Top 13 marketing agencies in the US
13 marketing agencies in the US that are actually operating, each checked against its own site and a second source. What they do, who it’s for, and the one reason it made the list. No pay-to-rank.
- 01
- Portland, OR
- Since 1982
Wieden+Kennedy is an independent, privately owned creative company founded in Portland in 1982 by Dan Wieden and David Kennedy. It runs creative, media, social, design and strategy from ten offices including Portland, New York, Amsterdam, London, Tokyo and Shanghai, and has been Nike's agency since its founding. Other clients include Ford, McDonald's and Procter & Gamble.
Why it’s hereOne of the largest independently owned agencies in the world, and Nike's agency of record for more than 40 years.
Known forcreative · media · social · design · global brands
Named clientsNike, Ford, McDonald's, Procter & Gamble, Samsung, IKEA, Corona, DoorDash, Visa, Old Spice
Checked against wk.com, en.wikipedia.org
- 02
- New York, NY
- Since 2020
Mischief is a New York creative agency founded in 2020 by chief creative officer Greg Hahn in partnership with Canadian independent No Fixed Address. It focuses on attention-getting brand campaigns for consumer companies such as Tinder, Coors Light, eos and Kraft Heinz.
Why it’s hereRanked number one on Ad Age's A-List in 2022 and 2024 and named Adweek's U.S. Agency of the Year in 2023 and 2025.
Known forcreative · brand campaigns · consumer brands · independent
Named clientsTinder, Coors Light, eos, Kraft Heinz, Reddit, Tubi, Shutterfly, Pfizer, Huggies
Checked against mischiefusa.com, adage.com
- 03
- New York, NY
- Since 2007
Johannes Leonardo is a New York creative agency founded in 2007 by Jan Jacobs, Leo Premutico and Ferdinando Verderi, working from 115 Broadway in lower Manhattan. Its work centres on adidas Originals, Volkswagen and Kraft Heinz brands; WPP holds a 25 percent minority stake but the founders control the agency.
Why it’s hereNamed to Ad Age's A-List (third in 2020) and Fast Company's Most Innovative Companies in advertising in 2023, 2025 and 2026.
Known forcreative · brand strategy · automotive · consumer brands
Named clientsadidas Originals, Volkswagen, Kraft Heinz, Oscar Mayer, Velveeta, Google
Checked against johannesleonardo.com, en.wikipedia.org
- 04
- New York, NY
- Since 1977
- 500+ people
R/GA is a New York-headquartered digital and brand agency founded in 1977 by Richard and Robert Greenberg. It designs brand systems, commerce experiences and AI-driven products from offices across the U.S., Europe, Latin America and Asia-Pacific, and became independent again in 2025 when it spun out of Interpublic with private-equity backing. Longstanding clients include Nike, Google and Samsung.
Why it’s hereA 2,000-plus-person agency with a record of digital product work for Nike and Google, newly independent after leaving Interpublic.
Known fordigital product design · brand systems · AI and technology · commerce experiences
Named clientsNike, Google, Samsung, IBM, Beats by Dre
Checked against rga.com, en.wikipedia.org
- 05
- New York, NY
- Since 2004
- 500+ people
Tinuiti is a performance marketing agency founded in New York in 2004 as Elite SEM and renamed in 2019. It manages about $4 billion in digital media across search, social, Amazon and retail media, streaming TV and affiliate, has more than 1,000 employee-owners, and took investment from New Mountain Capital in 2021 while remaining independent. Clients include e.l.f. Beauty, Poppi and Sony.
Why it’s hereThe largest independent performance marketing agency in the U.S. by media under management, and Ad Age's number one Best Place to Work in 2019 and 2020.
