCandless, of Information is Beautiful. 

In 2025, the Global Top 100 has reached a record total brand value. This has been driven by tech-enabled disruptor brands, which have delivered most of the increase in value over the past 20 years across all sectors.

Highlights from the ranking, which is based on the opinions of 4.5 million respondents about 22,000 brands across 538 categories, include:

- Apple retains its top position for the fourth year with a brand value of $1.3 trillion, up 28%
- Google (No.2), Microsoft (No.3), Amazon (No.4) and Nvidia (No.5) complete the Top 5
- Nvidia, Huawei, VMware, Xiaomi and Instagram are the top risers, achieving more than 100% brand value growth
- ChatGPT is the highest new entry in the Top 100, followed by Stripe and Chipotle 
- Outside the US, Sweden’s Spotify re-enters the Top 100; India’s Airtel is the fastest growing telecom brand in the world; Argentinian retailer Mercado Libre is the only Latin American brand in the
- Top 100 and Canada’s RBC saw the biggest year-on-year brand value growth (43%) of any financial services brand
- Across 13 category rankings, retail continued its post-pandemic surge, with overall brand value growth up 48%. 

Download the 2025 Global Report 

Download the 2025 Global Top 100 Infographic