Many lists exist that provide an overview of large

software Software is a set of computer programs and associated documentation and data. This is in contrast to hardware, from which the system is built and which actually performs the work. At the lowest programming level, executable code consists ...

companies, often called "

independent software vendor An independent software vendor (ISV), also known as a software publisher, is an organization specializing in making and selling software, as opposed to computer hardware, designed for mass or niche markets. This is in contrast to in-house software, ...

s" ("ISVs"), in the world. The lists differ by

methodology In its most common sense, methodology is the study of research methods. However, the term can also refer to the methods themselves or to the philosophical discussion of associated background assumptions. A method is a structured procedure for bri ...

of composition and consequently show substantial differences in both

listed companies A public company is a company whose ownership is organized via shares of stock which are intended to be freely traded on a stock exchange or in over-the-counter markets. A public (publicly traded) company can be listed on a stock exchange (l ...

and ranking of those companies.

Legend

Forbes Global 2000

The Forbes Global 2000 is an annual ranking of the top 2000

public companies A public company is a company whose ownership is organized via shares of stock which are intended to be freely traded on a stock exchange or in over-the-counter markets. A public (publicly traded) company can be listed on a stock exchange (list ...

in the world by ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...

'' magazine, based on a mix of four metrics:

sales Sales are activities related to selling or the number of goods sold in a given targeted time period. The delivery of a service for a cost is also considered a sale. The seller, or the provider of the goods or services, completes a sale in r ...

, profit,

asset In financial accountancy, financial accounting, an asset is any resource owned or controlled by a business or an economic entity. It is anything (tangible or intangible) that can be used to produce positive economic value. Assets represent value ...

s and market value. The Forbes list for software companies includes only

pure play A pure play company focuses solely on a particular product or activity. Investing in a pure play company can be considered as investing in a particular commodity or product of a company. Pure play firms either specialize in a specific niche, or hav ...

(or nearly pure play) software companies and excludes manufacturers, consumer electronics companies, conglomerates, IT consulting firms, and computer services companies even if they have large software divisions. The top 44 companies in terms of market capitalization in the 2019 Forbes list for the "Software & Programming" industry are listed in the following table: All values listed in the table are in billion US$.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Software companies, largest * Lists of information technology companies Lists of companies by revenue Economy-related lists of superlatives

Legend

Forbes Global 2000

See also

References

External links