Known forperformance marketing · retail media and commerce · paid search and social · streaming TV
Named clientse.l.f. Beauty, Poppi, Away, Sony, TOMS, The Honest Company, Culligan, Tony's Chocolonely
Checked against tinuiti.com, clutch.co
- 06
- Los Angeles, CA
- Since 2001
- 201–500 people
Wpromote is a digital marketing agency founded in 2001 by Mike Mothner while at Dartmouth and now headquartered in Los Angeles with offices in Chicago and New York. It runs media, creative, data and strategy for brands such as Intuit QuickBooks, Southwest Airlines and Peacock, and in late 2025 acquired creative agency Giant Spoon. The company is privately held with backing from ZMC.
Why it’s hereSeven-time Ad Age Best Place to Work and a four-time Search Engine Land Agency of the Year, with roughly 500 staff.
Known forperformance media · paid search and social · data and analytics · creative
Named clientsIntuit QuickBooks, Southwest Airlines, Peacock, Samsung, Equinox, Vuori, Strava, Purina, TransUnion
Checked against wpromote.com, en.wikipedia.org
- 07
- Kansas City, MO
- Since 1964
- 500+ people
BarkleyOKRP is an independent advertising agency formed in 2024 when Kansas City's Barkley (founded 1964) merged with Chicago's OKRP. It has more than 600 staff, an in-house production unit called The Bananary and a media arm, MissionOne Media, with $1.1 billion in billings. The agency is a certified B Corp and describes itself as holding-company free.
Why it’s hereThe largest independent agency in Kansas City, with 600+ staff and national accounts such as Burger King and Macy's.
Known forintegrated campaigns · brand strategy · media · restaurant and retail · B Corp
Named clientsBurger King, Macy's, Frontier Airlines, Red Lobster, Smoothie King, Jiffy Lube, Planet Fitness, Dairy Queen
Checked against barkleyokrp.com, en.wikipedia.org, adage.com
- 08
- Chicago, IL
- Since 1898
Cramer-Krasselt is an independent full-service agency founded in Milwaukee in 1898 and headquartered in Chicago since the mid-1980s, with its Milwaukee office still operating. It offers creative, media, social, PR, analytics, UX and production, describes itself as the second-largest independent agency in the U.S., and belongs to the ICOM network. Clients have included Corona, Porsche and Cintas.
Why it’s hereIn business since 1898 and self-described as the second-largest independent agency in the U.S.
Known forcreative · media · public relations · analytics · performance marketing
Named clientsCorona Extra, Porsche, Cintas, Tropicana, Cat's Pride, Pacifico
Checked against c-k.com, en.wikipedia.org
- 09
- Brooklyn, NY
Mother New York is the U.S. arm of Mother, the independent creative agency founded in London in 1996. It operates from a converted building in Gowanus, Brooklyn, alongside sister units Mother Design and Media by Mother, and has recent campaigns for Uber, Amica Insurance and StreetEasy. The network has repeatedly declined acquisition and remains founder-owned.
Why it’s hereA long-standing independent creative agency whose New York office has produced work for Uber and StreetEasy while resisting holding-company ownership.
Known forcreative · design · media · independent
Named clientsUber, Amica Insurance, StreetEasy
Checked against mothernewyork.com, en.wikipedia.org
- 10
- Austin, TX
- Since 2014
Preacher is a full-service independent creative company in Austin founded in 2014 by Rob Baird, Krystle Loyland and Seth Gaffney, all formerly of Mother New York. It provides strategy, creative, design and production for consumer and technology brands.
Why it’s hereA founder-owned Austin shop that has been profiled by Ad Age, Adweek and Communication Arts and is a recurring Ad Age Small Agency Awards winner.
Known forcreative · brand strategy · design · full-service
Checked against preacher.co, adage.com
- 11
- Los Angeles, CA
- Since 2006
Zambezi is an independent, women-owned creative agency in Los Angeles founded in 2006 by former Wieden+Kennedy staff. It began in sports marketing and now handles integrated creative, digital and production for consumer brands such as TaylorMade, Autotrader and The Venetian. CEO Jean Freeman is the agency's majority owner.
Why it’s hereAd Age Small Agency of the Year in 2011 and 2016 and one of the largest woman-owned agencies in the country.
