Walmart is a corporate titan that looms large in the global economy. The retail behemoth has redefined the shopping experience for billions of consumers around the world with its "everyday low prices" and sheer scale. But just how big is Walmart compared to other major companies? Is it the biggest company in the world? The richest?
The answer depends on how you measure size and financial strength. By some metrics, Walmart is unrivaled. In others, it falls short of companies like Apple and Saudi Aramco. Let‘s take a closer look at the numbers behind the world‘s top companies.
Walmart‘s Staggering Scale
First, the raw data on Walmart‘s size is simply staggering:
- $572 billion in revenue in fiscal 2022, more than any other company in the world
- $13.7 billion in net profit in fiscal 2022
- 10,500 stores across 24 countries under 46 different banners
- 2.3 million employees globally, making it the largest private employer in the world
- Over 220 million customers served weekly
For a sense of scale, Walmart‘s annual revenue is greater than the GDP of all but 25 countries in the world. If Walmart were a country, it would rank just behind Poland and ahead of Sweden.
Walmart has achieved this incredible size through a relentless focus on offering the lowest possible prices on a huge assortment of products. By building the most efficient global supply chain and distribution network in retail, Walmart creates economies of scale that enable it to undercut rivals on price again and again.
This strategy has made Walmart the dominant retailer in most of the markets where it operates. In the U.S., Walmart captures 1 out of every 4 dollars spent on groceries. It‘s estimated that 90% of the U.S. population lives within 10 miles of a Walmart store.
Rivals in Revenue
While Walmart has been the world‘s largest company by revenue for most of the past two decades, it does have some close rivals. In fiscal 2022, Amazon nearly caught up to Walmart with $470 billion in net sales. Although most of Amazon‘s revenue still comes from retail, the tech giant is less dependent on consumer spending than Walmart, deriving a growing share of revenue from cloud computing services, advertising, and subscription services.
Other top companies by 2021 revenue include:
- State Grid (China) – $460 billion
- China National Petroleum – $412 billion
- Sinopec (China) – $402 billion
- Saudi Aramco – $400 billion
- Apple – $365 billion
As this list shows, massive state-owned oil & gas and utility companies in China give Walmart a run for its money in terms of sheer revenue. Tech giants like Apple are also in the same ballpark, albeit with very different business models and revenue mixes.
Trailing in Market Value
While Walmart may be the world‘s biggest company by revenue, it falls well short of the richest companies when ranked by market capitalization (the total value of a company‘s shares).
As of May 2022, the most valuable companies in the world by market cap are:
- Apple – $2.6 trillion
- Saudi Aramco – $2.4 trillion
- Microsoft – $2.0 trillion
- Alphabet (Google) – $1.5 trillion
- Amazon – $1.2 trillion
Walmart ranks just 13th with a market cap of around $400 billion. This reflects the fact that while Walmart‘s revenue is unmatched, its profit margins are much slimmer than the leading tech companies. Walmart‘s net profit margin is typically in the low single digits, while Apple, Microsoft and Google routinely post margins above 20%.
Investors are willing to pay a huge premium for tech companies‘ growth and profitability, even if their annual revenues are lower than Walmart‘s. With Walmart seen as a mature, slow-growth business, it trades at a much lower valuation.
Another way to appreciate the scale of today‘s tech giants is to note that Apple‘s $2.6 trillion market cap is larger than the annual GDP of all but 7 countries in the world (U.S., China, Japan, Germany, UK, France, and India).
Largest Employer
One area where Walmart is truly in a league of its own is employment. With 2.3 million employees worldwide (1.6 million in the U.S. alone), Walmart is far and away the biggest private employer on the planet. No other company comes close.
Walmart‘s workforce is so huge that it employs more people than the U.S. federal government (excluding the military). Walmart has more workers than the populations of some small countries like Latvia, Bahrain, and Iceland.
This makes Walmart a powerful economic engine, particularly in the small towns and rural areas where it is often the only major retailer and top employer for miles around. At the same time, Walmart‘s labor practices have often been criticized for low wages, inadequate benefits, and stifling local competitors.
Still, Walmart careers have been a path to the middle class for hundreds of thousands of Americans, especially those without a college degree. 75% of Walmart‘s U.S. store management started their careers in hourly positions. The company also employs an army of truck drivers, warehouse workers, and other roles that don‘t require higher education.
Long-Term Dominance
Walmart‘s rise to the top of the Fortune 500 reflects a decades-long growth story. Founded by Sam Walton in 1962, Walmart expanded rapidly in the 80s and 90s by blanketing the U.S. with supercenters that put everything from groceries to clothing to automotive services under one roof at cut-rate prices.
Walmart first passed ExxonMobil to become the biggest U.S. company by revenue in 2002. Aside from a few years when it briefly fell back to #2 behind the oil giant, Walmart has held the top spot ever since.
As Walmart saturated the U.S. market, it increasingly turned overseas for growth. The retailer now operates in 24 countries and gets 20% of its revenue from international operations. But this hasn‘t always gone smoothly – Walmart has retrenched from several big markets after struggling to adapt its model, including Germany and Korea.
To stay on top in the ecommerce era, Walmart is investing heavily to build out its online business and digital capabilities. Initiatives like free two-day shipping, in-store pickup for online orders, and the Walmart+ subscription service aim to counter Amazon‘s encroachment. Walmart‘s recent results show the strategy gaining traction, with U.S. ecommerce sales up 11% in Q4 2021.
Vulnerabilities and Risks
While Walmart has proven incredibly resilient over the decades, it does face some challenges and risks going forward:
Slim margins leave little room for error. Walmart‘s low-price model relies on immense volume to make up for paper-thin profit margins, meaning any slowdown in sales or rise in costs can quickly erode earnings.
Recession risk from economically-sensitive customer base. Many of Walmart‘s core customers live paycheck-to-paycheck, so spending can dry up fast when money gets tight. Walmart has weathered recessions before but its revenue and stock tends to be volatile through boom and bust cycles.
Geopolitical exposure to China. Walmart sources a huge amount of product from China, leaving it vulnerable to tariffs and trade tensions. It has reduced its China exposure but still indirectly relies on Chinese manufacturers via other Asian countries.
Increasing competition from Amazon. While Walmart is holding its own against the ecommerce giant so far, Amazon‘s growing market share, logistics prowess and sticky Prime membership program pose a serious long-term threat, especially as more shopping shifts online.
The Bottom Line
So where does Walmart rank in the pantheon of corporate giants? On the top line, it edges out all rivals as the biggest company in the world by a nose. Walmart‘s $572 billion in annual revenue makes it the king of the Fortune Global 500.
However, Walmart trails far behind the likes of Apple, Amazon, Google and other tech leaders when it comes to market value and profitability. These companies generate oceans of cash and carry much higher valuation multiples from investors betting on their future growth.
Still, Walmart‘s colossal economic footprint is undeniable. As the world‘s largest private employer and dominant retailer across a huge chunk of the global economy, Walmart is an incredibly powerful force shaping industries, communities and shopping behavior.
While the "retail apocalypse" has toppled many once-mighty store chains in recent years, Walmart‘s unique scale advantages, supply chain mastery and renewed focus on ecommerce innovation have allowed it to adapt and thrive in the age of Amazon.
Walmart may not be able to call itself the richest company, but its sheer size and impact earn it a place among the small handful of true corporate supertitans. The sun never sets on Sam Walton‘s empire.
