These World-Famous Companies Were Started in Washington

If you've ever wanted to work for a big company, you don't even need to look outside of Washington. The Evergreen State is home to several companies that, despite their humble beginnings, evolved into the most recognizable brands in the country, and in some cases, the world.

Get our free mobile app

Some of these Washington companies will surprise you

As I was researching this article, I found myself surprised by some of the names that popped up. We all are familiar with the big ones. Jeff Bezos and Amazon, Starbucks, and Boeing immediately come to mind. On this list, you'll find one of the largest cell phone carriers, and a prolific pizza joint, among others.

This is just a fun exercise for you to learn more about our state and its place in the world, just to tuck it away as a fun fact to bring up later.

But wait... what about Alaska Airlines and Microsoft?

Although Alaska Airlines calls SeaTac home, it was actually founded in 1932 in Anchorage, Alaska (hence the name). We can still recognize it as a huge company that calls Washington home, but it wasn't born here.

As for Microsoft, few people realize that the computing giant actually began its life in New Mexico! It only moved to Bellevue, Washington, a few years later. Washington certainly owes its thanks to Bill Gates for making the state Microsoft's home.

So now you know some of the biggest companies that started here in Washington. Did we miss an important one? Let us know!