Apple became the first company to exceed a $1 trillion market capitalization in August 2018.
Apple crossed the milestone on August 2, 2018, when its share price rose enough for the value of its outstanding shares to pass $1 trillion. The achievement made Apple a landmark in public-market history, although the precise value changed constantly with trading prices.
The milestone followed years of growth in the iPhone business and expanding revenue from services and other devices. Apple had also built a large installed base of customers using multiple products, which encouraged recurring purchases and service subscriptions. Investors therefore evaluated the company as an ecosystem rather than only as a phone maker.
A market-cap milestone is not an official prize and does not mean Apple held $1 trillion in cash. It is an equity valuation calculated from shares outstanding multiplied by the market price. Apple later crossed $2 trillion in 2020 and briefly reached $3 trillion intraday in 2022.