Microsoft briefly overtook Apple as the world’s most valuable listed company in October 2021.
On October 29, 2021, Microsoft’s market capitalization briefly moved above Apple’s during trading. Investors were weighing strong demand for Microsoft’s cloud-computing products, especially Azure, while Apple faced supply-chain concerns affecting the iPhone and other devices.
Market-capitalization rankings can change even when neither company issues new shares. The calculation multiplies the share price by the number of shares outstanding, so daily movements in the stock market can alter the order of the world’s largest companies.
Microsoft and Apple later exchanged the top position several times. The episode should not be confused with Microsoft’s earlier rise during the personal-computer era or with later rankings in which Saudi Aramco, Alphabet or Nvidia occupied different positions.