Houston earns No. 3 spot among cities with most Fortune 500 headquarters

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Twenty-six Houston-area companies landed on the latest Fortune 500 list. Photo via Getty Images

Houston maintained its No. 3 status this year among U.S. metro areas with the most Fortune 500 headquarters. Fortune magazine tallied 26 Fortune 500 headquarters in the Houston area, behind only the New York City area (62) and the Chicago area (30).

Last year, 23 Houston-area companies landed on the Fortune 500 list. Fortune bases the list on revenue that a public or private company earns during its 2024 budget year.

On the Fortune 500 list for 2025, Spring-based ExxonMobil remained the highest-ranked company based in the Houston area as well as in Texas, sitting at No. 8 nationally. That’s down one spot from its No. 7 perch on the 2024 list. During its 2024 budget year, ExxonMobil reported revenue of $349.6 billion, up from $344.6 billion the previous year.

Here are the rankings and 2024 revenue for the 25 other Houston-area companies that made this year’s Fortune 500:

No. 16 Chevron, $202.8 billion
No. 28 Phillips 66, $145.5 billion
No. 56 Sysco, $78.8 billion
No. 75 Conoco Phillips, $56.9 million
No. 78 Enterprise Products Partners, $56.2 billion
No. 92 Plains GP Holdings, $50 billion
No. 143 Hewlett-Packard Enterprise, $30.1 billion
No. 153 NRG Energy, $28.1 billion
No. 155 Baker Hughes, $27.8 billion
No. 159 Occidental Petroleum, $26.9 billion
No. 183 EOG Resources, $23.7 billion
No. 184 Quanta Services, $23.7 billion
No. 194 Halliburton, $23 billion
No. 197 Waste Management, $22.1 billion
No. 214 Group 1 Automotive, $19.9 billion
No. 224 Corebridge Financial, $18.8 billion
No. 256 Targa Resources, $16.4 billion
No. 275 Cheniere Energy, $15.7 billion
No. 289 Kinder Morgan, $15.1 billion
No. 345 Westlake Corp., $12.1 billion
No. 422 APA, $9.7 billion
No. 443 NOV, $8.9 billion
No. 450 CenterPoint Energy, $8.6 billion
No. 474 Par Pacific Holdings, $8 billion
No. 480 KBR Inc., $7.7 billion

Nationally, the top five Fortune 500 companies are:

Walmart
Amazon
UnitedHealth Group
Apple
CVS Health

“The Fortune 500 is a literal roadmap to the rise and fall of markets, a reliable playbook of the world's most important regions, services, and products, and an indispensable roster of those companies' dynamic leaders,” Anastasia Nyrkovskaya, CEO of Fortune Media, said in a news release.

Among the states, Texas ranks second for the number of Fortune 500 headquarters (54), preceded by California (58) and followed by New York (53).

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These Houston energy companies have made it on the list of top employers. Photo via Getty Images

Houston-based energy companies hailed best places to work by U.S. News

Top cos.

More than a dozen Houston-based companies are sharing the spotlight in U.S. News and World Report's collection of the "Best Companies to Work For" in 2024-2025, including several of the Bayou City’s energy companies.

The annual report examines publicly-traded companies around the world to determine the best employers based on six metrics including work-life balance and flexibility; quality of pay and benefits; job and company stability; career opportunities and professional development; and more. The companies were not ranked, but included based on reader surveys and publicly available data about each workplace.

New for the 2024-2025 report, U.S. News analyzed 549 companies across 29 different lists, including the overall best companies list — which includes the best 300 companies across the U.S., the United Kingdom, Ireland, Switzerland, Luxembourg, and Bermuda — 24 industry-specific lists, and four regional lists.

There were 16 total companies based around Houston that made the lists, with the majority being based in the city, while one each were located in Spring and The Woodlands.

Independent energy company Marathon Oil was the top-rated Houston energy employer, with nearly 1,700 employees, an annual revenue stream of $6.38 billion, and a $15.4 billion market cap. The company was specifically highlighted with a "Top Quality of Pay" label, but also boasts high ratings for its employees' work-life balance, job stability, and belongingness.

In addition to being included in the overall "Best Companies" list, Marathon Oil earned recognition in the industry-specific "Best in Energy" list and the "Best Companies in the South" list.

A second Houston-based energy company earning a spot among the top employers is Occidental (also known as Oxy). The petroleum corporation, which has been in operation since 1920, has nearly 12,600 employees and brings in $27,43 billion in revenue every year.

According to U.S. News, Occidental offers many financial, health and wellness, and workplace benefits including 401k matching, tuition assistance, an employee assistance program, flexible work arrangements, and much more. The company was also given a "Top Quality of Pay" designation.

Occidental appeared in U.S. News' "Best in Mining and Raw Materials," the overall "Best Companies," and "Best Companies in the South" lists.

The other top energy employers include:

Southwestern Energy Company, Spring – Best in Energy; Best Companies (overall); Best Companies in the South
ConocoPhillips – Best in Energy, Best Companies in the South
Cheniere – Best in Energy
EOG Resources – Best in Energy
Murphy Oil Corporation – Best in Energy

"Prospective and current employees understand the significant impact their employer has on their quality of life," said Carly Chase, vice president of careers at U.S. News and World Report, in a release. "Whether a new grad seeking a company to launch their career, an established professional looking for a change or an HR professional researching the strengths of their company and others, Best Companies to Work For provides a central space to see which companies are meeting their employees' needs best.
The full list of the best companies to work for can be found at usnews.com

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This article originally ran on CultureMap.

