Microsoft briefly became the world’s most valuable publicly traded company in 2021, overtaking Apple.
Microsoft passed Apple by market capitalization in October 2021 after Apple reported supply constraints that affected its quarterly results. Microsoft’s shares were supported by demand for cloud computing, business software, and subscription products such as Microsoft 365.
The two companies had exchanged the top position before. Apple had become the dominant market-cap company during the smartphone era, while Microsoft’s transformation toward cloud services and recurring software subscriptions strengthened its growth profile.
A market-cap ranking is a snapshot, not a permanent title. Share prices can change independently in response to earnings, supply issues, interest rates, and investor expectations. Microsoft and Apple continued to alternate near the top of the global ranking after the 2021 episode.