PepsiCo has the higher average in this two-company comparison: −24 against Coca-Cola's −29, across the same ten available dimensions. Neither average is positive. PepsiCo leads on six dimensions, Coca-Cola on two, and two are tied.
The companies also have different portfolios: PepsiCo combines food and drinks, while Coca-Cola's portfolio centres on beverages. Comparing their conduct is different from deciding which particular drink or snack to buy.
April 2026 score records rechecked on 8 October 2026; the September correction below remains part of the record.
Correction — 13 September 2026: Removed an invalid entry named “score” and recalculated the rankings. Unavailable dimensions are excluded from averages and are no longer counted as neutral scores.
Each recorded score ranges from −100 to +100. The average is the sum of available scores divided by the number of scored dimensions; the coverage column shows that number out of eleven. “—” means no score is available and is not zero. A recorded zero is neutral within this scoring system, not proof that a company has no problems.
Ranks compare only the companies listed here, not every company in the sector. Both companies have the same coverage here, but an average alone does not capture differences in their business activities or provide an investment recommendation. Exact ties share a rank; displayed averages are rounded to one decimal place. Where highest or lowest scores tie, one dimension is shown.
Current ranking
| Rank | Company | Average | Scored dimensions | Highest score | Lowest score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | PepsiCo | -24.0 | 10/11 | Fair Trade & Ethical Sourcing -10 | Better Health for All -50 |
| 2 | Coca-Cola | -29.0 | 10/11 | No War, No Weapons 0 | Better Health for All -50 |
Scores by dimension
What the current profiles show
PepsiCo
Average: -24.0, using 10/11 dimensions. Recorded scores: 0 positive, 10 negative and 0 neutral; 1 unavailable. Latest score record: 2026-04-26. View the company’s scores and cited evidence.
Coca-Cola
Average: -29.0, using 10/11 dimensions. Recorded scores: 0 positive, 9 negative and 1 neutral; 1 unavailable. Latest score record: 2026-04-26. View the company’s scores and cited evidence.
Coca-Cola and PepsiCo portfolio comparison
| Category | Coca-Cola examples | PepsiCo examples |
|---|---|---|
| Cola | Coca-Cola | Pepsi |
| Other beverages | Sprite, Fanta, Powerade, smartwater | Gatorade, Aquafina, bubly |
| Coffee and wider food context | Costa Coffee | Food brands including Lay's, Doritos and Cheetos |
These are selected examples from the Coca-Cola portfolio and PepsiCo directory, not a complete list of regional ownership and licensing arrangements. Their breadth helps explain why a comparison of just Coke and Pepsi drinks cannot represent every activity of either parent company.
For the wider maps and ownership exceptions, read Coca-Cola brands and PepsiCo brands. This page compares the two groups; those guides answer which parent owns a particular brand.
Is PepsiCo more ethical than Coca-Cola?
PepsiCo has the higher recorded average and a 30-point worker-treatment advantage in this snapshot. Coca-Cola has the higher recorded result for the weapons and technology dimensions. Both score −50 on health and −10 on ethical sourcing.
Your conclusion can therefore depend on the value you prioritise. Equal weighting is a transparent summary, not a scientific rule that every reader must adopt. A company-level health score also does not establish that one individual drink is healthier than another: compare the product information directly.
Does switching from Coke to Pepsi change the owner?
Yes: these are different parent companies. But changing the parent is not proof that every ethical concern is resolved. Switching between two brands within the same group does not even make that parent-level change.
For the specific campaign questions, see the Coca-Cola boycott explainer. A boycott's stated target, a parent company's conduct and the actions of an independent bottler or franchisee should be distinguished.
How to use this comparison
Use these scores as a route into the underlying evidence, not as a substitute for reading it. Open a company profile, choose the values that matter to you, and follow its direct citations. Company records can be incomplete, and a neutral score should never be read as an endorsement.
Search any company or read the latest research.
Score records and supporting evidence
The figures above come from the linked Mashinii company profiles. Open each dimension in a profile to inspect its explanation and cited evidence. The retrieval date is not a claim that every underlying score was newly updated.
Review, 8 October 2026: preserved the verified score tables and September correction, added a direct comparison and a selected brand-portfolio table, and clarified how ownership differs from ethical performance.
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