Most popular brands in America

Written by:
September 1, 2020
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Most popular brands in America

The most popular brands in America are icons, household names, and reminders of childhood pleasures.

Like the quintessential American success story, many popular brands rose from humble beginnings, thanks to drive, hard work, and a bit of luck.

Black & Decker started out as a machine shop in Baltimore, and J.M. Smucker sold apple butter from a horse-drawn wagon. DoveBars debuted in a candy store on Chicago’s South Side. The founder of Lay’s sold potato chips from the back of his car while he traveled, and Milton Hershey peddled caramels from a pushcart.

Popular brand slogans have become part of the lexicon. People ask “Where’s the beef?” and know not to squeeze the Charmin. Products like Oreos and M&M’s have simply become universal favorites.

Many product-makers saw a real or perceived need and filled it. Lowe’s met the demand for home improvement goods as families bought homes and filled the suburbs after World War II. Procter & Gamble introduced Crest with fluoride to tackle widespread tooth decay, Listerine told the world about halitosis and offered a treatment, and Pringles addressed the issue of broken potato chips.

In recent months, household names Lysol and Clorox have battled to meet the extraordinary demand from customers anxious to stock up on disinfectant products to fight the spread of COVID-19.

To uncover the most popular brands in America, Stacker consulted YouGov polling data collected between May 2019 and May 2020. Each brand is ranked based on the weighted proportion of each American demographic with a positive opinion of the brand.

#100. Tylenol

- Positive opinion: 70%
- Negative opinion: 7%
- Neutral opinion: 20%
- Have heard of brand: 97%

Aspirin-free Tylenol was introduced in 1955 and the company now offers products for both adults and children. In 1982, Tylenol was the target of a tampering case in the Chicago area that killed seven people when it was determined the product had been laced with cyanide. Johnson & Johnson’s response is considered the gold standard in handling such a crisis. The company put out mass warnings, recalled more than 31 million bottles, offered replacement products and price cuts, and introduced the first tamper-proof packaging as well as a caplet version more resistant to tampering.

#99. Benadryl

- Positive opinion: 70%
- Negative opinion: 3%
- Neutral opinion: 22%
- Have heard of brand: 96%

Benadryl is Johnson & Johnson’s brand name for diphenhydramine hydrochloride, an over-the-counter antihistamine. It is popular for treating allergy symptoms like sneezing and itching.

#98. Advil

- Positive opinion: 70%
- Negative opinion: 5%
- Neutral opinion: 22%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

Advil is ibuprofen, a pain reliever, made by Pfizer Inc. used to treat headaches, toothaches, muscle aches, and similar problems. It was the top-selling brand-name analgesic last year in the United States.

#97. Bose

- Positive opinion: 70%
- Negative opinion: 3%
- Neutral opinion: 17%
- Have heard of brand: 91%

U.S.-based Bose Corp. makes audio equipment such as headphones, speakers, and home theater sound systems. In business since 1966, the company has a reputation for high-quality products.

#96. Black & Decker

- Positive opinion: 70%
- Negative opinion: 4%
- Neutral opinion: 20%
- Have heard of brand: 94%

Black+Decker specializes in power tools like home drills and sanders, lawn equipment like mowers and trimmers, and appliances like toasters and vacuums. The company began as a machine shop in Baltimore, opened in 1910 by Duncan Black and Alonzo Decker.

#95. Wendy's

- Positive opinion: 70%
- Negative opinion: 10%
- Neutral opinion: 19%
- Have heard of brand: 99%

Wendy’s founder Dave Thomas opened the company’s first restaurant in 1969 in Columbus, Ohio, and named it after his daughter. Its advertising campaign in the 1980s, featuring a customer looking at a competing company’s hamburger, popularized the phrase “Where’s the Beef?” and boosted company sales by a third.

#94. Visa

- Positive opinion: 70%
- Negative opinion: 6%
- Neutral opinion: 22%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

Bank of America launched the first consumer credit card with revolving credit in 1958, renam Visa in 1976. The company Visa Inc. was formed in 2007 and went public the following year. In 2019, some 345 million VISA cards were held in the United States, and another 797 million cards were in circulation in more than 200 other countries.

#93. Land O Lakes (butter)

- Positive opinion: 70%
- Negative opinion: 4%
- Neutral opinion: 20%
- Have heard of brand: 94%

Land O’Lakes started as a cooperative of dairy farmers in 1921 in St. Paul, Minnesota. It posted net sales last year of $13.9 billion. This year the company removed the image of an indigenous woman in a feathered headdress from its logo on packaging of its butter and other dairy products.

#92. Pringles

- Positive opinion: 70%
- Negative opinion: 10%
- Neutral opinion: 18%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

Pringles were introduced in 1967 by Procter & Gamble as potato chips that would not break or get crushed in a typical bag. Years of research went into designing Pringles’ shape and can, and more years were put into developing its flavor. Sales of Pringles picked up in the 1980s once the taste was perfected. The brand was sold to Kellogg’s in 2012 for $2.695 billion.

#91. Animal Planet

- Positive opinion: 70%
- Negative opinion: 4%
- Neutral opinion: 22%
- Have heard of brand: 97%

The cable network owned by Discovery Inc. brings viewers up close, dramatic, and heartwarming stories of wildlife. Shows follow the adventures of a Texas game warden, cat tamer Jackson Galaxy, rescued and rarely seen animals, and zoos behind the scenes. Its annual Puppy Bowl, starring pets who are up for adoption, runs on Super Bowl Sunday.

