What is a Dividend Aristocrat?

A Dividend Aristocrat is typically defined as a company in the S&P 500 that has increased its dividend for at least 25 consecutive years. The label signals exceptional policy discipline through multiple recessions and is an explicit factor in our growth ranking.

Is high dividend growth always better?

Not by itself. A 30% one-year increase from a low base doesn't mean much if it isn't repeatable. We anchor on 5-year CAGR specifically because it smooths out one-off increases and special dividends, and we cross-check growth against the Safety Score so you can see whether the underlying company is healthy enough to keep delivering.

Why are some Aristocrats missing from the top 50?

A long streak alone isn't enough to reach the top — we also weight recent growth pace. Aristocrats whose dividend has only crept up by token amounts in recent years can fall behind faster-compounding non-Aristocrats on the composite rank.

Does this list include international stocks?

Yes, where we have at least 5 years of dividend history. Many European companies pay a single annual dividend that varies year to year more than a typical U.S. quarterly payer, so they sometimes appear with lower 5-year CAGR figures even when total payouts have grown.

How does this differ from your Dividend Aristocrats page?

The Dividend Aristocrats page is a static filter — every company with a 25+ year streak qualifies regardless of recent growth. This page is a leaderboard ranked by recent growth pace, so it surfaces both Aristocrats and faster-growing newer names side by side.

Dividend Growth Stocks

The top 50 stocks ranked by dividend growth — long streaks of increases combined with strong 5-year compound growth.

