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Microsoft is not in FAANG because FAANG is an informal, historical label for a particular group of stocks—not an official ranking of the biggest or best technology companies. The acronym grew out of a market narrative centered on fast-growing, consumer-facing internet businesses. Microsoft, then widely associated with established software and enterprise computing, was not part of that original group.
What does FAANG stand for?
FAANG refers to Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix and Google. Facebook is now Meta Platforms, and Google is part of Alphabet, but the familiar acronym preserves the companies’ earlier names. Fast Company explains the group’s composition, while NerdWallet traces the variations in the acronym.
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| Letter | Name used in FAANG | Current corporate name or context |
|---|---|---|
| F | Meta Platforms | |
| A | Amazon | Amazon |
| A | Apple | Apple |
| N | Netflix | Netflix |
| G | Alphabet is Google’s parent company |
The name began as FANG—Facebook, Amazon, Netflix and Google. Apple was added later, making FAANG. Those names date the label: the acronym took hold before Facebook became Meta in 2021, and it continues to use Google rather than Alphabet.
How did FAANG begin?
Financial-media coverage commonly credits CNBC commentator Jim Cramer with popularizing FANG in 2013; the label was later expanded to include Apple. Fast Company and NerdWallet describe that history. FANG and FAANG caught on as shorthand for a recognizable cluster of prominent growth stocks and technology stories.
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There was no official committee, published eligibility test or permanent stock-market index behind the name. Its members reflected the companies that investors and media were grouping together at a particular time, not a rule that every major technology company had to satisfy.
Why wasn’t Microsoft part of the original group?
Microsoft was already a major technology company, but its position in the popular market story differed from the companies grouped under FANG. In the early 2010s, it was strongly associated with Windows, Office, server products, enterprise software and corporate licensing. FANG, by contrast, was commonly linked to newer, high-growth consumer-internet businesses and the disruption of social networking, online retail, search and streaming.
Microsoft’s own 2013 annual report described a broad business spanning Windows, Server and Tools, Online Services, Microsoft Business, and Entertainment and Devices. That breadth helps explain the difference in market narrative: Microsoft was a diversified incumbent, not a company defined by one rapidly expanding consumer-internet story. “Incumbent” describes how it was perceived in that context; it does not mean Microsoft lacked innovation or importance.
- Timing mattered: FANG took shape around the companies being discussed as especially visible growth stories at the time.
- The business mix looked different: Microsoft had substantial enterprise and established-software businesses alongside consumer products.
- The acronym was memorable shorthand: It was not designed to capture every company that could reasonably be called Big Tech.
There is no verified single motive or formal decision showing that Microsoft was considered and rejected. The more defensible explanation is that it did not fit the original narrative as neatly when the label emerged.
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Why was Netflix included instead?
Netflix’s presence makes clear that FAANG was not a simple list of the largest technology companies. Netflix was a highly visible consumer platform associated with changing how people watched television and films. During the period when FANG became popular, that streaming disruption and its growth story made Netflix a natural fit for the group’s market narrative.
The comparison was therefore not a formal contest in which Netflix outranked Microsoft in overall importance. Netflix represented a focused consumer-platform story; Microsoft had a broader portfolio and a different mix of enterprise and established businesses. FAANG’s membership reflects that narrative, not a consistent test of company size, age or technological merit.
Is Microsoft part of Big Tech today?
Yes. “Big Tech” is a broader and less fixed label than FAANG, and Microsoft is routinely included in discussions of the largest technology companies. Its later business mix also makes the old acronym a less complete shorthand for the industry.
In its 2021 annual report, Microsoft organized its operations into Productivity and Business Processes, Intelligent Cloud, and More Personal Computing. The report describes businesses and products including Microsoft 365 and Office, Teams, LinkedIn, Dynamics, Azure, SQL Server, Windows Server, Visual Studio, GitHub, Windows, gaming and search. Its cloud portfolio crossed several of those businesses, including Azure, Office 365 Commercial, LinkedIn and Dynamics 365, as detailed in the report’s commercial cloud discussion.
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That reporting illustrates why Microsoft is a direct peer in many current Big Tech conversations, even though it is not literally one of the five companies named by FAANG. Microsoft also became a major participant in cloud computing, gaming, professional networking and AI; none of those developments changes the historical membership of the acronym.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Which alternative acronyms include Microsoft?
Several competing labels include Microsoft and leave out Netflix. Their coexistence shows that these are convenient shorthands, not standardized classifications.
| Label | Commonly named companies | How it differs from FAANG |
|---|---|---|
| FAAMG | Facebook or Meta, Apple, Amazon, Microsoft, Google or Alphabet | Includes Microsoft; omits Netflix |
| GAFAM | Google, Apple, Facebook or Meta, Amazon, Microsoft | Includes Microsoft; omits Netflix and changes the order |
| MAMAA | Meta, Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, Alphabet | A later proposal associated with Jim Cramer; replaces Netflix and uses newer corporate names |
NerdWallet covers FAAMG and MAMAA. The FTC-hosted policy literature also documents the evolution of group labels, including GAFAM. None of these alternatives has displaced FAANG everywhere; usage varies by writer, market and region.
When is FAANG still a useful term?
FAANG remains useful when a writer means those five named companies or is describing the period in which the label became popular. It is less useful when readers might mistake it for a current inventory of all Big Tech companies or a rules-based investment category.
- For historical market coverage: It is recognizable shorthand for the original five-company grouping.
- For investing decisions: Name the companies or define the basket. FAANG itself does not specify an index methodology or investment rules.
- For current technology coverage: Define “Big Tech” and list the companies relevant to the discussion, since broader groupings may include Microsoft and other firms.
- For career conversations: People may use FAANG loosely to mean prestigious technology employers; Microsoft can be considered comparable in that context without being part of the literal acronym.
Once a shorthand becomes familiar, it can persist even as the industry changes. That is a plausible reason FAANG continues to circulate despite the rise of competing labels; it is an explanation of the acronym’s staying power, not a documented rule about its membership.
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