#90. Reese's Pieces

- Positive opinion: 70%
- Negative opinion: 9%
- Neutral opinion: 17%
- Have heard of brand: 97%

Reese’s Pieces were introduced in 1978 to capitalize on the popularity of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. Sales soared after the sugar-coated candies appeared in the 1982 film “E.T the Extra-Terrestrial” as a sweet used to lure the tiny alien indoors.

#89. Tostitos

- Positive opinion: 71%
- Negative opinion: 6%
- Neutral opinion: 21%
- Have heard of brand: 97%

Tostitos were introduced nationally in 1981 by Frito-Lay. The snack company has since come out with popular variations, including Tostitos Hint of Lime and Scoops!, which are designed for easy dipping.

#88. Ghirardelli

- Positive opinion: 71%
- Negative opinion: 3%
- Neutral opinion: 15%
- Have heard of brand: 88%

In 1852, Domingo Ghirardelli opened a candy store in San Francisco that would grow into today’s Ghirardelli Chocolate Co., which makes an array of sweet confections. The waterfront Ghirardelli Square, which features restaurants and shops, became an official city landmark in 1965.

#87. Whirlpool

- Positive opinion: 71%
- Negative opinion: 3%
- Neutral opinion: 22%
- Have heard of brand: 95%

Whirlpool founder Lou Upton bought the patent for a hand-washing machine from a failed business venture and in 1911, with his uncle Fred, patented a wringer washer driven by an electric motor. He and his family started the Upton Machine Co. to produce and sell the machines. The company made aircraft and tank parts during World War II, became Whirlpool Corp. in 1949, and developed food and waste management systems for U.S. space missions.

#86. Listerine

- Positive opinion: 71%
- Negative opinion: 5%
- Neutral opinion: 21%
- Have heard of brand: 96%

Listerine is named after English physician Joseph Lister, who pioneered the use of antiseptic spray to sterilize surgical equipment and operating rooms. A marketing campaign in the 1920s using the word “halitosis” as a condition that the antiseptic product could treat proved enormously successful. The campaign became a textbook case for using low-level fear to sell products.

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#85. Breyers

- Positive opinion: 71%
- Negative opinion: 5%
- Neutral opinion: 17%
- Have heard of brand: 93%

William Breyer started making ice cream in Philadelphia in 1866 and opened his first shop in 1882. The family company followed up in 1896 with its first wholesale manufacturing location. Unilever bought the ice cream business from Kraft in 1993.

#84. Chips Ahoy!

- Positive opinion: 71%
- Negative opinion: 8%
- Neutral opinion: 19%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

Nabisco’s Chips Ahoy! cookies were introduced in 1963. The advertising campaign claimed their taste was as good as homemade. The name is a reference to the “Ships ahoy!” alert used by sailors.

#83. Google

- Positive opinion: 71%
- Negative opinion: 13%
- Neutral opinion: 15%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

Two Stanford University students developed the search engine and patented the algorithm in 1998. It was originally named BackRub for its use of so-called back links on the World Wide Web, and the name Google comes from the word “googol”—the number 1 with 100 zeros after it. Google was first listed as a verb in 2006 in the Oxford English Dictionary.

#82. Butterfinger

- Positive opinion: 71%
- Negative opinion: 9%
- Neutral opinion: 18%
- Have heard of brand: 97%

Italy’s Ferrero bought the Butterfinger brand from Nestle in 2018 and the following year changed the recipe to feature more cocoa and milk, higher quality peanuts, and less fat. Ferrero also owns the Ferrero Rocher, Nutella, and Tic Tac brands. Butterfinger is the favorite candy of cartoon character Bart Simpson, who appeared in its commercials saying: “Nobody better lay a finger on my Butterfinger.”

#81. Charmin

- Positive opinion: 71%
- Negative opinion: 6%
- Neutral opinion: 20%
- Have heard of brand: 97%

Charmin was first produced in 1928 by the Hoberg Paper Co. in Green Bay, Wisconsin, and its name was based on the word “charming.” It became the Charmin Paper Co. and was acquired by Procter & Gamble in 1957. In 1964, the brand introduced the advertising character of Mr. Whipple, who would admonish store customers by saying: “Please don’t squeeze the Charmin.” The commercials ran for more than two decades.

#80. General Mills

- Positive opinion: 71%
- Negative opinion: 5%
- Neutral opinion: 20%
- Have heard of brand: 96%

General Mills traces its roots to flour mills in the late 1800s in Minnesota. Today the retail giant’s brands include Cheerios, Wheaties, Betty Crocker, and Pillsbury.

#79. Lifesavers

- Positive opinion: 71%
- Negative opinion: 5%
- Neutral opinion: 19%
- Have heard of brand: 96%

The original Life Savers’ Pep-O-Mint was introduced in 1912. The inventor, Clarence Crane of Cleveland, was a chocolate maker looking to add a candy to make in hot weather. The assorted fruit flavor candy roll was introduced in 1935.

