Google vs Marriott: Revenue, Profit and Business Model
Google reported $402.8B of revenue in FY2025 and $132.2B of net income. Marriott reported $26.2B of revenue in FY2025 and $2.6B of net income.
Latest financial snapshot
Financial summary
Alphabet's FY2025 Form 10-K reported $402.836 billion of revenue and $132.170 billion of net income, making it one of the most profitable companies in the world. Growth accelerated in 2026: Q2 2026 revenue rose 24% year over year to $119.8 billion, operating income rose 30% to $40.8 billion and operating margin reached 34.0%. Reported Q2 net income of $112.1 billion was inflated by a $99.0 billion gain, mostly unrealized gains on equity holdings, so operating income is the cleaner measure. The trade-off is spending: management raised 2026 capital expenditure guidance to $195-205 billion, and analysts flagged negative free cash flow in Q2 2026 as data-center investment outpaced operating cash flow.
Marriott
Marriott reported FY2025 revenue of $26.186 billion and net income of $2.601 billion, with gross fee revenues of $5.438 billion. Because owners fund the hotels, Marriott's capital needs are modest and most cash goes back to shareholders: over $4.0 billion was returned in 2025. In Q2 2026 revenue was $7.071 billion, net income $766 million and adjusted EBITDA $1.592 billion; management raised 2026 guidance to global RevPAR growth of 3% to 3.5%, adjusted EBITDA of $5.97 to $6.03 billion and more than $4.5 billion of capital returns.
Revenue and profit by year
| Year | Revenue | Net income | Margin | Growth | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | $402.8B | $132.2B | 32.8% | +15.1% | Source |
| FY2024 | $350B | $100.1B | 28.6% | +13.9% | Source |
| FY2023 | $307.4B | $73.8B | 24.0% | +8.7% | Source |
| FY2022 | $282.8B | $60B | 21.2% | +9.8% | Source |
| FY2021 | $257.6B | $76B | 29.5% | +41.2% | Source |
| FY2020 | $182.5B | $40.3B | 22.1% | +12.8% | Source |
| FY2019 | $161.9B | $34.3B | 21.2% | +18.3% | Source |
| FY2018 | $136.8B | $30.7B | 22.5% | +23.4% | Source |
| FY2017 | $110.9B | $12.7B | 11.4% | +22.8% | Source |
| FY2016 | $90.3B | $19.5B | 21.6% | — | Source |
Marriott
| Year | Revenue | Net income | Margin | Growth | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | $26.2B | $2.6B | 9.9% | +4.3% | Source |
| FY2024 | $25.1B | $2.4B | 9.5% | +5.8% | Source |
| FY2023 | $23.7B | $3.1B | 13.0% | +14.2% | Source |
| FY2022 | $20.8B | $2.4B | 11.4% | +49.9% | Source |
| FY2021 | $13.9B | $1.1B | 7.9% | +31.1% | Source |
| FY2020 | $10.6B | -$267M | -2.5% | -49.6% | Source |
| FY2019 | $21B | $1.3B | 6.1% | +1.0% | Source |
| FY2018 | $20.8B | $1.9B | 9.2% | +1.5% | Source |
| FY2017 | $20.5B | $1.5B | 7.1% | +32.7% | Source |
| FY2016 | $15.4B | $808M | 5.2% | — | Source |
Where the revenue comes from
- Google Search advertising~12%
Auction-based text and shopping ads served alongside organic search results, generating approximately $198 billion in FY2024 through cost-per-click and cost-per-impression pricing.
- YouTube advertising~12%
Video advertising across pre-roll, mid-roll, display, and Shorts formats, plus subscription revenue from YouTube Premium, Music, and YouTube TV, totaling approximately $36 billion in ad revenue for FY2024.
- Google Cloud~12%
Infrastructure-as-a-service, platform tools, Vertex AI, BigQuery, Mandiant cybersecurity, and Google Workspace subscriptions, generating significant FY2025 revenue.
- Google Network~12%
Ads placed on third-party websites through AdSense, AdMob, and Google Ad Manager, generating approximately $31 billion in FY2024 with revenue shared with publishers.
- Other Bets~12%
Revenue from Waymo autonomous ride-hailing, Verily health technology, hardware sales (Pixel, Nest, Fitbit), Google Play commissions, and other non-advertising sources.
Marriott
- Franchise Fees
$3.325B in FY2025
Fees paid by hotel owners and franchisees for using Marriott brands, reservation systems, standards, and distribution.
