Today, FORTUNE announced the 67th FORTUNE 500, its annual list of the largest corporations in the United States, ranked by revenue for the 2020 fiscal year. The revenue threshold for 2021 FORTUNE 500 list was $5.4 billion, down 5% from last year. In total, FORTUNE 500 companies represent two-thirds of the U.S. GDP with $13.8 trillion in revenues (down 3%), $859 billion in profits (down 30%), $32.7 trillion in market value (up 60%), and employ 29.1 million people worldwide. 41 companies on the 2021 FORTUNE 500 are led by women CEOs—an all-time high.
Walmart took the top spot on the 2021 list for the ninth year in a row, generating $4.5 trillion cumulative revenue over that time. Amazon.com also held onto their No.2 spot with a 38% jump in revenue. In the No. 3 spot, Apple is the most profitable company on the 2021 FORTUNE 500, and the only company on the list valued over $2 trillion. At No. 4, CVS Health and CEO Karen Lynch make FORTUNE 500 history as the highest-ranked company ever to be led by a female CEO.
The top ten companies on the 2021 FORTUNE 500 list are:
- Walmart
- Amazon.com
- Apple
- CVS Health
- UnitedHealth Group
- Berkshire Hathaway
- McKesson
- AmerisourceBergen
- Alphabet
- Exxon Mobil
As part of FORTUNE’s Measure Up partnership with Refinitiv, global provider of financial markets data and infrastructure, the FORTUNE 500 list now includes a Diversity & Inclusion information online. Users will be able to sort the companies by a ranking based on their self-reported D&I data, provided by Refinitiv. FORTUNE has used this data to identify the top 20 Most Progressive Companies on Racial Inclusion. Microsoft (No. 15) takes top honors, followed by Centene (No. 24), Target (No. 30), Gap (No. 221), and Biogen (No. 228).
“A year ago, companies made a promise to end racial injustice in the workplace and broader society. To keep that promise, companies will need courage in sharing with the world a picture of what they look like today. From this starting point we can make real progress, as they say ‘what gets measured gets managed,’” comments David Craig, Group Head of Data & Analytics Division at LSEG and CEO, Refinitiv. “US companies lead the world when it comes to collecting data on their employees’ race and ethnicity. Through this partnership and Refinitiv’s own ESG data and analytics we have developed a standard taxonomy to help simplify disclosure and give investors, customers and employees the information they now seek to measure progress.”
FORTUNE and Qlik, the official analytics partner of the FORTUNE 500, also published the “The Pandemic Effect on the Fortune 500” interactive site. This visual experience, developed by Qlik, details the revenue and performance of the sectors and industries that shape the 2021 FORTUNE 500, along with taking users on a journey through the crises that have shaped the Fortune 500 over the years, especially the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
More on the FORTUNE 500:
- Meet all the new F500 CEOs
- The notable companies that joined—and left—the FORTUNE 500
- How Chewy charmed pets, owners, and investors to become a Fortune 500 company
- Investors want Exxon Mobil to change. Is it ready?
- How did Carvana make it onto the Fortune 500? Unconventional values—and car vending machines
See the complete FORTUNE 500 List here. The June/July 2021 issue of FORTUNE will be on newsstands on June 7.
