In Estonia, the financial sector Has an Exceptionally Strong Reputation – In Germany, a Grocery Chain Leads
The Reputation&Trust 2025 study shows that Estonia’s most reputable company is financial group LHV. Among the ten most reputable companies in Estonia are also three other players from the financial sector. In Germany, the most reputable is grocery retail chain DM. The weakest reputation among Germans belongs to Tesla, whose reputation has declined by a record amount from the previous year.
Estonia’s most reputable company, LHV, has a reputation score of 4.14. The reputations of Ikea furniture chain, which came in second place, and Wise payment service, which placed third, are also at an excellent level: Ikea’s score is 4.10 and Wise’s 4.04.
In the Reputation&Trust research model, an organization’s reputation is at an excellent level if the score is at least 4.
“Such a high reputation score indicates that all areas of the company’s reputation are at a good level,” says Riku Ruokolahti, Development Director at Reputation and Trust Analytics.
The 2025 Reputation&Trust study received responses from 2,793 Estonians, who provided 6,243 organizational assessments. In total, 26,997 respondents participated in the study across six different countries.
Estonia’s Most Reputable Companies 2025
TABLE: Trust&Reputation 2025 study. The study examined the reputation of organizations operating in Estonia among Estonians.
“The research results show that Estonia has a very strong financial sector. Four of the ten most reputable companies represent this sector: LHV, Wise, Swedbank, and SEB. This is completely exceptional; in our studies conducted in the Nordic countries, financial sector players have never been so strongly represented at the top of the reputation rankings,” says Ruokolahti.
“Similarities between the Nordic countries and Estonia can, on the other hand, be seen in Ikea’s success. Ikea was Sweden’s most reputable company this year and also placed among the most reputable in Norway, Denmark, and Finland. This strong Nordic leader’s good reputation extends to Estonia as well, where its reputation is at an even higher level than in Sweden,” Ruokolahti continues.
The Nordic Countries’ Most and Least Reputable Companies 2025
TABLE: Trust&Reputation 2025 study. Finland’s, Sweden’s, Norway’s, and Denmark’s most and least reputable companies.
Estonia’s Weakest Reputation for Bankrupt Nordica
At the bottom of Estonia’s least reputable companies list is airline Nordica, which filed for bankruptcy and ceased operations at the end of 2024.
“Although Nordica had already ceased operations, its poor reputation image still lived on in people’s minds in 2025. The company’s reputation score of 1.96 in the study is at a very poor level. Such weak reputation scores are rare,” says Riku Ruokolahti.
The list of least reputable companies also includes players from the financial sector, which is strongly represented at the top of the reputation rankings: Big Bank and Luminor. However, both companies’ reputations reach a moderate level; in the Reputation&Trust research model, reputation is at a moderate level if the score falls between 3–3.49.
“Although the financial sector appears strong in our study, it is clear that there is variation in the reputations of companies in this sector as well,” Ruokolahti notes.
Estonia’s Least Reputable Companies 2025
TABLE: Reputation&Trust 2025 study. The study examined the reputation of organizations operating in Estonia among Estonians.
Tesla’s Reputation Collapsed in Germany by a Record Amount
In Germany, Tesla was rated as having the weakest reputation, with its reputation score dropping to a very poor level of 2.48 in 2025. The decline from the previous year was 0.77 units.
“We have extensively studied companies’ reputations with the Reputation&Trust model in various markets since 2013. Tesla’s 0.77 unit decline in reputation in Germany is the largest reputation drop we have seen during this time,” says Ruokolahti.
Germany’s Most and Least Reputable Companies 2025
TABLE: Trust&Reputation 2025 study. The study examined the reputation of organizations operating in Germany among Germans.
DM Chain Has Exceptionally Strong Reputation
The most reputable company among Germans was the grocery retail chain DM, which focuses on cosmetics and household products, receiving a reputation score of 4.14.
“Retail players almost never rise to the top of reputation rankings in our studies. However, DM’s reputation is particularly strong, compared to players in any industry. It even showed an increase of 0.12 units from the previous year, which is a statistically significant change,” says Riku Ruokolahti.
“A reputation score at such a high level indicates that all areas of reputation in the company are at a good or excellent level,” Ruokolahti notes.
How We Conducted the Study
The Reputation&Trust 2025 study was conducted in six different countries, with a total of 26,997 respondents participating.
The published most and least reputable companies were selected for the group of studied companies based on a preliminary study conducted earlier in 2025. In the preliminary study, respondents in each country spontaneously named two companies they considered particularly reputable and two particularly poorly reputable companies. Reputation and Trust Analytics does not guide the selection of companies.
The thirty companies that received the most mentions in each country were studied more closely. Organizations were evaluated using Reputation and Trust Analytics’ Reputation&Trust research model, in which an organization’s reputation score is formed as an average of eight different sub-areas. The sub-areas are the company’s governance, finances, management, innovativeness, interaction, products and services, workplace, and sustainability. The study used a five-point evaluation scale (1–5).
The lists included the ten companies that received the highest and ten that received the lowest scores.
For Estonia, the goal of the Reputation&Trust 2025 study was to examine the reputation of organizations operating in Estonia among the country’s citizens. Data collection for the study was conducted using an electronic questionnaire from June 4–25, 2025.
In Estonia, 2,793 respondents participated in the study. The study’s target group was 15–65-year-old Estonians nationwide. The sample is weighted to be representative of the population by gender, age, and residential area.
For Germany, the goal of the Reputation&Trust 2025 study was to examine the reputation of organizations operating in Germany among the country’s citizens. Data collection for the study was conducted using an electronic questionnaire from June 3–30, 2025.
In Germany, 3,594 respondents participated in the study. The study’s target group was 15–65-year-old citizens nationwide. The sample is weighted to be representative of the population by gender, age, and residential area.
More information:
Riku Ruokolahti, Development Director, Reputation and Trust Analytics, +358 400 512 200, riku.ruokolahti@reptrust.com