- Base Management Fees
$1.322B in FY2025
Management fees earned for operating hotels on behalf of third-party owners, typically tied to property revenue.
- Incentive Management Fees
$791M in FY2025
Performance-linked fees earned when managed hotels meet profitability thresholds.
- Cost Reimbursement Revenue
$19.204B in FY2025
Reimbursement revenue tied to centralized programs and services, including loyalty and other owner-supported costs.
- Owned, Leased, and Other Revenue
$1.679B in FY2025
Revenue from owned or leased hotels and other lodging-related activities outside the pure fee stream.
Business model and strategy
How it makes money
Alphabet makes money mainly by selling ads against user intent and attention. Google Search & other, YouTube ads and the Google Network together account for roughly three quarters of revenue. Advertisers bid in real-time auctions to appear next to queries or videos, and Google charges per click, view or conversion.
Growth strategy
Alphabet's growth plan has four parts: put Gemini into Search (AI Overviews and AI Mode), Workspace, Android and Chrome to keep users and advertisers engaged; sell AI infrastructure, TPUs and Gemini models through Google Cloud, backed by the Wiz security platform acquired in March 2026; grow subscriptions such as YouTube Premium, YouTube TV and Google One AI plans;
Competitive advantage
Alphabet's edge is a stack few rivals own end to end: default distribution through Android and Chrome, the largest pool of search-intent data, YouTube's video audience, its own TPU chips and global data centers, and frontier models from Google DeepMind.
Marriott
How it makes money
Marriott makes money mainly from fees. Franchise fees ($3.325B in FY2025) come from owners who license a Marriott brand, reservation system and Bonvoy distribution; this line also includes co-branded credit card and residential branding fees. Base management fees ($1.322B) and incentive management fees ($791M) come from hotels Marriott operates for owners.
Growth strategy
Growth comes from adding rooms rather than buying buildings. Marriott signed nearly 1,200 organic deals (about 163,000 rooms) in 2025 and posted record signings in the first half of 2026.
Competitive advantage
Marriott's advantage is scale on both sides of the market. For travelers, Marriott Bonvoy (more than 295 million members by June 2026) and over 30 brands across price points create reasons to book direct. For owners and lenders, that demand engine, plus Marriott's distribution and procurement scale, makes a Marriott flag easier to finance and fill, which feeds a record development pipeline of about 629,000 rooms.
Questions about Google vs Marriott
Which company has higher revenue — Alphabet Inc. or Marriott International?
Alphabet Inc. reported $402.8B (FY2025), while Marriott International reported $26.2B (FY2025). By last reported revenue, Alphabet Inc. is the larger business, with Marriott International reporting a smaller revenue base.
What is the market cap of Alphabet Inc. vs Marriott International?
Alphabet Inc.'s market capitalisation stands at $4.31T, while Marriott International's is $91.5B. Alphabet Inc. carries the higher market valuation, reflecting investors' expectations of its future earnings power relative to Marriott International.
Which is more financially efficient — Alphabet Inc. or Marriott International?
Alphabet Inc. generates $2.11M / employee in revenue per employee, while Marriott International generates $177k / employee. Alphabet Inc. shows higher revenue efficiency per headcount, though this reflects business model differences — capital-light software companies routinely outperform labour-intensive manufacturers on this metric.
How do Alphabet Inc. and Marriott International make money?
Alphabet Inc. and Marriott International generate revenue in fundamentally different ways. Alphabet Inc.: Alphabet makes money mainly by selling ads against user intent and attention. Marriott International: Marriott makes money mainly from fees.
Which company is valued higher relative to revenue — Alphabet Inc. or Marriott International?
On a price-to-sales (P/S) basis, Alphabet Inc. trades at 10.7x P/S and Marriott International at 3.5x P/S. Alphabet Inc. commands a higher revenue multiple, typically indicating that investors expect faster growth or higher future margins compared to Marriott International. A higher multiple is not inherently better — it may also signal that the stock is priced for perfection.
Is Alphabet Inc. bigger than Marriott International?
By last reported revenue, Alphabet Inc. ($402.8B (FY2025)) is the larger company compared to Marriott International ($26.2B (FY2025)). Revenue scale is one dimension of size — market capitalisation, employee count, and geographic reach are also relevant depending on the context.
Figures come from each company's filings and the sources linked beside them. Amounts reported in another currency are shown in US dollars at an approximate rate and marked with ~. Back to the Google vs Marriott overview