The world’s largest companies by revenue represent relatively new, fast-growth industries and mature, slower-growth ones ranging from e-commerce and tech devices to oil and retailing. Whatever the case, each company is a dominant force in its industry.
These are the 10 largest companies in the world by trailing 12-month (TTM) revenue, and represent a surprising diversity of industries. The list is limited to companies that are publicly traded in the US or Canada either directly or through American Depository Receipts (ADRs).
Some foreign companies may report half-yearly, and hence may take longer. We add the caveat that two other companies that would otherwise be added to this list are Saudi Aramco, the Saudi state oil company; and State Grid, the Chinese state-owned electric utility. They were left out because their shares are not publicly traded in the US or Canada.
All data in this story is provided by YCharts and is as of March 2023.
Some of the stocks listed below are traded only over-the-counter (OTC) in the US, not on exchanges. Trading OTC stocks often has higher trading costs than trading stocks on exchanges. This can reduce or even exceed the potential returns.
- Revenue (TTM): $600.11 billion
- Net income (TTM): $8.97 billion
- Market Cap: $390.66 billion
- Past 1 Year Total Return: 1.75%
- Exchange: New York Stock Exchange
Established in 1962, Walmart has since become one of the largest retailers in the world. The company operates discount stores, supercenters, neighborhood markets as well as a strong online platform. Walmart sells a variety of merchandise, including clothing and apparel, household goods, books, jewelry, food and beverages, pharmaceutical supplies, and automotive equipment.
#2 Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN)
- Revenue (TTM): $502.19 billion
- Net income (TTM): $11.32 billion
- Market Cap: $916.82 billion
- Past 1-Year Total Return: -44.35%
- Exchange: NASDAQ
Amazon is the world’s largest online retailer by market cap. The company began as an online bookseller and has since branched out into almost every category of retail. In addition to selling products through its e-commerce platform, Amazon has subsidiaries including Whole Foods Market and home security company Ring. The fastest growing areas of Amazon’s business are cloud computing services, subscription products such as Amazon Prime, and streaming movies and other entertainment.
- Revenue (TTM): $486.84 billion
- Net income (TTM): $10.47 billion
- Market Cap: $82.73 billion
- Last 1 Year Total Return: 19.61%
- Exchange: New York Stock Exchange
China Petroleum & Chemical is a manufacturer and distributor of a wide variety of petrochemical and petroleum products. The company’s products include gasoline, diesel, kerosene, synthetic rubber and resins, jet fuel, and chemical fertilizers, among other related offerings. China Petroleum & Chemical, also known as Sinopec, is one of the world’s largest oil refining, gas and petrochemical companies. It is administered by the State Council of the People’s Republic of China.
- Revenue (TTM): $486.40 billion
- Net income (TTM): $20.89 billion
- Market Cap: $59.2 billion
- Last 1 Year Total Return: 15.24%
- Exchange: New York Stock Exchange
PetroChina is an oil and gas company engaged in the exploration, development, production and sale of oil. It also manufactures petrochemical products. PetroChina is the exchange-listed arm of the Chinese state-owned China National Petroleum Corporation.
- Revenue (TTM): $394.33 billion
- Net income (TTM): $99.80 billion
- Market Cap: $2.08 trillion
- Past 1-Year Total Return: -23.64%
- Exchange: NASDAQ
Apple designs, manufactures, and markets a wide range of consumer technology products, including smartphones, personal computers, tablets, wearable devices, home entertainment devices, and more. Among the company’s most popular products are its iPhone line of smartphones and the Mac line of computers. Apple is also building a booming services business, operating digital content stores, selling streaming video games, and providing streaming services such as Apple+, a platform for on-demand entertainment content.
#6 Exxon Mobil Corporation (XOM)
- Revenue (TTM): $386.82 billion
- Net income (TTM): $51.86 billion
- Market Cap: $453.38 billion
- Last 1 Year Total Return: 67.12%
- Exchange: New York Stock Exchange
ExxonMobil is a multinational oil and gas corporation headquartered in Texas. It explores for oil and gas or markets its products or both in most countries of the world. Its gasoline stations are a familiar sight to drivers around the world, although the brand names they display may be ExxonMobil, Esso, Exxon or Mobil depending on the locale. The corporate name of ExxonMobil refers to the 1999 merger that combined the two giants of the industry.
#7 Shell Plc (SHEL)
- Revenue (TTM): $365.29 billion
- Net income (TTM): $43.36 billion
- Market Cap: $204.03 billion
- Last 1 Year Total Return: 27.58%
- Exchange: New York Stock Exchange
Based in the Netherlands, Royal Dutch Shell engages in the exploration, production and refining of petroleum through its subsidiaries. In addition to operating gas stations around the world, Shell produces and sells fuels, lubricants and other chemicals.
- Revenue (TTM): $315.23 billion
- Net income (TTM): $3.15 billion
- Market Cap: $119.11 billion
- Past 1-Year Total Return: -11.75%
- Exchange: New York Stock Exchange
CVS is an integrated pharmacy health care provider. The company operates a chain of drugstores with locations throughout the United States as well as in Puerto Rico. In addition to retail, CVS Pharmacy offers benefits management services, mail order pharmacy services, and disease management programs.
#9 UnitedHealth Group Inc. (UNH)
- Revenue (TTM): $313.13 billion
- Net income (TTM): $19.43 billion
- Market Cap: $454.09 billion
- Past 1 Year Total Return: 5.87%
- Exchange: New York Stock Exchange
UnitedHealth Group Inc. is a multinational healthcare and insurance company based in Minnetonka, Minnesota. It offers managed health insurance policies to companies, government employees and individuals. Its health services are provided by a network of medical groups that provide health services under contract with UnitedHealth. In addition to its US operations, UnitedHealth Group has subsidiary operations in other countries, including Brazil, India, Ireland, the Philippines and the United Kingdom.
- Revenue (TTM): $288.45 billion
- Net income (TTM): $18.47 billion
- Market Cap: $85.85 billion
- Past 1-Year Total Return: -35.01%
- Exchange: OTC
Volkswagen Group is the world’s largest automaker by vehicle sales. The German company manufactures, sells and repairs both luxury and economy cars, sports cars, trucks and other commercial vehicles. VW’s flagship luxury brand is Audi.