#78. Chiquita

- Positive opinion: 71%
- Negative opinion: 4%
- Neutral opinion: 16%
- Have heard of brand: 92%

Chiquita began as a banana brand of United Fruit Co., founded in 1899. The Miss Chiquita logo first appeared as an anthropomorphic banana in 1944 and as a woman in 1987. The company changed the iconic stickers on its produce in March to encourage customers to stay home due to the coronavirus and for the summer, the stickers encourage healthy living.

#77. Goldfish

- Positive opinion: 71%
- Negative opinion: 6%
- Neutral opinion: 19%
- Have heard of brand: 97%

The first Goldfish appeared on grocery shelves in 1962. The crackers were based on a recipe that Pepperidge Farm founder Margaret Rudkin found on a trip to Switzerland. The “Smiley” advertising character for the crackers was introduced in 1997.

#76. Fritos

- Positive opinion: 71%
- Negative opinion: 8%
- Neutral opinion: 18%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

Fritos hit the national market in the 1940s when Texas businessman C.E. Doolin started mass production of the corn chips based on a Mexican street food recipe. Use of the Frito Bandito animated mascot, whose voice was provided by Mel Blanc of the Bugs Bunny cartoons, came to an end in 1971 amid complaints about its negative stereotyping.

#75. Häagen-Dazs

- Positive opinion: 71%
- Negative opinion: 4%
- Neutral opinion: 19%
- Have heard of brand: 95%

The Häagen-Dazs ice cream company was founded in 1961 in New York. The name, while perhaps Scandinavian-sounding, has no meaning and was made up by founders Reuben and Rose Mattus.

#74. KitchenAid

- Positive opinion: 71%
- Negative opinion: 2%
- Neutral opinion: 19%
- Have heard of brand: 92%

The standing electric mixer was first made by the Hobart Manufacturing Co. in 1908. It was marketed to professional bakers and used on board U.S. Navy ships. A home version was introduced for sale in 1919. Originally, the mixers were white, but color choices were added in 1955.

#73. History Channel

- Positive opinion: 72%
- Negative opinion: 7%
- Neutral opinion: 18%
- Have heard of brand: 97%

A division of A+E Networks, History offers non-fiction, documentary, and reality programs and education materials. Its popular shows have included “American Pickers” about antique hunters, “Pawn Stars” set in a family pawn shop, and “Ice Road Truckers” featuring drivers navigating Arctic terrain.

#72. Cheez-It

- Positive opinion: 72%
- Negative opinion: 8%
- Neutral opinion: 18%
- Have heard of brand: 97%

The first Cheez-Its were made by the Green & Green Co. in 1921 in Dayton, Ohio, and the brand today is owned by Kellogg’s. The modern variations include Extra Toasty and Hot & Spicy along with the original style.

#71. Orville Redenbacher's Popcorn

- Positive opinion: 72%
- Negative opinion: 5%
- Neutral opinion: 19%
- Have heard of brand: 95%

Orville Redenbacher grew up on a corn farm in Indiana and ran a fertilizer company while trying to develop a strain of popping corn to sell. The bow-tied Redenbacher appeared as the company’s advertising pitchman in commercials for many years. He died in 1995.

#70. Cheetos

- Positive opinion: 72%
- Negative opinion: 10%
- Neutral opinion: 16%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

The original Cheetos date back to 1948, and were invented by Frito’s creator C.E. Doolin. In a famous success story, Richard Montanez, a janitor at Frito-Lay, added chili powder to a batch of Cheetos that had accidentally been made without the requisite cheese powder dusting. He pitched his recipe successfully to company executives, and the hugely popular “Flamin’ Hot" versions were born.

#69. Swiffer

- Positive opinion: 72%
- Negative opinion: 4%
- Neutral opinion: 20%
- Have heard of brand: 96%

Procter & Gamble set out to make a product to replace the traditional mop-and-bucket home cleaning, and in 1999, it launched its Swiffer cleaning products. One of the company’s most successful launches, the brand earned a stint on “Saturday Night Live” with a commercial parody selling children’s pajamas called Swiffer Sleepers.

#68. Canon

- Positive opinion: 72%
- Negative opinion: 2%
- Neutral opinion: 22%
- Have heard of brand: 96%

Japan-based Canon started selling cameras in the United States in the 1950s, and products like its Rebel line of cameras consistently get good reviews. It also makes lenses, binoculars, copiers, printers, and video recorders.

#67. Fritos Original Corn Chips

- Positive opinion: 72%
- Negative opinion: 8%
- Neutral opinion: 17%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

Snack-food pioneer C.E. Doolin found the recipe for what would become Fritos from a San Antonio gas station vendor during the Great Depression. The vendor was frying little chips of ground corn, and Doolin began making and selling the product himself.

#66. Nabisco

- Positive opinion: 72%
- Negative opinion: 4%
- Neutral opinion: 18%
- Have heard of brand: 94%

The National Biscuit Company, later Nabisco, was formed in 1898 with the merger of more than 100 bakeries belonging to the New York Biscuit Co. and the American Biscuit and Manufacturing Co. Over the years, Nabisco has made Oreo Cookies, Ritz Crackers, Barnum’s Animal Crackers, Wheat Thins, and Honey Maid Grahams, and added such products as Planters Peanuts and A1 Steak Sauce. Eventually it was merged with Kraft Foods, and the brands are now owned by Chicago-based Mondelēz International.