Known forcreative · integrated campaigns · sports and consumer brands · women-owned
Named clientsTaylorMade, Autotrader, The Venetian Las Vegas, Stance, Smartwater, Popchips
Checked against zmbz.com, en.wikipedia.org, prnewswire.com
- 12
- Minneapolis, MN
- Since 2004
MONO is an independent creative agency in Minneapolis founded in 2004 by Jim Scott, Michael Hart and Chris Lange, built around the idea that simple work wins. It offers advertising, branding, design, production, social and experiential, and its client list includes Target, Walmart, Macy's and Google Pay.
Why it’s hereAd Age Small Agency of the Year winner in 2010 and a 4A's O'Toole Award recipient, still founder-led.
Known forcreative · branding · design · consumer brands
Named clientsTarget, Walmart, Macy's, Google Pay, Jelly Belly, Peroni, American Red Cross, Bumble, Sperry
Checked against mono-1.com, prnewswire.com
- 13
- Minneapolis, MN
- Since 2001
- 51–200 people
Broadhead is an independent full-service agency founded in Minneapolis in 2001 by Dean Broadhead, with offices in Charlotte and Delafield, Wisconsin. Its 145 staff work on brands in food and beverage, agriculture, health and transportation, combining research, data science and creative. Clients include Sunkist, Norfolk Southern and Boehringer Ingelheim.
Why it’s hereNamed an Ad Age Small Agency of the Year in 2026 and listed in Inc.'s 2025 Best in Business.
Known forfood and beverage · agriculture · transportation · data and AI · full-service
Named clientsSunkist, Norfolk Southern, Boehringer Ingelheim, Thomas Built Buses, Takeya, MIPS, Mini Melts
Checked against broadheadco.com, adage.com
Checked, not scraped.
Every firm on this page was found through directories, press and client mentions, then verified two ways: its own website had to be live and describe the work, and a second, independent source had to agree it exists and does that work. Founding years, headcounts and client names appear only where the firm or a directory states them; where we couldn’t confirm, the field is blank rather than guessed.
The order is editorial — longevity, named clients, scale and a clear specialism, in roughly that weight — not a score, and nobody on the list paid to be on it. The one exception is marked: the featured card is our own bench and says so.
Lists are re-checked each quarter. Missing a firm that belongs here, or listed and want a correction? Write to lists@primortul.com.
Hiring a marketing agency in the US, answered plainly
- How many marketing agencies in the US are on this list, and where are they?
- 13. The 13 firms are spread across Portland, New York, Los Angeles, Kansas City, Chicago, Brooklyn and 2 other cities. Each was verified against its own website and a second source before it was listed.
- How do I choose between marketing agencies in the US?
- Start from the job, not the agency: write down what done looks like in one paragraph, then read the "why it's here" line on each entry and shortlist the two or three whose reason matches your job. Ask each for one comparable piece of work and who on their team would actually do yours.
- Did any of these firms pay to be listed?
- No. The order is editorial — longevity, named clients, scale and a clear specialism — and no firm on the ranked list paid for its place. The one paid card is marked "Featured" and is our own bench, Fracs; it is not ranked.
- How long have these marketing agencies been around?
- The oldest firm on the list dates from 1898; founding years are shown on each entry where the firm states one, and left blank where it doesn't.
- What should I bring to a first call with a marketing agency?
- Your revenue band, what you sell and to whom, the one number you want moved, a budget range, and a start date. Firms price faster and more honestly when the brief is concrete; the match form on this page asks for exactly those five things.
- How is this list kept current?
- It was checked September 2026 and is re-checked each quarter: dead sites come off, mergers and renames are updated, and firms that belong here are added. Corrections go to lists@primortul.com.
Describe the job. Get one marketing agency back that fits it.
Two minutes. We read what you wrote, pick one provider from this list or our bench whose work matches it, and they contact you within a business day. Nobody else gets your details.
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