--- description: For the past two years, there were 24 female CEOs on the Fortune 500 list—a mere 4.8%. Now, that number has shrunk to 21 CEOs and 4.2%. title: Women Lead Only 21 of the Fortune 500 Companies image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdd40f1c9b35c5779/6988967fa988ca38496b81d2/female-ceo-fortune.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [motto](/tag/motto/) ## motto Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Women Lead Only 21 of the Fortune 500 Companies by [Megan Lasher](/author/megan-lasher/) ## Megan Lasher Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 6, 2016 7:44 PM CUT  Four office chairs and conference table in front of grey wall panel, 3D Rendering Four office chairs and conference table in front of grey wall panel, 3D RenderingGetty Images by [Megan Lasher](/author/megan-lasher/) ## Megan Lasher Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 6, 2016 7:44 PM CUT Monday, Fortune released [its annual _Fortune_ 500 list](http://fortune.com/fortune500/ "undefined"). For the past two years, there have been [24 female CEOs](http://motto.time.com/4324617/female-ceo-earning-more/?iid=sr-link1 "undefined") on the list. Now, as [_Fortune_ ](http://fortune.com/2016/06/06/women-ceos-fortune-500-2016/ "undefined")[associate editor Valentina Zarya notes](http://fortune.com/2016/06/06/women-ceos-fortune-500-2016/ "undefined"), that number has decreased to 21 CEOs, a 12.5% drop in women-led companies on the list. “A number of factors conspired to make 2016 a tough year for the women of the _Fortune_ 500,” Zarya wrote in Monday’s [The Broadsheet](http://fortune.com/getbroadsheet/ "undefined") newsletter. “TJX chief Carol Meyrowitz dropped off after [retiring](http://fortune.com/2015/10/07/tjmaxx-ceo-carol-meyrowitz-resignation-macys/ "undefined") earlier this year, handing the reins her second in command, Ernie Herrman. Ellen Kullman, longtime CEO of DuPont, also retired, though her departure was less harmonious.” The real red flag isn’t the loss of specific executives, says Zarya—it’s the lack of new ones. “It’s notable that of the 29 new companies that joined the _Fortune_ 500 this year, only one has a female CEO: Mary Laschinger of paper products and distribution company Veritiv,” she wrote. [_Follow Motto on Facebook._](https://www.facebook.com/mottoworkplaylive/ "undefined") Zarya also noted that women will take the helm at Progressive and CME Energy later this year. Read the full list of female _Fortune_ 500 CEOs on [Fortune.com](http://fortune.com/2016/06/06/women-ceos-fortune-500-2016/ "undefined"). ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4358172/fortune-500-female-ceo/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4358172/fortune-500-female-ceo/"},"headline":"Women Lead Only 21 of the Fortune 500 Companies","datePublished":"2016-06-06T19:44:41.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T09:02:39.751Z","description":"And that's down from last year","url":"https://time.com/4358172/fortune-500-female-ceo/","keywords":["motto","News","Fortune 500"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdd40f1c9b35c5779/6988967fa988ca38496b81d2/female-ceo-fortune.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Megan Lasher","jobTitle":"","url":"https://time.com/author/megan-lasher/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdd40f1c9b35c5779/6988967fa988ca38496b81d2/female-ceo-fortune.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Four office chairs and conference table in front of grey wall panel, 3D Rendering","caption":"Four office chairs and conference table in front of grey wall panel, 3D Rendering","creditText":"Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/motto/","name":"motto"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4358172/fortune-500-female-ceo/","name":"Women Lead Only 21 of the Fortune 500 Companies"}}]}] ```