#65. Febreze

- Positive opinion: 72%
- Negative opinion: 6%
- Neutral opinion: 19%
- Have heard of brand: 97%

Febreze Fabric Refresher debuted in 1998 after fabric softener researchers at Procter & Gamble found that an ingredient in its dryer sheets could be used to combat odors in fabrics without washing. It has expanded into a range of air fresheners, car fresheners, plug-ins, candles, and scented cubes for melting.

#64. Milky Way

- Positive opinion: 72%
- Negative opinion: 8%
- Neutral opinion: 17%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

The first Milky Way candy bars in 1923 were made to taste like malted milk shakes. The name Milky Way comes from a popular malted drink at the time. A product of Mars Wrigley Confectionery, the chocolate-covered candies feature nougat and caramel.

#63. Smucker's

- Positive opinion: 72%
- Negative opinion: 4%
- Neutral opinion: 18%
- Have heard of brand: 94%

More than 120 years ago, Jerome Monroe Smucker was selling apple butter from a horse-drawn wagon in Ohio, where The J.M. Smucker Co. is still based. Its longtime successful advertising slogan was “With a name like Smucker’s, it has to be good.” Beyond fruit spreads, its brands include Folgers and Cafe Bustelo coffee, Jif peanut butter, Crisco, and Milk Bone and Meow Mix pet foods.

#62. Tide

- Positive opinion: 73%
- Negative opinion: 6%
- Neutral opinion: 20%
- Have heard of brand: 99%

Procter & Gamble introduced Tide in 1946, and its popularity grew as home washing machines became more affordable and common. Tide soon added stain-fighting enzymes, liquid and cold-water versions, a spot-stain cleaner, and individual detergent pods. About two years ago, a fad of people biting into the pods spread on social media called the Tide Pod Challenge, prompting the company and government health authorities to issue warnings not to ingest the detergent.

#61. Land O'Lakes

- Positive opinion: 73%
- Negative opinion: 3%
- Neutral opinion: 18%
- Have heard of brand: 94%

Land O’Lakes is known for making butter, but its other popular foods include Alpine Lace cheeses, Kozy Shack puddings and custards, Mucho Queso cheese sauce and dip, and Buttery Taste Spread made with vegetable oil. More than 1,700 dairy farmers belong to Land O’Lakes, a farmer-owned cooperative nearly a century old.

#60. Baskin-Robbins

- Positive opinion: 73%
- Negative opinion: 5%
- Neutral opinion: 19%
- Have heard of brand: 97%

Brothers-in-law Burt Baskin and Irv Robbins opened their first ice cream shop in 1945. The idea of 31 flavors, one for each day of the month, became part of the marketing scheme in 1953, and the company has made more than 1,300 flavors over time. Among its most popular are pralines and cream, and it also made such specialties as lunar cheesecake to honor the moon landing in 1969 and pink bubblegum ice cream the following year.

#59. Fruit of the Loom

- Positive opinion: 73%
- Negative opinion: 4%
- Neutral opinion: 20%
- Have heard of brand: 97%

Brothers Benjamin and Robert Knight started Fruit of the Loom in 1851 at their textile mill in Warwick, Rhode Island, and registered it as an official trademark 20 years later. After decades of success, it filed for bankruptcy protection and was acquired by Berkshire Hathaway Inc. in 2002.

#58. Jif

- Positive opinion: 73%
- Negative opinion: 6%
- Neutral opinion: 18%
- Have heard of brand: 97%

The creamy version of Jif peanut butter was introduced in 1958, and Jif Extra Crunchy was added in 1976. In the 1960s, Jif’s television advertising slogan was “Choosy moms choose Jif.”

#57. Barnes & Noble

- Positive opinion: 73%
- Negative opinion: 4%
- Neutral opinion: 20%
- Have heard of brand: 97%

Barnes & Noble changed the bookselling business with its giant discount stores in the 1970s. The business started by selling second-hand books in the late 1800s. In the mid-20th century, it specialized in selling college textbooks and then expanded into general retail. Today the company says it has more than a million book titles in stock for online sales.

#56. Elmer's

- Positive opinion: 74%
- Negative opinion: 2%
- Neutral opinion: 19%
- Have heard of brand: 94%

The dairy company Borden Co. first produced the white glue for consumer use in 1947. It was called Elmer’s Glue-All, using the name Elmer as the mate of Elsie the Cow, Borden’s trademark symbol.

#55. Twix

- Positive opinion: 74%
- Negative opinion: 8%
- Neutral opinion: 15%
- Have heard of brand: 97%

Twix bars were originally called Raider and sold in the United Kingdom by Mars Ltd. before the candy was introduced in the United States in 1979. Mars Inc. also owns the candy brands of M&M’s, Snickers, Dove, and Skittles.

#54. Cheerios

- Positive opinion: 74%
- Negative opinion: 6%
- Neutral opinion: 17%
- Have heard of brand: 97%

General Mills first introduced the little cereal circles as Cheerioats but ran into legal trouble with Quaker Oats, which laid claim to use of the word oats in its products, and the name Cheerios emerged in 1945. The brand’s first mascot in print advertising was a girl by the name of Cheeri O’Leary in the 1940s. Later, its television commercials featured the cartoon characters Rocky and Bullwinkle.

