# What is the market cap?

Computes a company’s market capitalization: the share price you type × the number of shares outstanding.

- Page: https://www.acalculator.org/finance/market-cap-calculator
- JSON spec: https://www.acalculator.org/finance/market-cap-calculator.json
- Version: 5d1b71c3a965

## Default answer

Example with the default inputs (Share price $69.41, Shares outstanding 8,000): 8,000 shares at $69.41 each give a market cap of $555,280.00.

## Inputs

| Key | Label | Description |
| --- | --- | --- |
| price | Share price | The market price of one share. Type the price you see; the page fetches no quotes. |
| sh | Shares outstanding | The total number of the company’s shares held by investors. |

## Outputs

| Key | Label | Description |
| --- | --- | --- |
| cap | Market cap | Share price × shares outstanding. |

## Method

Market cap = share price × shares outstanding.

## Assumptions

- You type the share price; nothing is fetched.
- Arithmetic is exact on the typed decimals; money shows to the cent, halves up.

## Worked examples

1. price = $69.41, sh = 8,000 gives cap = $555,280.00. Source: Investor.gov (U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission), glossary: Market Capitalization (the current public market price of one share × the number of total outstanding shares). https://www.investor.gov/introduction-investing/investing-basics/glossary/market-capitalization; inputs from OpenStax, Principles of Finance, 6.5 Market Value Ratios (https://openstax.org/books/principles-finance/pages/6-5-market-value-ratios).
2. price = $25.50, sh = 1,200,000,000 gives cap = $30,600,000,000.00. Source: Investor.gov (U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission), glossary: Market Capitalization (the current public market price of one share × the number of total outstanding shares). https://www.investor.gov/introduction-investing/investing-basics/glossary/market-capitalization.
3. price = $0.37, sh = 2,500,000 gives cap = $925,000.00. Source: Investor.gov (U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission), glossary: Market Capitalization (the current public market price of one share × the number of total outstanding shares). https://www.investor.gov/introduction-investing/investing-basics/glossary/market-capitalization.

## FAQ

### What is market cap?

Market capitalization (market cap) is the value the stock market puts on a company's shares. It is the price of one share times the number of shares outstanding.

### How do I calculate market cap?

Multiply the share price by the shares outstanding. 1.2 billion shares at $25.50 each is a market cap of $30.6 billion. 8,000 shares at $69.41 is $555,280.

### Where do I find the number of shares outstanding?

Public companies report it on the cover of their annual and quarterly reports, and on the balance sheet or in its notes. Use the latest count, since buybacks and new issues change it.

### Is market cap the same as what a company is worth?

No. Market cap is only the value of the shares at today's price. A buyer of the whole company would also take on its debt and get its cash, so measures such as enterprise value add debt and subtract cash.

### Why does market cap change every day?

The share price moves whenever the stock trades, and the market cap moves with it. The share count changes only when the company issues or buys back shares.

### What do large cap, mid cap and small cap mean?

They are rough size groups by market cap. Fund companies and index providers set their own dividing lines, so check the definition each one uses.

## Sources

- Investor.gov (U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission), glossary: Market Capitalization, the current public market price of one share multiplied by the number of total outstanding shares. https://www.investor.gov/introduction-investing/investing-basics/glossary/market-capitalization (retrieved 2026-10-18)
- OpenStax, Principles of Finance, 6.5 Market Value Ratios: Clear Lake Sporting Goods, 8,000 common shares and a market price of $69.41 a share. https://openstax.org/books/principles-finance/pages/6-5-market-value-ratios (retrieved 2026-10-18)