Apple is the 2025 Most Valuable Brand in the World

Brand value accelerates when marketing and finance are aligned, but the 2025 ranking of the world’s 500 most valuable brands showcases the power of a macro view with a future focus. Brand Finance research found that companies striking a balance between international expansion and fortifying their brand are increasing their global presence while building value.

For the world’s biggest brands, this balance is made more precarious by politics and economic uncertainty, however, this changeability also creates opportunity for brands with the vision and agility to seize it. The technology sector encapsulates this tension. While the industry attracts colossal wealth and wields tremendous influence, big tech companies are magnets for political intervention. Tech CEOs may dream of amassing world-changing power, but not everyone is on board with them actually changing the world. In the Brand Finance Global 500 2025, the world’s biggest tech conglomerates make up eight of the ten most valuable brands and have dominated the top ten for decades.

Apple is the most valuable brand in the world for 2025, demonstrating its command of the equilibrium between global reach and investing in a master brand. Brand Finance values the Apple brand at $574.5 billion, with Brand Finance research finding that on average, more than 80% of consumers are familiar with the brand across the markets of research and 45% of consumers are considering the use of the Apple brand products or services.

Apple, with a reputation score of 7.7 across countries, is the brand with the highest reputation researched in more than one market amongst consumer electronics brands. As the company looks to navigate regulatory challenges and expand into emerging markets and industries, its unique value proposition will remain central to its enduring.

Apple is followed by Microsoft, Google, and Amazon, with American retail giant Walmart scooting past Samsung group to round out the top five. TikTok/ Douyin and Facebook hold on to the 7 and 8 ranks they occupied in 2024. NVIDIA made the top 10 for the first time since it was first valued in 2014 when it ranked 424th in the US 500. The AI giant’s brand value grew 98% which is the fastest for a second year in a row on a like-for-like basis to $87.9 billion in 2025, securing 9th place globally.

While it’s easy to point to technology as a high-growth sector for brands, the data shows that assessing growth over a longer timespan gives a fuller picture of changing trends. Brand Finance analysis of what brands have grown the most since 2020 shows that the gambling, pharmaceutical, and automobile sectors are represented. The analysis includes TikTok – although Brand Finance began valuing the brand in 2021, its 79% growth in 4 years puts it in the same league as the other high-growth brands.

None of the ten brands with the biggest value growth belong to the sector that has added the most value over the past five years: Media. A rapidly evolving sector, Media brands are no longer limited to publishing and are effectively tech giants themselves. While the media industry’s top-level growth diverges from the sectors represented by the 10 fastest-growing brands since 2020, the media’s highest increase in value is unsurprising against the backdrop of the rise of social media as both an information source, influential political tool, and for most of the world, a key element in how to build, keep, and maintain relationships.

For the second year running, WeChat is the world’s strongest brand with a Brand Strength Index (BSI) score of 95.2 out of 100 and an AAA+ brand strength rating. WeChat’s comprehensive ecosystem and seamless integration capability continue to propel the Chinese brand’s strength. Brand Finance's research, conducted solely in its home market of China, shows that WeChat is highly valued for meeting consumer needs and has a strong reputation. It ranked first for ‘Brand I Love’ and achieved the highest Net Promoter Score in the Brand Finance Global 500 ranking. Despite an improved BSI score, WeChat’s brand value dropped by 21%, falling to USD33 billion, mainly due to lower forecasts.

Nike is the second strongest brand in the world. Before 2025, Nike’s BSI score has been on a steady decline since 2020, and in 2024, rival Adidas overtook Nike in brand strength for the first time, following Adidas’ success in top football team sponsorships and a resurged interest in its casual footwear such as Sambas. Brand Finance data shows the investment is paying off, earning Nike a BSI score of 94.7 out of 100 and an AAA+ brand strength rating for 2025, a considerable jump up from its 2024 BSI score of 83.5.

Sitting in third for brand strength is Google, with a BSI score of 94.3 out of 100 and an AAA+ brand strength rating. Brand Finance researched Google in 20 markets. The brand consistently achieves high scores across all metrics, including a 10 out of 10 for Familiarity and 9.9 in ‘Brand I Know Well.’ Google's investment in AI and machine learning, along with a strong performance of Google Services – for instance, Google Cloud has grown significantly over the last few years – are indicators of continued strong performance for next year.