For nearly two decades, Apple’s reputation has extended well beyond the general public. In February 2025, Fortune magazine published its annual list of the most “admired” companies in the world, a ranking established based on the votes of more than 3,000 American executives and analysts. This edition once again crowned Apple, ahead of Microsoft, Amazon and a spectacular rise from Nvidia to fourth place.
This ranking is based on precise criteria such as innovation, quality of management, ability to attract talent and even financial solidity. A year later, Apple is crowned again, for the 19th year in a row, in the 2026 edition, the results of which have just been published.
A list dominated by American giants
According to the new classification, Apple is the most admired company in the world, all categories combinedand also picks up the first place among the most admired companies in the IT sector. It is ahead of Microsoft and Amazon, in second and third place respectively. Nvidia now reaches fourth place, driven by the explosion of artificial intelligence.
The ranking is based on a two-step process, conducted each year among a large panel of managers and analysts. The selection begins with around 1,500 companies, then reduced to a group of 685, divided according to their sector of activity. These companies are then evaluated against each other according to nine well-defined criteria, such as innovation, management and even the quality of execution. It is only in the second phase that each voter can freely designate the ten companies that they admire the most, all sectors combined.
No products found.
Only one French company in the top 50
This year again, American companies largely dominate the ranking. The top ten spots are all occupied by U.S.-based companies, without exception. You have to go down to 41st position to find the first French company, L’Oréalclassified in the “Care and cosmetics” category.
No other French group appears in the overall top 50 for 2026. Airbus, sometimes cited as a major industrial figure in Europe, is in 57th place in the general ranking, in the “Aeronautics and defense” category. This discrepancy highlights the difficulty for large French firms to stand out on the criteria used by the study, in particular international visibility, perceived innovation or even managerial image among the managers interviewed.
However, this could be a simple reflection of the method of consultation used, centered on executives and analysts mainly based in the United States.
By: Keleops AG