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Houston scientists unveil faster, low-energy method to recycle lithium-ion batteries

Battery breakthrough

Rice University researchers have uncovered a more energy-efficient and faster way to recycle critical minerals from used lithium-ion batteries.

Traditional methods rely on high heat, long processing times and harsh chemicals to recover a small fraction of critical materials from batteries used in everything from smartphones to electric vehicles. However, the team from Rice's Department of Materials Science and Nanoengineering developed a process that uses a water-based solution containing amino chlorides to extract more metals in less time

The team published the findings in a recent edition of the scientific journal Small.

Simon King, a sophomore studying chemical and biomolecular engineering who completed this work as a summer research fellow at the Rice Advanced Materials Institute, served as first author of the study. He worked with corresponding authors Pulickel Ajayan, the Benjamin M. and Mary Greenwood Anderson Professor of Engineering, and Sohini Bhattacharyya, a research scientist in Ajayan’s lab.

By using a hydroxylammonium chloride (HACI) solution, the team achieved roughly 65 percent extraction of key battery metals in just one minute at room temperature, according to the study. The efficiencies grew to roughly 75 percent for several metals under longer processing times.

“We were surprised by just how fast the reaction occurs, especially without the involvement of high temperatures,” King said in a news release. “Within the first minute, we’re already seeing the majority of the metal extraction take place.”

By not requiring high temperatures or long reaction times, Rice predicts the process could have a major impact on cost and the environmental impact of lithium battery recycling. Additionally, the water-based HACI solution makes waste handling easier and lowers certain environmental risks.

In addition to extracting the materials, the team went on to demonstrate that the recovered metals could be recycled and reprocessed into new battery materials.

“A big advantage of this system is that it works under relatively mild conditions,” Ajayan added in the release. “That opens the door to more sustainable and scalable recycling technologies.”

Fervo IPO leads Houston energy transition headlines for April

Hot Topics

Editor's note: The top Houston energy transition news of the month includes Fervo's official steps towards an IPO and Houston universities teaming up for recycling innovation. Below are the five most-read EnergyCapital stories published April 16-30, 2026:

Fervo Energy officially files for initial public offering

Fervo Energy has officially filed for IPO. The Houston-based geothermal unicorn filed a registration statement on Form S-1 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on April 17 to list its Class A common stock on the Nasdaq exchange. Fervo intends to be listed under the ticker symbol "FRVO." Continue reading.

Fervo Energy adds former eBay CEO Meg Whitman, other leaders to board

As it prepares for a highly anticipated IPO, Houston-based geothermal power provider Fervo Energy has added four heavyweights to its board of directors. The most notable new board member is Meg Whitman, former CEO of eBay, Hewlett-Packard, and Spring-based HPE, and former U.S. ambassador to Kenya. She joined the Fervo board as lead independent director. Continue reading.

Tesla's EV Robotaxis officially launch in Texas' largest metros

Tesla’s Robotaxi service has taken to the streets of Houston. In a brief statement Saturday, April 18 on its X social media account, Tesla Robotaxi says the autonomous rideshare service just launched in Texas’ two biggest metro areas — Houston and Dallas. Continue reading.

Halliburton Labs names 4 new clean energy startups to incubator

Four new companies have joined Halliburton Labs, the incubator for early-stage energy and climate startups run by Houston energy giant Halliburton. Halliburton Labs provides the emerging companies with mentorship, industry connections, laboratory access and other resources as they work toward commercialization. Continue reading.

Rice, UH launch joint effort to accelerate plastics recycling solutions

Institutes at two Houston universities are joining forces to help position the city as a global leader in plastics recycling innovation. The Center for Energy Studies (CES) at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy and the University of Houston’s Energy Transition Institute (UH-ETI) have announced a strategic partnership that aims to develop real-world solutions for plastic recycling. Continue reading.

Houston-area plastics company debuts state-of-the-art headquarters

new hq

Ultra-high-performance plastics company Drake Plastics officially opened its new state-of-the-art, 140,000-square-foot manufacturing center and corporate office in Cypress last month.

Dubbed “Drake HQ, ” the new facility was built to align with Harris County’s clean energy goals and features a 1.3-megawatt solar generation plant designed to offset 50 percent of the plant’s power consumption.

The facility is designed as a “factory ranch,” and is intended to blend in with its natural surroundings. With the expanded campus, Drake says it looks to serve existing and new customers in the semiconductor, aerospace, energy and defense industries.

The new headquarters is designed as a "factory ranch" and features a solar generation plant to offset half of its power consumption. Photo via LinkedIn

“We are thrilled to open the doors of our new headquarters in the area where it all began,” Drake Plastics President Steven Quance said in a news release. “We are honored to have reinvested in the community that has supported our growth and success over the past three decades.”

Drake Plastics cut the ribbon on March 26 at the new facility, which also marked the company’s 30th anniversary in the Cypress area. The company launched in 1996 with four employees and has grown to employ more than 100 staff members, according to a LinkedIn post.

Drake Plastics is a globally recognized leader in ultra-high-performance polymer manufacturing and specializes in extrusion, injection molding, precision machining, machine building, engineering and distribution. According to the company, its new Cypress facilty is one of the largest in the world that processes these high-performance polymers.

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