The oldest companies in the world are the brands and companies which remain operating (either in whole or in part) since inception, excluding associations and educational, government, or religious organizations.

Statistics

According to a report published by the Bank of Korea in 2008 that looked at 41 countries, there were 5,586 companies older than 200 years. Of these, 3,146 (56%) are in Japan, 837 (15%) in Germany, 222 (4%) in the Netherlands, and 196 (3%) in France. Of the companies with more than 100 years of history, most of them (89%) employ fewer than 300 people. A nationwide Japanese survey counted more than 21,000 companies older than 100 years as of September 30, 2009.

Founded before 1300

1300 to 1399

1400 to 1499

1500 to 1599

1600 to 1649

1650 to 1699