New Brand Finance data shows the sector’s collective brand value stands at $575.4 billion
TOKYO, 24 April 2026 – Toyota (brand value down 3% to USD62.7 billion) retains its position as both the most valuable and strongest automobile brand globally for the second consecutive year, according to the Automotive Industry 2026 report from Brand Finance, the world's leading brand valuation consultancy.
With a Brand Strength Index (BSI) score of 92.5/100 and an AAA+ rating, the highest accolade for brand strength awarded by Brand Finance, Toyota continues to benefit from high visibility, strong familiarity, and a reputation for reliability across key markets including Japan, China, India, Malaysia, Singapore, France, Spain, Norway, Denmark, and Australia. Its sustained global sales performance, particularly in hybrid models, alongside a focus on operational efficiency, underpins its resilience.
This performance comes amid a broader slowdown in the global automobile sector. The industry recorded consecutive declines, falling 1% in 2025 and a further 7% in 2026, with its collective brand value now standing at USD575.4 billion.
While electric vehicle (EV) adoption continued to rise globally, growth was slower than anticipated. Concerns around charging infrastructure, battery durability, and upfront costs have tempered consumer confidence. At the same time, manufacturers that invested aggressively in electrification are facing excess inventories and margin compression, highlighting a widening gap between policy ambition and near-term market readiness.
Alex Haigh, Global Sector Head of Automotive Industries, Brand Finance, commented:
“Toyota’s continued leadership reflects the strength of a disciplined and diversified strategy at a time when the global automotive sector is undergoing significant transition. While many manufacturers are navigating the challenges of rapid electrification, Toyota’s focus on hybrids and operational efficiency has enabled it to sustain both brand value and brand strength. This highlights that resilience in today’s market is not just about innovation, but also about timing, execution, and maintaining consumer trust.”
Meanwhile, Honda (brand value down 3% to USD27.5 billion) retained its ranking as seventh most valuable automobile brand, the top 10, with a stable mix of SUVs and electrified model sales supporting performance. Slower demand in select markets such as US, along with currency and cost pressures, moderated growth but the brand remained resilient in China.
Despite maintaining a lead among the world’s top 20 automobile brands, Lexus, Nissan, and Subaru recorded declines in their brand value this year, reflecting mounting structural and market pressures across the sector.
Lexus (brand value down 15% to USD8.6 billion) has been impacted by softening demand in the global luxury car segment, alongside a faster-than-expected shift towards electric vehicles. Ongoing semiconductor constraints have also disrupted production, while evolving consumer expectations in the premium EV space have intensified competitive pressure.
Nissan (brand value down 16% to USD8.6 billion) faces heightened competition, particularly from Chinese automakers and new EV entrants, leading to increased reliance on incentives and margin pressure. External headwinds, including US tariffs and unfavourable foreign exchange movements, have further weighed on performance. Brand strength has also weakened across key markets, particularly in China, where perceptions of credibility and price acceptance have declined amid a relatively slow EV transition and an ageing product lineup.
Subaru (brand value down 13% to USD5.4 billion) continues to navigate a challenging operating environment marked by tariff pressures, declining overseas sales volumes, and higher incentive spending, particularly in the US. Unfavourable currency movements and a slower shift towards electrification have further constrained growth. In its home market of Japan, brand strength has softened due to weaker perceptions of credibility and price competitiveness, alongside a less compelling product pipeline compared to domestic peers.
Beyond vehicle manufacturers, Brand Finance also released new insights into the auto components sector, where Denso (brand value down 7% to USD5.5 billion) ranked third, reflecting headwinds from high exposure to EV-related components at a time of slower-than-expected EV production growth. Delayed volume ramp-ups, intensified OEM cost-down pressure, and weaker demand in Europe and North America, combined with intense pricing competition in China, weighed on average selling prices and constrained brand value performance.
Three other leading Japanese auto component brands, Toyota Industries (brand value down 1% to USD3.8 billion), Sumitomo Electric Industries (brand value down 3% to USD2.4 billion) and Aisin (brand value up 1% to USD2 billion) ranked fourth, seventh and 10th in the sector.
