Top 5 Bmw Competitors In 2023

Bayerische Motoren Werke AG, or better known as BMW, is a German multinational luxury car company. Founded in 1916 as an aircraft engine manufacturer, it later on became the automobile manufacturer that everyone knows and loves in 1928. As of 2019, the German company generated over US$118 billion in total revenue. In the same year, BMW held the 53rd rank in the Fortune 500 list of companies listed by highest revenue.

COMPANY NAME	BMW
FOUNDED	1916
HEADQUARTERS	Munich, Germany
SIC CODE	3999
STATUS	Public
INDUSTRY SECTOR	Automotive
EMPLOYEES	134,000
TRADING SYMBOL	BMW

BMW’s similar companies:

Mercedes-Benz USA, Porsche, Audi, Lexus, Volkswagen, General Motors and Fiat .

How the company makes money

The German car company has an amazing reputation for producing fancy and luxurious cards. Although BMW is one of the more expensive car brands, they make up for it in the quality of their cars. With a workforce of over 134,000 employees and an impressive 4,400 dealerships worldwide, BMW has one of the best employee to dealership ratio. The German company also sells most of its cars to China, about 28% of their products are bought by Chinese consumers.

Automotive

The automotive industry is one of the most well-known business sectors in the world. As of 2019 there was an estimated number of 1.4 billion cars on the road worldwide. The global automotive industry generated over US$500 billion in GDP for the United States alone, which is only 2.5% compared to the worldwide GDP value of US$20 trillion. 

BMW’s high-quality vehicles have always been one of their best selling points. Their reputation for quality is among the best, however, the BMW brand is often what sells the vehicles. BMW is a bold and well-known brand, and their cars and motorcycles carry with them the class, finesse, and performance of pristine German engineering. 

Mercedes-Benz

Mercedes-Benz is a German global luxury automobile company that was founded in 1926 by Karl Benz, the man who was also responsible for creating the Benz Patent Motorwagen which is regarded as the first-ever automobile. The German company earned over US$195 billion in 2019 and was one of the best performing car companies in the world.

The German company also employs an impressive workforce of over 152,000 employees and has dealerships in over 17 countries. With over 6 global factories, Mercedes-Benz produced and had sold over 2.3 million vehicles in 2019. 

Both Mercedes and BMW have cars that stand out from the crowd. Mercedes-Benz generally has finer and more luxurious interiors, but where BMW  stands out more is with their bigger cars and generally cheaper prices. 

Volkswagen

The German manufacturer of luxury cars, Volkswagen is an automaking company based in Wolfsburg, Germany. The German Labor Front founded the company in 1937 and was immediately greeted with success when their cars were praised for durability and style. Volkswagen generated more than US$290 billion in 2019.

What makes Volkswagen a worthy competitor is their ownership of multiple luxury car brands like Bentley. Volkswagen also makes pretty luxurious vehicles and can be bought in price ranges between the middle to upper-class. Their reputable german engineering and portfolio of multiple car brands make them a powerhouse in the car industry.

Volkswagen is the biggest fish in the global automaking industry, but BMW does have its moments. Despite Volkswagen being a good brand it is far from a luxury vehicle, and as for its subsidiaries none of them can really match the revenue that BMW is putting on the table. 

General Motors

General Motors Company, General Motors, or GM is an American multinational automaking corporation that was founded in 1908 by William C. Durant and Charles Stewart Mott. The American corporation is one of the biggest American car companies and ranks the 13th on the Fortune 500 list. 

As of 2019 the company generated more than US$137 billion in total revenue and produced more than 7.7 million vehicles worldwide. General Motors also owns other luxury car brands like Chevrolet, GMC, Cadillac, Baojun, and Holden. The American company has an impressive workforce of more than 164,000 employees.

One of BMW’s biggest luxury car brand rivals by production rival is General Motors. However, despite having almost more than three times the cars produced by BMW, General Motors’ total luxury car revenue is still far beyond that of BMW’s. 

Audi

Founded in 1910 by when automobile companies Wanderer and NSU merged into Audi, the German company that is also known as Automobilwerke GmbH Zwickau. The German manufacturer specializes in designing and marketing luxury vehicles. Although Audio is a subsidiary of Volkswagen, the company’s reputation and performance cannot be understated.

In 2019, Audi produced and sold more than 1.8 million luxury cars worldwide. The German company has an impressive workforce of 91,000 employees and over 11 facilities in 9 different countries. Audi’s quality and performance are top-quality, their leather interiors feel regal and the technology that comes with it is top of the line.

Audi has a lot of assets and great performing vehicles, with a famous reputation that helps new consumers feel intrigued about their product as well! However, in comparison to BMW their sales are still short, but if BMW wants to stay ahead they’ll have to make sure Audi doesn’t overtake them.

Porsche 

Dr.-Lng. H.c. F. Porsche AG, or as everyone agrees is better known as Porsche, is a German automobile manufacturer that specializes in high-performance luxury vehicles. The German company designs and manufactures sports cars, SUVs, Sedans, and more. Porsche was founded in 1931 by Ferdinand Porsche.

The German company generated an estimated US$30 billion in 2019. With a labor force of over 30,000 employees, Porsche is one of the highest performing cars in number of employees to total revenue ratio. The German company only manufactured about 280,000 vehicles in 2019, most of which were SUVs.

Porsche is one of the greatest luxury companies and is a millennial goldmine. The younger generation is fixated with Porsches as a status symbol of wealth. Despite being the focal point of millennial influencer culture, BMW still outperforms Porsche by a huge margin and has made and sold more cars in the past year.

Conclusion

The top 5 BMW direct competitors are: Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen, General Motors, Audi, and Porsche. Together these companies employ 1.1 million people worldwide, with BMW employing only 304 thousand people and ranked 1st among BMW’s Top 5 competitors in total revenue. The top 5 competitors average about 222 thousand employees. 

COMPETITORS STATS

NAME	FOUNDED	HEADQUARTERS	NO. OF EMPLOYEES
Mercedes-Benz	1926	Stuttgart, Germany	152,000
Volkswagen	1937	Wolfsburg, Germany	304,000
General Motors	1908	Detroit, Michigan, U.S.	164,000
Audi	1910	Ingolstadt, Germany	91,000
Porsche	1931	Stuttgart, Germany	24,000