#53. Mr. Clean

- Positive opinion: 74%
- Negative opinion: 2%
- Neutral opinion: 21%
- Have heard of brand: 97%

The bald, muscular character of Mr. Clean was created for Procter & Gamble’s products in the late 1950s. With his tight white t-shirt and hoop earring, Mr. Clean proved to be a hugely successful marketing mascot, along with the catchy jingle featuring the lines: “Mr. Clean gets rid of dirt and grime and grease in just a minute. Mr. Clean will clean your whole house and everything that’s in it.”

#52. Dove (chocolate)

- Positive opinion: 74%
- Negative opinion: 4%
- Neutral opinion: 17%
- Have heard of brand: 95%

In 1939, candy store owner Leo Stefanos opened his Dove shop on Chicago’s South Side, and he introduced the rich, chocolate-dipped DoveBar ice cream on a stick in 1956. Mars bought the brand in 1986.

#51. Lowe's

- Positive opinion: 74%
- Negative opinion: 4%
- Neutral opinion: 20%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

With more than 2,200 stores in Canada and the United States, Lowe’s did more than $72 billion in sales last year. It started as a hardware store in North Carolina in 1921, selling an array of goods including sewing supplies, horse tack, and groceries. The company began to focus on the home improvement business following World War II.

#50. Hefty

- Positive opinion: 74%
- Negative opinion: 2%
- Neutral opinion: 19%
- Have heard of brand: 96%

The Hefty brand is owned by New Zealand packaging company Reynolds Group. In 1991, the maker of Hefty, Mobil Chemical Co., settled a lawsuit filed by six states that claimed it made deceptive claims about the bags’ ability to degrade. Hefty now makes an array of trash bags, food storage products, and disposable cups and tableware.

#49. Colgate

- Positive opinion: 74%
- Negative opinion: 4%
- Neutral opinion: 20%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

Besides toothpaste, Colgate makes toothbrushes, mouthwash, and other oral care products. William Colgate opened his soap and candle business in the early 19th century in New York City and in 1896 debuted the collapsible toothpaste tube. Colgate-Palmolive has been its official name since 1953, and today it is a diverse global maker of consumer products.

#48. Doritos

- Positive opinion: 74%
- Negative opinion: 8%
- Neutral opinion: 17%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

A Frito-Lay executive is said to have invented Doritos after tasting toasted tortillas during a family vacation in Southern California in 1964. The first Doritos hit store shelves in 1966. The original version of the chips was plain, but the now-standard nacho cheese flavor was introduced in 1974.

#47. FedEx

- Positive opinion: 74%
- Negative opinion: 5%
- Neutral opinion: 19%
- Have heard of brand: 99%

Formerly Federal Express, FedEx began in 1971. It originally concentrated on cargo package delivery but in the 1980s began to focus on overnight letters and documents. With more than 700 planes, it has the largest aircraft fleet in the world.

#46. Campbell's

- Positive opinion: 74%
- Negative opinion: 6%
- Neutral opinion: 17%
- Have heard of brand: 97%

Campbell’s sold its first can of ready-to-eat tomato soup in 1895. A company executive decided on red and white for Campbell’s label based on the colors of Cornell University’s football team. The company began airing radio ads with the “M’m M’m Good” jingle in 1931. Chicken noodle and cream of mushroom soups came out in 1934, and its chunky soups in 1970. It owns other brands such as Pepperidge Farm, V8, Emerald, and Prego.

#45. Home Depot

- Positive opinion: 74%
- Negative opinion: 7%
- Neutral opinion: 17%
- Have heard of brand: 99%

Enormously successful at tapping into the do-it-yourself home improvement business, Home Depot has become one of the nation’s fastest-growing retail companies. The company is based in Georgia, where it opened its first warehouse-style superstores in the Atlanta area in 1979.

#44. Vaseline

- Positive opinion: 75%
- Negative opinion: 2%
- Neutral opinion: 21%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

Vaseline was first produced by chemist Robert Augustus Chesebrough, who patented it in 1869. The jellylike combination of petroleum, mineral oils, and waxes has a variety of protective and moisturizing applications. Unilever acquired the brand when it bought Chesebrough-Pond’s Inc. in 1986.

#43. Netflix

- Positive opinion: 75%
- Negative opinion: 8%
- Neutral opinion: 16%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

Netflix began in 1997 as a movie rental company. Customers would order movies on its website and would get the movies on DVD in the mail. It has since grown into a huge entertainment streaming company featuring television series, feature films, and its own original productions, now boasting more than 151 million paid subscribers.

#42. Nestlé Crunch

- Positive opinion: 75%
- Negative opinion: 7%
- Neutral opinion: 16%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

The first Nestle Crunch bar was made in 1938 and sold for 5 cents. Each chocolate bar contains about 420 bits of crisped rice.

#41. Dairy Queen

- Positive opinion: 75%
- Negative opinion: 5%
- Neutral opinion: 18%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

Dairy Queen has been in business for 80 years, starting in Joliet, Illinois. It sells iconic dipped soft-serve cones, Blizzards, and Dilly Bars.

#40. National Geographic Channel

- Positive opinion: 75%
- Negative opinion: 3%
- Neutral opinion: 19%
- Have heard of brand: 97%

Popular shows on the National Geographic Channel include “Doomsday Preppers,” “Expedition Everest,” and “Gordon Ramsey: Uncharted.” The channel is a joint venture of the National Geographic Society and The Walt Disney Co.

