Apple Leaps Ahead of Amazon As World’s Most Valuable Brand

Apple is back at the top spot as the world’s most valuable brand.

Five years since it last held top spot, Apple has once again been named the world’s most valuable brand in the Brand Finance US 500 2021 ranking and Brand Finance Global 500 2021 ranking with a brand value US$263.4 billion USD.

The Cupertino company’s value has climbed 87 percent in the past year to $263.4 billion USD, the ranking found. The rise was reportedly due to Apple’s diversification strategy, which includes the company’s expansion into digital and subscription services — and potentially into electric cars in the future.

“Apple has overtaken Amazon and Google to reclaim the title of the world’s most valuable brand for the first time since 2016, according to the latest report by Brand Finance – the world’s leading brand valuation consultancy,” reads the ranking. “Apple has the success of its diversification strategy to thank for an impressive 87% brand value increase to US$263.4 billion and its position at the top of the Brand Finance US 500 2021 ranking and Brand Finance Global 500 2021 ranking.”

With Tim Cook at the helm, the brand has expanded beyond the iPhone and Mac into services like the App Store, iCloud, Apple Podcasts, Music, TV, and Arcade. The company is reportedly planning to make a self-driving electric car by 2024.

“Steve Jobs’ legacy continues to flow through Apple, with innovation built into the brand’s DNA,” said Laurence Newell, Brand Finance Americas MD. “As Apple reclaims the title of the world’s most valuable brand from Amazon five years since it last held the top spot, we are witnessing it Think Different once again. From Mac to iPod, to iPhone, to iPad, to Apple Watch, to subscription services, to infinity and beyond.”

Apple is set to report its first quarter earnings Wednesday after the market close, and analysts are expecting revenues to top the $100 billion USD mark for the first time in its history. After the Cupertino company passed a record $2 trillion USD market capitalization in August, analysts are predicting the $3 trillion mark is within reach in the next 12 months.