The ten most profitable companies in the world ranked by annual net income, based on the most recent fiscal year results.
Quick answer: 1. Apple, 2. Saudi Aramco, 3. Microsoft, 4. Alphabet (Google), 5. Berkshire Hathaway, 6. Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), 7. ExxonMobil, 8. Meta Platforms, 9. China Construction Bank, 10. Amazon.
While revenue tells you how big a company is, net income — the bottom line after all expenses, taxes, and costs — tells you how much money it actually makes. The world's most profitable companies are a mix of technology giants, energy titans, and financial institutions, many of which generate more annual profit than the GDP of small countries. This ranking draws on the most recent completed fiscal year for each company, compiled from audited financial statements and the Fortune Global 500 Most Profitable ranking. The list is dominated by a familiar trio of U.S. tech companies at the top, followed by oil-and-gas supermajors, a financial powerhouse, and a Chinese state-owned bank.
The world's most profitable company, Apple reported a net income of $93.7 billion in its fiscal year 2025, driven by robust iPhone sales, expanding Services revenue (including the App Store, Apple Music, and iCloud), and strong margins on its ecosystem of devices.
The world's largest oil producer by output, Saudi Aramco reported a net income of roughly $87.2 billion in 2025. While this is down from the record $161 billion in 2022, Aramco remains one of the most profitable companies in history thanks to its low production costs and massive reserves.
Microsoft reported a net income of $82.5 billion in its fiscal year 2025, powered by its Azure cloud business, Microsoft 365 subscriptions, and the rapid growth of AI services through its OpenAI partnership and Copilot products.
Google's parent company Alphabet reported a net income of $71.4 billion in 2025. The vast majority of revenue still comes from digital advertising (Google Search, YouTube, and Google Network), though Google Cloud has become a significant contributor.
Warren Buffett's conglomerate reported a net income of about $68.5 billion in 2025, driven by its massive insurance float (Geico, General Re), its portfolio of wholly owned businesses (BNSF Railway, Berkshire Hathaway Energy, Precision Castparts), and a large equity-investment portfolio.
The world's largest bank by assets, ICBC reported a net income of approximately $61.5 billion in 2025. Its profits come from the vast spread between deposit and lending rates in China, as well as fee-based financial services.
The largest U.S. oil and gas company reported a net income of $56.7 billion in 2025. While oil prices moderated from the 2022 peaks, ExxonMobil's integrated business model — spanning upstream production, refining, and chemicals — helped maintain strong profitability.
Facebook's parent company Meta reported a net income of $51.8 billion in 2025. The company's advertising business remains highly profitable, and its Reality Labs division (VR/AR) continues to operate at a significant loss, dragging down what would otherwise be even higher earnings.
The second-largest Chinese bank by assets, CCB reported a net income of roughly $49.8 billion in 2025. Like its state-owned peers, CCB benefits from a dominant position in China's highly regulated banking sector and a massive deposit base.
Amazon reported a net income of $47.2 billion in 2025, a remarkable turnaround from the low-profit years of its earlier expansion. The key driver has been Amazon Web Services (AWS), which generates the majority of Amazon's operating income despite representing a fraction of its total revenue.
| # | Name | HQ | Industry | Fiscal year | Revenue |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Apple | Cupertino, California, United States | Technology / Consumer electronics | FY2025 (ended Sep 2025) | 391 billion USD |
| 2 | Saudi Aramco | Dhahran, Saudi Arabia | Oil and gas | FY2025 | 467 billion USD |
| 3 | Microsoft | Redmond, Washington, United States | Technology / Software | FY2025 (ended Jun 2025) | 254 billion USD |
| 4 | Alphabet (Google) | Mountain View, California, United States | Technology / Advertising, Cloud | FY2025 | 339 billion USD |
| 5 | Berkshire Hathaway | Omaha, Nebraska, United States | Conglomerate / Insurance, Investments | FY2025 | 369 billion USD |
| 6 | Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) | Beijing, China | Banking / Financial services | FY2025 | 187 billion USD |
| 7 | ExxonMobil | Spring, Texas, United States | Oil and gas | FY2025 | 345 billion USD |
| 8 | Meta Platforms | Menlo Park, California, United States | Technology / Social media, Advertising | FY2025 | 172 billion USD |
| 9 | China Construction Bank | Beijing, China | Banking / Financial services | FY2025 | 172 billion USD |
| 10 | Amazon | Seattle, Washington, United States | Technology / E-commerce, Cloud computing | FY2025 | 637 billion USD |
Companies are ranked by annual net income (profit) in U.S. dollars for their most recently completed fiscal year as of mid-2026. Net income figures are taken from audited public financial statements, SEC filings, and the Fortune Global 500 Most Profitable Companies ranking. All figures are converted to U.S. dollars at the average exchange rate for the reported fiscal year. The ranking includes publicly traded companies and large state-owned enterprises that report public financials. Subsidiaries are consolidated at the parent-company level. Rank 1 is the most profitable.
Apple is the most profitable company in the world, with a net income of $93.7 billion in its fiscal year 2025, followed by Saudi Aramco ($87.2 billion) and Microsoft ($82.5 billion). The top three alone earned over $263 billion in profit.
Revenue is the total amount a company earns from sales before any costs are deducted. Net income (or profit) is what remains after subtracting all expenses — including the cost of goods sold, salaries, taxes, interest, and depreciation. A company can have enormous revenue but modest net income (like Amazon for many years), or modest revenue but exceptional margins (like many software companies).
Saudi Aramco's net income peaked at $161 billion in 2022 when oil prices surged above $100 per barrel following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. By 2025, oil prices had moderated to the $70–85 range, resulting in a ~46% decline in profit. Even so, Aramco's production costs remain among the lowest in the world at under $10 per barrel, making it highly profitable at any reasonable oil price.
European companies have largely been absent from the top tier of global profitability in recent years. The rise of U.S. tech giants (Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet, Meta, Amazon) and the dominance of Chinese state-owned banks have pushed European firms like Nestlé, LVMH, or Shell into the second tier. The most profitable European company typically ranks between 11th and 20th globally.