Ad Age Best Places to Work shows the score on companies that did a standout job last year amid the challenges of a tight talent pool, uneven ad market and unsettled economy.

What makes the best work better than the rest?

The winning companies outscored other workplaces in factors ranging from pay and benefits to corporate culture and leadership.
 
Employees gave the winners significantly higher grades on some key differentiating policies, practices and other factors. In certain areas, the difference turned out to be comparatively small for winners and companies that didn’t make the ranking.
 
The 50 winners—the top 25 companies with more than 200 employees and the top 25 companies with 200 or fewer employees—reflect the highest overall scores based on an analysis of survey responses from employees and questionnaires submitted by employers.
 
Employer questionnaires reveal important differences between Ad Age Best Places to Work winners and other companies in factors relating to pay and benefits, diversity, recruitment and work-life balance.
 
The winners tally includes a strong showing of ad agencies, ad tech firms, digital agencies and marketing agencies along with winners from other disciplines.
 
The winners are spread across the U.S. and Canada, but nearly half have headquarters in two major metro areas.
 
Ad Age partnered on the report with Best Companies Group, a research firm specializing in identifying and recognizing great places to work.

Go here to see the rankings, find out what makes the 50 best places work and read profiles of 10 winners.