Which brands do Americans trust the most? Kleenex, Ghirardelli, Vaseline among favorites
Editor’s Note: Paste BN has changed the name of this award to “Paste BN’s Most Trusted Brands.” The story and award design reflect that change.
Kleenex, Ghirardelli Chocolate, and Vaseline are among the brands most trusted by U.S. consumers, according to Paste BN and its research partner Plant-A Insights Group.
"Paste BN's Most Trusted Brands 2025" highlights 500 brands across 40 industries in the U.S. that consumers trust most. Results were determined using various measures, including reviewing public data and conducting a large-scale confidential online survey among U.S. customers, according to the ranking's methodology.
More than 24,000 customers and over 359,000 brand reviews provided insights across five core brand trust categories, including likelihood of purchase, alignment with personal values, emotional connection, reliability, and trust and transparency.
To limit responses to real-world experiences, customers were asked to evaluate companies they were familiar with and had personal experiences with. Participants included adults between 18 and 70 with a 50-50 male-to-female ratio.
The list of top trusted brands excluded companies recently involved in significant legal, ethical, or reputational incidents, such as consumer data breaches, major recalls, lawsuits, unethical practices, or environmental harm. Plant-A used the media monitoring platform Onclusive to identify the incidents.
Trust is the foundation of brand loyalty and plays an integral role in shaping customer behavior and setting up the business for long-term success. Nearly 60% of customers in the U.S. say they remain loyal to brands they trust, even if prices increase, according to a report by Edelman. In a market with products from a multitude of brands, trust has become a differentiator, with research consistently showing trusted brands enjoy higher engagement, greater retention, and a stronger competitive edge. A Deloitte study determined that 20% of consumers spend 50% more money on brands they trust.