New York City, NY – (October 12, 2023) – Apple remains the U.S.’s most valuable brand for the second year in a row according to the Kantar BrandZ 2023 Most Valuable Global Brands Report. The top brands in the US continue to be dominated by technology companies, with Fast Food, Retail, Financial Services and Food and Beverage brands rounding out the rest of the top ten. One of the most impressive areas of brand equity growth, according to the report, can be attributed to company sustainability initiatives, including working towards clear sustainability commitments by 2030.
Consumer endorsements of sustainability have risen 84% over the last 10 years, with sustainability being the most important driver of corporate reputation, contributing a full 45% to people’s positive perceptions of a company. And while many brands have followed suit and launched long-term sustainability initiatives, findings from the Kantar BrandZ global study suggest brands’ efforts may not be resonating as well as they could with consumers. Americans are prepared to invest their time and money to support sustainable conscious companies – 53% are committed to supporting companies that are enacting positive change specific to sustainability – showing a clear connection between financial impact and sustainability messaging. Underscoring this approach, Apple, Kantar BrandZ’s #1 global brand, recently announced its commitment to be 100 percent carbon neutral for its supply chain and products within the next seven years.
“In some respects, an organization communicating its sustainability credentials may be as important as the actual sustainability initiatives that brand is undertaking,” commented Carmen Bohoyo, Executive Lead of Sustainable Transformation, North America. “We have found that sustainability is an important lever to drive volume share and justify pricing. However, consumers must be aware of a brand’s sustainability efforts to shift brand equity metrics.”
To assess sustainability’s impact on brands, Kantar BrandZ segmented the top 100 global brands in its annual ranking into categories based on consumer perceptions of sustainability across environmental, social, employee and supply chain responsibility. Although sustainability brand perceptions have almost doubled since 2014 among top brands, the Kantar BrandZ 2023 global report finds that half of the most valuable global brands were deemed “lacking” in sustainability credentials by consumers, while only 2% of the top 100 were viewed as “focused” on sustainability. 47% of the most valuable global brands have their fair share of positive consumer perceptions in this area, but no real strength.
“There is a clear gap in consumer expectations and brand actions around sustainability,” commented Bohoyo. “Many of the top 100 brands in the Kantar BrandZ global ranking, in fact, are years into ambitious sustainability initiatives, yet consumers seem to be largely unaware.”
One example of a brand’s successful consumer awareness efforts is Mastercard. Seeing brand equity rise continuously over the last five years, Mastercard is now ranked #7 in the U.S. in this year’s Most Valuable Global Brands Ranking, tapping into its long-established reputation for purpose-driven initiatives. In 2020, Mastercard launched the Priceless Planet Coalition, partnering with businesses around the world to contribute 100 million trees to forest restoration. The brand also accelerated its pledge to reach net-zero emissions by 2040, looking inward to drive greater efficiency and creating innovative solutions to help unite its global network and inspire a collective action toward a more sustainable digital economy.
“Sustainability is about doing the right thing – for people and the planet, as well as for our brand and our business,” said Raja Rajamannar, Mastercard chief marketing and communications officer. “Through programs like the Priceless Planet Coalition, we’re driving impact at scale while empowering our customers and cardholders to do the same.”
Overall, the rankings have shown that the most meaningful and salient brands are best placed to weather economic disruption and connect with consumer sentiment. The top 10 Most Valuable US brands for 2023 include:
| Rank | Brand |
Brand Value 2023 ($ Mil.) |
| 1 | Apple | 880,455 |
|
2 |
577,683 | |
| 3 | Microsoft | 501,856 |
| 4 | Amazon | 468,737 |
| 5 | McDonald's | 191,109 |
| 6 | Visa | 169,092 |
| 7 | Mastercard | 110,631 |
| 8 | Coca-Cola | 106,109 |
| 9 | 93,023 | |
| 10 | Oracle | 91,992 |
The Kantar BrandZ combines rigorous financial analysis with extensive measures of brand equity as uniquely defined by Kantar to form the methodology behind the Kantar BrandZ brand valuations. The Kantar BrandZ Most Valuable Brands ranking, report and extensive analysis are available now via https://www.kantar.com/campaigns/brandz/global.
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About Kantar BrandZ: Kantar BrandZ is the global currency when assessing brand value, quantifying the contribution of brands to business’ financial performance. Kantar’s annual global and local brand valuation rankings combine rigorously analyzed financial data, with extensive brand equity research. Since 1998, BrandZ has shared brand-building insights with business leaders based on interviews with 4.2 million consumers, for 21,000 brands in 54 markets. Discover more about Kantar BrandZ here.
About Kantar: Kantar is the world’s leading data, insights, and consulting company. We have a complete, unique, and rounded understanding of how people think, feel and act; globally and locally in over 90 markets. By combining the deep expertise of our people, our data resources and benchmarks, our innovative analytics and technology, we help our clients understand people and inspire growth.