Fortune 500 is a term that has become synonymous with large corporations. Fortune magazine compiles the list of top corporations in the United States and then ranks them based on each company’s gross revenue. The Forbes 500 list, which is not quite as famous as the Fortune 500 to the average person but an important ranking to corporations, is based on revenues, income, and market capitalization. Sometimes references to the Fortune 100 are made. The Fortune 100 is simply the top 100 companies on the Fortune 500 list.

What Companies Make the List?

To be included in the Fortune 500 ranking, the company has to be a publicly traded company. Privately owned companies are not included. This is not meant to be a snub on the private companies or a statement that somehow they are less important. The Fortune 500 rankings are compiled from information that is public. Private companies are not required to release revenue information; however, publicly traded companies do have to share their revenue information, making it available to stockholders and anyone else interested viewing it.

Along with private companies, foreign-owned companies and foreign subsidiaries of companies are not included in this list. The Fortune 500 covers only American companies. There is a Global 500 listing that is published that ranks the 500 top corporations in the world, which includes American companies. Corporations from the United States dominate the Global 500.

Companies that have been at the top of the Fortune 500 for the last few years include Wal-Mart, General Motors, Ford Motor Company, Exxon Mobil, and General Electric.

Other Lists

Although the Fortune 500 shows a company’s ranking in the area that matters most to investors – revenue – there are other lists that are posted that deserve attention. Fortune creates an annual list of fastest growing companies, which allows savvy investors the opportunity to buy into a company while it is on an upward track. There are also lists of best companies to work for and most admired companies. The companies on the Fortune 500 list don’t always overlap with these two lists.