#39. Levi's

- Positive opinion: 76%
- Negative opinion: 6%
- Neutral opinion: 17%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

Levi Strauss, owner of a dry goods company in San Francisco, made the first denim overalls with copper rivet reinforcements in 1873. Sturdy blue jeans took off in popularity like no other clothing item, and last year Levi Strauss & Co. reported revenues of $5.8 billion.

#38. Crest

- Positive opinion: 76%
- Negative opinion: 4%
- Neutral opinion: 19%
- Have heard of brand: 99%

Crest with Fluoristan toothpaste was introduced nationally in 1956 by Procter & Gamble. The addition of fluoride was aimed at preventing tooth decay, a major health problem at the time.

#37. Nestlé Toll House

- Positive opinion: 76%
- Negative opinion: 5%
- Neutral opinion: 15%
- Have heard of brand: 96%

The invention of chocolate chip cookies is attributed to chef Ruth Wakefield, who added bits of a Nestle chocolate bar to her cookie recipe. (Along with her husband Kenneth, she owned the Toll House Inn in Massachusetts.) Nestle sells the Toll House chocolate morsels in packages that feature the original recipe.

#36. McCormick

- Positive opinion: 76%
- Negative opinion: 2%
- Neutral opinion: 16%
- Have heard of brand: 94%

Founder Willoughby McCormick started his flavor and extracts company in Baltimore in 1889. Today the company makes dozens of spices, blends and extracts, and also owns French’s mustard and Old Bay Seasoning.

#35. Hanes

- Positive opinion: 76%
- Negative opinion: 3%
- Neutral opinion: 18%
- Have heard of brand: 97%

Hanes makes T-shirts, underwear, socks, hosiery, and activewear. Among its popular brands are Champion, Maidenform, Playtex, L’eggs, and Wonderbra. Founder John W. Hanes ran a tobacco company in North Carolina and later a sock factory that became Hanes Hosiery Mills Co. in 1914.

#34. Betty Crocker

- Positive opinion: 76%
- Negative opinion: 4%
- Neutral opinion: 17%
- Have heard of brand: 97%

The name Betty Crocker was created in the early 1920s to answer consumer letters and inquiries at Washburn Crosby Co., which later became part of General Mills Inc. Betty Crocker’s name and image went on to grace cookbooks, radio cooking shows, test kitchens, and products like cake mixes.

#33. Dove

- Positive opinion: 76%
- Negative opinion: 4%
- Neutral opinion: 18%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

Owned by Unilever, Dove products include Beauty Bars, which are advertised as containing 25% moisturizing cream to not only clean the skin but also to nourish it. Dove products also include deodorant, shampoo, and hair conditioner.

#32. Kellogg's

- Positive opinion: 76%
- Negative opinion: 5%
- Neutral opinion: 17%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

W.K. Kellogg founded the Battle Creek Toasted Corn Flake Co. in 1906. In its cereal brand portfolio today are Special K, Rice Krispies, Frosted Flakes, Froot Loops, and Coco Pops.

#31. Pillsbury

- Positive opinion: 76%
- Negative opinion: 4%
- Neutral opinion: 16%
- Have heard of brand: 96%

Pillsbury began with flour mills along the Mississippi River in 1869. The company introduced Poppin’ Fresh, its Pillsbury Doughboy mascot in 1965, originally using stop-action animation with clay models. As of 1992, Pillsbury has switched to computer-generated imagery. The first voice of the Doughboy was provided by actor Paul Frees, also the voice of “The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle” cartoon character Boris Badenov.

#30. Discovery Channel

- Positive opinion: 76%
- Negative opinion: 3%
- Neutral opinion: 18%
- Have heard of brand: 97%

Popular shows on the Discovery Channel have included “Mythbusters,” “How It’s Made,” “Man vs. Wild,” “Deadliest Catch,” and “Storm Chasers.” Its parent company Discovery Inc. also owns HGTV, the Food Network, the Travel Channel, and Animal Planet.

#29. Heinz

- Positive opinion: 76%
- Negative opinion: 5%
- Neutral opinion: 17%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

In 1869, H.J. Heinz started selling pickles, horseradish, vinegar, and sauces in the Pittsburgh area and added ketchup a few years later. He chose the slogan “57 Varieties” because he thought it was a lucky number. In 1973, one of Heinz’s most memorable television commercials featured Carly Simon’s song “Anticipation” to illustrate how slowly the thick tomato sauce would pour.

#28. Neosporin

- Positive opinion: 77%
- Negative opinion: 2%
- Neutral opinion: 15%
- Have heard of brand: 94%

Owned by Johnson & Johnson, Neosporin is a topical first-aid antibiotic intended to prevent infection. It contains the antibiotics bacitracin, polymyxin B, and neomycin.

#27. Frito-Lay

- Positive opinion: 77%
- Negative opinion: 6%
- Neutral opinion: 15%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

Frito-Lay emerged in 1961 with the merger of corn chip maker Fritos and potato chip maker H.W. Lay & Co. In 1965, Frito-Lay merged again with Pepsi-Cola and the snack-food giant PepsiCo. was formed. Its products include Pepsi, Doritos, Ruffles, Gatorade, and Tropicana.

#26. WD-40

- Positive opinion: 78%
- Negative opinion: 2%
- Neutral opinion: 13%
- Have heard of brand: 92%

Rocket Chemical Co. of San Diego made products for the aerospace industry before it made WD-40 lubricant in aerosol cans for consumer use starting in 1958. The company renamed itself the WD-40 Co. in 1969. The W-D in the product name stands for “water displacement.”

