The 100 best companies in the world: at the top of the list is LEGO

According to the 2026 RepTrak global ranking, the best companies in the world by reputation are LEGO, Adidas and Samsung. The most relevant data for Italy is the simultaneous presence of Ferrari and Barilla in the global top 10. The company that has lost the most positions is Spotify, while Disney has dropped out of the top 100.

Let’s see in this article what this ranking is based on and why these companies have triumphed.

The RapTrak chart

Since 2004, the Global RepTrak ranking has been telling us which are the 100 companies with the best reputation in the world. To be included in the evaluation criteria, companies must meet three criteria:

• global revenue exceeding $2 billion
• global and regional awareness above 20%
• be among the 50% of companies with the highest reputation

The ranking is then drawn up on the basis of a score obtained on a set of dimensions which also include quality of products and services, corporate conduct, working environment, ethics and performance.

The 2026 ranking shows growth in average scores for the third consecutive year, but above all very strong movements between companies.

Some historic brands lose important positions:

• Disney dropped out of the top 100 after being in 2nd place in 2020
• Harley-Davidson fell to 41st place after five consecutive years in the top 10
• Spotify recorded the most marked decline (54 positions) stopping at 95th place

Among the companies that have recovered the most positions we find:

• Eli Lilly, +57 positions (42nd place)
• Deutsche Lufthansa, +50 positions (22nd place)
• Volvo Group, +47 positions (35th place)
• Siemens, +35 positions (28th place)

As many as 14 companies entered the top 100 for the first time, including:

• NVIDIA (14th place)
• Qatar Airways (62nd)
• Warner Bros. Discovery (73rd)

The most interesting fact that seems to emerge from these shifts is that corporate reputation today is no longer built by focusing on viral advertising but by creating a bond of trust with employees, customers, digital creators and online communities. But which companies do it best?

The top 10 of the best companies

1st. The LEGO Group

LEGO remains at the top of the 2026 ranking for the fifth consecutive year. Despite a slight decline in the score given to the quality of its products, it maintains the highest corporate reputation in the world. To understand its perceived value, even if you focus on the “high quality products and services” category, its reputation is very high, coming in seventh place behind a list of predominantly luxury brands (Rolex, Ferrari, Giorgio Armani, Mercedes-Benz, NVIDIA and Rolls-Royce).

Product excellence seems to be the main growth lever for its reputation for LEGO, which uses the strategy of planning new product launches and partnerships to reach new customers, then letting their communities build the brand’s reputation. The fans of the Danish brand in fact constitute a very broad ecosystem: not only children and families, but also adults, builders, educators and strong communities such as LEGO Ideas, who continue to support the company regardless of any product cycle.

For example, by integrating its brand into the Fortnite gaming platform, LEGO Fortnite has reached approximately 87 million players, creating a non-proprietary but spontaneous community. The Botanical Collection, however, also managed to reach adults interested in design. The cultural diffusion of the brand also takes place thanks to collaborations with authoritative brands, such as Adidas and Crocs.

2nd. Adidas

Adidas, on the other hand, is one of the most evident cases of recent growth in corporate reputation. Its improvement in the rankings is in fact linked above all to an improvement in scores in:

• ethics and business conduct
• working environment
• transparency in business

These dimensions tell us that reputation is also formed starting from how much the network of employees, collaborators and participants in cultural life indicates that the company is behaving ethically. But the real key factor is the cultural impact generated by users. Sneakers like the Samba and Gazelle have in fact become global trends not thanks to advertising, but to spontaneous adoption and user-generated social content.

To understand the extent of the impact of this strategy, we can think about the historic rivalry between Adidas and Nike. The direct comparison of the ranking positions of these two companies tells us that in 2024 they were almost on par (Adidas 16th, Nike 21st), then in 2025 only Adidas improved (Adidas 9th, Nike 22nd) and in 2026 the gap exploded, bringing Adidas to second place and Nike to fiftieth. And looking at the individual dimensions, the most significant difference concerns the role of the “ambassadors”, who increased the reputation of Adidas (+2 points) and decreased that of Nike (-1 point).

3rd. Samsung

Samsung also achieved an improvement in the rankings. With an increase of nine positions in just one year, she managed to reach the third step of the podium. In this case, however, the growth is due to a more generalized increase in the dimensions assessed.

4th. Rolex

Rolex maintains fourth place, indicating that the brand continues to represent stability, exclusivity and consistency, three fundamental elements in building long-term reputation.

5th. Sony

Sony remains among the most solid brands in the world, positioning itself in fifth place in the classic category thanks to the strength of its ecosystem between electronics, entertainment and technological innovation.

6th. Ferrari

For Ferrari, sixth place is confirmation. Its reputation is built on excellent product quality, performance, exclusivity and brand consistency. The Maranello brand therefore continues to represent a global symbol of innovation and prestige which also leads it to be the Italian company with the best reputation according to RepTrak.

7th. Mercedes-Benz

Mercedes-Benz ranks seventh. Being able to maintain a top position is given by the combination of automotive tradition and a strong push towards electrification and technological innovation.

8th. Levi-Strauss and co

The eighth position achieved by Levi Strauss & Co. tells us that this company continues to be one of the most solid brands in the fashion sector, thanks to its ability to maintain cultural relevance and historical identity.

9th. Barilla

The second Italian company in RepTrak’s top 10 is Barilla, which rises to ninth position. The brand has in fact gained 16 positions in one year and has confirmed itself for the third consecutive year as the first food company in the world in terms of reputation.

At the basis of this result is the evolution of its communication strategy, which went from addressing consumers directly to creating a community linked to the ritual of the meal itself. Furthermore, it has managed to intercept new trends and food cultures on a global level, thanks to the partnership with Formula 1, which has brought the value of Barilla conviviality even in the context of the highest motor sports competition. At a national level, however, solidarity campaigns with a high social impact such as Dynamo Camp and Doctors Without Borders, which have mobilized thousands of volunteers and involved tens of thousands of citizens, seem to have increased the link with the brand.

10th. Canon

Thanks to the tenth position, Canon remains among the most relevant companies in the ranking thanks to its solidity in the imaging sector and continuity in product quality, although without significant variations compared to its rapidly growing competitors.