1. Universal Music Publishing Group

Universal Music Publishing Group is the largest record label company in the world by 2018 revenue. It has managed to expand to the point of dominating a whopping 98% of the world’s music market, operating in 68 countries and claiming the title of market leader in most of its international markets. UMG also boasts a catalog of songs and other recordings that stretches back for over a century.

2. Sony Music Entertainment

With offices in more than 40 different countries around the globe and a dozen labels under its company umbrella, Sony Music Entertainment tends to organize its music into genre-specific labels for the sake of marketing.

3. Warner Music Group

The first of the “Big Three” record label conglomerates that sit at the peak of the industry, Warner Music Group was formerly part of Time Warner and wasn’t privatized until 2011. WMG employs over 3,500 people and operates in over 50 different countries around the world. After some struggles to adapt to the changing music industry, the label entered into publishing and recorded music deals with YouTube in order to keep up their profits.

4. Atlantic Records

The Atlantic Records label is best known for its strong focus on the genres of rock and roll, rhythm & blues, and jazz. It was founded by the Turkish-American songwriter and businessman Ahmet Ertegün along with record producer Herb Abramson. They signed with now-famous jazz artists such as Big Joe Turner and Ray Charles, which helped them recover from the financially-devastating strike of 1948.

5. Republic Records

Temporarily referred to as Universal Republic Records, Republic Records originally started out as a subsidiary of MCA’s Geffen Records before changing hands to Universal Records. The label has made a massive name for itself as a division of Universal Music Group, working with stars such as Florence + the Machine and Seth MacFarlane. Republic Records also encompasses other businesses such as Casablanca Records and American Recordings.

According to largest.org