#25. Amazon

- Positive opinion: 78%
- Negative opinion: 8%
- Neutral opinion: 13%
- Have heard of brand: 99%

Amazon was founded as an online bookseller in 1995. Founder Jeff Bezos wanted to name it Cadabra but was convinced by an advisor that it sounded too much like the word cadaver. Bezos is the richest person in the world, with a fortune most recently estimated at $171.6 billion, and that’s after he ceded a quarter of his Amazon stake to his now ex-wife MacKenzie Bezos in their divorce last year.

#24. Planters

- Positive opinion: 78%
- Negative opinion: 3%
- Neutral opinion: 15%
- Have heard of brand: 96%

In 1906, an Italian immigrant by the name of Amedeo Obici and his future brother-in-law Marion Peruzzi opened the Planters Nut and Chocolate Co. in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. The familiar Mr. Peanut character was created after a child named Antonio Gentile entered the winning sketch in a 1916 contest held to choose a mascot. The monocle, top hat, and cane were added separately. Planters Cocktail Peanuts arrived in 1928, packaged in a vacuum-sealed can, and the Dry Roasted Peanuts debuted in 1962.

#23. Samsung

- Positive opinion: 78%
- Negative opinion: 4%
- Neutral opinion: 16%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

The Korean consumer electronics giant started as Samsung-Sanyo Electronics in 1969 and began selling its first black-and-white television sets the following year. In 2010 it launched its popular Galaxy series of smartphones.

#22. Oreo

- Positive opinion: 78%
- Negative opinion: 7%
- Neutral opinion: 13%
- Have heard of brand: 99%

Nabisco first made Oreos in New York City in 1912 in two flavors—the original and lemon meringue, which was discontinued eight years later. Oreo O’s cereal was introduced in 1998, but was off the market in the United States within a decade.

#21. Lay’s

- Positive opinion: 78%
- Negative opinion: 5%
- Neutral opinion: 15%
- Have heard of brand: 99%

Herman Lay, a traveling salesman, bought a potato chip company in 1932 and began selling the chips from his car. In 1961, his company merged with Fritos and became Frito-Lay. Lay’s first celebrity spokesman was actor Bert Lahr, who played the Cowardly Lion in the 1939 movie “The Wizard of Oz.” The chips’ advertising campaign in the 1960s used the slogan “Betcha can’t eat just one."

#20. Kit Kat

- Positive opinion: 79%
- Negative opinion: 5%
- Neutral opinion: 14%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

Britain’s Rowntree’s of York, owned by Nestle, invented Kit Kat bars and started selling them in 1935. Nestle makes and sells Kit Kats in 16 countries, while Hershey’s H.B. Reese division manufactures the chocolate-covered bars in the United States.

#19. UPS

- Positive opinion: 79%
- Negative opinion: 4%
- Neutral opinion: 16%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

UPS delivers 5.5 billion packages a year and last year had $74 billion in revenues. It changed its name to UPS from United Parcel Service in 2003. The company has a fleet of 267 planes.

#18. Bounty

- Positive opinion: 79%
- Negative opinion: 3%
- Neutral opinion: 17%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

Procter & Gamble put in eight years of research before coming out with its Bounty paper towels in 1965. The two-ply towels were marked for their absorbency. For several years the company aired television commercials with the character of Rosie, a waitress who promoted Bounty as the “quicker picker-upper" over competing products.

#17. Snickers

- Positive opinion: 79%
- Negative opinion: 6%
- Neutral opinion: 14%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

Mars Inc. sells more than 400 million Snickers bars every year. Founder Frank Mars invented the candy in 1930 and named it after a favorite horse.

#16. Windex

- Positive opinion: 79%
- Negative opinion: 3%
- Neutral opinion: 15%
- Have heard of brand: 97%

The Drackett Co., which had invented Drano in the 1920s, invented Windex in 1933. It was originally marketed for cleaning automobile windows. One factor in its popularity was the spray gun nozzle on the plastic dispenser bottles.

#15. Sony

- Positive opinion: 79%
- Negative opinion: 3%
- Neutral opinion: 16%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

The Japanese consumer electronics giant had huge successes with its Walkman portable cassette players, televisions, and its PlayStation line of video game consoles. It was one of the first Japanese companies to have a U.S. factory, and the quality of its products supposedly changed Americans’ views in the 1960s and later toward buying Japanese-made goods.

#14. Lysol

- Positive opinion: 79%
- Negative opinion: 3%
- Neutral opinion: 15%
- Have heard of brand: 97%

Lysol sales soared this year as consumers bought up its disinfectants to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently approved Lysol Disinfectant Spray and Lysol Disinfectant Max Cover Mist as effective agents against COVID-19, and the head of Reckitt Benckiser, which makes Lysol products, recently said they were manufacturing 20 times more sanitizer than it was a year ago.

#13. Quaker

- Positive opinion: 79%
- Negative opinion: 3%
- Neutral opinion: 16%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

The familiar Quaker Oats mascot was trademarked in 1877, and according to the company, the image was selected because Quakers conveyed principles of integrity, honesty, and purity. The brand’s round packaging first debuted in 1915, and Quaker Quick Oats followed in 1922, marking one of the nation’s first convenience-style products.

