RESEARCH PUBLICATIONS

Top 100 software companies in the United States 2010
15 December 2010 , Written by Balder Verberne
Bookmark and Share
Largest software companies in USA
Rank Company Revenues
1 Microsoft 49,090
2 IBM 21,396
3 Oracle 18,582
4 HP 6,183
5 Symantec 5,565
Source: US Software Top 100

The largest software companies in the United States are Microsoft, IBM and Oracle. Together they also form the Top 3 software firms in the world. The ten largest software companies in the US made close to 120 billion USD revenues from software in 2009.

Microsoft is unrivaled as the largest software company in the list, raking in twice the software revenues of IBM. Oracle held on to its acquisitive strategy and strengthened its 3rd position. Oracle and CA were the only companies in the top 10 to increase software revenues in 2009. In the rest of the list, there are companies with impressive growth rates.

Fast growing US software companies

Fast growing software companies in USA
Rank Company Growth
1 Intel 67.8%
2 Salesforce.com 24.2%
3 McAfee 21.3%
4 Blackboard 20.8%
5 Rosetta Stone 20.3%
Source: US Software Top 100
Intel is the fastest growing software company in the United States. The processor-maker decided to go software a few years ago, and every year a software company is added to its ranks. Intels recent growth spurt can be attributed to the acquisition of Wind River, an embedded software gem that had been shining in several editions of the Software Top 100. The 2010 acquisition of anti-virus software maker McAfee will Intel into the Top 25 US Software makers. And as Intel continues to earn billions in free cashflows from its successful chip business, we predict more large acquisitions in the near future: with Intel's buying power, a Top 10 position is among the possibilities.

Salesforce.com has been one of the fastest growing software companies in the last 3 years. Now reaching over 1 billion USD software revenues, the company continues to show stellar performance, driven by its successful online business model. The online CRM company, that says it is not a software company but a services company, is now the 20th software company in the US.

Security software was one of the sectors that grew modestly in 2009, despite the economic downturn. McAfee managed to increase revenues with more than 20%, partly as a result of takeovers and partly organic. In 2009, the main acquisition concerned MX Logic, a deal worth 140 million USD. In August 2010 McAfee itself was acquired by Intel.

Blackboard and Rosetta Stone, both active in educational software were also among the fastest growing software companies last year. Blackboard went public in 2004 and has more than threefolded revenues since then by automating schools from front-end to back-end. Its stock price doubled, and Blackboard software is now used in 5,000 educational institutions worldwide.

Rosetta Stone makes world leading language learning software for 31 languages. The company went public on the NYSE in 2009. In 2010, Rossetta Stone expects revenues to increase with around 7%.

Red Hat is just outside the fast growth top 5, nevertheless the company showed strong growth of 18.3%. The world's largest Linux distributor in terms of revenues, and a leading open source company, Red Hat is now the 37th largest software company in the US.

Largest employers

Largest software employers in USA
Rank Company Employees
1 IBM 398,455
2 GE 300,000
3 HP 172,000
4 Emerson 140,000
5 Oracle 80,219
Source: US Software Top 100
Despite layoffs in the sector during the crisis, the technology companies are important employers. Four companies employ over 100,000 people worldwide. IBM leads the list, employing close to 400,000.

During the last three decades, the IT industry has been the fastest growing industry in terms of employee headcount, and IT jobs generally pay premium salaries as qualified IT personnel is hard to find. For those interested, a short list of software employers currently hiring can be found on our jobs page.

Outlook

Roughly 75% of the world's largest software companies have their roots in the United States. Although we expect the software industry in Europe and Asia to grow at a faster pace, this will not impact the hegemony of the US in the world of software, because the American giants have enough free cashflow to buy attractive fast-growing software companies in Europe and Asia, and pick up some US neighbours as well. That said, 2011 will be a year with many acquisitions.

The successes of Software-as-a-Service and Open Source software are likely to continue for many years ahead, giving momentum to the likes of Salesforce.com and Red Hat, and resulting in higher positions in the next edition of the US Software Top 100.

Links

The previous edition of the US Software Top 100.
The article accompanying the previous edition of the US Software Top 100.
 

LISTS AND RESEARCH

  • list Global Software Top 100 - Edition 2011
    • The Global Software Top 100 is a list of the world's largest software companies, ranked by annual software revenues. The list is based upon revenue information of 10,000+ IT companies worldwide.
  • Software industry trends (2011)
    • This research article (accompanying the Global Software Top 100) describes changes in the software industry playing field. It analyses trends and key players and forecasts future developments.
  • Top hardware companies
    • A list of the world's largest hardware companies.
  • What happens in the hardware industry?
    • Trends and analysis of the hardware industry and its key players.
  • Top IT services companies
    • A list of the world's largest IT services companies, ranked by annual services revenues. This link will take you to www.servicestop100.org.
  • IT services companies: healthy growth
    • What is happening in the IT services industry? Read this research publication to find out about trends and key players in the IT services industry.
  • Top gaming companies (2010)
    • Entertainment is good business, and gaming software companies are growing faster than the rest of the software industry. This research article discusses trends and key players in the gaming business.
  • Top ERP companies
    • A research publication about the world's leading players in enterprise software.
  • Top security software companies
    • A research publication discussing the world's leading publishers of security software: antivirus-, spamfiltering-, intrusion detection- and firewall software.
  • The fastest growing software companies
    • This research publication reveals the fastest growing software companies in the world.
  • CRM companies: a short list
    • A short list of the leading software companies selling Customer Relationship Management software; aimed at IT managers looking to purchase CRM software.
  • Top software companies in the US (2010)
    • A list of the largest software companies in the United States, ranked by annual software revenues. 2010 Edition, posted 15 December 2010.
  • U.S. software industry trends (2010)
    • A research publication discussing the trends and the key players in the software industry in the United States. Posted 15 December 2010.
  • Top companies in the world (not just software)
    • A general list of the largest companies in the world, ranked by revenues. Not just software companies; in fact, there are no software companies in it...
  • Top IT companies
    • A list of the largest IT companies in the world, ranked by annual revenues. Includes hardware, software and services.
More lists and research >

POPULAR NEWS

Go to news overview >

RECENT NEWS

Go to news overview >