Marriott vs SpaceX: Revenue, Profit and Business Model
Marriott reported $26.2B of revenue in FY2025 and $2.6B of net income. SpaceX reported $18.7B of revenue in FY2025 and a net loss of $4.9B.
Latest financial snapshot
Financial summary
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.
SpaceX
SpaceX revenue grew from $10.387 billion in 2023 to $14.015 billion in 2024 and $18.674 billion in 2025, but heavy Starship, Starlink, and AI spending produced a $4.937 billion FY2025 net loss. In Q2 2026, its first quarter reported as a public company, revenue was $7.8 billion (up 92%), adjusted EBITDA was $3.5 billion, net loss was $541 million, and backlog was $47.5 billion. The IPO raised $85.7 billion and a $25 billion bond sale added more liquidity. In late September 2026 the stock traded near $145, for a market capitalization around $1.9 trillion.
Revenue and profit by year
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 |
SpaceX
| Year | Revenue | Net income | Margin | Growth | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | $18.7B | -$4.9B | -26.4% | +33.2% | Source |
| FY2024 | $14B | $18M | 0.1% | +34.9% | Source |
| FY2023 | $10.4B | -$4.6B | -44.6% | — | Source |
Where the revenue comes from
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.
SpaceX
- Launch services
Not formally reported
Commercial, civil, and national-security launches priced by rocket, payload, orbit, and service type.
- Starlink consumer broadband
Not formally reported
Monthly subscriptions and terminals for residential and mobile broadband.
- Enterprise and government connectivity
Not formally reported
Starlink enterprise, aviation, maritime, backup connectivity, Starshield, and government services.
- AI infrastructure
Not formally reported
Compute and cloud services from SpaceX's AI segment, formed through the xAI combination; $2.6B revenue in Q2 2026.
Business model and strategy
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.
SpaceX
How it makes money
SpaceX earns money in three segments. Space sells launches on Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy, plus Dragon cargo and crew missions for NASA, the U.S. government, and commercial customers ($962 million in Q2 2026).
Growth strategy
SpaceX's growth plan has four parts: add Starlink subscribers and raise enterprise, aviation, and mobile revenue; launch higher-capacity Starlink V3 satellites on Starship; expand national-security work through Starshield and launch contracts (over $6 billion in U.S. government awards in Q2 2026); and scale AI compute capacity, which grew from 400 megawatts a year earlier to 1.4 gigawatts at the end of Q2 2026.
Competitive advantage
SpaceX's advantage is reusability combined with vertical integration. It builds its own engines, avionics, rockets, and satellites, and reflies Falcon 9 boosters many times, which lowers its marginal launch cost below rivals that still expend most hardware. Being its own largest launch customer lets it deploy Starlink at a cadence no other operator has matched, and Starlink revenue then funds Starship.
Questions about Marriott vs SpaceX
Which company has higher revenue — Marriott International or SpaceX?
Marriott International reported $26.2B (FY2025), while SpaceX reported $18.7B (FY2025). By last reported revenue, Marriott International is the larger business, with SpaceX reporting a smaller revenue base.
What is the market cap of Marriott International vs SpaceX?
Marriott International's market capitalisation stands at $91.5B, while SpaceX's is $1.92T. SpaceX carries the higher market valuation, reflecting investors' expectations of its future earnings power relative to Marriott International.
Which is more financially efficient — Marriott International or SpaceX?
Marriott International generates $177k / employee in revenue per employee, while SpaceX generates $826k / employee. SpaceX 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 Marriott International and SpaceX make money?
Marriott International and SpaceX generate revenue in fundamentally different ways. Marriott International: Marriott makes money mainly from fees. SpaceX: SpaceX earns money in three segments.
Which company is valued higher relative to revenue — Marriott International or SpaceX?
On a price-to-sales (P/S) basis, Marriott International trades at 3.5x P/S and SpaceX at 102.8x P/S. SpaceX 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 Marriott International bigger than SpaceX?
By last reported revenue, Marriott International ($26.2B (FY2025)) is the larger company compared to SpaceX ($18.7B (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 Marriott vs SpaceX overview