MegaBrands 501 · Research methodology
How MegaBrands are selected
MegaBrands are selected by research alone. About 3,000 brands were assessed on one common instrument of 50 parameters in five pillars; in each of 501 categories, the strongest brand against its five closest competitors became the MegaBrand. No brand applied, nominated itself or paid.
Six steps from 3,000 brands to 501
- 01
Map the market
The Indian market was divided into 13 sectors, 55 industries and 501 categories — 351 consumer and 150 business — defined by what the buyer is choosing between, not by company structure.
- 02
Build the assessed set
About 3,000 brands active in those categories were identified from eight secondary source categories and the WCRC database: listed and unlisted companies, multinationals, public sector names, cooperatives, regional brands and young challengers. Each received a Brand Goodwill Score, the gateway to primary research.
- 03
Apply the rules
One brand, one slot. The market-facing brand is measured, not the parent group. India performance only. No valuations and no balance sheets.
- 04
Measure on one instrument
Every shortlisted brand was scored on the same 50 parameters across five pillars, rated by the same respondents in the same fieldwork, so scores compare directly across categories and industries.
- 05
Choose the benchmark
In each category, the leading brand and its five strongest competitors were measured head to head. The brand with the strongest Power Score that also clears the MegaBrand Standard on every pillar became the category's MegaBrand.
- 06
Validate, publish and lock
An independent Research Council reviewed outliers and movement before publication. All 501 MegaBrands were published with their five assessed competitors, and the cohort was locked for the edition.
Five pillars, fifty parameters
Each pillar holds ten parameters. Every parameter is scored 0–100 within its sector, so a bank and a biscuit are each measured against their own market, then rolled up into the Power Score.
- 28%P1 · Brand Positioning & Recall
How clearly the brand is known, recalled and set apart in its category.
- 26%P2 · Consumer Trust & Sentiment
How much buyers trust, love, prefer and recommend the brand.
- 20%P3 · Product, Innovation & Delivery
How well the product performs, renews and reaches people.
- 16%P4 · Sustainability, Governance & ESG
How credibly the brand acts on environment, society and governance.
- 10%P5 · Digital & Financial Soundness
How strong the brand is online and how sound it is perceived to be.
Three kinds of evidence
Primary — consumer and business research across India. Secondary — published and tracked market data. Additional — open consumer voting, social listening and forward-looking signals.
Consumer Pulse and Market Pulse
Consumer Pulse
How consumers think and feel about a brand this quarter: recall and top-of-mind awareness, campaign recall, trust, Net Promoter Score, brand love, first-choice preference, purchase intent and customer experience.
Market Pulse
What the market is doing and saying about a brand this quarter: share of voice, advocacy, sentiment and reputation, social and digital commerce strength, thought leadership, resilience and competitive position.
Together they refresh 20 of the 50 parameters every quarter from 1 November 2026, through WCRC research, open consumer voting and direct reach to consumers. The other 30 parameters refresh with the annual study. WCRC reports a quarterly move only when it is larger than sampling error.
Where and whom we ask
MegaBrands measures brand power in India only. Consumer fieldwork covers 30 cities in all four zones, across Tier 1, 2 and 3, with results weighted to the urban population by zone and tier.
North
Delhi NCR, Jaipur, Lucknow, Chandigarh, Kanpur, Ludhiana, Dehradun, Varanasi
West & Central
Mumbai, Pune, Ahmedabad, Surat, Indore, Nagpur, Nashik, Rajkot
South
Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kochi, Coimbatore, Visakhapatnam, Mysuru, Madurai
East & North-East
Kolkata, Bhubaneswar, Patna, Guwahati, Ranchi, Siliguri
- Consumers
- 8,500+ urban adults aged 18–60 per annual cycle, stratified by zone and city tier with quotas on age, gender and socio-economic class, each screened as a buyer or user of the category
- Category base
- At least 100 category users rating each consumer category; the leading brand and its five competitors are rated by the same respondents
- Business buyers
- A separate sample of purchase, procurement, finance, IT, operations and functional heads who specify or buy in each business category
- Quality
- Attention checks, duplicate and bot screening, back-checks on field interviews, randomised brand and question order
Classification rules
- One brand, one slot; separately managed brands enter independently
- The market-facing brand, not the parent group or corporate brand
- India performance only; public sector brands compete inside their industries
- Peers: the five strongest competing brands for the same buyer, use and price level; regional categories are read in the regions where they compete
- Not covered: tobacco, e-cigarettes, betting and real-money gaming, advertising services and corporate brands
Independence and governance
- Selection by research alone — no application, nomination or fee
- Research and commercial teams are separate; nothing commercial changes selection, score or rank
- Pillar weights reviewed annually by the Research Council and published in advance
- Every published movement is explainable at parameter level, with a full audit trail from score to source
- Respondent data handled under India's Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023
Questions and answers
What does MegaBrands measure?
Perceived brand power: how strongly a brand is known, trusted, chosen and recommended by Indian buyers, read across 50 parameters in five pillars. It is not a financial valuation.
Why are listed and unlisted brands compared equally?
Because MegaBrands reads no balance sheets. Financial soundness is measured through perception-based measures, so cooperatives, public sector, unlisted and multinational brands compete on equal terms.
How is a category's MegaBrand chosen?
The leading brand and its five strongest competitors are rated by the same respondents in the same fieldwork. The brand with the strongest Power Score that also clears the MegaBrand Standard on every pillar becomes the MegaBrand.
What are the Consumer Pulse and the Market Pulse?
Two quarterly scores that refresh the 20 fastest-moving parameters: the Consumer Pulse reads how consumers think and feel about a brand; the Market Pulse reads what the market is doing and saying about it.
How to cite
WCRC Intelligence, "MegaBrands 501 — Methodology (2026–27)", https://www.wcrcint.com/megabrands-501/methodology
Free to read and quote with attribution to WCRC Intelligence and a link to this page.