Top 10 software stocks in the US, ranked by X-Ray score
21 S&P 500 software stocks pass our data checks and are ranked on the X-Ray score. The top 10 are shown. The ranking follows fixed rules and is not a recommendation: high-ranking stocks can still fall. Scores as of 22 Oct 2026.
ADBE Adobe Inc.
- Highest profitability score on the list
- Second-highest valuation score on the list
- Fair-value check: Undervalued (+44% vs fair value range)
out of 100
Ranks 2 to 10
-
2
INTUIntuit Inc.
71
- Valuation
- 86
- Growth
- 68
- Profit
- 64
- Health
- 66
-
3
FICOFair Isaac Corp
71
- Valuation
- 81
- Growth
- 65
- Profit
- 84
- Health
- 47
-
4
ADSKAutodesk, Inc.
67
- Valuation
- 70
- Growth
- 60
- Profit
- 74
- Health
- 62
-
5
PLTRPalantir Technologies Inc.
63
- Valuation
- 18
- Growth
- 90
- Profit
- 64
- Health
- 89
-
6
MSFTMicrosoft Corp
61
- Valuation
- 54
- Growth
- 63
- Profit
- 69
- Health
- 62
-
7
FTNTFortinet, Inc.
59
- Valuation
- 39
- Growth
- 68
- Profit
- 71
- Health
- 61
-
8
GENGen Digital Inc.
59
- Valuation
- 95
- Growth
- 63
- Profit
- 45
- Health
- 38
-
9
PTCPtc Inc.
59
- Valuation
- 67
- Growth
- 63
- Profit
- 48
- Health
- 59
-
10
WDAYWorkday, Inc.
58
- Valuation
- 69
- Growth
- 67
- Profit
- 44
- Health
- 50
How this list is ranked
- Universe. S&P 500 companies in the GICS industries Application Software and Systems Software, scored from SEC filings with confidence High or Medium.
- Score. The X-Ray score (0 to 100) blends valuation, growth, profitability, financial health and dividends, with each lens ranked within the sector.
- Order. Sorted by X-Ray score; ties go to the higher financial-health score.
- Data. Scores come from company filings with the SEC and our own fair-value models. Every figure is our own calculation, dated 22 Oct 2026.
- Limits. Scores describe the past and the present, not the future. A company with less history gets a lower confidence label. Different rules give a different order, which is why the rules are printed here.
Why a ranking by stated rules and not a "best" label: the order changes with the rules, so the rules are published next to the list. See also how the X-Ray Score works.
What is in this list
The universe is every S&P 500 company in the GICS industries Application Software or Systems Software: 21 companies. Application software covers products people use directly (design, tax, accounting, analytics); systems software covers the layers beneath them, including operating systems, databases and security tools, so security vendors are found here and not in a separate cybersecurity group, which GICS does not have.
What the score can miss in software
Software companies often pay staff partly in shares, which dilutes existing owners over time. Heavy dilution is a red flag in our company checklist, but it is a warning and not part of the score, so a company can rank well here while diluting. Share-based pay is an expense in reported profit but not a cash cost, so profit and cash flow can tell different stories; check the profitability lens against the cash-flow and dilution warnings on the stock page.
What the current ranking shows
The leader is Adobe Inc., followed by Intuit Inc., Fair Isaac Corp. Our fair-value models label 4 of the ten undervalued, 6 fair and 0 overvalued. The median score across the 21 ranked companies is 57. Among the ten, the industries split as: 7 in Application Software, 3 in Systems Software.
Questions about these software stocks
Why is there no separate cybersecurity list?
GICS does not classify cybersecurity as an industry; security vendors sit inside systems or application software. A theme list would need a rule we could state and defend, so for now they are ranked here with their industry peers.
Does a high rank mean the software company is not diluting its shareholders?
No. Dilution is flagged on the stock page as a warning but is not part of the X-Ray score.
Are cloud and AI companies included?
Only those that S&P classes as application or systems software and that are in the S&P 500. Large platform companies classed as interactive media or internet retail are in other industries.
How is this different from the technology sector page?
The technology sector page ranks all S&P 500 technology companies, hardware and chips included. This list ranks only software against software.
More Top lists
Educational ranking by stated rules, not investment advice. Figures are StocksXray calculations from public filings and exchange data; they can be wrong or out of date. Past performance does not predict future results.