50
Dividend Stocks: 7.09%
Best 5Y CAGR: 2.48%
Average Yield: 50 / 50
Dividend Aristocrats: 75
Safety Score

Last updated: June 26, 2026

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50 stocks

			52 Weeks		Frequency
CTASIndustrials Cintas Corporation	94Very Safe	$169.09	161 227	1.06%	Quarterly	36.71%	+13.87%
GWWIndustrials W.W. Grainger, Inc.	93Very Safe	$1374.78	907 1391	0.69%	Quarterly	24.31%	+8.25%
FDSFinancial Services FactSet Research Systems Inc.	93Very Safe	$208.84	185 453	2.04%	Quarterly	28.31%	+7.45%
WSTHealthcare West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc.	93Very Safe	$346.56	207 352	0.26%	Quarterly	11.50%	+5.51%
BROFinancial Services Brown & Brown Inc.	92Very Safe	$60.83	54 111	1.11%	Quarterly	20.52%	+12.09%
NDSNIndustrials Nordson Corporation	91Very Safe	$304.64	207 308	1.11%	Quarterly	34.62%	+20.91%
AFLFinancial Services Aflac Inc.	91Very Safe	$118.23	97 120	2.04%	Quarterly	26.86%	+15.68%
EXPDIndustrials Expeditors International of Washington, Inc.	90Very Safe	$161.67	110 169	0.97%	Semi-Annual	24.88%	+8.17%
SPGIFinancial Services S&P Global Inc.	90Very Safe	$395.14	382 579	0.95%	Quarterly	24.35%	+7.46%
ATOUtilities Atmos Energy Corporation	86Very Safe	$173.67	150 193	2.28%	Quarterly	46.06%	+8.97%
CINFFinancial Services Cincinnati Financial Corporation	84Very Safe	$177.73	143 181	2.10%	Quarterly	20.30%	+7.71%
GDIndustrials General Dynamics Corporation	84Very Safe	$344.70	281 370	1.77%	Quarterly	38.33%	+6.50%
PPGBasic Materials PPG Industries Inc.	83Very Safe	$122.40	93 133	2.39%	Quarterly	40.26%	+5.77%
CHDConsumer Defensive Church & Dwight Co., Inc.	83Very Safe	$98.15	81 106	1.29%	Quarterly	39.23%	+4.21%
ABTHealthcare Abbott Laboratories	82Very Safe	$93.24	82 139	2.78%	Quarterly	67.23%	+10.38%
CATIndustrials Caterpillar Inc.	82Very Safe	$1057.01	370 1057	0.59%	Quarterly	29.58%	+7.23%
SHWBasic Materials The Sherwin-Williams Company	81Very Safe	$339.08	290 380	1.00%	Quarterly	30.45%	+12.08%
ROPTechnology Roper Technologies Inc.	80Very Safe	$332.42	306 576	1.09%	Quarterly	21.14%	+9.99%
NUEBasic Materials Nucor Corporation	80Very Safe	$248.89	128 271	0.91%	Quarterly	22.02%	+6.51%
PGConsumer Defensive Procter & Gamble Co	80Very Safe	$148.50	138 167	2.88%	Quarterly	61.80%	+6.02%
WMTConsumer Defensive Walmart Inc.	80Very Safe	$115.78	94 135	0.85%	Quarterly	33.54%	+5.48%
MKCConsumer Defensive McCormick & Company, Incorporated	79Safe	$48.35	45 78	4.07%	Quarterly	30.00%	+7.58%
JNJHealthcare Johnson & Johnson	78Safe	$244.88	151 252	2.27%	Quarterly	60.25%	+5.25%
ITWIndustrials Illinois Tool Works Inc.	76Safe	$270.60	239 303	2.38%	Quarterly	58.77%	+7.07%
CHRWIndustrials C.H. Robinson Worldwide, Inc.	76Safe	$180.34	92 203	1.34%	Quarterly	50.61%	+4.07%
TROWFinancial Services T. Rowe Price Group, Inc.	75Safe	$106.34	85 118	4.76%	Quarterly	54.83%	+7.13%
MDTHealthcare Medtronic plc	75Safe	$80.52	73 106	3.58%	Quarterly	76.14%	+4.42%
TGTConsumer Defensive Target Corporation	74Safe	$139.57	83 143	3.51%	Quarterly	59.97%	+11.02%
ECLBasic Materials Ecolab Inc.	74Safe	$281.20	243 309	1.05%	Quarterly	37.35%	+7.23%
KOConsumer Defensive The Coca-Cola Company	73Safe	$80.42	65 84	2.61%	Quarterly	64.78%	+4.46%
OReal Estate Realty Income Corporation	72Safe	$62.04	56 68	5.35%	Monthly	265.00%	+5.15%
EDUtilities Consolidated Edison, Inc.	72Safe	$110.76	95 116	3.25%	Quarterly	57.97%	+2.13%
ESSReal Estate Essex Property Trust, Inc.	71Safe	$285.57	238 294	3.73%	Quarterly	115.86%	+4.10%
LOWConsumer Cyclical Lowe's Companies Inc.	70Safe	$221.93	203 293	2.24%	Quarterly	40.57%	+15.87%
NEEUtilities NextEra Energy, Inc.	70Safe	$87.70	67 99	2.76%	Quarterly	58.95%	+10.12%
BDXHealthcare Becton, Dickinson and Company	69Safe	$151.38	128 187	2.66%	Quarterly	72.95%	+5.96%
CLConsumer Defensive Colgate-Palmolive Co	67Safe	$91.06	75 99	2.36%	Quarterly	80.62%	+3.32%
IBMTechnology International Business Machines Corp	67Safe	$258.27	212 332	2.67%	Quarterly	59.47%	+1.52%
MCDConsumer Cyclical McDonald's Corporation	66Safe	$264.54	265 342	2.72%	Quarterly	59.85%	+7.30%
XOMEnergy Exxon Mobil Corporation	66Safe	$137.55	106 176	2.95%	Quarterly	68.01%	+2.82%
ADMConsumer Defensive Archer-Daniels-Midland Co	64Safe	$76.54	51 85	2.70%	Quarterly	91.52%	+7.21%
CVXEnergy Chevron Corporation	61Safe	$172.24	142 215	3.99%	Quarterly	120.38%	+5.80%
SYYConsumer Defensive Sysco Corporation	61Safe	$80.85	68 92	2.77%	Quarterly	60.00%	+3.13%
KMBConsumer Defensive Kimberly-Clark Corporation	60Safe	$108.10	92 137	5.05%	Quarterly	97.87%	+3.32%
ABBVHealthcare AbbVie Inc.	56Caution	$243.14	182 245	2.93%	Quarterly	325.98%	+6.81%
CLXConsumer Defensive The Clorox Company	54Caution	$95.27	85 132	5.47%	Quarterly	80.33%	+2.54%
SJMConsumer Defensive The J. M. Smucker Company	53Caution	$112.50	88 119	4.11%	Quarterly	86.06%	+4.14%
SWKIndustrials Stanley Black & Decker Inc.	51Caution	$92.31	62 94	3.85%	Quarterly	135.66%	+3.49%
APDBasic Materials Air Products and Chemicals Inc.	49Caution	$279.93	229 308	2.54%	Quarterly	75.66%	+5.90%
GPCConsumer Cyclical Genuine Parts Company	44Caution	$112.99	91 152	3.98%	Quarterly	943.75%	+5.45%

Stocks that grow their dividend year after year do something that's hard to fake: they signal management confidence in future cash flow and they let your income compound while you hold. This leaderboard ranks the top 50 dividend growth stocks across our coverage of 1,100+ companies by a composite of 5-year dividend CAGR and the length of the consecutive-increase streak. The top of the list is filled with Dividend Aristocrats — companies that have raised their dividend for 25+ consecutive years — but you'll also find faster-growing newer names whose recent compounding is hard to ignore.

How we rank the best dividend growth stocks

Our growth ranking blends two dimensions that matter independently. Streak length captures the discipline and durability of the policy: an Aristocrat (25+ years), Champion (20+), Contender (10+), or Challenger (5+) all earn a bonus weighted toward the higher tiers. Dividend CAGR over the trailing 5 years captures how aggressively the dividend is actually compounding right now, capped at 25% so a single year of unusual catch-up growth doesn't dominate the score. Stocks must show positive 5-year CAGR and a real dividend yield to qualify. Once a candidate passes the filter, we sort by the composite, breaking ties first on streak length and then on overall Safety Score, so you don't end up with a fast-growing dividend that might be cut. Each row also shows the Safety Score so you can see growth and safety side by side. Re-ranked daily.

Read our full dividend safety methodology →

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about dividend growth stocks and how we rank them.