Brand Finance is the world’s leading brand valuation consultancy. Bridging the gap between marketing and finance, Brand Finance evaluates the strength of brands and quantifies their financial value to help organisations make strategic decisions.
Headquartered in London, Brand Finance operates in over 25 countries. Every year, Brand Finance conducts more than 6,000 brand valuations, supported by original market research, and publishes over 100 reports which rank brands across all sectors and countries.
Brand Finance also operates the Global Brand Equity Monitor, conducting original market research annually on 6,000 brands, surveying more than 175,000 respondents across 41 countries and 31 industry sectors. By combining perceptual data from the Global Brand Equity Monitor with data from its valuation database — the largest brand value database in the world — Brand Finance equips ambitious brand leaders with the data, analytics, and the strategic guidance they need to enhance brand and business value.
In addition to calculating brand value, Brand Finance also determines the relative strength of brands through a balanced scorecard of metrics, compliant with ISO 20671.
Brand Finance is a regulated accountancy firm and a committed leader in the standardisation of the brand valuation industry. Brand Finance was the first to be certified by independent auditors as compliant with both ISO 10668 and ISO 20671 and has received the official endorsement of the Marketing Accountability Standards Board (MASB) in the United States.
Brand is defined as a marketing-related intangible asset including, but not limited to, names, terms, signs, symbols, logos, and designs, intended to identify goods, services, or entities, creating distinctive images and associations in the minds of stakeholders, thereby generating economic benefits.
Brand strength is the efficacy of a brand’s performance on intangible measures relative to its competitors. Brand Finance evaluates brand strength in a process compliant with ISO 20671, looking at Marketing Investment, Stakeholder Equity, and the impact of those on Business Performance. The data used is derived from Brand Finance’s proprietary market research programme and from publicly available sources.
Each brand is assigned a Brand Strength Index (BSI) score out of 100, which feeds into the brand value calculation. Based on the score, each brand is assigned a corresponding Brand Rating up to AAA+ in a format similar to a credit rating.
Brand Finance calculates the values of brands in its rankings using the Royalty Relief approach – a brand valuation method compliant with the industry standards set in ISO 10668. It involves estimating the likely future revenues that are attributable to a brand by calculating a royalty rate that would be charged for its use, to arrive at a ‘brand value’ understood as a net economic benefit that a brand owner would achieve by licensing the brand in the open market.
The steps in this process are as follows:
1 Calculate brand strength using a balanced scorecard of metrics assessing Marketing Investment, Stakeholder Equity, and Business Performance. Brand strength is expressed as a Brand Strength Index (BSI) score on a scale of 0 to 100.
2 Determine royalty range for each industry, reflecting the importance of brand to purchasing decisions. In luxury, the maximum percentage is high, while in extractive industry, where goods are often commoditised, it is lower. This is done by reviewing comparable licensing agreements sourced from Brand Finance’s extensive database.
3 Calculate royalty rate. The BSI score is applied to the royalty range to arrive at a royalty rate. For example, if the royalty range in a sector is 0-5% and a brand has a BSI score of 80 out of 100, then an appropriate royalty rate for the use of this brand in the given sector will be 4%.
4 Determine brand-specific revenues by estimating a proportion of parent company revenues attributable to a brand.
5 Determine forecast revenues using a function of historic revenues, equity analyst forecasts, and economic growth rates.
6 Apply the royalty rate to the forecast revenues to derive brand revenues.
7 Discount post-tax brand revenues to a net present value which equals the brand value.
Brand Finance has produced this study with an independent and unbiased analysis. The values derived and opinions presented in this study are based on publicly available information and certain assumptions that Brand Finance used where such data was deficient or unclear. Brand Finance accepts no responsibility and will not be liable in the event that the publicly available information relied upon is subsequently found to be inaccurate. The opinions and financial analysis expressed in the study are not to be construed as providing investment or business advice. Brand Finance does not intend the study to be relied upon for any reason and excludes all liability to any body, government, or organisation.
The data presented in this study form part of Brand Finance's proprietary database, are provided for the benefit of the media, and are not to be used in part or in full for any commercial or technical purpose without written permission from Brand Finance.