#12. Ritz

- Positive opinion: 80%
- Negative opinion: 4%
- Neutral opinion: 15%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

Nabisco unveiled its Ritz crackers in markets in Philadelphia and Baltimore in 1934 during the Great Depression. The brand slogan described the crackers as “a bit of the good life.” They were selling nationwide the following year.

#11. Clorox

- Positive opinion: 80%
- Negative opinion: 3%
- Neutral opinion: 16%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

The Electro-Alkaline Co. started selling commercial liquid bleach in 1914 and trademarked the brand name Clorox. It became the Clorox Chemical Corp. in 1928 and went public. Recently, the company has seen unprecedented demand for its products, particularly its Clorox Disinfecting Wipes, to help stop the spread of coronavirus. In April, President Donald Trump theorized about injecting disinfectant to help the body fight COVID-19. A posting on the Clorox website now warns consumers that “bleach and other disinfectants are not suitable for consumption or injection under any circumstances.”

#10. Oreo Cookies

- Positive opinion: 80%
- Negative opinion: 7%
- Neutral opinion: 12%
- Have heard of brand: 99%

Nabisco gave the world its first taste of Oreos in 1912 and as of last year had sold 450 billion of the sandwich cookies. How do you eat your Oreos? Debate has always swirled around whether Oreos should be eaten as a whole or twisted open into two halves, and whether the creme filling should be eaten separately as well.

#9. Reese’s

- Positive opinion: 80%
- Negative opinion: 5%
- Neutral opinion: 12%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups have inspired dozens of variations, some more successful and appealing than others. There have been dark and white chocolate versions, Reeses’s Pieces, Crunchers with added rice puffs, Peanut Butter Cups stuffed with Reese’s Pieces, and the introduction of the Chocolate Lovers Cups and Peanut Butter Lovers Cups, with different chocolate to peanut butter ratios.

#8. Dawn

- Positive opinion: 81%
- Negative opinion: 2%
- Neutral opinion: 13%
- Have heard of brand: 96%

Dawn was introduced by Procter & Gamble in 1973. The dish washing liquid has since earned a reputation for effectively removing oil from wildlife, especially birds, following oil spills, and its use was well-publicized during the cleanup of Alaska’s Exxon Valdez tanker spill in 1989.

#7. Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup

- Positive opinion: 81%
- Negative opinion: 6%
- Neutral opinion: 11%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

H.B. Reese, an employee at Hershey Chocolate Co. and a father of 16 children, started making his own candy at home for extra income. In the 1920s he set up his own company, H.B. Reese Candy Co. and sold chocolate and peanut butter cups for a penny apiece. After his death, the family sold the business to Hershey in 1963 for $23.5 million and a 5% share of the parent company.

#6. Hershey’s Kisses

- Positive opinion: 82%
- Negative opinion: 4%
- Neutral opinion: 12%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

The iconic Hershey’s Kisses have been around since 1907, produced with a nozzle that dropped the chocolate onto a conveyor belt. The candy was hand-wrapped until the introduction of automated wrapping in 1921, and the tissue paper tag was added as well. According to the company, the name is derived from the sound the manufacturing nozzle made when it released the chocolate drops.

#5. Kleenex

- Positive opinion: 82%
- Negative opinion: 2%
- Neutral opinion: 14%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

Introduced in 1924, Kleenex Tissue was marketed originally for removing cold cream. Maker Kimberly-Clark linked the name to Kotex sanitary napkins, which came from the words cotton and texture. The Pop-Up packaging was introduced in 1929, and Pocket Packs were introduced in 1932.

#4. Hershey’s

- Positive opinion: 82%
- Negative opinion: 5%
- Neutral opinion: 12%
- Have heard of brand: 99%

In the late 1800s, Milton Hershey sold homemade caramels from a pushcart in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and went on to found the Hershey Chocolate Co. Today, Hershey’s brands include Kisses, Reese’s, Kit Kat, Almond Joy, Mounds, Twizzlers, Jolly Rancher, Rolos, and Payday, and more than three million people visit Hersheypark each year.

#3. Ziploc

- Positive opinion: 83%
- Negative opinion: 2%
- Neutral opinion: 13%
- Have heard of brand: 97%

Dow Chemical introduced Ziploc bags in the late 1960s, and the interlocking groove closures became indispensable, replacing the more common used twist ties. Consumer products giant S.C. Johnson bought the brand in 1998. Other products offer similar sealing systems, but Ziploc remains the best known.

#2. Band-Aid

- Positive opinion: 84%
- Negative opinion: 2%
- Neutral opinion: 11%
- Have heard of brand: 97%

Band-Aid adhesive bandages were first sold in 1920, and the little red string in the packaging was added four years later. Apollo astronauts traveled with Band-Aids to the moon in 1969. The word has come to be commonly used to refer to a temporary solution to a problem.

#1. M&M’s

- Positive opinion: 84%
- Negative opinion: 4%
- Neutral opinion: 10%
- Have heard of brand: 98%

The most popular brand in America, M&M’s debuted in 1942, made by candymaker Forrest Mars and M&M’s Ltd. in Newark, New Jersey. Peanut M&M’s followed in 1954. The original candies were packaged in cardboard tubes. The company trademarked the slogan “It melts in your mouth, not in your hands” in 1954.

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