Global net sales of the leading 50 FMCG companies 2023

The ranking shows the leading FMCG companies worldwide in 2023, based on generated net sales. In that year, Unilever was ranked as the sixth largest consumer goods company worldwide with net sales of about 63.29 billion U.S. dollars.

The consumer goods industry

Consumer goods are goods which are intended for everyday private consumption. They are further classified as fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) and slow moving consumer goods (SMCG). FMCG are goods with a lifespan shorter than a year. Popular categories include food and beverages, personal care and household products, clothing and apparel, tobacco, and pet food/pet care. These categories are bought quite frequently with recurring expenditure. In contrast to SMCG, the products tend to be sold high in volume, but low in cost. FMCG are also known as Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG).

FMCG companies

The FMCG environment is highly competitive as FMCG companies are always on the hunt for the next great product discovery or innovation in order to meet consumer’s needs. Some of the leading key players of the FMCG environment include Nestlé, Procter & Gamble (P&G), Unilever, PepsiCo and the Coca-Cola Company. All of them operate internationally and have to try to meet country-specific requirements regarding product packaging and labeling. Their million dollar brands can be found in many household pantries. In order to keep consumers as regular buyers, CPG companies try to develop loyalty and trust towards their brands. Ariel, Gillette, Pampers and Pantene are considered to be among the most famous brands of P&G.