Another month has passed, and we are back with a new top 100 most popular Fortune 500 websites and how they performed in February 2021!
In this report, we take a look at the largest most prolific companies out there and how they progressed during February compared to the previous month. More specifically, we tap into how the websites compete in this ever-changing environment, and if there are any changes in their scores.
Every month we will update this report with an overview of the performance results of each website, what their new score is, and how it changed compared to last month.
Also, using the reports generated by our website analysis tool, we calculate key factors that affect user experience and directly impact online performance, such as average page loading time and mobile compatibility scores, or if they are using a multiple languages option to ensure they reach all of their potential markets.
Let’s dive in!
Key take-aways in February 2021
Top 3 Fortune 500 Websites
This month, we see Merk and Wells Fargo once more in the top three websites, however, Continental – the third contender from last month – has been pushed aside to make way for a new contender, Prudential Financial.
Merk from the Health Care industry takes the lead this month and we see an increase in their score from 85 in January to 88 in February. The website has also recorded a perfect score of 100% in Mobile compatibility and an impressive loading time of 0.19s – a bit slower compared to the 0.14s recorder last month.
Very close by, we see Wells Fargo take second place with an identical score of 88. Wells Fargo has lost its first places streak mostly due to their slower loading speed, which was 0.7s this month, compared to 0.41s last month. But we also see a decrease in their score, as in January they recorded 91 points.
And in third place, we now see Prudential Financial, an insurance company from the Business sector, who also recorded 88 points, just like the first and second contenders, and to make the competition even more fierce, Wells Fargo took second by only 0.01s in loading speed, as Prudential Financial recorded an extremely close speed of 0.71s.
Top 3 Sectors
As usual, just because the top perrfomers come from the Financial, Business Services and Health Care sectors, it does not mean that these are indeed also the best performing scores. In fact, our data shows that the top performer is still the Media sector, which took the lead this month with a score of 69.33.
Once more we see a drop in the overall score compared to the 70.33 points recorded in January. However, we do see an improvement in the average loading speed recorded this month of 0.54s compared to 0.63s last month.
Second place in February goes to Health Care, moving them one place up compared to last month. But once more, there is a decrease in both the sector’s score as well as the average loading speed, as Health Care registered 68.52 points this month and an average loading speed of 0.65, compared to the 70.21 score and 0.62s registered in January.
Last but not least, in third place we see the Food, Beverages, Tobacco & Drug stores sector with an overall score of 67.24 and an average speed of 1.24s. As this sector is new to our top three, it will be interesting to see if it will maintain its position for the months to come, or it will be pushed aside by a more competitive sector.
All we can say for now is that the Technology sector threatens to steal the third place, as this month it registered a very close 67.10 score and a slightly better loading speed of 0.96s. Will it step up next month or will it lag behind again? Only time can tell.
Top 3 Insights
When competing with such strongly established websites such as the Fortune 500 ones, you need to be on top of your game. We are talking about the best score you can achieve, the fastest speeds, and the best reach. So do the rest of us stand a chance?
1. Scores are still surprisingly low – only 64.36 this month compared to 64.58 last month – a slight improvement, but we all stand a clear chance!
February has brought a very slight improvement in the Fortune 500 scores, which this month registered 64.36 compared to last month’s 64.58. At first, this change might seem barely worth mentioning, but considering that we are looking at 500 different websites, from different sectors, different markets, cultures, and so on, it’s still an improvement.
Moreover, no website can change overnight, improving a website’s score takes a lot of time and dedication. So, the fact that there is an improvement only shows that the Fortune 500 website owners are not neglecting their platforms, and nor should you.
Also, keep in mind that indicators such as loading time, mobile compatibility, mobile performance are crucial to determining a website’s score. So even a small change like optimizing your media and boosting your page speed a bit is enough to increase your chances for a better score.
2. Loading times keep going down from an average speed of 0.89s in January to 1.21s in February
Based on our results, the average loading time within Fortune 500 companies went down again this month from 0.89s to 1.21s. This is still under the 2s recommended by Google for websites. But at the same time, this should motivate you even more!
Yes, 1.21s is still impressive, but it’s not impossible to match.
Remember how many factors come into play when calculating the loading times of a web page – page speed – both on mobile and desktop devices, page size, text to HTML ratio, server location, media and media optimization, dependencies and third-party services, and so many more others. There are so many ways you can optimize your website and improve your own score.
Another interesting note is how all of the markets perform so differently from one another. For example, in the Fortune 500 list, the Apparel sector is the slowest sector by far. However, in other markets such as the UK market or the Indian one is in the top fastest sectors on the list.
So while you may be competing with these websites, you may have to also consider the ones in your local market and how they perform.
3. Most websites use multiple languages – a high 72.4% – if you follow their example and use multiple languages, you can win
According to our report, the average amount of websites within the Fortune Top 500 that use multiple languages is 72.4%. In a world that is increasingly international, the number of websites that use multiple languages is not as high as expected.
However, keep in mind that many companies place all their focus on attracting mobile users to their independent mobile applications (which tend to use multiple languages) rather than the websites themselves.
This means that some of those companies within the report that do not use multiple languages might be currently working on doing so. Another reason could be that their target group simply speaks just one language, making it unnecessary to offer any other languages.
With these top 3 insights, we present a preview of the Fortune 500 list. To get the full report, simply click the button and enter your email and we will send the full report shortly after.
Rank | Company | URL | Current Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Prudential Financial | prudential.com | 88 |
| 2 | Wells Fargo | wellsfargo.com | 88 |
| 3 | Merck | merck.com | 88 |
| 4 | Continental | continental-corporation.com | 85 |
| 5 | Engie | engie.com | 85 |
| 6 | Bristol-Myers Squibb | bms.com | 85 |
| 7 | HSBC Holdings | hsbc.com | 85 |
| 8 | Barclays | home.barclays | 85 |
| 9 | Henan Energy & Chemical | hnecgc.com.cn | 84 |
| 10 | Danone | danone.com | 83 |
Rank | Company | URL | Current Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Prudential Financial | prudential.com | 88 |
| 2 | Wells Fargo | wellsfargo.com | 88 |
| 3 | Merck | merck.com | 88 |
| 4 | Continental | continental-corporation.com | 85 |
| 5 | Engie | engie.com | 85 |
| 6 | Bristol-Myers Squibb | bms.com | 85 |
| 7 | HSBC Holdings | hsbc.com | 85 |
| 8 | Barclays | home.barclays | 85 |
| 9 | Henan Energy & Chemical | hnecgc.com.cn | 84 |
| 10 | Danone | danone.com | 83 |
More reports
Top 100 Most Popular Websites (.com, .org, .net) in February 2021
